When asked if I wanted to do a review on a “Make Your Own Candy” kit, my kids, ages 7 and 11, were excited to choose from making their own chewing gum, gummies or chocolate. It was a no-brainer for this chocolate loving family. “Make Your Own Chocolate” was the overwhelming favorite. And after all is said and done, I think we made a very good choice.

The makers of Glee Gum have created these family friendly activity kits, which are all-natural, educational, and eco-friendly. With pre-packaged ingredients and easy-to-follow instructions, everyone aged eight and up can get a real kick out of making candy from scratch. Each kit is designed to captivate your interest, connect you to the global community, and create something yummy to eat in the process!

Each kit comes with it’s own story, and since we chose chocolate we talked about the history of the cacao beans. The kit included two cacao beans, which were intended for the kids to peel, feel the texture, smell and taste. The kids learned in a hands-on way that chocolate is made from beans, and they thought that was pretty cool. Plus, the beans helped minimize the impatience while we waited for the chocolate to cool, using a very effective temperature indicator.  I thought that was an ingenious way for the company to encourage families to truly learn about the products they were making together.

The kits have simple step-by-step instructions, and I was able to assign the kids the pouring and stirring steps while I was in control of the heating element. We had the option of adding nuts, dried fruit or peanut butter, but to get an authentic taste of the the chocolate, we decided to keep it in its purest form.

One thing that I appreciated about this product is that it can be done stove top or in the microwave. The only issue that would make me question ‘ages 8 and up’ is in the final step when we needed to transfer the chocolate to the small paper liners. There was no mess-free way to accomplish this task. I finally resorted to using a small melon baller, which helped in its efficiency, although the kids could not really help in this final step. We used 15 of the 24 paper liners, which I thought was great so that if you do add ingredients, you have ample liners.

After being refrigerated for 15 minutes it was ready to eat. Since all of us enjoy dark chocolate (particularly my 7 year old), it truly was a big hit. In bite sized pieces, the 8 ounces from the kit goes far.

To order your own candy making kits, you can find a store locator by clicking here. You can also register for their newsletter.  To win a FREE kit of your choice, leave a comment below and we will randomly select our winner.

If you are looking for a unique gift this holiday season (or even thinking ahead to Easter baskets), this is certainly a product you should consider. For the month of December they are running a special on their signature gum, as well. Eight packs (one of each flavor variety) for $8.  A great stocking stuffer idea at a low cost.

Disclaimer: Bonnie received the Make Your Own Chocolate Kit free of charge. No other compensation was offered and it did not sway the integrity of this review.

Bonnie Krueger lives with her family in West County. She blogs random musings at Inside My Head . She began a second blog devoted solely to the memory and unique story of her mom’s childhood and internment in a concentration camp after WWII called Heart Speaks. She can also be found as a “Local Voices” blogger at http://townandcountry-manchester.patch.com/ or you can follow her on Twitter @BonnieLOK.