With Halloween right around the corner, you just might be in the mood to make some candy of your own instead of buying treats at the store. Here we’ve rounded up the best candy-making kitchen gadgets to kick off spooky season the right way.
While it is possible to make many types of candy with standard kitchen supplies, investing in the gadgets listed below will save you a lot of time. Plus, it means candy-making becomes a fun family activity. And you’re sure to end up with sweets that taste so good it’s scary.
Cotton Candy Machines for Any Budget
Cotton candy machines provide one of the most fun and easy ways to make Halloween treats at home.
For example, VIVO offers a powerful machine that turns sugar or hard candy into two to three servings of cotton candy per minute. Plus, it’s mounted on a wheeled cart, so you can roll it out and set up your very own cotton candy station on Halloween night anywhere you want. This candy-making kitchen gadget will run you about $200, but brings the true cotton candy experience to your home kitchen.
For a more budget-friendly option, check out Nostalgia’s $59.99 cotton candy maker. This tabletop model works with standard hard candy, sugar-free hard candy, and flossing sugar. It also comes with two reusable cones and a sugar scoop.
Make Candy Apples in a Fondue Set
Candy apples are a long-time Halloween favorite, but making them can get quite messy.
Thankfully, another Nostalgia candy-making kitchen gadget will help you tidy up your candy apple-making process. The company offers a lazy Susan/heated fondue pot set for $49.99, which includes:
- A 16-ounce melting pot for caramel or chocolate
- 25 apple sticks
- Four decorating trays for cradling your apples
- Six topping trays for sprinkles, nuts, etc.
Another benefit to this product is that it’s versatile. Once Halloween season has passed, you can use it to create other dishes year-round like:
- Chocolate-covered strawberries
- Nacho cheese
- Other fondue dishes with bread, meat or vegetables
Use a Chocolate Refiner for Impressive Homemade Chocolates
If you want to make your own chocolate from scratch, the Indi Premier Chocolate Refiner allows you to do exactly that. This candy-making kitchen gadget offers commercial-grade quality with its 1,440 rpm motor and stainless steel construction. It’s compact and weighs 25 pounds, so it’s small enough to fit on the average kitchen countertop.
To operate the Indi Premier Chocolate Refiner, all you need to do is slowly add cacao nibs, warm cocoa butter, and sugar. Then, just sit back and watch as it transforms into rich, delicious chocolate.
Indi also offers a product for shaping your chocolate with their $30 magnetic molds. The magnetic design is excellent for preventing leakage. These molds are easy to use with texture sheets and color sheets that you can find at your local crafts or cake shop. The molds are available in four shapes:
- Square
- Heart
- Circle
- Oval
Candy-Making Kitchen Gadgets Can Save Money in the Long Run
The price of a few of these products may be giving you some sticker shock. But you have to remember, these gadgets will help you avoid the cost of store-bought candy for not just this Halloween, but all future Halloweens to come.
And can you even put a price on being the only household on the block that’s creative enough to make their own candy?
