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Homemade Candy Eyeballs

Did you know you can D.I.Y candy eyeballs? It only takes 3 ingredients too, all natural. Kids get a kick out of making them, and secretly, adults do too!

Candy eyeballs in copper dish and scattered on wood cutting board with black and purple ribbon.

What you need:

  • Powdered sugar
  • Cornstarch
  • Black cocoa powder (for coloring, or black food coloring of choice)
  • Vanilla extract is optional
  • Water
  • Plastic bags or piping bags with round tips
  • Parchment paper
White icing in a plastic bag, next to small bag of black icing by a pair of scissors.

Instructions

Mix up the powdered sugar, corn starch, vanilla optional and water until an icing like consistency is formed.

Remove a few tablespoons to a separate, smaller bowl and mix in the black cocoa powder or black food coloring.

You only need a little bit of black, since it's just for the pupils.

Black icing like confection in a small glass bowl next to a larger white bowl with white icing.

Either use piping bags with round tips (one small, one larger for the white), or do like I've done above and use plastic baggies.

Use care when snipping off the tips, a little snip goes a long way.

Better to start out with too small of a hole than have to re-bag it because it's been cut too large.

The black gets a smaller tip, or smaller hole.

Start with the white, and pipe round circles onto parchment paper.

The parchment paper is necessary so that they eyeballs don't stick. I wouldn't try this on tin foil, or anything other than parchment or a nonstick mat.

Before the white is completely set, pipe tiny little black dots in their centers.

Allow the eyeballs to air dry, uncovered overnight at room temp.

Allow them to thoroughly dry before decorating.

Larger eyes will take longer to dry, but the smaller ones should be hard within a few hours to overnight at the longest.

📖 Recipe

Candy eyeballs on wood cutting board in copper bowl with black and purple decorative ribbon.

DIY Candy Eyeballs

Easy to make candy eyeballs for decorating Halloween treats, cakes, cupcakes and cookies!
5 from 3 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cakes, cupcakes, decorating, diy, Halloween, treats
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 32
Calories: 16kcal
Author: Erin
Cost: $0.11

Equipment

  • parchment paper
  • baggies or piping tips

Ingredients

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla optional
  • 2 tablespoon water
  • 1 tablespoon black cocoa powder or black food coloring

Instructions

  • Combine powdered sugar, corn starch, vanilla (optional) and water until icing like consistency is formed.
  • Remove about three tablespoons worth of the white mixture, and mix in the cocoa powder or black food coloring. (Depending on what you use, you may need to add a bit more water.)
  • Divide the two colors into individual plastic baggies, or piping bags fitted with large and small round tip. Using a jar to line with plastic bags helps to get the icing scooped in more easily.
  • Twist and secure the bags to close. Cut a hole in each bag (small for the white, tiny for the black).
  • Pipe the white in circles onto parchment paper; using a baking sheet or something flat underneath for moving it later.
  • Pipe small black dots in the centers of the white, before they are completely set.
  • Let air dry overnight until hardened. Don't go over a ¼ inch diameter, or they may have trouble drying out.
  • Store at room temp, and decorate as needed.

Notes

  • Allow to dry at room temperature, uncovered. 
  • Vanilla is optional, but don't use too much-it can discolor the whites to a brown color. 
  • Don't store candy eyeballs in the heat. 

Nutrition

Calories: 16kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Sodium: 1mg | Sugar: 4g
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Recipe Rating




Alli

Saturday 26th of October 2024

Could you sub corn starch for arrowroot powder?

Jaq

Tuesday 12th of September 2023

If you bake cookies and put these in it will they hold up and still look like eyes?