Jumja sticks

Jumja sticks seem to be one of those ubiquitous treats on Deep Space Nine. Beloved by many - and detested by almost as many - jumja sticks are made from the sap of the jumja tree, and are noted to be very sweet. I’d also suggest they seem to be quite large for something so sweet, although they appear to have been consumed with great gusto.

I thought that treacle was a good match for jumja sap due to its consistency, sweetness and slight caramel overtones. I admit my jumja sticks were a little smaller than some featured on Deep Space Nine, but over the course of several episodes they do seem to vary in size, shape and colour, so I’m still confident mine are within acceptable jumja stick parameters.

These are very sweet but quite delicious in small quantities.

Read more about jumja sticks at Memory Alpha.

As always, you can see photos from the cooking process over on the Facebook page.

Replicate your own
(Makes 2 medium-sized jumja sticks)

1/4 cup golden syrup
1/4 cup treacle
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water

You will need: candy thermometer, lollypop sticks or small plastic spoons, small jars or glasses to rest the lollypops in, baking paper, cooking spray

Start by preparing your containers for the jumja sticks. Take some baking paper and scrunch it into a ball, or fold it up several times. Unfold it, spray with cooking spray, and tuck inside your glass or jar, taking care to leave some of the baking paper overhanging the glass. The number of jars you’ll need to set up will depend on how large you want your jumja sticks to be.

Add all ingredients to a medium to large sized saucepan, and heat gently, stirring the sugar until it is dissolved. Clip on your candy thermometer and let it boil without stirring. It will bubble up quite a lot so be careful. Keep boiling until it reaches 300°F / 150°C / hard crack stage. Let it cool a little until it reaches 265°F / 130°. Slowly and carefully tip into your prepared jars, taking care to stay within the baking paper. Let cool for a few minutes.

After the candy has started to cool, insert your lollypop sticks or small spoons. Hold for a couple of minutes, until the candy has cooled enough to support the weight of the spoon. If needed, the spoon or lollypop sticks can be supported with chopsticks or more cutlery to hold it in place.

Let the lollypop dry overnight. In the morning. upend your jumja stick, remove the baking paper and with one lick, you’re right back on Bajor.

Notes: 

  • When measuring out your treacle and golden syrup, spray a little cooking spray in your 1/4 cup measurer - this will stop the treacle from sticking to it when you pour it out. 
  • The mixture does bubble up a fair bit when heating, so make sure your saucepan is large enough to accommodate this.
  • I found small plastic spoons easier to use than lollypop sticks, as they were strong enough to take the weight of the lollypop when hardened.
  • You could substitute more golden syrup for the treacle, if you want a sweeter candy or cannot locate treacle. 
  • You could also make these in normal lollypop moulds if you wanted more manageable-sized candy!
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    I NEED to make this!
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