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== Introduction == Some of us have been talking about making molds for casting, for example, creating a mold from a 3D print. Others of us regularly gather and share weird foods, especially at the social. This project combines those two interests, making custom molds for gummy candies, and then figuring out fun/surprising flavours and colours. The project is meant to be small enough to work on together during the social, and the output is meant to be something we can eat and discuss while we're eating other things and discussing other things already. == The Plan == The overall plan involves three key pieces: # We need a reliable recipe for making gummy. # We need one or more shapes for candy, either found or created. # We need to create a mold from the original shapes. === The Recipe === ==== Gummy ==== ===== Gelatin Gummies ===== We are currently adapting our approach from these key videos: # https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLHqgX5UaJk # https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_AYgBMBjO4 From that last video, here are the ammounts: * 30g sheet gelatin, freshly ground * 70g water (for blooming) * 80g sugar (cook to 115-120 Celsius) * 30g water (for sugar) * 100g glucose (or other very thick inverted sugar syrup) * 5g citric acid * 2 drops food coloring (may vary) * 15-20 drops aroma extract (may vary) In summary: # You need a lot more gelatin than you would for "jello". # You need to use as little liquid as possible. # You have to let them air dry for a long time. # You have to oil them to keep them from sticking before you can store them. ===== Non-gelatin Gummies ===== There are vegan alternatives to gelatin. [https://elavegan.com/vegan-gummy-bears/ Agar] is fairly easy to use but has a more firm and non-chewy texture. It can also be made with just hot water, molds, and supposedly cools at room temperature. There's also [https://planted-pantry.com/vegan-gummy-candy/ fruit pectin and corn syrup], which seem like they would have a better texture than agar, but they require cooking to a precise temperature rather than just using boiling water. Yet another idea is to use [https://www.ganbar.us/recipes/psyllium-husk-gummies/ Psyllium Fiber] to make gummies. ==== Salmiak ==== [https://finnishheritage.info/finnish-recipes/homemade-salmiakki-salty-licorice-recipe-embrace-the-bold-finnish-flavor/ Salmiak] uses a different process, which requires a longer curing time (they say 24 hours, maybe we can accelerate that with a freezer). ==== Remolding Commercial Gummies ==== You can also [https://grandpackmachine.com/how-to-melt-gummies/ melt down and remold existing commercial gummies]. This limits the choices of flavour and colours somewhat, but seems much easier, as it only requires a double-boiler and can be scaled down to make a batch for each colour. === The Flavours === Once we have a formula that we like, we can add various flavourings/colourings, both as solutions we mix in, and as powders we coat the finished product with. === The Shapes === We can find premade silicon molds for baking, candy making, or even making ice. However, part of the fun here is learning to go from a positive object to a negative, reusable silicon mold. It would be nice to make it something that relates to the space, for example, candies with the wheel logo. These would be designed in CAD, 3D printed, and then used to create a mold. === The Molds === Although there are various ways to create a mold, for this project we need something food safe. If we want to cast something, there are [https://www.amazon.nl/NIUB-Afvormsiliconen-voedselveilige-voedselveilig-viscositeit/dp/B0GC3Z37XP/ref=sr_1_2?adgrpid=1334809520269508&hvadid=83425858604295&hvbmt=bp&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=159096&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=p&hvtargid=kwd-83426658033154%3Aloc-129&hydadcr=6779_2352993&mcid=cd0f6391f4a738bf8be8ea1322dc6cbd&sr=8-2 binary mixes of food-safe silicon] that seem like a good fit. Although long term we should come up with reusable flexible forms we can use for molding existing objects, for this project we can use 3D printed molds to cast silicon molds. ==== Reverse Mold ==== With this approach, you make a mold which you use to create the final mold. The object(s) to be cast are printed/CNCed as positives, and you create or add a surrounding wall to contain the material that will form the final mold. Here are the initial designs, which don't have undercuts and are suitable for both CNC and 3D printing: [[File:3D_Printed_molds.jpg|400px|3D Printed Molds]] [[:File:3D Wheel and Molds.7z|Download the models]] For many of the reusable molds we make, we will use food-safe silicon in liquid form to fill the molds. Another idea for this kind of "mold of a mold" that doesn't have undercuts is to pack the printed molds with corn starch and use the corn starch as a one-off mold. ===== Two Part Molds ===== When working with silicon, we can also create positives with undercuts. Here is an example design for a two part mold, which consists of a positive to be cast, and a surrounding cup. These are held together with a threaded rod and a nut. The nut can be removed after the silicon cures and the threaded rod used to push the silicon out of the mold. The threaded rod can then be used to pull the original form out of the final silicon mold. [[File:2-Part-Mold.png|400px|3D Printed Molds]] [[:File:Eyeball Mold.7z|Download the two part models]] === Work Log === ==== October 4, 2026 ==== We finally made gummies using the YouTube recipe, making a larger batch and going more slowly avoided the problems we had with the previous attempt. We also used powdered gelatin rather than trying to grind down sheets. The results had a good consistency. We're talking about working on the flavours for a while by tasting shot glasses of sugar syrup and flavouring. Also talking about making another batch once we have a CNC cut version of the reverse mold that doesn't have the obvious layer lines. [[File:20261004 Custom Gummy Mold Output.jpg|400px|Custom Mold Output]] [[File:20261004 Hex Gummies.jpg|400px|Hex Gummies]] ==== Week of September 23, 2026 ==== Updated the mold designs to use deeper backing features. Created a new surprise Halloween design with a 2-part mold design. Will try the YouTube recipe again in a larger batch to see if we can nail that. We tried reforming existing gummies at the social, it was a sticky mess and didn't really set up, perhaps because we did the puffy white marshmallow kind of gummies. ==== September 16, 2026 ==== We tried the YouTube recipe with glucose syrup. We used the food processor in the space to chop up gelatine sheets. The results were better, but there were hard pieces in some of the gummies where the gelatin sheet didn't dissolve. We will try getting powdered gelatin or using something like a nutribullet to make a finer powder. We should also observe more closely during the "bloom" to ensure that everything dissolves properly. ==== September 6, 2026 ==== We poured the first silicon molds and left them to set for the social. Although there are dedicated sprays, for this pass we used vegetable oil (food safe, waterproof). We'll demold them at the social on the 9th. ==== Week of September 3, 2026 ==== We have designs and prints of the molds we'll use to cast the food-safe silicon molds. The silicon is on order and we need to cast and let it cure, then clean it up to remove any plastic residue. On September 3rd, we made a first attempt at making candies with a silicon ice cube tray. We used gelatine sheets, and tried using twice as many sheets as the box recommends (for a gelatine dessert). This didn't end up setting up very well, we should keep doubling until we find a strength that works. We might also need to acquire firmer gelatine from a baking shop. For the initial pass, we used sugar syrup (1 cup sugar mixed into 1 cup water) for about 1/3 of the volume of liquid. We should probably just use sugar syrup for all of the liquid, as the results were not sweet enough. We tried using milk to add a pastel quality (and a bit of flavour). This worked well enough, but will have to be tweaked to ensure that we don't water down the mixture too much. === Still to Do === # <s>Make silicon molds from one-part 3D prints</s> # Make silicon molds from two-part 3D prints # Make silicon molds from updated one-part prints. # <s>Figure out at least one usable base recipe for gummy</s> # <s>Try melting down existing gummies</s> # Try making a gummy from psyllium or other substances.
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