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Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Snickers Crisper

Snickers CrisperNext month Mars is introducing a new Snickers variant, the Snickers Crisper. The new bar boasts multiple textures and “delivers on [Snickers] satisfaction pledge with the chew of caramel and the crunchy crispiness of rice and peanuts.”

Like the recent Snickers Peanut Butter Squared that came out five years ago, these are actually two squares in one package instead of a single bar.

The new bar is supposed to be in response to consumers wanting healthier options. I’m not sure what would make this bar healthier than a regular Snickers, though this one has crisped rice in it, instead of nougat and is actually 12 grams lighter, which means fewer calories per serving.

Snickers Crisper

Each square is about 1.25 inches on each side. They’re about two or three bites.

The bar smells well roasted and a bit like toffee. The bite is very soft, the caramel on top has a lot of give to it, but not much pull. The chew has a nice texture, with the peanut butter coated crisped rice as a highlight. It’s quite sweet though there’s also a hint of salt. I don’t get much more peanut butter or sort of thick satisfaction that I find in a regular Snickers. I do enjoy the malty notes of the rice though as well as the few peanut scattered about. I think I just wanted more peanut butter and less sweetness.

About ten years ago there was another bar called the Snickers Cruncher, which was similar: it was a peanut butter coated crisped rice bar with caramel coated in chocolate. It was all one bar and actually really good. When they disappeared in the United States, I was still able to find them in Europe (and a few sellers on eBay would import them).

Related Candies

  1. Snickers Mixed Nuts
  2. Jer’s Peanut Butter Bars
  3. Snickers Unwrapped Bites
  4. Hershey’s Whatchamacallit & Thingamajig
  5. Crispy Cat
  6. Snickers Rockin’ Nut Road Bar
  7. Snickers Nut ‘n Butter Crunch
  8. Snickers Cruncher


Name: Snickers Crisper
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Mars
Place Purchased: samples from Mars
Price: $.99 retail
Size: 1.41 ounces
Calories per ounce: 135
Categories: Candy, Snickers, Mars, Caramel, Chocolate, Cookie, Kosher, Peanuts, 7-Worth It, United States

POSTED BY Cybele AT 4:03 pm     CandyReviewSnickersMarsCaramelChocolateCookieKosherPeanuts7-Worth ItUnited States

Monday, October 19, 2015

Trader Joe’s Toffee Chips

DSC_9773rbTrader Joe’s Toffee Chips come in a pretty simple little box packed with a half a pound of toffee planks covered in either milk or dark chocolate.

It’s a pretty good deal for a half a pound of candy made with all natural ingredients, though Trader Joe’s doesn’t say where the chocolate comes from.

The product popped up at my local Trader Joe’s about a week before it was listed on the website, so I bought a box. Then I ate it all, so this is my second box. (You’d think it would get a better rating than a 6 out of 10 if I’ve eaten a full pound.) After the first box I figured I’d pick up another, but it disappeared from the three Trader Joe’s I frequent for nearly a moth.

Trader Joe's Toffee Chips

I think this is intended as a hostess gift item, or perhaps something you’d buy to put out for guests at a party or after dinner.

The tray holds 8 pieces of each variety, so I’ll go ahead and calculate that each is a half an ounce (and about 75 calories). The tray is rather flimsy, and the box doesn’t reseal after you open it. The whole thing, oddly enough, felt a little like a See’s item (they also use a lot of black and white in their packaging, but this has some brown elements and the full product image).

Trader Joe's Toffee Chips

They’re very attractive. The first box was unphotographable because the heat got to it, though it was still edible. The little planks have a squiggle of chocolate across them, making for a lot of chocolate heaped on the top.

Trader Joe's Toffee Chips

The milk chocolate variety is very sweet. The milk chocolate is milky and creamy, the toffee inside has a salty note and an excellent crunch but it falls apart into a bit of a grainy mess, like eating brown sugar towards the end. (I love eating a pile of brown sugar, but not when I think it’s supposed to be toffee.)

Trader Joe's Toffee Chips

The dark chocolate version had the same crunchy then grainy texture and excellent butter flavor, but the dark chocolate really meant nothing. The flavor of the dark chocolate was so non-descript I really kept wondering what it tasted like. If I shaved it off with my teeth, it was like a creamy dark chocolate baking chip, but eating with the toffee it just became a texture.

I don’t think these are bad, mostly I ate the whole box because I was trying to figure them out, but I never really liked them much. They’re better with something else, like crushing them up on ice cream or with some strong coffee. As a hostess gift, they’re probably acceptable, especially for the price point. I don’t see myself buying them again though.

They’re made with milk and soy and may also contain traces of wheat, eggs, peanuts and/or tree nuts.

Related Candies

  1. Trader Joe’s Magic Beans
  2. Lindt Hello Toffee Bites
  3. Trader Joe’s Almondictive Bits
  4. Poco Dolce Popcorn Toffee
  5. See’s Double Caramel
  6. Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Almond Toffee
  7. See’s Lollypops
  8. Valerie Toffees & Nougats


Name: Toffee Chips
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Trader Joe’s
Place Purchased: Trader Joe's (3rd & Fairfax)
Price: $3.49
Size: 8 ounces
Calories per ounce: 149
Categories: All Natural, Candy, Christmas, Trader Joe's, Chocolate, Kosher, Toffee, 6-Tempting, United States

POSTED BY Cybele AT 4:16 pm     All NaturalCandyReviewChristmasTrader Joe'sChocolateKosherToffee6-TemptingUnited States

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 24 - Candy Corn

Candyology101-24

It’s the season where candy corn is everywhere. If it’s not actual candy, then it’s little decorative cutouts or orange, yellow and white themed products. Halloween, in the current century, is inextricably tied to Candy Corn. Have a listen to hear more about the iconic candy in this episode of Candyology 101 with Maria.

Download the MP3 and read our show notes.

POSTED BY Cybele AT 11:01 am     CandyHighlightRadio Interviews

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Toblerone Toasted Corn Crunch

DSC_9842rbLast year about this time Toblerone introduced a new version of their classic milk chocolate mountain bar: Toblerone Toasted Corn Crunch. Oddly enough, they were available exclusively at that time at duty free shops in Europe. I never thought I’d run across a bar. But I was strolling the candy section at Cost Plus World Market and not only did they have a stack of them, they were also on sale for 99 cents for a 3.52 ounce bar.

The bar features Toblerone’s Swiss milk chocolate with toasted crushed corn, honey and almond nougat.

The bar format is exactly like all the other Toblerones. This comes in the classic cardboard prism box. Inside there’s a foil wrapped bar made of 12 triangular segments.

DSC_9852rb

The bar looks like any other milk chocolate Toblerone from the sides, but the bottom reveals there’s lots of bumpy stuff inside. The scent is sweet and milky along with a really strong corn note. The corn doesn’t smell quite like popcorn, more like, well, corn or maybe polenta. The chocolate is quite sweet, though smooth, it’s very sugary. The corn bits are like corn nuts, very crunchy though not quite hard enough to break any teeth. (Sometimes I feel like I’m chewing on teeth when I eat corn nuts.)

The combination of the lightly malty, cereal flavor and the very mild chocolate is pretty good. There’s a nice boost of salt in there, which also offset the sugary chocolate. But I never really got the nougat and honey flavors that I enjoy so much in a Toblerone. The only good thing is that I felt like it keep me busy a long time, as I was working those corn bits out of my teeth for about 20 minutes.

It’s an interesting bar but I see no need to consider it as a replacement for a Ritter Sport Knusperflakes (Corn Flakes). It’s hard to be harsh on the bar when it’s so much better than a Nestle Crunch Bar which is half the size and the same price. As far as their new bars, I think the Toblerone Salted Almond is worth seeking out.

Toblerone still does not provide consumers with any information about their cacao sourcing with regards to ethics or sustainability. The bar contains eggs, soy, milk, corn and almonds. It’s made in facility that also handles other tree nuts. There’s no gluten statement on the package.

Related Candies

  1. Walgreen’s Good and Delish Milk Chocolate Cornflake Clusters
  2. Toblerone Crunchy Salted Almond
  3. Poco Dolce Popcorn Toffee
  4. Cracker Corn Choco
  5. Kimmie Sweet & Salty Corn Bits
  6. Toblerone Fruit & Nut
  7. Toblerone Single Peaks


Name: Toblerone Toasted Corn Crunch
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Kraft
Place Purchased: Cost Plus World Market (Farmers Market)
Price: $.99 (on sale)
Size: 3.52 ounces
Calories per ounce: 155
Categories: Candy, Kraft/Mondelez, Chocolate, Kosher, Nougat, Nuts, 7-Worth It, Switzerland, Cost Plus

POSTED BY Cybele AT 1:11 pm     CandyReviewKraft/MondelezChocolateKosherNougatNuts7-Worth ItSwitzerlandCost Plus

Thursday, October 8, 2015

Tastykake Fall Kandy Kakes: Salted Caramel and Karrot Kake

The Tasty Baking Company has been based in Philadelphia since 1914. Back in 1930 they introduced a new snack cake called the Tandy Take which was eventually renamed in 1974 to Kandy Kakes (to avoid confusion with the Tandy Company).  These were the snack cakes of my childhood. I’m not sure if I had a Twinkie until I was in college,but Kandy Kakes, I’d had plenty of those.

Their most popular item is the Peanut Butter Kandy Kake (they bake a half a million a day as of 2014), which was also my favorite of their products. The Peanut Butter Kandy Kake is a disk of sponge cake (or maybe angel food cake) with a stripe of peanut butter covered in mockolate. Their second most popular item, the Butterscotch Krimpet is also a curious creation made of a sponge cake (sort of like a Twinkie) but with crinkle cut edges and a butterscotch frosting. (Pennsylvania is kind of known for butterscotch confections, see also the Boyer Smoothie cups.)

When I was growing up there was still regionalism for baked goods, Tastykake was really a local company, though recently they expanded south and also took over production of the Hostess brands including Twinkies. This year Tastykake announced West Coast distribution for their more popular items. (Though it says on their website they’re available at some of my local stores, I still haven’t found them on shelves.)

For those of you just discovering this nostalgic brand, you should catch up with this add for Tastykake, I’d say it’s from around 1975, starring Betty White:

First off, are Kandy Kakes even candy and do they belong on the blog? Well, I’ve debated about this for a while. For the past few years when I travel to Pennsylvania, I’ve usually come back with a box (or two) of the Peanut Butter Kandy Kakes. They fit most of my rules for candy in that they’re sweet, portable, shelf stable and require no preparation to eat. However, they’re also baked (but then again so are Twix). I also have the same problem with chocolate covered pretzels. What pushed me over the edge with this review is the fact that Tastykake offered these new Fall flavors: Salted Caramel Kandy Kakes and Karrot Kake Kandy Kakes.

DSC_9790rb

First off, Kandy Kakes is a strange name. Substituting letters in a standard word is usually an indication of lesser quality, just like chocolatey denotes something not-quite-chocolate. Not only that, Tastykake and their product line has a lot of Ks in it. A lot. It’s like they’re going for something wacky (this all predates the Kardashian ownership of the letter).

Words with a k in it are funny. Alka-Seltzer is funny. Chicken is funny. Pickle is funny. All with a k. Ls are not funny. Ms are not funny.
Willy (The Sunshine Boys by Neil Simon)

So, the name might be a bit juvenile, but maybe it’s also supposed to be delightful. Betty White said some nice things about the ingredients in her commercial in Tastykakes, but for reference here’s what’s in the Salted Caramel Kandy Kakes (yes, I transcribed all this, so forgive any spelling errors as many of these ingredients don’t come up in spellcheck):

Confectionery Coating (sugar, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, cocoa processed with alkali, cocoa powder, whey powder, soy lecithin, salt, artificial flavor), Sugar, Enriched Bleached Flour, Vegetable Shortening (soybean oil, palm oil and hydrogenated cottonseed oil), Corn Syrup, Water, Nonfat Milk, Eggs, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Contains 2% or less of each of the following: egg yolks, salt, modified corn starch, butter, leavening (sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium bicarbonate, monocalcium phosphate), caramel color, soy lecithin, corn starch, mono- and diglycerides, natural and artificial flavor, propylene glycol, mono- and diesters of fats and fatty acids, xanthan gum, brown sugar, lactylic esters of fatty acids, calcium sulfate, caramel, molasses, cinnamon, nutmeg, lactic acid, sorbic acid and potassium sorbate.

The Salted Caramel are described as cakes with chocolate flavored coating and salted caramel filling (naturally and artificially flavored).

DSC_9801rb

The large box (a half a pound) holds 6 of these packages of twin cakes. They’re actually a little weird out of the box because there’s no indication of which flavor it is. (So if I had the Peanut Butter version out of the box, I wouldn’t know ... that little BN initial on the package, what does that mean?)

There’s 90 calories per cake, so the pair is only 180 ... for 1.3 ounces, so not really a low calorie product, just its size helps with portion control.

Tastykake Kandy Kake - Salted Caramel

They smell sweet, but not like anything in particular. The chocolatey coating is noticeably thin and fake. The bite is nice, the cake is soft and a little dry but that’s balanced pretty well by the caramel stripe on top. The caramel is quite salty, though there are only 95 mg per pair. The mockolate is terrible, far more noticeably terrible on the salted caramel version than the peanut butter. There’s no cocoa flavor and certainly no creamy cocoa butter experience. There’s not even any milk in that fake milk chocolate.

It’s pretty dreadful. Maybe I’m not a good judge of pastries, or petit fours or whatever category these should be in, but they’re not actually good candy.

DSC_9798rb

The Karrot Kake Kandy Kakes sound good in theory. But in reality the white coating is suspiciously white. It’s not milky white, though at least this white konfectionery koating has nonfat milk in it. The coating has more titanium dioxide in it than soy lecithin.

However, they do smell good. They smell like a nice spice cake ... a little nutmeg, a little cinnamon, maybe a touch of clove and sweet milk. The bite is soft and a little more substantial than the Salted Caramel as this cake is actually carrot cake ... there’s actually carrot in there and even some raisin paste, orange puree and coconut. The white coating is filmy and there’s another creamy layer in there that’s kind of like cream cheese or perhaps unscented foot balm.

It’s a great idea but the coating completely ruins it for me. (Now, a salted caramel stripe in there and maybe an actual white chocolate coating ... but then we’re into actual petit four world, not cheap snack cakes.

The cakes are made on shared equipment with peanuts and tree nuts and contain milk, soy and coconut.

Related Candies

  1. Russell Stover Lemon Cake Egg
  2. Russell Stover Cake Assortment Chocolates
  3. Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Spice Salted Caramels
  4. Party Cake Peeps
  5. Russell Stover Eggs: Carrot Cake, Birthday Cake and Wedding Cake
  6. Brach’s Carrot Cake Candy Corn
  7. R.M. Palmer Cake Batter Cup
  8. Cupcake Bites


Name: Tastykake Fall Kandy Kakes: Salted Caramel & Karrot Kake
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Tasty Baking Company
Place Purchased: samples from Tastykake
Price: $4.49
Size: 8 ounces (1.3 per package)
Calories per ounce: 138
Categories: Candy, Caramel, Cookie, Kosher, Limited Edition, Mockolate, 3-Unappealing, United States

POSTED BY Cybele AT 2:56 pm     CandyReviewCaramelCookieKosherLimited EditionMockolate3-UnappealingUnited States

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Mentos Incredible Chew!

DSC_9698rbI found a new candy on eBay, they’re called Mentos Incredible Chew! and are available in Thailand and Australia (and probably other places). I picked up my packages on eBay from a Bangkok-based seller, so the packages are in Thai. 

Mentos new chews Incredible Chew! are more like Morinaga’s HiCHEW than Wrigley’s Starburst. The package are 45 grams and have 11 pieces of the same flavor. They boast no artificial colors, but I can’t say whether the flavorings are naturally derived. I did notice that the ingredients for the Australian version has gelatin in it, but this package and the Aussie version are Halal (so the gelatin is not from pigs). The three initial flavors are Strawberry, Grape and Green Apple.

DSC_9710rb

Mentos Strawberry Incredible Chew! is layered, a white outer layer with a pink center. The flavor also might be layered, though it’s hard to tell. The flavor is less of a jammy strawberry and more like a strawberry yogurt. There’s a creamy note, a sweetness and some floral notes and actually two tangy notes, one is a little bit like goat milk or yogurt and the other tartness is more like citric acid. The effect of this whole thing is only okay. It’s not as vibrant as HiCHEW and it doesn’t have the interesting texture that Mentos have.

The texture is a smooth and bouncy chew, rather like latex. It’s kind of like a chewing gum at first, completely smooth and sweet and flavorful, and then eventually it disappears.

DSC_9705rb

Grape Incredible Chew! comes in a mostly purple wrapper, with big, round purple grapes on it.The pieces are white with a medium purple interior. The flavor is definitely concord and not the American SweeTarts grape. It’s a juicy flavor that has a lot of the notes I associate with actual concord grape skins. It’s a little tangy, mostly sweet with a smooth chew that starts bouncy but stays smooth.

Of the three flavors, this was my favorite. It tasted clean and the flavor lasted through the texture changes as I chewed.

DSC_9703rb

Mentos Green Apple Incredible Chew! wasn’t even a flavor I was interested in, but when I ordered on eBay, half the cost of the initial package was shipping, so throwing in an additional package was purely an efficiency decision. The center is the same light green as the apples on the wrapper. The flavor is a cross between American Jolly Rancher Green Apple and the more subtle Japanese apple flavor. It’s tangy, and has a long chew but it’s also very artificial, especially towards the end when the sweetness that gave it an apple juice note dissipates and it’s just artificial flavor after that.

Overall they’re a decent candy, I just don’t understand why anyone would buy these instead of Morinaga HiCHEW, which are available in far more flavors and have a much better flavor profile in my experience.

Related Candies

  1. Short & Sweet: Mentos
  2. HiCHEW Japan vs HiCHEW Taiwan
  3. Festival HiCHEW: Candied Apple & Cotton Candy
  4. Mamba Sours
  5. Banana n Cream & Red Orange Mentos
  6. Lotte Chew-Let - Pomegranate
  7. HiCHEW Yuzu & Valencia


Name: Incredible Chew!
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Perfetti Van Melle
Place Purchased: eBay (user jringjaia)
Price: $2.00 (plus shipping from Bangkok)
Size: 1.59 ounces
Calories per ounce: 120
Categories: All Natural, Candy, Perfetti van Melle, Chews, 6-Tempting, Thailand

POSTED BY Cybele AT 3:31 pm     CandyReviewPerfetti van MelleChews6-TemptingThailand

Friday, October 2, 2015

Trader Joe’s Magic Beans

DSC_9753rbThis nondescript little bag showed up in the Trader Joe’s new products showcase last week. The simple flat bottomed cellophane bag holds tricolor chocolate morsels called Magic Beans. They’re described as chocolate covered nougat beans.

I’ve come to understand that the word nougat really doesn’t mean much as a description. Here in the United States, depending on the initial inspiration of the confection, nougat can be a hazelnut paste, a nut toffee or a whipped sugar, honey and egg bar. In this case, the nougat is a very dark nut brittle.

These Magic Beans come from France, which also makes some stunning whipped egg nougat as well. So, I can see that some folks might be more confused than bewitched by these.

Trader Joe's Magic Beans

The beans are about the size of Trader Joe’s chocolate covered almonds, though actually kidney bean shaped. They come in three colors, a mottled white, a mottled green and a stand milk chocolate. The coating is a little bumpy on all of them.

Inside the milk chocolate coating is a nugget of almond toffee, or maybe it’s nut brittle, it’s hard to tell from the ingredients label. (They candies may contain traces of hazelnuts, chestnuts, pistachios and walnuts. They’re made with coconut, almonds, milk, soy and wheat.) The nuts themselves are little bits, not whole nuts, and the sugar crust holding them together is very toasted, almost burnt.

Trader Joe's Magic Beans

The milk chocolate coating is very milky, it has some decent cocoa notes, but for the most part it’s just creamy and sweet. This is a nice counterpoint to the roasted and slightly bitter note of the crunchy center. They reminded me a little bit of the sesame snaps that I pick up at the health food stores.

If you go into these expecting something more like Nutella bites or Charleston Chews, you’re going to be disappointed. These are quite different from other nutty items, so that unique selling proposition is what got me. They’re not magic, but quite enjoyable.

Venchi nougatineAs a side note, I bought something very similar earlier this year in New York City at Eataly. The food mall has an amazing selection of Italian chocolates and sweets, including one of the largest selections of Venchi I think I’ve ever seen outside of Europe.

This is called Venchi Nougatine and are pretty much the same thing as the Trader Joe’s Magic Beans, except they’re made in Italy and covered in 60% dark chocolate. This package of less than 2 ounces was actually the same price as the Magic Beans (7.2 ounces).

Venchi Nougatine

Related Candies

  1. Lindt Hello Crunchy Nougat
  2. Trader Joe’s Chocolate Covered Sea Salt Butterscotch Caramels
  3. Trader Joe’s Holiday Roundup 2012
  4. Trader Joe’s Almondictive Bits
  5. Choceur Nougat Bites & Marzipan Bites
  6. Fard’s Persian Pistachio Nougat
  7. Valerie Lemon Hazelnut Nougat
  8. Nougat de Montelimar


Name: Magic Beans
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Trader Joe’s
Place Purchased: Trader Joe's (3rd & Fairfax)
Price: $3.99
Size: 7.2 ounces
Calories per ounce: 145
Categories: Candy, Trader Joe's, Brittle, Chocolate, Nuts, 8-Tasty, France

POSTED BY Cybele AT 3:26 pm     CandyMorselizationReviewTrader Joe'sBrittleChocolateNuts8-TastyFrance

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 23 - Trader Joe’s

Candyology101-23

In this episode Maria and I host our first guests on the show, the crew from Let’s Talk TJ’s (Nathan, Sonia and Russ, who also run What’s Good at Trader Joe’s). We chat about the wide world of Trader Joe’s house branded candies.

Download directly and of course check out our complete show notes with links to many of the products we mention.

 

POSTED BY Cybele AT 10:28 am     CandyTrader Joe'sHighlightRadio Interviews

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Meticulously photographed and documented reviews of candy from around the world. And the occasional other sweet adventures. Open your mouth, expand your mind.

 

 

 

 

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COUNTDOWN.

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