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Homemade Tootsie Pop

Homemade Giant Cherry Red Tootsie Pop - Red lollipop with a Tootsie Roll inside
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Learn how to make a Tootsie Pop at home the easy way with just a few ingredients. Making homemade lollipops is now really easy! The large lollipops are also a fun crowd pleaser, especially at children’s birthday parties. It’s not every day you get to have a huge lollipop!

Table of Contents

Before we get into any candy making, I have to get this out of the way. If you remember the old Tootsie Pop commercials, a boy would go up to different animals ask them “how many licks does it take to get the center of a Tootsie Pop?” And then the animal would take a few licks and then just bite the rest of it. The commercial would the conclude to say “the world may never know.” The most infamous of these animals was the Tootsie Pop Owl who simply grabbed it after 3 licks and took a bite. 

How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?

Tootsie Roll Inc has compiled various experiments conducted by different universities and the conclusion seems to be, on average, it takes around 175 clicks. The variations come from age, gender, hunger-level, and oddly enough – the flavor! Orange ones take the fewest licks to get to the center. So I guess if you want to get to the center faster, choose an orange one!

Now for this lollipop recipe, we’re making giant lollipops so expect to be taking quite a bit longer to get the Tootsie Roll center.

Note: Some links in this post may contain affiliate links, which means at no cost to you, I may earn a commission.

Large homemade red lollipop with a tootsie roll in the center with the title "DIY tootsie pops"

Ingredients for Tootsie Pops

  • 1 Tootsie Roll (Amazon)
  • 20 Jolly Ranchers (or your favorite hard candy) – you likely want to use all of the same flavor, or you can get creative and mix flavors (Amazon)
  • 2.5 inch Round Silicone Ice Cube Mold (This is the one I have)
  • 1 Lollipop Stick (Amazon)
Ice Cube Tray, Large Square Ice Tray and Sphere Ice Ball Maker with Lid for Whiskey and Homemade, Reusable,Easy Demold (Silicone Ice Cube Molds Set of 2)
Ice Cube Tray, Large Square Ice Tray and Sphere Ice Ball Maker with Lid for Whiskey and Homemade, Reusable,Easy Demold (Silicone Ice Cube Molds Set of 2)
Tootsie Roll Midgees – Chewy Chocolate Gluten-Free Candy Minis – Bulk Bag of Individually Wrapped Candies for Kids, Parties, Classroom – 360 Count (Pack of 1)
Tootsie Roll Midgees – Chewy Chocolate Gluten-Free Candy Minis – Bulk Bag of Individually Wrapped Candies for Kids, Parties, Classroom – 360 Count (Pack of 1)
JOLLY RANCHER Assorted Fruit Flavored Hard Candy Resealable Bag, 14 oz
JOLLY RANCHER Assorted Fruit Flavored Hard Candy Resealable Bag, 14 oz
Sweet Creations 100 Count Reusable Plastic Cake Pop Sticks27%
Sweet Creations 100 Count Reusable Plastic Cake Pop Sticks
$10.39 ($0.10 / Count)

Tip: If you want to have more Tootsie Roll filling, you can use an extra Tootsie Roll or two. For each additional one you use, use 2 less Jolly Ranchers.

Lollipop Video Tutorial

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Instructions to Make Homemade Lollipops

Start by preparing the center filling by unwrapping the 1-3 Tootsie Rolls and shaping them together into a single ball. The shape doesn’t have to be perfect.

Of course, make sure you have freshly washed hands for this process.

Set it aside.

Unwrapping a tootsie roll
Using hands to shape a tootsie roll into a ball

Next, unwrap the Jolly Ranchers and place them into a microwave-safe dish. You can see I kept all of mine the same flavor – cherry.

Get your silicone sphere mold ready with both sides open (this is similar to the one I used). I recommend putting something like a plastic bag under the top half because you want to cover the hole on top (just in case some candy leaks out).

Then microwave the Jolly Ranchers on 10 second increments until melted. Use a spatula or spoon to stir it in between. Be sure to not overheat it or you will burn the candy.

Pour half of the melted candy into the bottom half of one of the molds. Make sure the mold is filled to the top.

Then place the Tootsie Roll ball that you previously created into the melted candy. Press it slightly into the candy so that it sticks.

Taking a ball of Tootsie Roll and putting it into melted Jolly Ranchers that are in a spherical black silicone ice cube mold

Fill the other half of the mold with the melted Jolly Ranchers. Again, make sure to fill it all the way.

Tip: Double check you’re filling the correct cavity and that it will line up with the first one that you filled.

Black silicone round ice cube mold filled with red melted candy

Flip the top half of the mold onto the other, lining up the sides and pressing tightly. Be sure to have it as tight as possible to avoid any leakage like I had.

Then insert the lollipop stick into the opening, pushing it into the candy. You want it about halfway so that it holds, but isn’t so far in that it will hit the other end of the mold.

Let the lollipop cool. Then once it’s completely cool, remove the top part of the mold. Be careful to slide the mold up the stick, so as not to break it.

Tootsie pop in half of silicone mold

If your homemade Tootsie Pop doesn’t have any leakage, then you can remove it completely from the mold and enjoy it!

However, if yours turns out like mine and there was some candy that leaked out the sides of the mold, then you can take this time to knock off the extra parts. To do so, you can use a butter knife and tap around the lollipop. This will cause those extra parts to break off so you can have a clean and smooth lollipop.

Using a butter knife to break off the extra candy from around the red homemade tootsie pop while still in the silicone mold

After it’s all cleaned up, you can remove it completely from the mold and enjoy! You have officially made a giant homemade Tootsie Pop! Now try for yourself to see how many licks it takes to get to the center and be sure to report back!

Explore more homemade candy recipes and food crafts

Large homemade red lollipop with a tootsie roll in the center with the title "DIY tootsie pops"

Easy Tootsie Pops

Learn how to make a giant Tootsie Pop at home the easy way in under 10 minutes with just a few ingredients. Making homemade lollipops is now really easy!
Yield 1 Large Tootsie Pop
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 20 Jolly Ranchers
  • 1 Tootsie Roll
  • 1 Lollipop Stick

Equipment

  • Large Round Ice Cube Mold
  • Microwave Safe Bowl
  • Spatula

Instructions
 

  • Unwrap the Tootsie Roll
    Unwrapping a tootsie roll
  • Use your hands to shape the Tootsie Roll into a ball
    Using hands to shape a tootsie roll into a ball
  • Unwrap the Jolly Ranchers and place them into a microwave safe dish
  • Microwave the Jolly Ranchers on 10 second increments until melted. Use a spatula to lightly stir.
  • Pour half of the the melted Jolly Ranchers into the bottom half of the silicone ice cube mold. Be sure to fill it all the way. Place the Tootsie Roll ball into it.
    Taking a ball of Tootsie Roll and putting it into melted Jolly Ranchers that are in a spherical black silicone ice cube mold
  • Fill the other half of the mold with candy. Again, make sure to fill it all the way.
    Black silicone round ice cube mold filled with red melted candy
  • Flip the top half of the mold onto the other, lining up the sides and pressing tightly. Be sure to have it as tight as possible to avoid any leakage. Insert the lollipop stick.
  • Let cool completely and remove it from the mold. Then enjoy your homemade giant Tootsie Pop!
    Homemade Giant Cherry Red Tootsie Pop - Red lollipop with a Tootsie Roll inside

Video

Notes

Tip: When filling the molds, I recommend putting something like a plastic bag under the top half because you want to cover the hole on top (just in case some candy leaks out).
Keyword Candy Making, Food Craft, Homemade Candy, Jolly Rancher, Lollipop, Tootsie Pop, Tootsie Roll, Tootsie Roll Pop
Picture of Daniela Kretchmer

Daniela Kretchmer

Daniela is a lifelong crafter who loves to share her passion for crafting. Through classes or learning on her own, she likes to say she'll do pretty much any craft aside from scrapbooking. Her current personal obsessions include garden crafts, felting, and spinning yarn.

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