Junk Fud and You - What I look for in a Candy - Texture

 Ever wonder why I give a particular score to some candies? How does texture affect my reviews? I decided to break down my criteria for texture when I review treats.

Treats And Beasts!

 

Can you imagine an alphabet where every letter brings together a wild beast and a tasty treat?

That’s exactly what you’ll find in Treats and Beasts, a fun A–Z adventure full of animals, sweets, and silly surprises.

A perfect book for young readers, animal lovers, candy fans, and anyone who enjoys a creative twist on the alphabet.

Get your copy here:bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/

Or on Amazon.

So Weird, But In A Good Way

There are two kinds of unique candy out there. There's candy that's weird by design, constructed to make you wonder what's going on. Then there's candy that's unique because it's culturally different than what you might expect. I like both, but I find that few candy makers can construct weird or unique candies well. It takes years to perfect a candy, and trying to make it very different and good takes a lot of time. Unique because I'm not familiar with it culturally is different because it's very possible that it's been around for longer than I (or even my grandparents) have been alive. This means that it'll be new to me, but perfected over time.

Check out my latest unique candy review.

When a Cookie is a Candy Bar

I think I might have found the missing link. The cookie/candy bar that’s both a cookie and a candy bar at the same time. The candy world has had a great debate for many years now, it’s even become a legal matter in a few places. It’s a question that gets put to me many times, sometimes aggressively. It’s all about trying to define candy and treats. In this case it’s a look at what’s a cookie and what’s a candy bar with a cookie in it. Legally this question is asked when countries are trying to define what should or shouldn’t be sold in the candy isle. A Twix bar is a great example of this kind of treat, most people would call it a chocolate or candy bar, but in reality it’s actually mostly cookie. Even a Kit Kat bar is debatable in this context.

The reason I bring all of this up is this “cookie” I recently discovered in a store in France. It’s called the Petit Ecolier and it really balances the line perfectly between being a cookie and being a candy bar. It’s not even subtle about it either. A Twix and a Kit Kat bar hide the fact that there’s a lot of cookie in them by covering everything in chocolate. This bar on the other hand keeps the cookie and the chocolate entirely visible. There are a few cookies out there that are stuffed with all kinds of things you might find in a candy bar too. This treat does not do that, the chocolate bar is totally visible on top of the cookie.

I can’t tell if the makers of this treat are lazy, or are trying to troll people. They really just took a cookie and smushed it together with a chocolate bar. There’s nothing really creative, but the fact that no one has done this before kind of makes it creative. The ratio of chocolate to cookie is almost perfectly split as well. I’ve never been so perplexed with a treat in my life. People often get mad at me if I review cookies or cakes on this site (claiming they’re not “candy”), but I’m tempted to give this a try just to see if anyone would react.

The only thing that gives this treat a category for me is the fact that I bought it in the cookie section of a grocery store. This brand also makes other cookie treat, but I’ve never seen any candy from them. It’s truly the treat that balances the line, it’s both a cookie and a candy bar.

P.S. I just wanted to note that these Petit Ecolier taste great too.

Chris, Why Would You Eat That?!! - Têtes Brûlées

 In today's episode of Chris Why Would You Eat That?!! I taste one of the most popular candies in France, Têtes Brûlées. I thought it might extreme, but...

Blue Orchid

 Did you know I’m currently writing and drawing my own comic series?

Blue Orchid is a fun adventure about a teenage South East Asian girl who battles incredible monsters and faces the challenges of a world unlike anything she has ever known.

You can pick up every issue now at bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or Amazon.

Is Yogurt Underrated?

While I've tasted a few yogurt flavoured treats in my day, it's not a flavour that you really see everywhere. I think it's mostly found in the Asian candy world, with maybe a few European treats participating as well. The thing about yogurt flavoured candy is, it's hard to simulate yogurt and be super sweet at the same time. While yogurt can have some sweetness in it to cut down the sour, the sour itself is really what makes yogurt great. Too much sweet just turns it into a sweet cream. This is exactly what happened here, but that doesn't mean I don't want to see more candy companies attempting this unique flavour.

Check out my latest yogurt themed candy review.

10 Second Kitchen - BeaverTails Ottawa

 A little interruption as I watch them make a tasty deep fried treat.

Discover the Sweet History Behind Your Favourite Snacks

 Have you ever stopped to wonder where your favourite snacks came from? From classic candies to beloved treats, many of the foods we enjoy every day have fascinating stories behind them.

That's exactly what Snack Facts is all about.

Join Barbara and Sir Francis Sweetums as they travel through the history of some of the world's most popular snacks, uncovering surprising facts, unexpected origins, and plenty of sweet discoveries along the way. Presented as a fun and easy-to-read comic, Snack Facts is perfect for curious readers of all ages—whether you're a lifelong candy lover or just enjoy learning something new.

If you've ever wanted to know how your favourite treats became household names, this book is a fun way to satisfy your curiosity.

You can pick up your copy of Snack Facts today by visiting candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon.

Unlikeliest Of Flavour Combinations

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that strawberry, chocolate and vanilla together is the most common flavour trio in the world. I can't think of many cultures that don't have at least one or two treats with this flavour combination. Oddly, I don't actually know where this flavour came from, other than possibly Italy (based on the name). I'm not sure if ice cream was the first time it was used. It's objectively an odd flavour combination, unless you break the flavours into pairs. Then you realize that in pairs these flavours are pretty common, but all together it just seems a little weird. The thing is, it works.

Check out my latest strawberry, chocolate and vanilla treat review.

Boxed Ice Cream

One thing I’ve discovered in grocery stores in Tunisia (where I’m staying right now) is that they truly love desserts that come out of boxes. There are full isles in the grocery stores dedicated to baking and dessert making that comes out of a box. While most of these desserts and baked goods are fairly similar to what you find in many countries, there is one thing that really stood out to me, boxed do it yourself ice cream.  I’m not sure I’ve ever seen ice cream in a box before, and there’s no way I was gong to let it pass me by.

Have you ever had a boxed dessert that seemed to easy to be true? This can really happen for two reasons, either there is truly very few steps to follow in order to make your dessert, or it’s such a complicated dessert (often requiring specific machinery) that you can’t believe that it can be made out of a box. This chocolate ice cream is the rare occasion where it’s both of those. This ice cream requires no ice cream machine at all, and the only other ingredient needed is milk.

It’s also not that complicated to make, just mix in the powder with the milk for a few minutes. Honestly it’s so simple that it had me worried about what was going to come out.

After my few minutes of mixing I was ready to let my freezer do the rest of the work. The liquid in my container looked and felt a lot like some of the ice cream starters I’ve seen in the past, so that was positive. The thing that made me nervous was the fact that it wasn’t going to be stirred while, before or after freezing. The instructions did suggest letting your ice cream sit for a few minutes before serving, so maybe that’ll help?

The end product kind of resembled ice cream. It did have ice crystals throughout and also seemed to be darker on the bottom and lighter on the top. Other than that the everything seemed okay... ish. Honestly those two problems do make for unimpressive ice cream. The end result was a little softer than I expected, and tasted pretty good too. The ice crystals were the most annoying thing about this ice cream, but it wasn’t the worst. The two different layers tasted the same as far as I can tell, but the texture of the darker parts was a little gooier than the light stuff.

All in all it wasn’t the best ice cream I’ve ever had, but it was remarkable considering how little work I had to do to make it. I’m not sure I would suggest this as an all the time ice cream substitute, but as a science experiment it was kind of fun.

Quick List - Worst Candy By Continent

 A quick list of the worst candies and treats in each and ever continent. Maybe some day I'll do each country, but that also seems a little complicated.

Discover the Wildly Sweet World of Treats and Beasts

 If you love beasts and you love treats, then you’re going to love Treats and Beasts!

Treats and Beasts is a fun A–Z alphabet adventure where wild animals meet tasty treats in a world full of imagination, silly surprises, and colourful illustrations. Each letter introduces a new combination of creature and confection, creating an alphabet book that’s a little different from the usual ABC adventure.

While it’s perfect for little readers who are learning their letters, it’s also a book for anyone who enjoys playful artwork, animals, and a good dose of creativity. Even if you already know your ABCs, there’s still plenty of fun to discover!

From amazing animals to delicious treats, Treats and Beasts brings together two things that everyone loves — imagination and a little bit of sweetness.

Whether you’re looking for a fun bedtime read, a gift for a young reader, or simply a colourful book to enjoy together, Treats and Beasts is ready to take you on a tasty A–Z adventure.

Get Your Copy of Treats and Beasts

You can grab your copy here:

https://bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/

You can also find it on Amazon.

Fake Chocolate Problem

One of the problems I have on candycritic.org is fake chocolate. More specifically I'm not really sure what the line is between fake and real chocolate. chocolate itself isn't technically an ingredient, it's a milk/sugar treat that's made with cocoa. The amount of cocoa can vary in chocolate creating different kinds of chocolate. Sometimes you take an entire portion of the cocoa bean out of the mix and it's still chocolate. By that definition, as long as there's some portion of a treat that contains even a small amount of cocoa, than it can be called chocolate. Now I know there are some countries where the amount of cocoa matters, but I would guess that most of the world does not have such regulations. Then we add to the mix the idea that some candies are chocolate flavoured, and may not contain any cocoa at all. It's all very complicated.

Check out my latest "chocolate" review.

Junk Fud and You - What I look for in a Candy - Taste

 Ever wonder why I give a particular score to some candies? How does taste affect my reviews? I decided to break down my criteria for taste when I review treats.

Blue Orchid Time!

 Did you know that I'm writing and drawing a comic right now? It's called Blue Orchid and it's an awesome tale of a teenage South East Asian girl that fights lots of cool monsters.

You can pick each and every issue of Blue Orchid right now at bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or on Amazon.

Not Your Average Grape Lollipop

This might be one of the most unique lollipops I've eaten recently. As far as I can remember, no one has mixed grape with a creamy flavour. The possible exception might be raisins, but I feel like grapes and raisins are worlds apart when it comes to flavour and texture. While this is a unique flavour (to me), I recently realized that I actually enjoy real grapes with a certain type of cream on a regular basis. Grapes are one of my favourite fruits to add to yogurt. There's something very satisfying about this combination, particularly the fact that the flavours don't actually blend together until you take a bite. While this grape cream lollipop was pretty good, I'm wondering if anyone in the candy world might be able to simulate the joy of eating grapes in yogurt.

Check out this unusual grape and cream lollipop review.

Prague Treats

I didn’t have any preconceived notions about Czechia when I visited it, food wise. I’ve never really thought about what was Czech food before. You don’t really hear about Czech cooking in the media or on the internet where I come from. The only ties to foods you hear about from Czechia are Soviet era foods, and many of them are kind of sad. The thing I’ve learned however is that Czech food is not sad at all, and even better is that it has influence from other parts of the world, but embraces it’s own style at the same time.

I think the two dishes I found most in my time in Prague was deep fried meats and stews. While both of these dishes are fairly common in this part of Europe, the Czech people do them really well. They also on occasion mixed things up a bit and give these classic European dishes their own twist. There’s a popular dish called svíčková which is beef with dumplings, cream sauce and uniquely cranberry jam.  What I’m saying is that the food is both very European, but also Czech as well.

Dessert wise I feel like they have the same beautiful combination. I would probably say that when it comes to the sweets I found, they had a more traditionally European feel to them. While I did visit near the Christmas holidays, I found several places that offered gingerbread all year long, including one store that sold gingerbread exclusively all year long. When I went into bakeries it felt comfortable and safe. While I rarely saw anything that was totally new to me, I felt safe with just about everything. The quality of the sweet treats and desserts was also really high. It was rare to bite into something disappointing.

Probably the most popular Czech dessert is větrník, and it’s well worth giving a try. It may seem like a simple puff pastry with cream in the middle, but it’s so much more. More often than not the creamy centre just has some kind of rich flavour that I can’t explain. However, the crowning achievement is the caramel coating that you often find on these clouds of delight. While I’m all for eating healthy, I love it when a dessert doesn’t lie about being unhealthy, and větrník does just that. When you bite into this rich dessert you know that it’s only there to please you, and not make you skinny.

I also can’t talk about Czechia without mentioning Kofola. Kofola was first described to me as the cola for Czechs from before they had Coke or Pepsi. This is their classic carbonated drink, and it’s as unique as it comes. One might describe it as cola created by people who had only heard a description of cola but never tasted it. I would describe it as almost a cola, but with a more spice/tea flavour. While I’m not sure it’s for everybody, I feel like it’s something everyone should at least try once.

Fast food wise there’s a lot going on in Czechia. The standards are there, and for the most part they’re fairly similar to what you might find in most countries, however there’s always a little twist. A great example is that McDonald’s offers deep fried brie cheese that you can pair with cranberry sauce. It’s way too classy for McDonald’s if you ask me, but it was fun to try. As an additional note, their special pie was a blueberry cream pie, and it was fantastic.

On this trip, I can’t say that I had one bad meal. From fancy dining to fast food it was all great. On the surface it all looked fairly simple, old fashioned European, but dig a little deeper and you could really find some true Czech originality.

10 Second Kitchen - Street Candy in Hanoi, Vietnam

 Watching a skilled candy maker create a beautiful treat in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Not Need To Guess About Those Snack Facts

If you've ever wanted to learn more about the snacks you love, but in a fun way, pick up my book Snack Facts. Follow Barbara and Sir Francis Sweetums as they learn everything about your favourite snacks and treats.

You can pick up your own copy of Snack Facts right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon.

Mango Might Be The Perfect Gummy Flavour

If we're just talking authenticity to the original subject matter, I think mangoes might be the best gummy flavour of all. If you think about the other fruit flavours commonly used in gummies, the fruit's original texture and often colour almost never match their gummy flavoured treat. However, mangoes are pretty squishy, and when they're freshly cut they kind of look like they could be made of gummy too. It's not a perfect match, but it's remarkably close. The only problem you have is that most mango gummies don't actually taste like gummies, but when they do it's magical.

Check out my latest mango flavoured gummy candy review.

In Hindsight - Skittles

 I eat Skittles once again and really enjoy the flavour, what I can't manage is the amount of damage it's doing to my jaw.

Love Those Beasts And Their Treats

 If you love beasts and you love treats then check out my awesome alphabet book called Treats And Beasts. The perfect book for anyone, even if you already know your alphabet.

You can pick up Treats and Beast right now at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/ or on Amazon 

I Like Sour Candy... But...

 Probably my favourite extreme candy theme is sour. I love a good sour candy, I like subtle tart and a love knock your socks off sour. The thing is, I don't believe that sour works with every single flavour. I feel like there are some flavours that work well with sour, and some that don't work so well. You might say that fruit is always a safe place to have a sour treat, but I disagree. Sour watermelon, strawberry and raspberry never sit well with me. It's often a problem when sour is added to a fruit that either never comes sour in real life, or when it's not supposed to be eaten sour. Berries are a great example of this, particularly strawberries.

Check my latest sour strawberry review.

Mojito Drink

 Decided to do a taste test and find out if non-alcoholic mojito drink could really work. 

Brussels Treats

 

There are certain stereotypes that one thinks about when you mention Belgian treats, waffles, fries and chocolate. Here’s the thing, it’s all true. First and foremost these 3 treats are available in abundance just about anywhere in Brussels or in every Belgian city I’ve ever visited. It’s not just in the tourist areas either. If you ask locals about their favourite waffle, fries or chocolate, they will have an answer. They will not be offended by this question either. It’s as if Belgian people lean into their food stereotypes with great pride.

The main reason they’re not ashamed of these stereotypes is that there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Each and every one of them is not only a well known global treat, but they make it in Belgium with such passion and quality that it’s well worth travelling to Brussels (or anywhere in Belgium really) to get a taste. I’ve decided to take a look at all three of these treats, and let you know what makes them so great.

Waffles – There are many cultures that make waffles, but there’s something very special about the waffles in Belgium. There are actually several different types of waffles available, but I suggest going for the yeast waffles or Liege waffles. The Liege waffles are super dense and have a great chewniess to them. They’re a little crunchy as well, but not the same way that most waffles are crunchy. Best of all, because of their texture they can hold up to lots of toppings. Chocolate is probably the most common and it’s always great, but you can pretty much get anything they might have on offer and not be disappointed. If you’re not sure how to know if you’re getting Liege waffles, just be sure to watch now they make them. If they pour a liquid batter in the waffles iron you’re getting the Brussels waffles (the more common kind), however, if they have a ball of dough that they put in the waffle iron it’s means they’re offering the Liege waffles.

Fries – The most common way to get fries in Belgium is moule-frites, which translates to mussels and fries. I’ll be honest, I’m not a big mussels fan, so I only get the fries. Most of the time their at least double fried, so they come out extra crispy. They’re also very often made fresh, so they’re always hot. The real difference however is the fact that they offer many different dipping sauces to dip your fries. Most of the sauces are mayonnaise based, including just mayonnaise if you like. I’ve sampled a few of these sauces and I keep coming back to the classic mayo or garlic mayo. Some people like the Americana sauce, but I could take it or leave it.

Chocolate – This is probably the Belgian treat that makes me the most excited of them all (obviously). If you’re in the old town in Brussels you will have a hard time finding any city block without at least 2 or 3 chocolate shops on it. The problem, which is a wonderful problem, is picking which one to buy from. I divide the chocolate shops into 3 categories in Brussels. 

The first is chocolate shops that sell chocolate, but don’t actually make it. They tend to sell chocolate that’s mass produced and often more expensive than you might find at a grocery store. 

The next is big name chocolate maker shops such as Neuhaus and Leonidas. These companies also mass produce their chocolate, but they do it with a great deal of care. You might find these brands in some of the chocolate shops that sell chocolate as well, however their own shops will often feature exclusive treats that are limited to their own shops.

The final type of chocolate shop you can find are the independent chocolate shops. These shops often make all their own chocolate in small batches. They also tend to be a little more experimental with the chocolates as well. The problem with these shops is they don’t always last, and sometimes they also turn into big names (but good for them, am I right). It’s not always easy finding these shops, but if you go off the beaten path a bit you might get lucky.

Hunting for the best chocolate shop is the best problem you can have. One thing I should be clear about is even the mass produced chocolate in Belgium is amazing. It’s not like getting a box of Cote D’Or at a touristy chocolate shop in the main square is going to disappoint. The one thing I would recommend however is to check out the local grocery stores first. First of all, if you plan on buying some treats for the office and you want to go a little cheaper than the hand made chocolates, grocery stores have the same chocolates as found in many of the basic chocolate shops for a lot less. Checking a grocery store will also give you an idea of what chocolate is mass produced, and what is hand made.

As two added bonuses. I discovered that there’s a street near the train station in Brussels where you will find dozens of “cash and carry” candy shops. They basically sell bulk amounts of treats at discount prices. So if you find yourself in love with a particular candy bar or treat (as well as having some bonus space in your luggage), then you might want to stop in and get yourself a whole case. Also, did you know that in Brussels, they call Brussels sprouts, just sprouts?

10 Second Kitchen - Coconut Candy on Unicorn Island, Vietnam

 Watching the machines turn the coconut and sugar to make tasty coconut candy on Unicorn Island in Vietnam.

Blue Orchid Comics!

 Did you know that I'm writing and drawing a comic right now? It's called Blue Orchid and it's an awesome tale of a teenage South East Asian girl that fights lots of cool monsters.

You can pick each and every issue of Blue Orchid right now at bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or on Amazon.

Not Sure About This Size Thing

In the last 10 years or so, there's been a trend about making very small versions of classic treats. By small I mean the perfect size to add to a trail mix. The kind of size that you could easily see it possible to buy these treats using a scoop. It seems like there's a trend to making treats where you can fit several in the palm of your hand. Now on paper, this is a completely fine idea, that may take some work, but should be pretty similar to the original. The problem is that the candy companies have to make some adjustments to ratios and ingredients to make these truly work, and often those adjustments don't make for a better tasting treat. For example, the chocolate on these Kit Kat Pops had to be adjusted so they wouldn't melt as easily, because they would stick together and also melt in your hands while you ate them. This adjustment did not favours to the classic Kit Kat flavour.

Check out the full review of these Kit Kat Pops, and find out exactly what went wrong.

Happy 4th of July!

 

Happy 4th of July to all my American friends out there!

Quick List - Best Treat From Each Continent

 Here's a quick list of the best candy from each and every continent.

Happy Canada Day!

 

Facts and Snacks

 If you've ever wanted to learn more about the snacks you love, but in a fun way, pick up my book Snack Facts. Follow Barbara and Sir Francis Sweetums as they learn everything about your favourite snacks and treats.

You can pick up your own copy of Snack Facts right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon (just search "snack facts chris stewart").

Celebrating Canada

I'm not sure if you all know this, but I'm Canadian. I'm actually surprised at how many people assume I'm from whatever country they happen to be living in. I'll admit that most people assume I'm American, but I've also been mistaken for British and Australian too. In the same way it's amazing how many people assume that their favourite treat are actually available all over the world. It's probably the same reason that most people assume that there isn't enough candy in the world to sustain a website like candyciritc.org. The truth is, there are thousands and thousands of candies out there, and still many for me to try.

Check out my latest Canadian candy review.

Paris Treats

 

This is my first instalment of a series of blog posts where I’m going to talk about a recent trip I took to Europe. There were three stops on this trip and the first one I’m going to talk about is Paris. I have opinions about Paris, and I feel like they might be unpopular. The first thing to note is that I’ve visited Paris many times. The second thing to note is that my opinion of Paris does not reflect all of France. I’m not a huge fan of Paris in general. It’s not that I don’t like it at all, I just can’t seem to find the awe and power that others seem to find in this city. I’ve never really had a bad time in Paris and there are even some parts I really enjoy, but I’ve never been blown away either. Knowing this, here’s what I have to say about treats, junk food and candy in Paris.

I’ll start with the good. The desserts and bakeries in Paris are very good. I think I can safely say that in general, Paris bakeries are some of the best in the world. Overall just about anything you get in any Paris bakery will be very good. There may be some parts of the world that specialize in certain baked treats and desserts, and they might make that particular treat better, however Paris bakeries and desserts are overall better than most.

There are some exceptions to this of course, and I’ll get into that later, but I just love walking down a street in Paris and eating something with a light flaky crust and scattered with chocolate. Even the bread is just very good in most bakeries. I’ll even go out on a limb and say that the grocery store and convenience store baked goods are very good. Don’t get me wrong, the bakeries are better, but the level of baked goods in grocery stores is much better than most parts of the world.

The exception to this rule for me is some of the ultra fancy bakeries. While the small local bakeries in Paris are well worth the trip, I find that there’s a trend in Paris right now of making visually beautiful desserts. While these beautiful desserts aren’t bad, they’re not as good as the classics (in my opinion). Most of all I find that these beautiful desserts are a lot harder to get, and maybe not worth the effort. I saw several “fancy” bakeries and sweet shops with huge lines out front. I even saw a few that required reservations just to get in. What I’m saying is that the hype is not worth the result.

Finally I want to talk about candy and chocolate in Paris. I’ll say this first, Europe in general has some of the best candy and chocolate anywhere. However, I feel like Paris (and maybe even France) is not the best in Europe. I’d even go so far as to say that most French treats are not really worth it. The one thing worth noting is the fact that Paris does offer some great chocolate and even a few sweets, but if you look closer you’ll see that most of these are imported. There’s a great selection of Belgian, Swiss and German chocolate in Paris, but that doesn’t really count in my opinion. While Paris offers many of the classic and great candies and chocolates found in Europe, their own selection isn’t the best you’ll find in Europe.

As I said at the top of this post, I’ve never had a bad time in Paris, however, it’s never been one of my favourite places to visit Europe. I had some great meals, and some amazing baked goods, but I’m not a big fan of the fancy side of Paris when it comes to this. Candy and chocolate wise I have yet to find something that truly feels French, but I’m always happy to be proven wrong on this in the future if you disagree.

Junk Fud and You - Is Sugary Cereal Candy?

 Today I decided to take a deep look at sugary cereal and how it may or may not be candy.

Beasts and their Treats

 If you love beasts and you love treats then check out my awesome alphabet book called Treats And Beasts. The perfect book for anyone, even if you already know your alphabet.

You can pick up Treats and Beast right now at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/ or on Amazon.