Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Cajeta Elegancita

I’ve seen these Hershey’s candies called Cajeta Elegancita at the 99 Cent Store for a while, but I didn’t buy them for myself. My sister, in Pennsylvania, gave them to me.

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The Elegancita (little elegance) bars are part of Hershey’s attempt to capture the Hispanic market in the United States. However, it seems that they didn’t do all of their research. Cajeta, in Mexican-Spanish is a flavor where milk is slowly condensed and caramelized, kind of like dulce de leche. It’s very well known not only in Mexico but in many border states and you can even find it in fine restaurants (I had a cajeta flan at Ciudad in Los Angeles, which is run by those Too Hot Tamales). The important thing to know is that cajeta also means “little box” which in Argentina is a euphemism for a part of, um, a woman’s anatomy. But hey, maybe that’s a selling point.

The candy is branded as part of Hershey’s La Dulceria Thalia (Thalia’s Candy Store). Thalia Sodi is apparently quite a big music star. Of course, I don’t follow stuff like that ... and don’t think that it’s that I’m ignoring the Hispanic music scene, I also didn’t recognize that Carrie Underwood was doing special promotions last year for Hershey’s. I’m obviously not their target market.

But no amount of star power matters when it’s candy. Cajeta Elegancita is a series of bland wafers with a milky cream center layer and then a partial milk chocolate dip. I was hoping it would be like the long-gone Bar None (which may or may not still be made in Mexico).

Cajeta is very distinct tasting, very milky. It has a bit of a coconut twang to it, a little tartness as well. It’s interesting, but not very compelling for me. The condensed milk flavors completely dominate the chocolate, so it’s rather one note in the end. The delicate wafers do give it a nice crunch and texture, but not enough for me to go for this bar instead of a Heath if I’m feeling like something caramelized.

The package doesn’t have a lot of candy in it - at only 1.1 ounces, it’s rather scant for a commercial candy bar. However, at 170 calories and no trans fat, it’s not a bad little indulgence. The dairy taste makes it very satisfying as a little treat and of course the fact that there’s only 1.1 ounces means there’s little chance of eating too much.

Now, if they wanted to do something more chocolatey, I’d be all for it.

Also in the La Dulceria Thalia line are special flavors of Jolly Ranchers - tropical and spicy ... I’m kind of curious about the spicy ones, so I’ll get back to you on that!

(See also: Nestle’s La Lechera, which is a sweetened condensed milk product just launched in squeezable bottles to use as a sweet condiment & this story about Hershey’s move to capture the Hispanic market in the US)

Name: Cajeta Elegancita
    RATING:
  • 10 SUPERB
  • 9 YUMMY
  • 8 TASTY
  • 7 WORTH IT
  • 6 TEMPTING
  • 5 PLEASANT
  • 4 BENIGN
  • 3 UNAPPEALING
  • 2 APPALLING
  • 1 INEDIBLE
Brand: La Dulceria Thalia (Hershey's)
Place Purchased: gift
Price: $.33 (at the 99 Cent Only Store)
Size: 1.1 ounces
Calories per ounce: 155
Categories: Chocolate, Cookie, United States, Hershey's

POSTED BY Cybele AT 6:37 am Tracker Pixel for Entry    

Comments
  1. Some friends of mine were in Mexico a year or so ago and found Bar None. I don’t know if it was the revamped version (double bars) or the original one, which to this day is still my all-time favorite candy bar, bar none!  I don’t know what Hershey’s was thinking, discontinuing it.

    Comment by Lesley on 5/31/06 at 7:38 am #
  2. I tried this sometime last year and aside from the initial bite, it’s still sitting in a baggie in the drawer, so that tells you how excited about it I was…

    Comment by Grace on 5/31/06 at 11:22 am #
  3. So far I’ve tried the lime Jolly Rancher pop… the rest have been sitting and waiting in my candy dish until I am in the mood for them. The first few licks of the lime were nice and fruity, but I’d have to say it does have a kick. I am going to try the mango and tamarind soon.

    Comment by Jamie on 5/31/06 at 1:33 pm #
  4. cajeta is actually made from goat’s milk.  You can get a jar of it.  I found it in Florida at Big Lots for 2.99 for a really big jar.  They have two kinds.  One flavored with vanilla and another flavored with sherry.  Its good with crepes and ice cream.

    Comment by randi on 5/31/06 at 2:15 pm #
  5. Thalia I’ve heard of. Who’s Carrie Underwood?

    And as Grace said, the bar’s been sitting in the drawer for months and months now. Maybe I should go toss it…

    Comment by Bruce on 6/01/06 at 6:13 am #
  6. Cybele's avatar

    Lesley - the last info I had on the Mexican one was that it was the double bar. Check out the web page on the Hershey Mexico website. There’s something to get into candy swapping for!

    Grace - yeah, my sister gave me these bars in February ... I hate to say that I reviewed them more out of obligation than curiosity.

    Jamie - I’ve very curious about the Tamarind - hopefully they’ll have some samples at the All Candy Expo.

    randi - thanks! I knew there was a difference between dulce de leche and traditional cajeta (this bar didn’t say goat’s milk on it, but I’m pretty sure it was cow’s milk).

    Bruce - with the weather lately, you don’t want this thing melting on you. Take a bite ... come on, you’re curious aren’t you? (Hey - did you go to Mel & Rose?)

    Comment by Cybele on 6/01/06 at 6:37 am #
  7. Erm. You may want to put a disclaimer on your site:
    http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/101dumbest/dumbest_category_celebrities/index.htm

    Comment by Abi on 6/05/06 at 11:42 am #
  8. Cybele's avatar

    Abi - yeah, quite a few business magazines noted the gaffe earlier this year. I don’t think there’s an issue with me saying the same thing here, is there?

    Comment by Cybele on 6/13/06 at 12:04 pm #
  9. I’ve tried the Tamarind flavor for the hot & spicy lollipops and I really didn’t like them.  I usually really like tamarind candies, but the lollipop was just a bit too spicy than expected.  I’m kind of afraid to try the lime and mango.  On top of that, I’ve also tried to regular tropical lollipops.  Those were very good.  The strawberry flavor was just a bit too strong, and was also very strong smelling.  But the lime and mango flavors were great.

    Comment by Jessica on 9/08/06 at 2:27 pm #
  10. I like the strawberry flavor (from the tropical mix). It’s actually more like sour strawberry, not like the regular strawberry jolly ranchers which are sweet, not sour. I’ve always been partial to strawberry candies (and citrus).

    Comment by Trish on 11/10/06 at 2:42 pm #
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