Sweet & Tangy Kool-Aid Licorice Ropes You Can Twist & Pull
I first made these on a rainy Saturday when the kids were begging for candy and I had nothing but a dusty Kool-Aid packet in the back of the cupboard. Honestly, I didn't expect them to work — but the smell of cherry and sugar bubbling on the stove brought me right back to being eight years old. These ropes are chewy, bright, and totally addictive — like the candy aisle in rope form. You can twist them, braid them, or just yank them apart like a sugar-hungry octopus. Warning: your fingers will be sticky, your kitchen will smell like a candy shop, and you'll want to eat them all before they even cool.
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar — the cheap kind works fine, no need to get fancy
- ½ cup light corn syrup — this is what makes them chewy, not crunchy
- ¼ cup water — just from the tap, no need to measure with a fancy beaker
- 1 packet unsweetened Kool-Aid — any flavor, but cherry and grape are the classics
- 1 tbsp butter — for richness and to stop it sticking to everything
- ¼ tsp baking soda — this is the magic that makes the texture right
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and grease it lightly — trust me, you'll thank yourself later when you're not chiselling candy off the tray.
- In a medium saucepan, stir together the sugar, corn syrup, and water. Clip a candy thermometer to the side — if you don't have one, honestly, just keep an eye on it and don't let it burn.
- Heat over medium, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Then stop stirring and let it bubble away until it hits 260°F (hard-ball stage). It'll smell like molten lollipops and make you feel like a mad scientist.
- Remove from heat and quickly stir in the Kool-Aid powder, butter, and baking soda. It'll foam up like a science fair volcano — that's normal, just keep stirring until it's smooth.
- Pour the hot mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Let it cool for 5 minutes or until you can touch it without screaming.
- Grease your hands (I use butter, but oil works too) and start pulling and folding the candy. It'll be hot, so be careful. Pull it into a rope, fold it, repeat — do this for about 5 minutes until it turns lighter and gets stretchy.
- Divide the candy into portions and roll each into a long rope about ½ inch thick. You can twist two colors together if you're feeling fancy.
- Let the ropes cool completely on the parchment — they'll firm up as they sit. Then cut into pieces or leave them long for maximum pulling satisfaction.
Notes
Don't skip the kneading — it's weirdly therapeutic and makes the ropes stretchy instead of crumbly. I once tried to rush it and ended up with sad, brittle sticks that snapped like old twigs. Also, if your Kool-Aid is sugar-free, add an extra tablespoon of sugar — the texture depends on it. Oh, and wear an apron unless you want to look like you've been in a food fight with a unicorn.