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HighlightWednesday, March 18, 2015
Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 10 - Easter FavoritesIn episode 10 of Candyology 101, Maria and I review our lists of the top Easter candies and talk about the iconic chocolate rabbit.
POSTED BY Cybele AT 9:42 am Candy • Easter • Highlight • Radio Interviews • Thursday, March 5, 2015
Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 9 - House BrandsIn this episode of Candyology 101, Maria and I talk about house brands. You know, generics or downmarket clones of popular candies. You can download the file directly: MP3. Here’s a quick review to go with the podcast. In preparation for the episode, I picked up the 99 Cent Only Store version of the popular Mars candy bar array. The cross sections are shown in the image above. They’re all packaged by Momentum Brands in Turkey. Though the wrappers said that they were milk chocolate covered candy bars, the milk chocolate actually contained dairy whey, which is considered a filler in the United States and cannot be labeled chocolate here. In general whey is used in place of extra sugar in cheaper milk chocolate. Think about it, if you want to make an inexpensive chocolate, you’re going to use as little of the most expensive ingredient as you can. So the cacao content (not even listed) is probably not more than 20%. Then there’s milk, which is usually milk fat and milk powder (which includes both the milk proteins and milk fats) ...and sugar. Too much sugar and the chocolate is unappealing and too much milk fat and the chocolate won’t set. So, milk protein does nicely as a filler that has a slightly malty flavor but is generally benign. Choco Coco (Bounty) are like Almond Joy without the almonds. The coconut was very firm, but thankfully not that sweet. The milk chocolate has an odd malty flavor to it and a sort of “vitamin” note. Overall, satisfying for a cheap candy ... there were three little bars in the package for 60 cents. Choco Duo (Twix) - This was a smaller package instead of the king size versions of the others. The sticks smelled malty and sweet. The biscuit base was very hard with a sort of graham cracker or digestive note to it, instead of the exceptionally bland version in the US Twix. The caramel was quite stiff but ultimately chewy ... much chewier than a Twix. The texture of the whole was more within my preferences than actual Twix. But it still isn’t in my arena of candy bars. Coco Nut (Snickers) were also a king sized package that had two not-quite-full-sized bars. Mine were bloomed (all others were shiny) and I noticed right away that they’re much flatter than Snickers. The ratios are completely off and the peanuts taste foreign, as if they’re a different variety from the US bars. It’s not very peanutty, the caramel and nougat had the same chew ... it was fine for eating, but did not scratch the same itch that a fresh Snickers does. Coco Nougat (Milky Way) is not at all like a Milky Way. This is actually more like the Milk Munch (also make in Turkey) that I had years ago. Very malty, a little too stiff and not fluffy enough. I’ll stick to paying full boat for my Mars family of bars, especially when for a similar price, the 99 Cent Only Store sells those snack package with 6 or 8 little bars for a dollar anyway. Don’t forget you can check out the show notes for Candyology 101 and my previous “Designer Imposter” reviews. Related Candies
POSTED BY Cybele AT 1:20 pm Candy • Caramel • Chocolate • Coconut • Mockolate • Nougat • Peanuts • 5-Pleasant • Turkey • Highlight • Radio Interviews • 99 Cent Only Store • Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Eat with your Eyes: Jelly Belly Malted Milk EggsI got a sample bag of Jelly Belly Malted Milk Pastel Eggs last month and promptly ate them after taking their picture. I’ve reviewed the Jelly Belly Easter mix before, so this isn’t a re-review. I do have to note, though, that the crunchy coating was lightly flavored. So it seemed like the green ones were lightly lime and the pink ones were lightly berry. Odd ... I don’t really need an extra flavor, though it didn’t stop me from eating them. I’m posting this mostly because Brach’s Fiesta Eggs are back on shelves and changed once again. Brach’s has gone through many owners in the past 10 years, and the recipes for many of their iconic candies have changed multiple times. I haven’t found the 2015 variety, but I can attest that the 2014 variety was far too big for the mouth and the shell far too hard for cracking easily to bite. Brach’s Pastel Fiesta Malted Milk Eggs - 2007 Review Jelly Belly are far more expensive than the Brach’s version, but at the very least they use a good quality chocolate and I do enjoy the malted center very much. Related Candies
POSTED BY Cybele AT 2:56 pm Candy • Malt • Highlight • Photography • Thursday, February 19, 2015
Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 8 - Pick a MixMaria and I went to the store and picked up 15 items from the pick a mix ... you can listen to the results. You can also download the MP3 directly. Check out the show notes on Candyology101.com.
POSTED BY Cybele AT 2:21 pm Candy • Highlight • Radio Interviews • Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Eat with Your Eyes: PernigottiThere’s more to hazelnuts and chocolate than Nutella. There are quite a few makers of gianduia, the paste made from combining chocolate and ground hazelnuts, in Italy. Pernigotti is one of the finest, creating lovely little foil wrapped treats since 1860. You can read some previous reviews of their product line here. POSTED BY Cybele AT 1:17 pm Candy • Italy • Highlight • Photography • Friday, January 23, 2015
Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 6 - The Winter Fancy Food ShowLast week I went to the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. Most times I present tasting notes from each day of the show, but this year I’ve got a podcast that does it all! Join me with Maria as we explore the new flavor trends and product introductions: You can download the MP3 here and of course check out the extensive show notes that have links to many of the products mentioned. Here’s the full set of photos I’ve posted. You can also read my previous Fancy Food Show notes going back to 2007 here, kind of interesting to see how packaging has changed for some companies and how other heralded flavor trends did not catch on. POSTED BY Cybele AT 10:21 am Candy • Fancy Food Show • Highlight • Featured News • Radio Interviews • Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 5 - 2014 in ReviewIn Episode 5 of Candyology 101, Maria and I look back at the good and bad from 2014 (it’s mostly good).
Check out all the links & show notes on the Candyology 101 website.
POSTED BY Cybele AT 11:00 am Candy • Highlight • Fun Stuff • Radio Interviews • Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Candyology 101 - Podcast Episode 4 - ChristmasIn Episode 4 of Candyology 101, we’re talking about candy associations with Christmas. It’s all the good and bad that the season has to offer. You can also download the MP3 file, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher. Check out all the links & show notes on the Candyology 101 website.
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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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