Beetroot and bubblegum pastilles
I have wanted to make these for a long time and finally made use of the ‘interesting’ Monin syrup which I put on my Christmas wishlist for exactly that purpose.
Beetroot juiced unexpectedly well with a good yield. We have some growing in one of our raised beds but I stayed their execution and bought larger ones from a lovely new fruit and vegetable venture which has opened in our village.
Instead of simply admiring the intense purple velvet hue, this is the time to watch out for any splashes which could leave colourful evidence of your activities all around the kitchen.
More careful supervision is needed as you bring juice and sugars to the boil. This had to be the last picture I took before paying full attention to pushing things up to 110 degrees without burning.
I’ve tried moulds with hot, quickly setting jellies but seem to get things in a mess before filling them properly and successfully. So a lined tray is my go-to place for creating a slab of sweetness. Once firm, cutting this into shape with a knife is fine but you are restricted to straight-sided variations. So my trusty cork borers come into play. Cylinders are the immediate option but a larger ring can be sliced to make half moons.
Time for the coating which brings a more playful side to these treats than are usually seen in a petit four.
So glad I made these. There is a definite ‘childhood’ element here. No harm in that - a little nostalgia creating guilt-free pleasures really should be included in our eating. The flavour and chew are both there but I did miss the collectors picture card. Maybe draw some of your own!
A few processes here before achieving the final result but you end up with a fine, slightly quirky reward. Obviously, for copyright reasons, I can’t say that yours will also be ‘Bubblicious’. I’ll just alert you to a fuller gallery of pictures here to encourage you to have a go.