Peppermint Toads | Harry Potter
“…peppermint creams shaped like toads (“Hop realistically in the stomach!”)…
-Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J.K. Rowling
While it would be wonderful to create candy toads that hop around in our stomach (or not… wouldn’t that be uncomfortable?), we’ll stick with a traditional recipe this time. A Google of “peppermint creams” came up with a multitude of recipes using egg whites. Before I delved into using that recipe, I turned to an old-fashioned candy recipe book, Candymaking at Home, from 1915. Instead, I found a very different recipe, one that actually used cream. The only change I made was to switch their suggestion of pink food dye, with a half-half mix of green and brown. Much more toad-like!

Peppermint Toads | Harry Potter
- Yield: 8 toads 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 tbsp corn syrup
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/4 cup thickened cream
- 6 drops food-grade peppermint oil
- food gels- green and brown
- toad chocolate mould
Instructions
- In a medium sized saucepan, over medium heat, mix together the sugar, corn syrup, cream of tartar, and cream.
- Boil to the soft ball stage (235° F or 113°C).
- Let cool for a few minutes before adding in the peppermint oil.
- To make toad-like, use a half-half mix of green and brown food colour gel.
- Stir until completely mixed together.
- Lightly powder the moulds.
- Spoon into the moulds and set aside to cool.
- Once cool, press out of molds (don’t leave for too long, otherwise they become difficult to pop out.)
Notes
Adapted from Candymaking at Home (1915). Can be found on gutenberg.org.