Candy News

This article talks about ways to make chocolate more healthy for you by adding extra ingredients.  How about you just eat the chocolate after a well balanced meal.

Nesquick has sponsored an art instillation that features chocolate smelling bubbles... I want chocolate smelling bubbles for my own house!

"Woman Drinks Coke Instead Of Water For 16 Years", I know understand why Allison wants me to drink Coke 0 and water more often.

The Atlantic has a really interesting article about how junk food and health food are marketed to us, and how   much of this marketing isn't really fair.

Here's a look at Wald Konigsberger Marzipan in Berlin.

New gum themed app uses your jaw bone to help you play a game.

Are you American?  What state are you from?  What's the most famous product that's ever come out of your state?

The great thing about the show Mad Men is how they use real products, including Hershey's.

Speaking of Hershey's, apparently in Canada they just got in a lot of trouble for price fixing.

If you look at the bottom of many food packages in the USA (and other places as well), you might find some random coloured circles.  They mean something.

Last week I posted about some treats that you can only get in the USA because they were dangerous, turns out this list isn't really that relevant at all.

Serious Eats finds out what people want in the center of their Oreo, besides just vanilla cream.

Baking with Kit Kat bars, it sounds like a pretty good idea.

The Huffinton Post decided that Candy Dots was an important enough subject to investigate, we couldn't agree more.

If you want to keep up with all of the daily candy news that we come across as it happens, follow us on Twitter.

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Friday Candy Video

I can't begin to tell you how awesome this commercial is.  At first I thought it was going to be some kind of stop motion animation with dancing Rolo pieces, but when the cheesy costumed characters popped out of the giant Rolo package I was totally surprised.  This is just proof that big budgets and special effects do not improve commercials, cheesy dancing chocolate pieces are all you need.

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Stuff I Want To Try

Ramen Chocolate -  Komforte Chockolates - I like Ramen, I like chocolate, what could possibly go wrong? - Click here to learn more about this treat.

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Classic/Creative Candy Advertising

That is one big Mars Bar with almonds.  I'm not sure if the best way to treat a date is to provide them with a chocolate bar that could potentially crush them.

I found this ad here.

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It's Our Wednesday Japanese Candy Review!

I really want to come up with a better name for this new regular Wednesday event where we review a Japanese sweet treat.  Our friends at oyastucafe.com once again provided us with this week's treat, and they deserve to have an awesome title for helping us out.  Maybe I could call this our "Weekly Japanese Sweet Treat", or "Fun, Strange, Tasty, Japanese Review".  I have to give it some thought, but I'm also welcoming any suggestions you might have.

All of these reviews are brought to you by our really good friends at oyastucafe.com, and if you want to buy anything you see being reviewed for this special weekly review visit them and enter the code "candycritic" to get yourself a nice discount too.

Click here to read this week's Japanese review.

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Stuff I Want To Try

Vitamingum - Vitaball - Caffeine free energy gum?  I'm not convinced till I can try it myself. - Click here to learn more about this treat.

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This Week In Candy

Our candy stash/collection of treats that need to be reviewed, is officially out of control.  It's pretty much the greatest problem one could ask for.  We're working hard to eat... I mean organize all of these candies and post reviews.  We will stagger many of them, but I think a few review-a-thons are in the near future.  Also, if you're a candy company that either has, or wants to, send us something to review, don't worry, you get priority.

We're planning a trip to Scotland and the Norther part of England later this summer, and we want suggestions on what's not to be missed as far as treats and meals go.  We have a rough idea about places we want to see, but we also have a lot of time to just wonder since we have a car.

Finally, this week is going to be a week of cleaning up some loose ends here at Candy Critic.  I've got a few articles I want to work on, and we have to organize all of these reviews that need to be finished.  Hopefully this week of cleaning up will pay off in the near future. I'll most likely post lots of pictures of this clean up experience on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

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What Does Toblerone Mean?

Since my Swiss isn't that great, I'm not really sure what "Toblerone" really means.  I know that the first part "Tobler" is the name of the creator Theodor Tobler, but the "one" (pronounced more like own without the "w" sound) is a big mystery to me.  I also wonder when the last time someone had a bar named after them.  Why do we have to give all of our treats descriptive or wacky names?  Two mysteries that won't stop me from enjoying this Toblerone, but might make me spend a lot of time on Wikipedia this morning.

Click here to read the Toblerone review.

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Candy News

Here are a few treats that you can only get in the USA, because some of the ingredients are banned in other places.  But don't worry, chances are you can get Kinder Eggs where you are.

Did you ever imagine that there would be a recipe that would call for a quarter of a cup of Pop Rocks?

The debate continues, is high-fructose corn syrup that much worse for you than regular sugar?

I keep hearing news of chocolate companies developing better non-melting chocolate, do people really want this?  Isn't the fact that chocolate melts one of its benefits?

Are there really people out there that believe that sugar free gum is "good" for you?

See's Candy has recalled it's chocolate covered raisins. Why?  Well they may contain nuts or eggs. So I guess if you're OK eating nuts or eggs you can pretty much ignore this.

Here's a sugar substitute that I can get behind, dried fruit powder.

Mars launches egg-less Snickers bars in India... Wait a minute, Snickers bars have egg in them?

Is "birthday cake" a flavour?  What flavour is it?  I'm thinking vanilla cake with a little extra happiness.

If you want to keep up with all of the daily candy news that we come across as it happens, follow us on Twitter.

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Friday Candy Video

While I'm pretty sure this isn't any kind of official commercial for Whoppers candy, it is really sweet.  It's very simple, but it also makes me think about eating candy, and the wonderful joy of finding one last piece at the bottom of the box/bag.  There's also the sadness of dropping that last piece on the ground and deciding if how dirty the floor is and wondering if I can still eat it.

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Classic/Creative Candy Advertising

I asked Allison to name her favorite chocolate bar from her childhood, and she came up with Sweet Marie.  I'm fairly certain that most people don't even know what a Sweet Marie is, unless you grew up in Canada.  I can tell you that it's a pretty unique treat, and from what I know, it's still available just about anywhere in Canada.

I found this ad here.

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It's Our First Wednesday Japanese Candy Review!!!

We've decided that every Wednesday we're going to post a new Japanese candy review.  It all started with our friends at oyatsucafe.com offering to send us a bunch of great treats to review.  Then they also added that they'll give each of our readers that orders from them a discount by simply putting the word "candycritic" in the discount box when you order.  So for the next little while we'll be sampling a lot of fun Japanese candy, if you want to try some yourself, head over to oyatsucafe.com, pick some up, and get a discount while you're at it.

Click here to read our first special Wednesday Japanese Candy Review... I think we have to come up with a better name than that.

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Candy Art - Or Candy Architecture

 While I'm pretty sure you can't eat any part of this house, the colours of the glass are in fact made from baked sugar.

There are no dyes involved at all, it's just sugar cooked for different amounts of time, thus getting darker the longer it's cooked.

Click here to read more about this.

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This Week In Candy

This week we're starting a new feature on the blog.  Every Wednesday we'll be reviewing a new Asian treat graciously donated to us from our friends at oyatsucafe.com.  Some might say that our goal is to make sure we have the widest variety of treats reviewed on the site, but I'm pretty sure that the goal is to make sure I eat something really strange on a regular basis.  No matter what the reasons, not only will we have a new Asian review every week, but you (our loyal readers) are entitled to a discount from oyatsucafe.com and all you have to do is enter "candy critic" in the discount section of their online form.

Last week we also received a whole bunch of South African treats from our friend CJ, and we're going through it and setting up some awesome reviews.  I'm thinking a South African review-a-thon might be in our near future.

Finally, I've been thinking about classic treats that I have not yet reviewed.  I realized recently that I never reviewed original Mike and Ikes (as you can see from this weeks review that has changed), but if you see a classic treat that I've missed, make sure to let me know about it.

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Stuff I Want To Try

Pepsi-flavored Cheetos - FritoLay - I'm not 100% sure that these are real, but since it's Japan, I'm no 100% sure that it's not real either. - Click here to learn more about this treat.

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What?!!! I Haven't Reviewed These Before?

There are a great deal of "famous" and well known candy in the world.  It's a group of candies that most people might call classic candies.  These are the staples of any candy fans collection of treats they've sampled.  In many ways these are the treats that I try to base my reviews upon.  The problem is, sometimes I don't actually get around to reviewing them.  Sometimes they slip through the cracks, I've tasted them, I've just never put pen to paper and actually written a review.  Mike and Ike's "Original Fruits" is just such a candy, but no more is it un-reviewed.

Click here to read this classic review.

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Candy News

Hershey's is opening a Chocolate World in Las Vegas, I hear Tom Jones has a sweet tooth.

For all of you Americans waiting for the Twinkie to come back, it's happening soon.

"World cocoa market will be in deficit for next two years"... This is not good news.

The worst part of having a cocoa deficit?  As it turns out cocoa might fight off diabetes.

This list of candies that are supposedly no longer available isn't completely accurate, but the parts that are make me a little sad.

Did you know that Tootsie just revamped their recipe page?  Did you know that you could cook with Tootsie Rolls?

Fruit infused cocoa beans, chocolate and fruit go together, so this seems like it might work.

Are hard candies coming back into style, or did they ever leave?

If a jelly donut is considered a wild choice for you, these might be a little out of your league.

If you want to keep up with all of the daily candy news that we come across as it happens, follow us on Twitter.

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Friday Candy Video

I've been thinking a lot about Mickey Mouse ice cream sandwiches lately.  I'm not too sure if watching some lady eat one is really helping, in fact, I think it's making me a little jealous.

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Stuff I Want To Try

Yankees-Licensed Ring Pops - Bazooka -I'm not a huge Yankees fan, so I may wait till they make a Toronto Blue Jays Ring Pop. - Click here to learn more about this treat.

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Classic/Creative Candy Advertising

I love a good pun, I also don't mind strawberry ice cream.  On another note, I was watching an episode of Mad Men (season 3) and one of the characters was putting salt on his ice cream.  Does anybody do this?  Why would you do it?

I found this ad here.

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New Episode of Junk Fud Podcast

In this episode of Junk Fud, our friend Mark talks with us about American Junk Food.  We talk not just about treats that are made in the USA, but also treats that American's like from abroad.  The United States has some pretty fascinating treats and Junk Food of their own, but they also import a whole lot.

Right click here to download the podcast.

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Stuff I Want To Try

Ruffles 'Crispy Fries' - Ruffles - I'm not sure how revolutionary these are, but they might be tasty. - Click here to learn more about this treat.

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This Week In Candy

I'm having an interesting dilemma right now.  It's about a review that I'm thinking of writing for Sour Patch Kids.  Sour Patch Kids is a classic candy that just hasn't made it onto my radar yet for review.  That was until my friend Catherine handed me a bag of them and told me that these Sour Patch Kids were something special.  As it turns out she handed me a bag of Sour Patch Kids from Ireland, and these Sour Patch Kids have 5 different flavours instead of just 4.  So, do you think I should review these Irish Sour Patch Kids?  What do I do when I go back home to the regular Sour Patch Kids, do I review them again?  Just so you know, the extra purple ones are really tasty.

You may have noticed the lack of "Old Candy Critic Articles" being posted on Wednesdays.  Well I've decided to stop posting these old articles because I've pretty much run out.  There are a few that I didn't re-post, but I don't think they're really relevant to the candy world anymore.  I may change my mind, but for now they'll stay in my archives.  I'm looking to fill this gap with something new, I'm just not sure what that new thing will be yet.  I'd like to continue to collect photos of people with candy, or maybe turn the Junk Fud podcast into a weekly thing.

Speaking of the Junk Fud podcast, this week you should keep your ears open this week for a new episode featuring our good friend Mark.  We talk about classic American candy and junk food, as well as look at what international candies Americans are eating.  I've also created a web page where you can find links to all of our past episodes, so if you've missed one you can always find it here.

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A Salty Lollipop?

This weeks review was pretty special, it was something  I'd never tried before, it was kind of pretty, and best of all it was the creation of a small time candy maker.  These elements are often the case when it comes to candy, since small candy makers are willing to take risks in an attempt to make something unique.  The folks at A Secret Forest Patisserie made a lollipop that was original, but not crazy.  It just worked.  I could go on, but that's really what the review is all about.

Click here to read this lollipop review.

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Candy News

Breast milk lollipops, I was going to post this under "Stuff I Want To Try", but I don't really want to try it.

Would you drink a 20 year old can of cola?  I wouldn't, I once sampled a 10 year old can of root beer, and I couldn't drink the stuff for years afterwards.

This might be the best idea ever for Poptarts, why aren't they making them then?

Our friends at Madelaine chocolate in New York got hit pretty hard by hurricane Sandy, but it looks like they'll be back up and running in June.

Pez just announced that they're going to release special edition Harry Potter Pez dispensers, I'm thinking it's about 3 years too late.

Looking refresh yourself and cool off this summer, but you also love Italian food, well I have the perfect solution.

Healthy chocolate is really trendy right now, does that mean fine quality dark chocolate full of flavour, or chocolate filled with chemicals to make it "less fat" and "no sugar".

It appears that the glazed donut sandwich has officially gone mainstream in the USA.

Rock bands are notorious for demanding special foods backstage, although if I was famous, I'd ask for what Marilyn Manson wants.

Not sure what to do with the ice cream you left out all afternoon? Well don't throw it out, here's some ways you can transform your ice cream soup into other tasty treats.

Here's a great collection of stock photographs of people that "don't know how to eat popsicles".

Have you heard that the Canadian 100 dollar bill smells like maple syrup?  Can anyone confirm this?

Computer programmer takes some time off to work at a chocolate factory, so which job is better?

If you want to keep up with all of the daily candy news that we come across as it happens, follow us on Twitter.

Friday Candy Video

I've always enjoyed the music of Alicia Keys, and I've always enjoyed the antics of the 1980's TV series the Gummy Bears (for obvious reasons).  Is there any way I could enjoy both of these together?

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Stuff I Want To Try

Gravy Candy - Archie McPhee - I'd like to enjoy this with a bag of cheese potato chips so I can make a poutine like treat. - Click here to learn more about this treat.

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Classic/Creative Candy Advertising

Apparently at one point Kinder thought they would try to market to adults, instead of children.  So what's the best direction to go if you want to sell candy to adults?  Sex.

Click here to read more about his campaign and see a few more advertisements.

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People With Candy

Everybody likes to show off their awesome candy and sweet treats, right?  Well I'm asking anybody that has a great picture of themselves, or a loved one, eating a tasty treat to send it to us.  Once in a while I may have prizes, but for the most part you just get to share these photos and spread some sweet candy love around.

 Here's Gino (a regular on the Junk Fud podcast) enjoying a treat that I don't think is appropriate to show on this site.  Send Gino a message and I'm sure he'll get you a copy of this photo without the black bar.

 What's so awesome about these cookies sent in by Michelle?  Well the fact that they where made with an Easy Bake oven is pretty cool.  I've never actually used an Easy Bake oven in my life, but if they can put out results like these, that's pretty awesome.

Lia sent in this photo of her very tasty dessert from TGI Friday's, I could really go for a cool treat right now myself. To TGI Friday's!!!!

If you'd like to share a photo of your favorite treat, while you're eating it, making it, or about to eat it, send it to chris(at)candycritic.org.  Make sure that all of the photos are your own, and make sure to let us know how you came about this treat (if you bought it or made it) and how tasty it may have been.

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Candy Art - Sad Without Candy

Photographer Jill Greenberg took a series of portraits of children.  Each one of these children is really ticked off, do you know why?

Jill Greenberg decided that it would be interesting to take candy away from children and take a few snapshots of their rage. (keep in mind that she returned the candy quickly and as she says "no harm was done".)

I can relate to these kids, I've been known to flip over stolen candy myself.

Click here to see more.

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This Week In Candy

I've decided to bring back a fun little project that I started many years ago, it was called Chris Stuffing His Face.  I used to post pictures on the blog of me stuffing my face with various foods that I was eating that day.  Instead of posting these photos on the blog, I'm going to post these photos on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr instead.  I assume that the number of followers I have will most likely decline, but since I enjoy putting lots of food in my mouth, nothing's really going to stop me.

This week we're also posting our first of many Japanese candy reviews sponsored by the folks at oyatsucafe.com.  They've agreed to keep us in the loop about Japanese treats with a bunch of candies to sample, and I think it's only fair to share the love in return. They've also agreed to give any of our readers a discount with the discount code "candy critic".  So you can learn a little something about a new Japanese treat, and if you think you might like it, you can buy some for yourself at a discount price.

I have a few other small projects on the go as well that I hope to post this and next week, so stay tuned.

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A Non-Fishy Fish Review

This is to be the first of many special Japanese reviews, sponsored by our friends at oyatsucafe.com.  They're not only giving us a bunch of Japanese treats to sample on a regular basis, but they're also giving all of our readers a discount if you want to buy some for yourself.  Just visit their website, pick out what you like, and enter the code "candy critic".  This is a great way for you guys to sample some awesome Japanese treats that you may not find where you are.

Click here to read today's special Japanese review.

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