Chocolate Raspberry Sticks are made with a soft, flavorful raspberry jelly center that gets dipped in smooth, melted chocolate. This easy homemade candy tastes just like the classic holiday treat from Sweets — but fresher, softer, and way more fun to make. Once you realize how simple these are, they might become a new yearly tradition!
After making some homemade orange sticks, I realized that milk chocolate-covered raspberry jellies sounded incredible, and do you know what? It was!
Recipe Highlights
- Only a handful of ingredients. No corn syrup, no fancy candy thermometers — just mix, boil, chill, slice, dip, and done.
- Make-ahead friendly. These store beautifully and make fantastic gifts for neighbors, teachers, and cookie-plate extras.
- Old-fashioned holiday candy, homemade. Same nostalgic flavor as store-bought raspberry sticks, but with better texture and richer raspberry flavor.
- Customizable & kid-friendly. Swap in any Jello flavor, use milk, dark, or white chocolate, or mix mold shapes for different holidays.
Chocolate Raspberry Stick Ingredients
- Raspberry Jello: A large box gives the candy its signature bright color and fruity flavor. Raspberry is classic, but you can easily swap strawberry, cherry, orange, or even something fun like black cherry or lime.
- Unflavored gelatin: This is what firms up the jelly into that perfect sliceable texture. Use the powdered packets — you’ll need enough to fully set the mixture so the sticks hold their shape when dipped.
- Granulated sugar: Sweetens the raspberry mixture and helps the jelly firm up properly during cooling.
- Cold water + hot water: Cold water softens the gelatin; hot water dissolves the Jello and sugar before boiling. Hot tap water works great.
- Raspberry extract: Optional but highly recommended for a stronger berry flavor.
- Melting chocolate: Choose any chocolate that melts smoothly — milk chocolate, white chocolate, melting wafers, almond bark, or dark chocolate all work. Milk chocolate tastes closest to the traditional sticks, but every chocolate pairs beautifully with raspberry.
Tips & Tricks for Perfect Chocolate Raspberry Sticks
Full instructions for making the recipe can be found on the recipe card below, but here are a few helpful tips.
- Use silicone molds for the easiest release. Silicone flexes just enough to pop the jelly out cleanly without tearing or sticking. If you’re using metal mini loaf pans, line them with parchment or spray them generously.
- Let the jelly set fully before slicing. Overnight is ideal. If the center is still soft, it will squish when you cut it and won’t dip cleanly into the chocolate.
- Warm your knife for cleaner cuts. Run a sharp knife under hot water, wipe it dry, then slice. Re-warm between cuts for perfectly smooth edges.
- Melt chocolate low and slow. Microwave in short intervals or use a double boiler. Chocolate scorches fast, and overheated chocolate won’t coat smoothly.
- Thin the chocolate if needed. If your chocolate feels thick, add a tiny amount of coconut oil or shortening to loosen it — just enough to help it glide over each stick.
- Use a fork for dipping. Drop the jelly piece into the melted chocolate, lift with a fork, and tap the fork gently on the bowl to shake off extra chocolate for a smooth finish.
- Don’t rush the drying step. Place dipped candies on wax paper and let them sit until completely set. Moving them too soon leaves fingerprints or smudges.
- Experiment with chocolate types. Milk chocolate is classic, but dark chocolate adds richness, and white chocolate makes a pretty contrast. Drizzles look especially festive.
How to Store Homemade Chocolate Raspberry Sticks
These store extremely well, which is one reason they’re such a great holiday candy:
- Room temperature: Store in an airtight container for up to one week.
- Refrigerator: Keeps 2–3 weeks and tastes fantastic chilled.
- Freezer: You can freeze the jelly centers before dipping, but freezing after dipping may cause the chocolate to bloom.
They hold their shape, don’t get sticky, and stay soft and chewy — perfect for gifting!
CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY STICKS RECIPE
Ingredients
- 2 packets unflavored gelatin about 1 1/2 Tbsp
- 6 oz. box raspberry flavored Jello
- 1 cup sugar
- ¾ cup hot water
- ½ cup cold water
- ½ tsp raspberry extract
- 12 oz melting chocolate or chocolate almond bark
Instructions
- In a small bowl, soften the unflavored gelatin in cold water and then set aside.
- In a medium-sized pot on the stove, combine the sugar, raspberry Jello and hot water. Continue stirring until everything is dissolved. Bring the jello to a boil over medium-high heat. Add in the gelatin mixture and then slowly boil on medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and then stir in the raspberry extract.
- Use non-stick spray to prepare the molds you will be using. Carefully pour the mixture into the well-greased molds. I purchased this mold from Amazon, but before I had the mold, I used several mini loaf pans and the loaf pans work just as well as the silicone mold.
- Let stand over night and then remove the jellied raspberry mixture from the molds. Cut the candy into the desired shape. If you use the same molds that I did, you will just need to slice each rectangle in half to create the thin rectangles that are very similar to the store-bought chocolate raspberry sticks. If you use a mini loaf pan, you will need to make slices that are about 1/3″ wide.
- Now it’s time to melt the chocolate. If you are using melting wafers or Candiquik, just follow the melting directions on the package. Dip the sliced rectangles into the melted chocolate. Place the dipped chocolates on wax paper.
- If you’d like to make them look a little bit fancier, you can drizzle a little white chocolate on top just for fun. Just make sure the chocolate coating is set and dried before adding the drizzle.
Nutrition
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What Kind of Chocolate Is Best for Candy Making?
If it melts, it works — truly.
Melting wafers, Candiquik, almond bark, milk chocolate bars, dark chocolate chunks, or white chocolate chips all coat beautifully. Just melt slowly and stir until smooth so the chocolate thinly coats each jelly stick.
Milk chocolate tastes closest to Sweets-brand raspberry sticks, but dark chocolate raspberry is chef’s kiss amazing.
FAQs
Can I use different flavors of Jello?
Absolutely! Raspberry is the classic, but strawberry, cherry, orange, lemon, lime, black cherry, and blue raspberry all work. Mix and match for a colorful candy platter.
Can I use shaped molds?
Yes! Any silicone mold works: hearts for Valentine’s Day, trees for Christmas, mini donuts, stars — whatever fits the occasion. Cut thick molds into sticks or leave them as full shapes.
Do I have to use raspberry extract?
Not required, but it deepens the berry flavor. If you skip it, the Jello alone still tastes great.
My chocolate is thick — what do I do?
Warm it gently and add a tiny splash of coconut oil or a small amount of shortening to thin it out.
More easy candy recipes to try:
- Easy Snickers Fudge brings together butter, cocoa, sugar, milk, caramel, salted peanuts, and chocolate in a rich layered treat that tastes like pure bliss.
- Made with just four simple ingredients, Christmas Chocolate Caramel Cups are adorable bite-size candies filled with creamy caramel and topped with festive sprinkles, making them a perfect holiday gift.
- With only five ingredients, the Old Fashioned Potato Candy recipe transforms mashed potatoes into a delicious chocolate-covered treat that tastes surprisingly similar to a Mounds bar.
- Marshmallow Peanut Butter Chocolate Bark comes together in minutes with only three ingredients, creating an easy chocolate candy that’s ideal for parties and gift-giving.
- Made with chocolate and vanilla pudding mixes and no candy thermometer required, the Easy Fudge recipe delivers a quick six-ingredient chocolate fudge that comes together in just minutes.
Chocolate Raspberry Sticks are made with a delicious raspberry jelly filling dipped in melted chocolate. Simple chocolate candy recipe that is so easy to make!
Jane says
Made these exactly like the recipe states. They turned out perfectly. The only drawback is the time it takes to cover in chocolate. Did it in 3 smaller batches to keep the chocolate smooth.
Nicole says
Yeah, chocolate can be tricky, but it sounds like you figured it out well enough 🙂
Sherri says
Can you use seedless raspberry jam in this recipe. If so, what adjustments are required?
Nellie says
I’ve never tried, but please let us know if you experiment! It probably wouldn’t substitute for the Jello because it won’t set up like gelatin does, but it may add some extra raspberry flavor if that is what you are intending.
Christina Morgan says
Just wondering if it is possible to make with sugar free jello and stevia instead of the sugar and dip in sugar free chocolate
Jessica says
I haven’t tried these with all sugar free items… if you try it, let me know!
Joy says
Mom’s favorite. Excellent recipe. After unmolding the gelatine squares. Placing on a sprinkle of sugar helps to keep them from sticking. I allow the gels time to cure a bit into jellies and not jello squares. Taste test is required. I coat in dark chocolate. Definitely a labor of love ❤️
Tamar Katzwer says
Have you tried this sugar free? I would love to hear what you did and hoe it turned out!
Diane says
I’m going to try these this weekend. How much water do I use to dissolve the gelatin?
Jessica says
You use the 1/2 cup of cold water to dissolve the unflavored gelatin. : )
Mary Jolliffe says
I made according to directions and the jell is so stiff it is inedible. Like a really bad fruit roll up. Why would this happen?
Nellie says
I’m not sure, but it sounds like maybe the mixture boiled too much? You want it to just boil on medium-low for 20 minutes. If your stove is a little on the hot side, maybe the heat was higher and the mixture boiled at too high of a heat? Maybe try boiling on a lower heat or for a few less minutes next time?
Kayla says
I have mine in the fridge right now and they feel like they are hard candy. I actually put them into a 8×8 pan and was just gonna cut smaller. Just curious are you suppose to stir while boiling. I also have a ceramic top. So I’m wondering if that could be the problem
Jim says
If your jello is hard, it is most likely you put it in the fridge. Try leaving it on the counter to soften it.
Arlene says
So the jello won’t melt as your dipping in chocolate?? Also Can you freeze these?
Nellie says
Nope, it doesn’t melt! The chocolate really shouldn’t be super hot…just barely warm enough to be melted. I’ve never tried to freeze these, but I think they would freeze well. Please let me know if you try it!
Veva Hillier says
I made the jelly sticks, but there wasn’t enough raspberry flavor. Once covered with the chocolate all we could taste was the chocolate. I made a second batch and increased the raspberry flavor to 1 tsp. and there still wasn’t enough flavor.
Jessica says
That’s a lot of extract to still not taste it! What type of extract are you using? Maybe try an emulsion instead, as it seems you like a ton of flavor!
Heather says
Hi Jessica, I have been wanting to make these forever!!!! I love your site. I am just wondering what non stick spray you use as I have an Olive Oil one but not sure if it would overpower the taste. Thank you if you’re able to answer as I have received so many different responses from family & friends lol. Thank You
Jessica says
I just use basic Pam non stick spray! An olive oil spray might be weird, it just depends if they used EVOO or light olive oil. Light would be much better as it has a very mild flavor. EVOO would be… not very tasty, LOL.
Kayla says
I made these and the jelly is like chewing gum. I mage orange as well and those are hard as a rock. Both going in the garbage and will try again next year. It says to boil for 20 minutes but doesn’t state if it needs to be stirred or not
Nellie says
So sorry these didn’t work out for you. I just got done making hundreds of them to give out as gifts and have never had them turn out hard. Sounds like maybe they boiled way too long! I know I’ve had the mixture boil for a minute or two extra before and they were still ok. I do stir occasionally throughout the process, just so it doesn’t burn on the bottom, so I can add that instruction into the recipe.
nettie armstrong says
i made these and they came out rubbery. What did I do wrong
Nellie says
They should be a little bit rubbery, but shouldn’t be hard to chew at all. If they are tough or hard to chew, the mixture likely boiled too long or on too high of heat.
Patti says
I loved this recipe. Made them for Thanksgiving and they came out great. Easy to make and will definitely be trying different flavors (cherry n strawberry)
Gale Stewart says
Love them make all the time at Christmas big hit thank you for recipe
Jessica says
So glad to hear Gale!
Sarah says
Hi everyone! A lot of comments about the jelly coming out really hard, that happened to me the first time too. With candy, I found out you can’t cook at a whim, you have to cook to the right temperature, and that’s why they make candy thermometers. So for this, you have to cook it to 200F. However it came out like a gummy bear consistency, so I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be a little softer. Someone who has successfully made them please let me know if the consistency is right or not, and I will make test batches at different degrees (I might do that anyway tbh).