I had a problem. My friend Alex asked me to make something for his party. I didn’t think I needed to make something since I was terrible at making things and almost burnt down the house last year. It was nerve-wracking thinking about what to make. I had only one day left.

I banged my head on my tablet keyboard as I surfed the net. Maybe the computer could help me come up with something.

Suddenly I heard a deep voice, “When the only place you can make them is in prison…”

Oh no! Did I click on something I wasn’t supposed too?

But when I looked up, I gasped as I saw something so magnificent: I had found the solution to all my problems.

“Mom! To the Target!”

“What?!? Am I your taxi driver??”

Mumbling the whole way, my mom drove us to Target. We first got some popcorn before scanning the store for the supplies I needed. I nearly cried as I saw the colorful candies: grape ones, raspberry ones, bagfuls of colors, even boxes of them. Then I found the ones I was looking for: Jolly Ranchers.

Now I needed some elote sticks.

And that’s pretty much all you need – Jolly Ranchers and sticks – to make candy roses. Really, the only other thing you need is hot water to make a perfect flower.

Fernando Salas, junior, has been making these Candy Roses for a long time.

“The first one I gave to my mom,” he said.

Just like other desserts, he used gloves to keep his hands clean while forming the candy. Once you learn how to make the Candy Roses, it’s easier to make as the process isn’t harder than when you first started. It gives you the ability to make something for the party to impress that special girl or boy.

After softening the hard candy in piping hot water, you have to work fast because the candy begins hardening as soon as you take it out of the water.

“Don’t worry I’m not going to do anything,” Fernando smiled as he snapped on his rubber gloves.

The Jolly Ranchers need to be almost marshmallow soft as you roll each “petal” onto your elote stick. You have to press the Jolly Rancher hard onto the stick to get it to stay. Then  add the next Jolly Rancher right behind the first one. After that, leave the Candy Roses to harden for ten to fifteen minutes in the open air.

“Only put three Jolly Ranchers for the petals.  More is too much,” said Fernando as he molded one more candy, a green one for a leaf, onto the stick.