What I Made Wednesday {Movember 'Stache on a Stick}

Learn more.

 30 days has November: that's 30 days of opportunity to spread awareness for cancer-screening of prostate and testicular cancers. Men around the world become walking billboards for the cause as they grow moustaches in solidarity, hence Movember. Here's a terrific website if you'd like to learn more, click here.

To spread the word, it starts with the youth of the world. Explaining Movember to kids in a fun (and delicious) way may very well save a parent's life (or even their own, one day) - you never know.

3 different styles!

 If you've been a regular visitor, you know I'm Room Mom for my son's Homeroom. I'm always looking for fun ways to make them feel appreciated (the Target dollar aisle at the front of the store is my favorite stomping ground). So, while I was roaming the aisle at my local Michael's store and stumbled upon a moustache candy mold - why, it had Movember awareness written all over it. The kids had a blast with these, and, now, know a little bit about Movember.

What You'll Need

Chocolate mold from Wilton #2118

Lollipop sticks

Milk chocolate melting wafers

White chocolate colored yellow melting wafers

I did not wrap these but you could also place them in a cellophane wrapper.


 What You'll Do
Melting chocolate is easier than you think. I'd be careful, though, with the white chocolate because it tends to scorch easier and quicker than milk chocolate. When that happens you have no choice but to throw it out. To make sure you don't cry if this happens, melt the chocolate in small batches in case things go awry.

Dump half of your chips into a microwave safe bowl.

 Set your microwave to only 45 seconds. Remove and stir with a rubber spatula. BE PATIENT. Keep placing back into the microwave for 10-second intervals, stirring the chocolate between nukes. The microwave will not completely melt the chocolate, you stirring it will - remember that!

 Using a small spoon, fill the mold only half-way with chocolate. Tap the mold on the counter to release any air bubbles that may be sitting at the bottom of the mold. Be pretty generous with your taps. This will ensure a smooth, holeless surface to your chocolate. Take the lollipop stick and place it in the groove of the mold. Turn the stick in a circular motion in the chocolate to coat it. This helps act as a glue. Next, spoon more chocolate on top, covering the mold and making the top even with the mold's surface. DO NOT OVER FILL. You'll have more to clean-up around the finished product.

 When you pop your mold into the refrigerator, be sure to ensure that the lollipop stick is still embedded in and covered with the chocolate. Allow the chocolate to harden, about 15 - 20 minutes. You'll know its done when the bottom of the mold gets a bit frosty on the inside.

Grab a cushy towel and place on the countertop. When the chocolate is ready, remove from the refrigerator and flip the mold over onto the towel. The padding will prevent the chocolate from breaking. The chocolate falls out quite easily and quickly - trust me.

More than likely, you'll have chocolate left over in your bowl that was not entirely used for your molds after the first batch. No worries! Just clean-off the spoon and spatula. When you are ready to mold again, just heat the chocolate again like you did before. Reduce the time by 10 seconds since you are not working with as much volume as when you started. Chocolate and water are not friends. At all costs, do not accidentally get drops of water into your chocolate. If this happens, add more chocolate than you think you need to dilute the water and continue to melt until it reaches a smooth consistency.

What You'll Need to Know to Finish

If you overfilled a few, you'll see you'll have to "clean-up" some of the excess after it hardens. You should be able to just break it off, or, if there's a thick overfill, take a knife and trim it off.
Place the finished chocolate suckers onto a baking sheet until you are ready to store in an airtight container and place in the fridge. I didn't wrap these, but instead placed them in a container and took them to school the next day. My son said they were a HUGE hit with the kids! 

Happy Movember!