Hot Tamales Ice

Boy, boy, crazy boy.
If you like jelly spearmint leaves, you'll like Hot Tamales Ice Chewy Mint Flavored Candies.
HTICMFC have been around since January, and just below the surface at least, taste like cinnamon Hot Tamales.
Run-ins with both Peppermint Schnapps and Crème de Menthe have put me off most things mint—with the exception of the US Mint and Mint Juleps on Derby Day (this year on Cinco de Mayo).

Hot Tamales Ice have the same crunchy outside, same jelly inside, same Hot Tamales syrupy finish as the originals. You can still bite one down to its nub and get a sugar crust with a bit of chew. HT Ice leaves you with a breezy mint aftertaste after sucking down the spotted coating.
Not as bad as I thought, kind of fun, but cinnamon still rules, especially for dumping into popcorn.

Peeps Pop Sliders

These weren't what I expected.
I expected Peeps dispensers twisting out marshmallow concentrate glazed in fine sugar. Maybe if I'd read the label.
These pop sliders measure smaller than a Pez dispenser, and harbor lipstick type hard candy.
The Peeps Marshmallow Lollipop initially smacked of toasted marshmallow, then quickly lost its taste, picking up a whiff of plastic from the container. It didn't help that invisible bits of plastic clung to the yellow sucker. Don't bite into it, because the Marshmallow Pop Slider is downright nasty.
TIP: Using the purple slider button lifts the wrapper up and off.
If you have the mind of a small child (as I do), watch out for rough surfaces when using them as a lipstick. Peeps sliders don't leave a color, but coat your lips with enough gloss to attract bees.
The two other flavors, Strawberry Cream and Blue Raspberry, fare better. The Strawberry also whiffed of plastic while retaining a slight berry flavor. The Blue Raspberry tasted like a Popsicle to the teeth cracking end. Too sweet for me though.
On the Peeps side, they're basket friendly and pass muster as a novelty candy.

Topping It Off: Sanders Milk Chocolate Fudge

Then there was the eating of the ice cream. We grabbed two premium vanillas from the Kwick-E-Mart, and cracked them open.
It was hard to get past the luscious layer of chocolate ganache on our first pint (no babies drank beer during the filming of this video), and it was the Dove ice cream that was the talk of the table.

After cleaning up the mess I made tunneling past the barrier du ganache, we (by we I mean Pam) heated up the Sanders Milk Chocolate Hot Fudge topping, and poured it on.
It got an "ummm," an "okay," and a "I wouldn't buy it." Pam and Nanci found it, in turn, too sugary, and too heavy on the caramel, wanting more chocolate fudge. I thought it was alright, but would probably grab a jar of Smuckers instead. Pam is standing by Mrs. Richardson's.
Once again, my parents snarfed up the leftovers, loving every drop. My mother said it reminded her of the corner drug store of her childhood.
Post Script: The Sanders Cinnamon Pear Caramel was the hands down winner of all the Sanders products, and immediately got yoinked from the table and sent to a dorm room in Milwaukee. The Dish regretfully moved on to other sweets before posting that video.

More Caramel or More Teeth?

Here's the video from the Chocolate Caramel taste test, a thinly disguised excuse to play with iMovie during the latest weather.
The three of us agreed it could use more caramel, the baby abstained.
Verdict: Delicious

Sanders Milk Chocolate Caramels

A pleasure to bite into, I ate most of these caramels before our *panel got a chance to.
Sanders Milk Chocolate Caramels are full flavored with a generous glob of caramel making them worth the chew.
I tasted dark chocolate, which is drizzled across the top and sides, the others tasted only milk chocolate. I didn't like this accent because I don't like dark chocolate, which I'm working on.
The best part is the mouthful of rich, soft, and addictive caramel.
Sucking the chocolates down to their savory caramel center was a treat, especially when you've got all the candy.
Sanders Milk Chocolate Caramels would be welcome anywhere, except maybe Jenny Craig.
*Three middle-aged women and a baby

Sanders Dark Chocolate Peppermint Patties

Sanders tells us they're known more for dessert toppings than candy, but our panel literally spilt down the middle (see video) during a recent taste test. We sampled Dark Chocolate Peppermints Patties and Milk Chocolate Caramels, then Milk Chocolate Hot Fudge and Cinnamon Pear dessert toppings. One topping and one candy prevailed.
Most of the chocolate covered caramels went missing before arriving at the test kitchen. Okay, I ate all but two, but we're talking about the mint patties now.
Neither Pam nor Nanci cared for the Dark Chocolate Peppermint Patties, and I didn't like them much at first, especially compared to the caramels. We all agreed they were heavily imbued with peppermint, and Nanci, who apparently has a thing for Junior Mints, found them too large. Pam couldn't taste the chocolate, and she wants to taste the chocolate.

I found one of the mints sitting in a wax bag next to the computer a few days later, and was better able to appreciate the icy filling and thin dark coating. It seemed like more of a refreshing breath mint this time round. I'd eat an even larger one, and think they'd go well halved in a dish of ice cream. All but the few we sampled were eaten within 24 hours (I'm guessing less) after leaving the box with my parents.
I thought the patties a creamy mint tonic that grew on you, Pam and Nanci thought the peppermint overwhelmed an oversized candy.

Meanwhile...

While I'm cooking up that chocolate fish and sorting through digital photos from the last taste test, have a look 'round Chocoblog.
Here's why I love it: today they talk about Chocolate Heaven Chilli Lips. Not enough? Okay, they're British. And if the countless references to Ab Fab don't tell you, I'm a bit of an Anglophile. There, I said it.
Bonus: Dom also talks about Tim Tam biscuits (Kit Kats with a chocolate mousse filling—what would be the equilalent?) and makes an Aussie joke about "yoghurt " and culture. I'm not sure why I find Brits joking about Australians so funny.
Note: I found the new Flake video, from the 2-15 post, easier to watch at Cadbury.
Meanwhile, meet Payton (as in Walter, not Manning), one of our cutest tast testers.

This just in...Dom says the Tim Tam post was written by an Aussie (see comment).

Muddy Waters

Sometimes you have to buy candy for the package, and this just gurgled "Who cares what I taste like?" (Much like fish out of these lakes.) I didn't know whether to hang it next to the Hamm's sign or clean it and put it in the freezer.
The Palmer's milk chocolate bass comes in a cardboard valentine's box framed with birch logs and a Trivia Quiz on the back.
Quick Quiz: Largemouth bass like clear water or weeds and mud? (see title)
There is some detail on the chocolate itself and it's ribbed (for her pleasure) on the back. It has a cute pectoral fin, and the smell of it is making me sick. (Much like the lakes.)This fish is meant to be sent as a valentine, yet here I am biting its head off. If you send the foiled creature as a gift, you have two message options: "You're A Keeper" or "I'm hooked on you." A third could be: "Thanks For Not Being Choosy."
The commercial is-it-really-chocolate chocolate is about what you'd expect from such a hilarious gift. It reminds me of unwrapped Easter candy lost in the basket—I can almost taste bits of Peep and Easter grass.
Up Next: An informal round table taste test of Sanders chocolates and dessert toppings.

Badger Claw Candy

I found some lovely Badger Claws next to the Cow Pies the other day. Perfect for Valentine's Day. When I asked the girl at the market if the claw was related to the pie, she said "no." Experience with this store made me look at the package with my good glasses.
I discovered very little from the label. The white coated caramel clusters are distributed by L&L Foods in Verona, which was disturbing because the only information I could find on them was a warning letter from the FDA. There was also a reminder to "Enjoy the original COW PIE!"
A clue? Just more bad news because the Cow Pie people's website isn't fully functioning, and while a staple of many a trip to our friends at the Ho-Chunk Nation, I believe they are a long distance phone call.
Getting looks, so I'll just say I love a cashew, and I love the combination of white chocolate, cashews, and caramel. It didn't stick to my real teeth much and the whole thing had a salty-sweet overtone, made extra sweet by the white coating.
Here I must add that "white coating" does not mean "white chocolate," which is made with cocoa butter. And that white chocolate is not considered real chocolate because it is only made with the fat part of the cocoa bean and does not contain chocolate liquor.
The folks at Gem City Candy suggest the Badger Claw is made right here at the University of Wisconsin. This makes sense given the Bucky Badger logo on the wrapper.
The Badger Claw is sweet, slightly salty, and buttery, with just the right amount of nutty snap and delicious caramel. The white coating gives it a unique, if not sweeter taste than other caramel clusters.

Snag Me That Porterhouse and We'll Talk

When the National Confectioner's Association reported that "Pets give out and receive only 1 percent of all gifts" on Valentine's Day, I had to laugh, ha ha.
"Only" you say?
With whom are they exchanging presents? The mailman? Each other?
If you've ever seen a black lab scarf down anything in a gift shaped box, you know it's a gift that keeps on giving. And I can think of a less pleasant valentine than a heart shaped box of chocolates.
Three cheers for gift giving dogs.

Kissy Lip Pops

Sure to make any dentist cringe, Kissy Big Stuff Lip Pops come packaged with a pink valentine and plastic Paris Lips.
The fruit flavored candy bulb is gripped between your teeth and the flavor is anything but subtle. I tried Wild Blue Raspberry, which is more flavorful than a Blue Raspberry Tootsie Roll Pop, and smells like blue cotton candy.
Sugar Buzz Sidetrack: There's a new Lemon-Lime flavor Tootsie Roll Pop. Yum.
Lip Pops have a high drool factor, which can gather in the hallow end of the toy. Be on high drool alert if you feel tempted to remove the pop from your mouth mid suck. And, your saliva will turn the color of the candy. Appetizing, no?
The hard candy melts at a nice pace, and the lips are easily held between fingers and thumb for a more sophisticated lollipop.
Leaving the paper heart while adding Groucho glasses and a Pez dispenser is another option.
Kissy Lip Pops can be found in almost any candy aisle alongside the Valentine's Day or novelty candy.
Flix Candy also makes projector pops and rings, which supposedly shine ten feet. There are cupid, heart, and lip images for Valentine's Day.
I can't wait to try their Peep's Marshmallow Lollipop slider this Easter.

Jet-Puffed Strawberry Mallows

When I saw these on the grocery store shelf, I had to have them. And bonus, they were a hit at the checkout counter.
You know what a marshmallow tastes like. They taste like that. Except when you put them in hot chocolate, and the strawberry melts off the puff in sweet, creamy slicks. I recommend at least two per cup.
Bonus bonus, they have a squishy sound when eaten with your mouth open—we don't need no stinkin' manners.
Marshmallows are a weird food suitable for many things: Camping, dieting, baking, pelting your friends while pretending to aim for their mouths.
Bonus bonus bonus, there's a Choking Warning on the back telling people to, "Eat one at a time." Has someone at Kraft seen where boredom and stupidity can lead? Did Eddy have a point about taxing just "the stupid people?"
I beg you, no matter how tedious things get, drive me to rehab if I ever cut a marshmallow into five pieces with a scissors then arrange it in flower shapes.
There are more "Berry Fun Ideas" on the back.
The Strawberry Mallow Cheesecake Squares look hideous, and I'm way ahead of them on smashing marshmallows in between cookies and shoving the mess into a microwave.
Of course the corner stone of marshmallow cuisine is the Rice Krispie square, and the pink tones are perfect for the holiday.
Mmmm, red dye #40. Happy Valentine's Day, Allied Chemical!

Cadbury Double Chocolate Filled Hearts

Some of us have been snacking on Valentine's candy since shortly after Christmas. In an effort to weed out the bland from the grand, we've decided to make several trips to the candy aisle over the next two weeks.
A sacrifice, yes, but that's how we roll. In sugar.
First up, Cadbury Double Chocolate Filled Hearts.
Although manufactured by Hershey's, they're pure Cadbury. (Cadbury Eggs, btw, were already hatching at Walgreen's.)
Grand? Not quite. Bland? Never. The double hearts are a milky smooth Cadbury chocolate with a drippy chocolate filling.
And that they are. Rich and sweet and surprisingly filling for 59 cents. This candy asks you to wait an hour before diving into another pool of chocolate.
Bottom Line: Better than average chocolate with a gooey center which drips like pizza cheese. You taste every last calorie.

Dishing Nostalgia: Debbie's Sweets 'n Treats

Debbie and Mark Maley love candy. Especially classic candy. And so do those lucky enough to discover Debbie's Sweets 'n Treats in Oak Creek, WI.
The South Howell Avenue store opened in 1998, NostalgicCandy.com went up in 2000.
Debbie's has taken a greater interest in gumballs, Pez, and Wonka since I've been over by da southside der.
In addition, they've moved down the road, and scored Pucker Powder and Blackjack Taffy.
Debbie waxes nostalgic about making their own black mustaches and orange harmonicas.
The Classic Corner
Memorabilia and nostalgic candy lovers are major reasons why the store is 400 square feet bigger.
"We were finding that a lot of people come in looking for memorabilia," says Debbie.
The sweet shop cut back on their novelty section, with more changes likely to be made in favor of nostalgia.
"It’s very rare that you see anything actually go from the novelty section for the kids," Debbie says. "It’s like they high tail it straight to the Classic Corner too."
They've also beefed up the Pez section (mmm, beef Pez).

Boomers
If my math is correct (and it usually isn't), Debbie and Mark are tail end Boomers. Debbie originally thought of opening an old general candy store, when husband Mark suggested targeting the '50s, '60s, and '70s.
"Even the kids now are taking after their parents, their grandparents, and they’re going for the little wax juice bottles. Of course candy cigarettes will always be a big thing no matter how old, how young you are."
Smack me with a baby seal, but I like my chocolate cigarettes to look like Winstons, and my bubble gum Round Ups to blow fake smoke.

Self-reliance
The Maleys have learned a few things over the past almost decade, such as checking on an item's availability for themselves.

They can track down Hot Cinnamon Toothpicks. They can envision a soda glass filled with marshmallow and root beer float gumballs.
May their bubble gum galaxy keep expanding.

beanie and poodle photo from Mark Maley

Christmas Leftovers: Fear Is A Factor

Debbie of Debbie's Sweets 'n Treats said they cut back on their novelty candy section for kids. Here's a leftover vid from Christmas which might explain why.
If you don't eat your worms, you can't have any pudding.

Sugar Buzz: Love Me Reese's

I think my girls look a little "buzzed" in this old photo from the old Stevens restaurant. And I don't remember Elvis eating a peanut butter and banana sandwich in that painting. Someone has been up to mischief.
Here is the Buzz: Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are adding a limited edition peanut butter and banana cup based on the famous Elvis snack. It will drop as the kids say, sometime around the 30th anniversary of his death, August 16.
Maybe you already knew that, but it came up in a lovely conversation I had with Debbie Maley from Debbie's Sweets 'n Treats this morning.
Their website got the once over, and she took time out for a chat. Her hubby Mark is sending photos, and we'll soon tell you what's new in Oak Creek.

Chocolate Pop Rocks

First Cola Pez and now Chocolate Pop Rocks.
Life is good.
I thought I was just at the video store to find the fourth season of Oz, but was instead destined to find a pack of Limited Edition Rich Milk Chocolate Pop Rocks With A Kick lying on the counter.
And yes to all of that. They're Rich. Milk. Chocolate. With A Kick. Don't know how limited they are, but I'm stocking up.
There are still tiny Pop Rock voices in my head after downing a pouch five minutes ago. It's like swimming in cold water for two hours, or maybe just the first signs of insanity.
There's a thick, almost powdery texture to the Cocoa Krispie look-a-likes. It reminds me of really good cheese popcorn. The chocolate is soft and melty. The coating is as rich and generous as you can get on a speck of candy the size of glitter.
I haven't noticed Chocolate Pop Rocks any place else in the so-called real world, but then again I haven't been looking. A few places to buy them online are at Groovy Candies (speaking of Willy St.), Blair Candy, and candyfavorites.com.

Trader Joe's

Billed as "your neighborhood grocery store," Trader Joe's is a large national chain with a store in Madison and another in Glendale on N. Port Washington.
This one is a few blocks from Camp Randall, and serves as a crowd-drawing addition to the Monroe St. neighborhood.
Warning: Do not go with someone who can turn a 20 minute browse into a two hour buying frenzy worthy of a survivalist at the millenium.
It's a fun place to go on a slow weekend. There were shelves of healthy snacks being restocked by clerks sprawled in the aisle, and wandering young hippies happy to talk about health food. It's basically a health food store with some interesting food trinkets tossed in. You can find a shrink wrapped leg of lamb around the corner from a chunk of halvah next to a ten pound block of chocolate three aisles away from a pack of "organic" tampons.
It is not, however, a place to buy candy.
Hats off to Monroe St., but you're better off to have a nosh at New Orleans Take-Out, take a stroll around the shops, then travel west until you run into James J.

The Popcorn Ball Has Dropped

Happy New Year, everybody!
Thanks for the popcorn ball recipes and tips.
To Sue: The Jell-O popcorn balls were easy to make and quite tasty.
However, I came up with a hard green blob at the bottom of the pan the first go round. I recommend staying in the kitchen rather than wrapping presents while watching It's a Wonderful Life as the syrup comes to a boil. Let's just say the whole thing went way past the hard ball stage.
I ended up with cherry, which one of my nephews claimed to be allergic to, and a few Werther's.
The sailor boy got a mixed bucket.
It took me an entire pack of Werther's Chewy Caramels to get 4-5 medium sized popcorn balls by melting them in a double boiler.
I still miss the Hershey's Classic Caramels, which were available up until a few years ago.

Wanted: Popcorn Ball Recipe

Look at this sailor boy, isn't he cute? And hungry. This is my Godson, and I want to make him popcorn balls for Christmas.
Last year the others got his chewy stash before he even stepped off the plane. Not that hiding anything from his youngest brother does any good. The boy has a nose like a bloodhound.My touch for making popcorn balls has flown the coop, and if I'm going to spend the week before Christmas with my hands in a vat of hot caramel, I need a good recipe.

Chocolate Gift Boxes

Santa's got a brand new bag, and it's loaded with candy.
You've seen those holiday chocolate commercials. People treating shiny boxes of chocolate like bottles of Château Lafite-Rothschild.
But as William over at Chocolate Obsession cautions, you never know how old boxed department store chocolate will be.
How long do you think that Ferrero Rocher Christmas bell has been sitting on the shelf at Walgreen's?
Although I have nothing against Godiva, Ghirardelli, or my favorite drugstore chocolate, Lindt, I'd be reluctant to pay more than a few dollars if I didn't know how old the chocolate was.
Especially if someone, let's call him Phil, bought a $50.00 box of Godiva chocolates, then left it to fend for itself in a room containing two labrador retreivers. The one with the holiday assortment breath looked very much like Roscoe here (left).The actual culprit, a known associate, was bigger, a little older, and suffered no serious side effects. I suspect the active participation of the "smart one" (right).
There are a lot of candy gift boxes out for Christmas, and who doesn't enjoy a Whitman's Sampler under the tree.
The point being, if you're going to spend $50.00 on a box of chocolates, don't gift wrap it for your dog. No, wait, the point being, you don't know how old most gift boxes are, and as William points out, freshness is key.
Even if you don't know your neighborhood confectioner the way people used to know their butcher, support your local candy maker. Do a sweet search. Type in "chocolatier" and your city and state—enter the name of a larger town if you don't get results. We have some exceptional ones in the Madtown area. (Candinas, The Chocolate Caper, James J., Gail Abrosius) Take that, Milwaukee.
And if your dog has a sweet tooth (see previous entries on dogs and candy), try treating your expensive chocolates like food on a camping trip.

Hanging Out on the Candy Corner

Quit fogging up the window and come in.
You'll find owner Jeremy Schertz emersed in a huge Christmas order and surrounded, as always, by candy.
Jeremy is the one who introduced me to Pucker Powder four years ago when the Candy Corner first opened. Today the store was trimmed in gingerbread houses, santas, and salt water taffy garland. I find something new every time I go. I picked up large chocolate clusters I thought were pecan caramel turtles on this winter visit. Turns out the très chewy treats were something I didn't know you could do with gummies and chocolate.
"This Christmas is the first time we're making homemade seafoam," says Jeremy.
Sounds delicious. But the rack of cola Pez, and a personal tour of the Fear Factor candy line were more down my Gingerbread Lane.
This foul stuff has its own wall in a newer section which will be further renovated. The area now includes a lollipop stand, exploding ice cream, and a display of pink cuddly things staring across at the candy roaches.
(Who do I know that would appreciate a Fear Factor Candy Challenge game this Christmas. The commercial is on the same page. The Joyride website will also tell you how to host a SICK a ning house party.)
The Candy Corner had Fear Factor candy out early last spring, putting them ahead of the crowd. I've handed out a fake bug sucker or two, so it was hard for me to grasp that not only fear, but bug larva is the factor.

When the back room goes through its metamorphosis, it will be called Carnival Cravings. This is because it will have fair foods. You know, stuffed pretzels, caramel apples, cotton candy, and funnel cakes, while keeping the ice cream and Fear Factor bits of nasty.
“We’re getting a lot of new Fear Factor candy in. It’s so popular we’re going keep it," smiles Jeremy.They'll also be filling the buttery void left by their neighbor, Kernel Popcorn's. (Sigh. A wonderful place, hope to have more news on them soon.) Jeremy says they're doing a whole new thing from the Kernel's. Does that mean no more black licorice, barbecue cheese, cheesy baked potato, cheezy caramel, double cheese, jalapeno cheese, and pizza cheese popcorn?
"We're doing a lot more cheeses," he says.
That I'll have to see.
And what of black licorice popcorn?
"We are doing as many kinds as we can,” he laughs.
And having many flat screen TVs. All around the store. Someone up in Rapids is making a new video for them about a kid who sneaks into a candy store and stumbles onto a secret chocolate lab.
The Candy Corner was recently featured in Treasures of Wisconsin, available at the local Barnes and Noble.
Jeremy, who started working for other Dell's candy stores at age 16, takes the Christmas order—did he say something about a thousand pieces of chocolate—and the ambitious Carnival Cravings in stride.
Adding, "It's going to be a big job."
Bring on the exploding ice cream. Which btw, is Mini Melts with Pop Rocks.

Horsing Around in the Dells

A bitter wind and some holiday cheer blew along the Dells drag yesterday.
Stay tuned this weekend as we talk to the Candy Corner's Jeremy Schertz about revnovations under the Glockenspiel.

Poll: Sweet or Salty

What's Your Favorite Snack Combo?

Fruit and CandyCandy and CandyVegetables and Salty ThingsCandy and Salty ThingsA Big Ol' Lick of SaltSomething From the Chip and Dairy GroupSomething From the Fried Food and Beer Group

Free polls from Pollhost.com

'Tis The Season (For Fruit)

Yes, I said fruit.
Move over fall holidays, take a hike wax fangs, it's sugar plum time. Sugar plums, btw, are also a fruit.
Are you longing for a Christmas platter piled with cookies, ribbon candy, peppermint puffs, chocolate kisses, and figs.
You heard me, figs.
I'm old enough to have parents who are old enough to talk about the delight of an orange in their Christmas stocking, so the idea of fruit as a delicacy has become ingrained. The cravings seem to peak in the summer, and...right...about...now.
Why is that?
A Pavlovian response to the crates of oranges and grapefruit we get from Florida this time each year? The fruit orgies of dates, pomegranates, tangerines, grapes, star fruit, and prickly pears from the Christmas tables of my childhood?
Or is it because, as a study done last summer at Cornell University would have us believe, people who love candy, also love fruit.

The Sweet Tooth Study
This study involved thousands of test subjects, dividing the sugar people from the salt people, then the veggie people from the fruit people.
They found a major link between sweet eaters and fruit consumption.
It turns out that sugar lovers, like ourselves, go for fruit over salt. And not surprisingly, fruit lovers eat more sweets than veggie lovers.
The idea is that the same craving which tells you to eat a pack of frozen Snickers, also directs you to the fruit aisle in search of a Cripps Pink.
This explains why I eat Dots with apples, but what about the desire to pour Jujyfruits and Sour Patch Kids into popcorn? (Warning, that Sour Patch link is a little trippy.)
Getting back to the study by Cornell Food and Brand Lab director, Professor Brian Wansink, he's a food psychologist and really wants people to eat better. Knowing that we may just as easily eat a banana as a bon bon gives the healthy types hope for us sweet tooths.
So let's show Professor Wansink what candy lovers are made of.
(Sugar?)

Sources: Nutrition Today (Sept-Oct 2006), Cornell University Faculty Profiles
flickr photo by Jane.b

Flickr: A Great Way To Procrastinate When You Should Be Writing An Essay

Holy Moses, I finally uploaded my Halloween photos to flickr.
"Timely," you say sarcastically.
(Apologies to Shannon.)
Hey, I've been busy.
Plus, this is still part of a class project, and some of those photos are just too cool for school.
(James Dean is always a relevant link.)
Did I mention how much I hate writing essays?
Maybe I should start my St. Patrick's Day set.

From The Mailbag: Fairy Food Recipe

Betsy K. emailed the Dish in search of a good Fairy Food or Sponge Candy recipe.
Also called Angel Food Candy, here are the most common ingredients:
•Corn Syrup (light or dark)
•White Granulated Sugar
•Vinegar
•Baking Soda
•Semi-sweet Chocolate (chips or bark)
Used less frequently:
•Brown Sugar
•Butter
•Paraffine (my mother hates this stuff)
From the Familyfun.com recipe file, here's Marsha From New London's Recipe For Angel Food Candy:
•1 tablespoon vinegar
•1 cup granulated sugar
•1/2 cup dark corn syrup
•1 tablespoon baking soda
•8 oz. chocolate
1. Cook the vinegar, sugar, and corn syrup over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves.
2. Continue heating without stirring until it reaches the hard-crack stage (hard brittle threads) or 300 degrees on your candy thermometer. (If you're sick of people asking, "How on earth did you manage to break another candy thermometer?", here's a handy Candy Temperature Chart.)
3. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. Stir well.
4. Pour into ungreased 8x8 inch pan, and let spread on its own.
5. Let cool.
6. While cooling, melt your chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat. (I prefer a double boiler. If you don't have one, use a pan and metal bowl to melt your candy. Make sure the sizes don't allow for splash back into the smaller, melting bowl.)
7. Lay out your non-stick paper. Don't use cheap wax paper, it sticks to everything. If you want to be sure, use parchment paper. (There are some interesting comments on this subject at Say La Vee, where they talk about Silpat, which I've never tried with candy.)
8. Break your cooled candy into chunks, and dip in the melted chocolate.
9. Place on non-stick paper until the chocolate hardens. Store in cool place. Avoid using the fridge if possible.
Watch out for quick temperature changes which causes surface moisture.
This results in sugar and fat blooms.

Happy Thanksgiving

What else but pumpkin pie and whipped cream could be numbers 1 and 2. Is it because a combination of autumn vegetable and dairy is considered health food in Wisconsin? Have pumpkin pie and whipped cream become our wafer-thin mint?

Thanksgiving Day
2) Whipped Cream
It's a dessert topping, a floor wax, a party favor, and the best thing to happen to a pumpkin since someone scraped out its insides and chucked it in a pie. I remember first discovering Cool Whip at a Kohl's grocery store when I was a kid, then eating an entire tub of it while waiting for the Park St. bus. I thought it was ambrosia, and didn't know how easy whipped cream was to make. I've seen recipes calling for either confectioners' or granulated sugar. I'd think the powdered would blend well, and the granulated would taste better; this whipped cream recipe from Grandma's Cookbook doesn't specify. It's best to chill the bowl and beaters before using. So we're looking at heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla, then beating it until you see soft peaks. Or was it Twin Peaks?

1) Pumpkin Pie
According to whatscookingamerica.net, pumpkin pie dates back to 1621. (They are now saying, btw, it's time to start on Christmas cookies.) Pilgrims filled a pumpkin with milk and honey and tossed it in hot ashes. Why does this remind me of camping trips with the Prestigiacomo's? Another time, another story. Meanwhile, have a slice or twelve, and surf these pumpkin pie recipes from Chiff.
bulldog flickr photo from bulldog1
pumpkin pie and whipped cream flckr photo from Lenna!

Countdown: The Other Pies

Once you've devoured just enough turkey for leftovers, it's time for pie. But which pie? Should you start with the Thanksgiving co-star, the hearty pumpkin, or is it best to work your way to the top, much like this countdown?

Day Four
4) Pecan Pie
I've never thought much about baking a pecan pie because it was another one of my mother's monster dessert specialties. Like the pumpkin, pecan pies beg for real whipped cream, but in a southern accent. Now that I give the recipe a second look, it appears to be pretty simple. There are variations which call for either dark or light corn syrup, 3 or 4 eggs (4 eggs!), and here's one from a New Orleanian that calls for brandy. That leaves you with butter, sugar, vanilla, pecans, and the crust. I've been down the why-not-just-get-it-from-the freezer-aisle road, but it's second rate. Crusts are tasty, quick, and easy to make. The best ones have few ingredients (flour, butter, water). There is a strong distaste for an undercooked pie crust in my family, so I usually pre-bake. Did you know that baking a pie crust sans filling is called blind baking? This recipe for a pecan pie and crust uses an ubaked crust, and doesn't specify brown or white sugar. I'd use brown. I notice they put sugar in their crust, too. This pecan pie recipe for left brainers, pre-toasts the pecans, and has a table at the bottom which reminds me of every math major I've met.
--Jeanna
3) Apple, Sweet Potato, Coconut Cream, French Silk
For some reason, four of my other fav pies, blueberry, strawberry, strawberry rubarb, and peach, don't show up at our regular holiday feasts. Is this a summer pie thing? We'd still welcome the appearance of a Perkin's lemon or key lime pie if they'd only keep making them. Can you get more summer than that? Apple is the all occasion pie. The little black dress of pies. It's a classic, and in season whether or not it's fall. This apple pie recipe talks about how the apples will shrink. I don't do much more than make the crust, peel and cut, add sugar, butter, and cinnamon, then bake until it smells right. I don't use nutmeg, but may squeeze in a bit of lemon. Remember, if you haven't almost overfilled your pastry shell, you may end up with another dessert entirely. Sweet potato pie probably needs to be made by someone who grew up with it. Not many in the fam will eat it unless they think it's pumpkin pie. I keep sneaking it into the mix just to be subversive. What I've tried tastes like a poor cousin to pumpkin, but I'll keep trying it from time to time in search of the real deal. I find coconut cream pie intrusive, yet irresistible. I'll take it fresh or frozen, chilled or room temp. French silk is decandant enough for any major holiday. You can have it with wine. It's one, like key lime, that can go graham or flour crust. Here's a french silk pie recipe that calls for 4 eggs. Serve chilled with defib paddles.
--Candy
flickr photo from hirosan

T-Day Countdown: Chocolates And Nibbly Bits

Numbers 6 and 5 are all about platters of chocolates and your bowled food group. We used to call it "company food." As in the only time we see this stuff is when we have company.

Day Three
6) Things That Are Easy For Me To Take Home
One of the beauties of Thanksgiving is that people want you to empty their fridge. For students, writers, artists, or anyone who's lined their pockets with Saran Wrap at a buffet, this is your time to shine. I can fit a seven course meal in three Baggies and a storage container. And remember, Baggies keep food tasting as fresh it sounds. The sound of all those nibbly bits as they slide into muliple plastic bags is music to my ears. One of my favorite things to go is the honey roasted nut. Peanuts, pecans, cashews, or almonds, load me up. Honeyed nuts are candy, snacks, study food, something else to eat with beer, and often, dinner. What can I say about chocolate in a paper cup that can't be said by this photo from the Lake Mills wine and chocolate tasting.
--Candy
5) The Other Nibbly Bits
We're not talking Beluga or Japanese finger food, but something to do with your hands because this isn't an episode of Ab Fab, and you can't smoke in the house already. The classic nibble is some form of Chex mix in a bowl, which of course nicely tranfers to a plastic bag of any size. If it requires popping a lid or tearing open a bag, you're on the right track. You might want to avoid the cheese based munchy in some cases, such as your stand alone Cheetos type puff, although crunchy may be a key ingredient in your party mix. It's hard to go wrong, even if you walk into a PDQ blindfolded, which we here at the Dish don't recommend.
--Jeanna

Thanksgiving Countdown: Hard Candy And The Mother Of All Cheesecakes

Weighing in at numbers 8 and 7, are dishes full of high grade hard candy, and my mother's mammoth cheesecake.

Day Two
8) Homemade Hard Candy
No candy sits in a dish like hard candy. And there's no hard candy like homemade hard candy. Even if clove or horehound isn't your thing, you can't go wrong with these squares or pillows from James J. Chocolate. In my family, if it smacks of licorice or toffee, it won't make it through the day. Here's what I stock up on: Brown Sugar Cinnamon, Lemon Butter, and Anise. I recently noticed that James J. has Lemon Drops and a dark colored Butterscotch which I'll try soon. My favorites, the Brown Sugar Cinnamon and the Lemon Butter, are full-flavored, and at the same time delicate in a way you don't find in common store brands. Good homemade shop candies tend to give way to a mouthful of teeth in a way that would make your dentist plotz.
--Clem
7) Mother Cheesecake
The last time I saw my mother's cheesecake was on a Papa Phil's dessert menu. There was no mistaking it. This brick of sugar, cream cheese, butter, graham cracker, lemon, and cherries was one of my mother's holiday calling cards. A very large, evil, calling card. It was made in the heaviest of CorningWare, and there had been jokes of baking the mass in something even larger. Like our '76 Cutlass. The slices were as subtle as a wheel of cheese, and must have stood 3.5, 4 inches high. It was no coincidence that the ristorante sharing this madness belongs to my godfather. I've never attempted to make it, not many have, but I gain ten pounds every time I look at the recipe. In deference to the days of yore and lore, we have some manner of cheesecake for almost every holiday. Coincidently, my sister was insisting we get a pumpkin cheesecake from Papa Phil's for Thanksgiving. And so it begins. Try and stop me from picking up a cornucopia made of and filled with chocolate tomorrow.
--Jeanna

Sweet Thanksgiving Countdown: Cut Out Cookies and Torrone

Turkey and stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, something cranberry, good bread, and real butter. All Thanksgiving must haves. But what of dessert?
Over the next five days we'll be dishing up our Top Ten favorites.

Day One
10) Cut Out Cookies
After much trial and error, this Land O' Lakes butter cookie recipe is the only one I use. It allows for extra flour when the chilled dough starts sticking to everything, and uses orange juice for a touch of fresh flavor. Besides, my cousin works there, and gives me free butter. If you missed baking headless horsemen for Halloween, there are always turkeys and evil pilgrims to be baked and decapitated for Thanksgiving. Guest dependent of course. It's also a great excuse to take stock of your cookie cutters and decorations before the Christmas baking season begins.
9) Torrone
I'm Italian, enough said. No? Torrone is a chewy honey and almond nougat candy my grandpa kept around his restaurant so he could pretend to get mad at us in Italian when we stold it. Any self respecting Italian Groceria will have it, and if they don't, turn around and leave. If you're heading east, keep driving until you hit Brady Street. Closer to home, the best place to go is the Fraboni's in what remains of Madison's Greenbush Neighborhood. And they still have the best subs in town. (If, however, you're looking for a decent cannoli, I'd head to the Gino's Deli on Verona Rd, where they make them fresh to order.) For a nice selection of torrone online, this candy site out of the UK is pretty impressive. How many times have I said that. If you're looking for the torrone I grew up with, you can find it online or at Frabroni's by the piece or box.
flickr photo from roboppy

Making Chocolate Covered Pretzels If You Had Your Own Chocolate Factory

Longtime employee Carol shows us how they cover things in chocolate at the James J. Chocolate Shop candy factory.
In case the sugar groupies hovering around the belt scare you, Laurie Jarnigo says they go through, inspect, and clean everything.

In The Kitchen With James J.

James J. is happy with the move from Watertown to Lake Mills. They have the space they need, are closer to the other candy store in Madison, and of course, home. The Lake Mills chocolate factory is their central kitchen, and is housed in two large rooms accessed from a friendly looking hallway (the woman's bathroom there has Barbie wallpaper), and from behind the candy counter.
This James J. Chocolate Shop looks about the size of the one that burned down on University Avenue in August of 2005, and even has a souvenir or two from the old shop. (See the rolling pin candy cutter with the black handle.)
Jim uses copper pots and marble tables along with these cool cutters to make his candy. The latest acquisition is a caramel candy cutter that was sitting next to piles of fairy food during their chocolate and wine tasting event. Laurie Jarnigo says they only make fairy food, aka angel food, devil's food, or sponge candy, from October through April or May.
Did you know few places actually make chocolate, but use the chocolate they get from chocolate makers to fashion their own molds and candies? James J. and Oregon's The Chocolate Caper are candy makers, Scharffen Berger is a chocolate maker.
The arsonist caught coming out of the Jarnigo's candy store got five years. Their chocolate shop on University had been there for 17.
The new place by Mallatt's on Monroe Street somehow managed to open two weeks before Christmas after the late summer fire. And since some of us have become spoiled by handmade James J. canes, sugar plums, anise, and lemon butter candy, it opened just in time.
This is what naked fairy food looks like. It immediately takes the golden blog shape after pouring out of the copper kettle.

A Trip To The Chocolate Factory

Jim Jarnigo, aka James J., makes the golden insides of his chocolate covered fairy food in a copper pot. The husband and wife candymakers, Jim and Laurie, opened up their chocolate factory Monday night to benefit the Lake Mills food pantry. There was a huge stack of this irresistible stuff waiting for us along with teaming platters of dark and milk chocolates. Jim had just added the final fairy food ingredient, baking soda, to make it froth and rise. This is what makes the fairy food candy airy, similar to what creates the bubbles inside peanut brittle. The sweet mass took on a life of its own once set to cool on the marble table. (See photos in the entry above.) As for the shots of the ceiling at the end of the video, did I mention there was free wine?

Candy Lover's Hot Chocolate

If you're lucky enough to have any leftover Halloween chocolate lying around, here's a great recipe for hot chocolate that uses candy, instead of powder or syrup. If you forgot you had some stashed, take it out of hiding, and put it in the communal pot, you miser.
A Hot Chocolate Recipe From Scharffen Berger
•6 ounces 70% Cacao Bittersweet or 62% Cacao Semisweet Chocolate
•1 quart milk, your choice, why not splurge with whole milk
•Break up the chocolate and put in a small saucepan. Melt with one cup milk over medium low heat.
•Stir constantly (very important when making candy).
•Turn heat up to medium after chocolate has melted. Add rest of milk, whisk rapidly. Don't let boil.
•Can be served with whipped cream (c'mon use real whipped cream) and liquor. My favorite is brandy. This is a Wisconsin candy blog, after all.
Any chocolate can be used. You can substitute your favorite type of chocolate, mine is Scharffen Berger or James J. milk chocolate. I started making hot chocolate this way last year when I discovered that homemade James J. Chocolate cornucopias (which are solid chocolate stuffed with candy) made a great centerpiece for the Thanksgiving dessert table. Somehow there was leftover cornucopia, so I followed this recipe and have been spoiled ever since.
flickr photo by timoni