Photo: Almost-Famous Conversation Hearts Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4-ounce packet unflavored gelatin powder
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 1-pound boxes confectioners' sugar (about 8 cups), plus more for kneading
- Assorted food coloring, for tinting
- Assorted extracts (such as peppermint, strawberry or almond), for flavoring (optional)
- Cooking spray
- Food decorating pens, for writing
Directions
Whisk the gelatin, corn syrup, vanilla, salt and 1/2 cup boiling water in a stand mixer bowl until the gelatin dissolves. Using the paddle attachment, beat in the confectioners' sugar on medium-low speed, 1 cup at a time, to make a stiff, sticky dough.
Transfer the dough to a clean surface and knead, adding more confectioners' sugar as needed (up to 1 cup), until the dough is smooth, pliable and slightly tacky, about 5 minutes.
Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Flatten 1 piece into a disk. (Cover the rest with plastic wrap.) Add a few drops each of food coloring and extract to the center of the dough; fold in the sides and pinch closed, then knead until the color is distributed.
Lightly coat a large piece of parchment paper with cooking spray. Roll out the colored dough on the parchment until 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into hearts using 1-inch cookie cutters; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, using different colors and extracts. Let the hearts sit at room temperature, uncovered, until dry and hard, about 24 hours, flipping them halfway through. Write messages on the hearts using food decorating pens. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Photograph by Sam Kaplan
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By KRAVFUN
Irvine, CA
on February 21, 2013
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I really didn't want to make this, because I thought it sounded like a lot of work for something I could buy, but I am so glad my daughter asked me to make them. They tasted great! And it took about 2 hours to make well over 200. All of them were banana flavored, separated into four different colors. It was fun to do with my kids, although it is messy when incorporating the food coloring, which of course makes it fun. The kids and I had fun coming up with more than 100 hip and cool expressions for todays 9-11 year olds. They were a hit amongst their classmates, especially because of the personalization.
By dollbaby78
South WIndsor, CT
on February 14, 2013
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I made these with my son for Valentine's Day candy for his class and they were excellent! I bought markers to color the hearts & the heart cutter on Amazon. I used 6 colors & extracts instead of 4 - mint (green, orange (orange, cinnamon (red, rum (blue, coconut (white and lemon (yellow. It was a lot of fun! We actually used a 1/2 inch cutter which makes the hearts a lot smaller and harder to write on - a 1 inch cutter would've been a lot less work! They all tasted good as well! I used 1/2 teaspoon of extract as well because I wanted the flavors to be obvious (I couldn't taste the flavors with just a couple drops.
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