How to Make Sprinkles

Submitted by nicole on Wed, 04/27/2016 - 04:49

Homemade sprinkles are a labor of love, but they're fun to make and can be made in absolutely any color. If you've ever wondered how to make sprinkles, this tutorial is for you.

Yellow, orange, pink, and green homemade sprinkles in white bowls on a white marble background.

I've seen homemade sprinkles before, but the only ones I've seen have been made with royal icing, piped into lines, and then broken into smaller pieces. It's cute, but not quite what I wanted to create for my homemade sprinkle experiment. I wanted something more regular, and also with a more distinct flavor. It also sounded rather tedious to make the royal icing version.

What I came up with? Ok, so it's tedious, too. ;-) But it looks a lot more like classic jimmies-style sprinkles, and they taste amazing. And I could make them any color I want, perfectly matched to any party palette!

I originally wondered if I could make sprinkles out of modeling chocolate, so I whipped up a few batches using the excellent tutorial from Cake Paper Party. But the modeling chocolate alone produced sprinkles that were too delicate, and had a rough texture.

Could I combine modeling chocolate with gum paste? Was it even possible? I'd never heard of anyone doing such a thing, but it was worth trying. And it worked brilliantly!

Ingredients and equipment for homemade sprinkles on a white marble background.

Materials Homemade Sprinkles:

Modeling chocolate (follow this excellent tutorial)
Gum Paste
gel food coloring
garlic press
sharp paring knife

Lump of white gum paste and green chocolate modeling paste on a white marble background.

How to Make Sprinkles:

Combine equal parts modeling chocolate and gum paste. Roughly equal--you don't need to weigh it or anything. Knead it together until it's completely combined.

Homemade Sprinkles ingredients being pressed through a garlic press, showing how to make homemade sprinkles

Place a small ball of the modeling chocolate/gum paste mixture in the garlic press, and extrude a short length of the dough. Use a sharp paring knife to shear off the sprinkles.

Homemade sprinkles extruded from a garlic press, separated into individual sprinkles.

The gum paste/modeling chocolate mixture is plyable and stretchy before it dries. It was easy to separate the sprinkles into single rows, but when I tried to separate them completely when fresh, they tended to stretch. It was far easier and better to let the sprinkles dry for several hours, and then gently pull them apart.

Yeah, I warned you it was tedious.

Homemade sprinkles mixed together in a white bowl on a white marble background.

I still haven't decided if I think they're really worth it, but I LOVE the way they look! I love being able to make them absolutely any color I want! I love the texture! And man oh man, do I love the taste. They taste like the most amazingly marshmallowy marshmallows you've ever eaten.

Homemade sprinkles on a cupcake being held by a little girl.

I'm absolutely certain I'll still buy sprinkles. But it is nice knowing that I can make my own custom colors now, and it was a fun experiment. I'm glad I did it, even if I'm not rushing to do it again. ;-)

Don't miss my tutorial for the homemade lemon slice sprinkles I used in my custom sprinkle mix!

Homemade sprinkles in white bowls on a white marble background.