Name: Lemon Drop Candy
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 12 h 30 min
Yield: 50
Ingredients: 1/4 cup butter, soft; 1/3 cup honey; 4 cups powdered sugar; 2 teaspoons lemon extract

Mix up a batch of sweet and sour lemon drop candy. No need to boil sugar for this easy 4-ingredient recipe!

Homemade lemon drop candy shaped into soft white thumbprints.

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I was inspired to make lemon drops after seeing these Valentine’s Day patties by Mom on Time Out. Trish made them look so easy, I had to come up with my own version. I originally published this post back in March 2015; I updated it in 2025 with better photos.

A lot of candy recipes call for boiling granulated sugar to reach a certain (hot!) temperature. Making candy is such a fun kids’ activity, I wanted to find an easier recipe.

This lemon drop candy is made at room temperature, so it’s safe for all ages. You can make it with little ones who might taste the dough, though you might want to make sure they don’t eat too much. This is basically straight sugar!

The full recipe makes 50-75 pieces, depending on how small you make them. You can cut the recipe in half to make a smaller batch.

How to make lemon drop candy

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter (half a stick), soft
1/3 cup honey
4 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons lemon extract

Confectioner's sugar, honey, lemon extract, and a cube of butter.

Instructions

1. Combine the ingredients.

In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and honey together until it’s smooth. Add 2 cups of the powdered sugar and the lemon extract. Mix to just combine.

Honey and butter blended together in a stand mixer with a whisk.

Add the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar and mix again until the mixture has an even consistency. It should pull into a ball, but you may need to press a few bits together by hand.

A white ball of sugar, butter, and honey.

2. Knead the candy by hand.

Dump the mixture out on a smooth surface and knead it a little bit. You should have a soft dough, kind of like fondant. If it’s sticky, add just enough extra powdered sugar that it doesn’t stick to your hands.

A shiny ball of lemon drop candy dough on parchment paper.

3. Roll candy into bite-sized pieces.

Pinch off sections of the dough and roll each into a ball about the size of a marble. Lay out the balls on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.

Dozens of small balls of candy dough on parchment paper.

4. Shape the pieces.

Flatten each ball with your thumb. About half an inch thick is good, but it doesn’t have to be precise. If you prefer, use a small rolling pin, a fork, or cookie cutters to make shapes.

Lemon drop candy pieces in a grid to dry.

5. Dry the candy pieces overnight.

After you’ve rolled out all the dough, let the candy pieces dry at room temperature for about a day. They should be firm to the touch and dry, but won’t be crunchy hard.

Store in a covered container at room temperature. (If your house is warm or humid, they might get soft or stick together.) I haven’t tried freezing these for long-term storage.

Bonus idea: Cut small squares of parchment paper and wrap each individual piece of candy. Twisting the ends will warp the shape since the lemon drops stay soft, but the result is cute little wrapped soft candies.

Parchment-wrapped candies with twisted ends.

Printable recipe card

Yield: About 50 pieces