Candy Blog

Early in the Christmas season, it seems that the first candy to hit the shelves are candy canes. Partly, I think, because they were made months ago because hard candy keeps very well.

There are so many kinds of candy canes these days, usually branded with other candies names and flavor varieties. There are: Starburst, Red Hots, Lemonheads, SweeTarts, Warheads, DumDums ... Bacon. They all pretty much look the same, They’re five or six inches long and have a little hook at the end.

In the case of Frankford’s Soda Pop Candy Canes, each candy cane is 1/2 ounce, which is a very generous size for a piece of sugar candy. There are 12 canes in the box, which is a bit of overpackaging ... but did protect my canes and is at least recyclable cardboard. There are three flavors: Orange Crush, Dr Pepper and A&W Root Beer. Yes, they’re soda pop flavors, but there’s no cola in there. This is where I went down the Wikipedia rabbit-hole…. The Dr Pepper Snapple Group also owns Squirt and Wink (both grapefruit sodas), IBC Root Beer and Hires Root Beer in addition to A&W Root Beer. Finally, they have RC Cola, which seems like the flavor they definitely left out here.

I’ve been warming up to the flavor of cherry in candies, so I’m wondering if I can also learn to love the flavor of Dr Pepper as well. The red candy candy certainly looks attractive, and just slightly different from a peppermint candy cane ... so that I didn’t expect mint. I didn’t photograph it, but the center of this candy cane is also red. The flavor is rather like Dr Pepper. It’s sort of black cherry and amaretto, though I’ve heard that it’s also supposed to be plum flavored. There’s no acidic bite, which you get a little with the soda version. Overall, it’s pleasant, it’s not very intense or vibrant, more of a soft flavor like vanilla. I didn’t care for how red it made my tongue, but that’s a personal preference.

Orange Crush is tangy and much more intense that I would have suspected, with a sort of sherbet creamy note. It’s a solid orange flavor, artificial but still well rounded.

A&W Root Beer smells nice right away. The flavor is sweet and soft, not too intense. It doesn’t have the peppery kick that some root beers sometimes show, instead it’s more on the mild and creamy spice side of things. Though there are lots of artificial colors in there, I didn’t notice them giving a bitter taste.

I think the flavor array is interesting, a little off the beaten path without alienating older folks with things that are too sour. There are a lot of other great soda flavors that Dr Pepper owns that would go great ... especially 7 Up and Vernors Ginger Ale. The colors are also a bit atypical, but I enjoy a little change from the standard green and red.

Related Candies

1. Maynard’s Sour Patch Kids Soda Popz
2. Jelly Belly Soda Pop Shoppe Gummi Bottles
3. Frankford Green Apple Mallo-Licious
4. Trolli Soda Poppers
5. Fresh Cola Mentos
6. Kissables (Reformulated)
7. Soda Can Fizzy Candy

The best turkey to serve a vegetarian is not a texturized vegetable protein one ... it’s a chocolate turkey!

I hope you’re having a sweet holiday.

Peeps are now available in dozens of varieties throughout the year. Just Born’s newest limited edition version is Red Velvet Peeps.

They’re described on the front as Red Velvet Flavored Marshmallow Dipped in Cream Flavored Fudge. The package is white and features a big window on front to see the three individually dipped Peeps nested in their tray.

This is far from the first Peeps variety flavored like a baked good, so far we’ve had: Birthday Cake Peeps, Gingerbread Peeps and Sugar Cookie Peeps,

I have to say that as odd as this Peep looks, it’s an impressive accomplishment. It really looks velvety. The deep red sugar crust also has a bit of shimmer to it, with little gold flecks. The base of the Peep is dipped in a white fudge to simulate the cream cheese frosting usually associated with Red Velvet Cake.

I’m not a fan of Red Velvet Cake, but I’ll go on record to say that this is one of the best candies to evoke the Red Velvet experience I’ve had. I’m not sure that’s a compliment, but that’s why I gave this a 6 out of 10 and not a 4 out of 10.

The marshmallow inside is a cocoa flavor. It smells like cake batter, which isn’t a bad thing either. The red sugar crust taste like red food dye. The white dip on the base of the Peep tastes like sugary wax. So, we have all the components of a red velvet cake: a cake that is neither vanilla nor chocolate, some extra red food coloring to give it an off flavor, and a solidified palm kernel oil coating.

The marshmallow is fine, it is lightly sweet but the cocoa helps to cut it. The cream base could have a little more salt in it, to evoke the cream cheese frosting a bit better. But overall, it’s just an entirely weird Peep. And at least it’s different from the regular Peeps.

Related Candies

1. Peeps Minis Chocolate Creme
2. Candy Made to Taste Like Cake
3. M&Ms Milk Chocolate Red Velvet
4. Bubble Gum Flavored Peeps
5. Russell Stover Red Velvet Santa
6. Peeps Gingerbread Men
7. Peeps Chocolate Dipped Sugar Cookie & Candy Cane
8. Godiva Cake Truffles

Russell Stover has been branching out into more pie flavors for their novelty confections. The Big Bite line already includes S’mores and Apple Pie, now there’s Russell Stover’s Big Bite Pecan Pie.

Pecan Pie is actually just candy in a flaky pastry dough, as far as I’m concerned. The pecan pie filling is a cross between a custard and a fudge, a mix of fats and sugar ... all topped with caramelized pecans. Most pecan pie lacks enough pecans as far as I’m concerned, and I usually want mine in the filling, not just on top.

Even though this traveled about a thousand miles, it did well. The graham cracker base was just a little rounded off and about half of the pecans fell off the top. (But were very easy to just pour into my mouth from the package.) This version of pecan pie has milk chocolate ... which isn’t a bad thing, I often enjoy a chocolate pecan pie, or at least a pecan pie with a hot fudge sauce on it.

Like many pecan pies, the center here has no pecans in it, it’s just a penuche-type fudge center with excellent butter and brown sugar notes. The milk chocolate is actually less sweet than the center, which is nice, and the graham cracker moderates it all even more. The pecans are not integrated into this at all, which is disappointing, because they shouldn’t be the afterthought, they should be the center.

Still, as a confection, it’s quite nice, very sweet but a lot of textural interest. As a candy version of pecan pie, it fails. Don’t worry, I’m willing to eat Russell Stover’s mistakes.

Related Candies

1. Russell Stover Big Bite Apple Pie & Pumpkin
2. Russell Stover Eggs: Carrot Cake, Birthday Cake and Wedding Cake
3. Russell Stover Pumpkin Pie
4. Russell Stover Big Bite Caramel Apple
5. Russell Stover Red Velvet Santa
6. See’s Holiday Pie Truffles
7. Russell Stover Big Bite Pecan Delight Egg
8. Ghirardelli Holiday Squares
9. Ethel Holiday Assortment

It’s November and all over the world men are growing mustaches in support of men’s health issues and research. This annual holiday is known as Movember and can be tricky for children to participate in, since they’re usually facially hairless.

Enter a Christmas treat that’s available a little early ... the Trolli Santa & Elves Mustaches.

The package says: Wear it on your lip, then wiggle it into your mouth. Different mustache shapes and flavors twisted together for awesome gummi good times.

The flavors are Cherry, Cherry & Lime and Strawberry & Cherry.

For the record, I rarely like cherry flavored candies ... and I don’t actually like mustaches.

The Green and White is Cherry & Lime: the texture is soft and chewy, very nicely molded and quite easy to bite. The tartness of the lime is apparent, though the cherry is still the dominant flavor. The color is strange but actually looks pretty good on the face.

The Red and White is Cherry & Strawberry: this is a little more mild than the lime one, the strawberry notes give it a floral berry note, but still has enough of a tangy kick to keep me interested. The cherry is balanced, definitely a partner and not overwhelming. I could tell the flavors apart, easily, even without looking at the colors.

The White is Cherry: I was actually hopeful that the lack of red food coloring would allow me to really taste the cherry flavor. The black cherry notes are woodsy and deep, with some excellent jam flavors in there. I thought this was an excellent cherry gummi. Nothing I’d want to keep beneath my nose for any length of time, but quite appealing.

These are genuinely fun, a unique version of a candy with an interactive element that both girls and boys can enjoy. (I can see them featured in lots of Christmas photos.) I didn’t care for the cherry ubiquity, but maybe there will be an Easter version in all citrus flavors.

Gummis are made with gelatin, so not appropriate for vegetarians. This version contains coconut oil and is made in a facility where milk, tree nuts, peanuts and soy are present. There was no statement about gluten.  Trolli also makes a version called Swirly Mustaches in vibrant colors.

Related Candies

1. Trolli Soda Poppers
2. Trolli Gummi Bear-Rings
3. Au’some Easter 3-Dees Gummy
4. Trolli Little Green Men
5. Big Bite Gummy Bear
6. Albanese Gummi Butterflies
7. Upscale Hollow Chocolate: Michel Cluizel & Hotel Chocolat
8. Gummy Fishies