I Talk About The Places I've Lived In This Episode Of Junk Fud and You

I've not only travelled around the world, but I've been lucky to live in a few places around the world. In this episode I talk about where I've lived, and how it's changed the way I see food.

Click here to check out the episodes of Junk Fud on the Road that I talked about.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to see what we're up to.

CC

Hidden Treasures Of Europe

Many European candy companies sell their treats all over the world. Some have become so popular overseas that people don't even know that they're European (that's a future article coming next week). While it seems like you can get just about everything in North America, there are a few European hidden treasures that are difficult or even impossible to find in the US or Canada. You might be able to hunt them down online, or at a few import candy stores, but for the most part these candies are completely unknown to those of us in North America.

Well I'm here to help you out. Below is a list of European candy that's not very common in American or Canadian stores, but well worth your time to search out. You might have to fly to Europe to find them, but frankly I think it's totally worth it.

Manner "Original Neapolitaner"
Made By: Manner
Originated In: Austria

I've heard a story that Arnold Schwarzenegger insists on having Manner bars on set when he shoots a movie. If you're in Austria you can pretty much find this bar everywhere. It's so dominant that you're thrown off a little after leaving Austria to find that you don't see them everywhere else in the world. The good news is that this is a seriously good wafer bar, in fact it's one of my favourites and well worth a flight to bite into one.

Click here to read our review.

Fazer "Blue"
Made By: Fazer
Originated In: Finland

I lived in Europe for four years, and for three of those years I was obsessed with every single Fazer product. The reason I was only obsessed about them for three of the four years is that I had not heard of them during my first year, so I could only enjoy these amazing chocolate treats for three quarters of my time there. Trust me, it's still a sore spot. I would easily put Fazer against any other chocolate company in the world, I would even say that it would likely beat out many of them.

Click here to read our review.

Lacta
Made By: Kraft (but it wasn't always Kraft)
Originated In: Greece I Think

As I mentioned before, I lived in Europe for four years, the country I lived in was Greece, and I never really gave it much thought when it came to chocolate. This all changed very quickly, and I soon realized that Greece is the home of some of the best chocolate bars in the world today. The Lacta bar is probably one of the most popular, but there are so many others that are its equal in this warm country.

Click here to read  our review.

Fry's Turkish Delight
Made By: Cadbury
Originated In: UK

I can't possibly write an article about European candy without talking about at least one British treat. It's kind of complicated to talk about British treats because they used to all be independently owned, but now Cadbury/Kraft seems to have most of them under their wing. The good news is that many of these treats have retained their original taste and quality even though they're being made by a giant corporation. I have a feeling they do this because the people of England would riot if you dare change any of their treats. I chose the Fry's Turkish Delight as an example because it's a little strange, but still very British.

Click here to read our review.

CC

A New Episode Of Junk Fud On The Road Is Online!

In this episode of Junk Fud On The Road, Chris and Allison talk about Greece, a place that's near and dear to our hearts... and stomachs.

Click here to find other episodes of Junk Fud On The Road and all of our other fun podcasts.

CC

2014 A Year In Reviews

2014 was an interesting year here at Candy Critic.  There's been a lot of travel, a lot of experimentation, and a lot of fun new treats.  The biggest travel experience came about this summer when we moved from Athens Greece to somewhere else.  I don't want to mention the somewhere else yet because frankly I'm home so little that it's fairly irrelevant where I "live".  Needless to say the move was fun, and it meant spending a few weeks at home catching up on Canadian snacks and treats.  Experimentation wise, 2014 has really been the year that I discovered my love of baking and making desserts.  From making my own phyllo dough from scratch, to my recent attempt at making a dessert out of ration packs, I've really found a love of making my own sweet treats.

This however doesn't compare to the kinds of amazing treats I've been lucky to taste test over the last year.  Some was great and some not so great, but all fun to taste test.  Below I've decided to highlight our highest ranking new reviews of 2014, the lowest ranking new reviews, and a few honorable mentions as well.

Best Candy Reviewed in 2014


For our top candy treats this year actually have a tie, and for the first time ever, one of them is a special holiday treat.  We all know and love the Cadbury Creme Eggs, but who would have thought that I'd like the special Halloween edition Cadbury Screme Eggs so much as well.

Click here to read the Screme Egg review.

And tied for first is a new treat from some old friends.  A true Canadian treat made by the gang that invented Clodhoppers, this is a great step forward in the candy world.  They also make these in dark chocolate and with peanuts, and you can bet that I'm going to review those too.

Click here to red the OMG's review.






In third place for the best candies reviewed this year is a classic chocolate bar that really needs no introduction... Well unless you live in the US where I don't think you can really find these anywhere.  In fact not a single one of the top 3 candies this year are available in the US... yet.

Click here to read the Caramilk Bar review.

Lowest Rated Candy Reviews in 2014

Our number 1 lowest rated candy this year is a bit of a shock.  You wouldn't expect a Snickers bar to rank as the lowest rated candy on Candy Critic this year, but here we are.  Fortunately the original Snickers bar is still just as good and this was just an experiment gone wrong.

Click here to read the Snickers Max Caramel review.

At number 2 on the list of lowest candy reviewed in 2014 is another candy made by a big name brand, Haribo.  I'm sure my bias against marshmallows had something to do with this.  I'm OK if Haribo makes an occasional bad treat though, just as long as they keep making the best gummy bears on the market.

Click here to read about this horrible Smurf Marshmallows.

For the third spot on this list, we have a tie.  I'm not really sure what the deal is with this candy, but I can tell you that it was pretty bad.  This is one of those occasions where I dare to sample a candy that I can't read a word on the package, and then I suffer because of it.

Click here to read about these strange chocolate star treats.

There's something very wrong with this package.  First of all the unlicensed Mickey Mouse is a sure sign that this might go horribly wrong.

Click here to read more about Sweet Peanuts.






Highest and Lowest Greek Candy Reviewed in 2014

As an added bonus this year, since this was the year I left Greece, I decided to highlight my favorite and least favorite Greek treat that I sampled this year as well.

The lowest ranked Greek treat this year was a bit of a disappointment to me.  This treat is based on a traditional Greek sweet, but it's just done so horribly.  The other sad fact about this treat is how common it is around Greece.

Click here to read about the Xalbadopita.

The best Greek candy I tasted this year might be the best Greek chocolate bar ever.  Although it's a fairly simple bar, it's done well.  Allison would probably go on record saying it's the best sweet thing she ate during our entire stay.

Click here to read about this awesome ION bar.

Special Mention 2014

While this treat didn't make the top or bottom of my list of reviews this year I wanted to mention it anyways.  If you didn't sample the Cinnamon Bun potato chips made by Lay's Canada this year, then you missed out on a really interesting experience.  I wouldn't say I loved them, but I would say that this is a treat that should have survived (even though it lost the best new chip flavor contest).  I'd like to see chip companies exploring the sweet side of potato chips, and I hope to see more flavors like this in the future.

Click here to find out why I liked these Cinnamon Bun chips.

CC

This Week in Candy

The time has finally come, I'm leaving Greece.  I've been talking about it for weeks now, but I'm finally heading out to a new adventure.  I'll miss Greece a lot, it's been a great place to learn about sweets, and in particular to learn about ingredients.  This country respects ingredients more than any other place I've ever visited or lived.  The food here is simple for a reason, the ingredients speak for themselves.  I've found this in all the food in Greece, and I'll take this knowledge with me forever.

For the next few weeks I'll be going through a moving transition.  This will involve visiting Canada, stocking up on the latest sweet treats there, and catching up with old friends.  For Candy Critic, and this blog, that means that updates might become a little more random and things will be a little different for a little while.  I'll keep trying to post new reviews weekly, but frankly I'm not really sure what day of the week I'm going to have internet access, so they'll come up as a bit of a surprise.  On the blog we're going to stop posting the news on the blog for a little while, however we'll still be posting the news on the Twitter feed as regular.  This is also going to be the last "This Week in Candy" for a little while, but it will be replaced by a weekly look at some of my favorite Canadian candies.  We're probably going to be taking a break from "Snack Facts" as well, or at the very least they'll be more occasional, and not daily.  All of the other regular posts should be the same as usual, but now and again I may post some bonus pieces about what I'm up to on my voyage.

This transition is going to take a few weeks, but I really think things will still be really fun.  I'll be posting regular highlights from my various adventures along the way on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter, so stay tuned there.

As I said in my art show a few weeks back.  To Greece I say "so long and thanks for all the fish".

CC

The Last Greek Review... For A While At Least

Some of the candy you find in Greece can trace its linage to some of the oldest candies in the world.  These candies are often hand made, depend greatly on the ingredients rather than the process, and require simple cooking techniques.  Greece also has some modern candy too, but it's still a little behind when it comes to the hip new trendy candy we see in other places around the world.  I'm not sure that their lack of modern candy is a bad thing though, while chocolate bars are just starting to really hit their stride here, their baked goods are better than most places anywhere else in the world.

Click here to read the last in our Greek candy review fest.

CC

This Week In Candy

Well we're back from our vacation, it was nice and relaxing, and now it's time to get down to business.  To start off, this week's Snack Facts are going to be all about cookies.  Cookies are not only one of the best snacks ever, but they're also often a great ingredient for other snacks, like a Twix bar.  Make sure to check out our Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook feeds to keep up with our daily posts.

This week we're starting a feature on our "Cool Candy Thing" posts all about candy themed movies.  For the next 4 weeks we'll post a list of movies featuring a candy theme, some more obvious than others.  Make sure to check out those posts Wednesday right here on this blog.

Finally, this week we're continuing our Greek candy reviews to count down our time here in Greece.  Soon it's back to Canada for a while to pick up some tasty North American treats.  Then we're off on another adventure that we'll talk about more later.

CC

This Week In Candy

This week I'm on vacation.  That doesn't mean that you wont hear from me, it just means that I've had to pre-post most of my entries this week.  Allison made me promise not to work on Candy Critic for the whole week, so other than uploading a new entry today, I'm going to be keeping a low profile.  Having said that vacations tend to be the place where I discover new treats, so a vacation weeks tends to result in a big week of new things the week afterwards.

Recently a new ice cream store opened up here in Athens.  It's the Magic Pleasure store, and it looks super fancy.  Magic Pleasure is a brand of ice cream, that sells all over Greece, I'm not sure where else it is sold, but it's fairly popular here.  It's a high end ice cream bar that's dipped in premium chocolate and often has fancy nuts and other ingredients mixed in.  This might be the first store they've ever opened here, and I think you can order custom bars.  I guess I know what I'm doing for part of my vacation anyways.

I'm still working on a list of North American treats that I must pick up while I'm there later this summer. Here's my list so far:

Cracker Jacks
Sour Patch Kids
Various M&Ms
Caramilk Bar

If you can think of anything else that should be added to this list (only treats that have not been reviewed on candycritic.org) let me know.

CC

This Week In Candy

Last week I announced the beginning of the Greek candy review marathon.  Unlike our week long review-a-thons that have a new review every day for a week, this Greek candy review marathon will work slow and steady in order spread out all of the Greek candy joy.  Each week we'll be posting a new Greek candy review instead of our regular candy review, this should last for about two months.  This week however I wanted to show off a new candy discovery that was sent to me from the lovely folks at Natasha's Just Brittle as well.  So that means that this week you're getting two new reviews, today is Natasha's Just Brittle, and on Wednesday I'll post the new Greek treat review.

If you've been keeping track of our Snack Facts daily post on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, then you'll know that we've started to develop weekly themes with our  facts.  This week we're looking at hazelnut spreads, not just Nutella, but mostly Nutella.  Every day this week we'll post a new quick fact about a sweet treat that's taking the world by storm.

As you've read above, my time in Greece is quickly coming to an end.  I'm moving someplace new and exciting (it's a secret), but on my way I'm stopping off in Canada for about a month to remind myself how awesome a country Canada is.  I've decided as well to pick up a whole bunch of Canadian treats to review on Candy Critic.  I've noticed over the years that I'm missing a few classic treats, like the Caramilk bar, and I want to rectify that.  I've also discovered that there are a few new treats that I haven't tried yet, I think there are a few M&M varieties I haven't sampled  yet.  I'm going to go on a candy shopping spree, but I need your help, let me know of any Canadian (or even American) candies that I must try.

CC

It's The Start of the Greek Treat Reviews

As I mentioned earlier today in This Week In Candy, I'm moving away from Greece fairly soon.  Since I don't want to forget to review any classic Greek treats on candycritic.org, I've decided to dedicate all of my reviews (give or take) to classic and cool Greek candies until I leave.  Today I'm starting with a chocolate company that's very well known in Greece for making fine dark chocolate.  I actually once stumbled upon the factory where these are made, and came across an interesting garden/park on the side of the factory that featured an old bean roaster and bean grinder.  The smell of this park was fantastic too.

Click here to read the first in our Greek Treat Reviews.

CC

Classic/Creative Candy Advertisement

As I've mentioned before, I'll be leaving Greece in the near future, off for new adventures.  I've decided that before I leave I must make sure I explore (review) every single Greek treat that I may have overlooked.  The one brand that I've really overlooked is ION.  It's a chocolate bar company here in Greece that produces some really great bars.  So I've been cleaning up the candy shelves, and before I go, I'm going to review several of ION's tasty treats.

I found this ad here.

CC

This Week In Candy

This week I have two missions.  First of all, as you may or may not know, I'm moving this summer.  I'm leaving Greece behind for a new adventure that I hope leads me to lots of lots of sweet surprises.  I'll miss living in this wonderful country, and I'll miss all of the sweet treats.  What that means for me is, I have to make sure I've reviewed every classic Greek candy I can think of.  I'm going to spend the week scanning store shelves, collecting chocolate bars, candies, and other sweet treats to write up as reviews.  I'll probably leave many in my review bullpen to be posted later on, but I want to make sure I don't miss out on them entirely.

This week I'm also going to continue working on my larger writing project.  While I don't want to give too much away, I can tell you that last week I hit a bit of a snag.  I was doing research on one particular aspect of the project when I suddenly found myself spending a great deal of time trying to figure out every detail about a part of the project that won't be more than a sentence or two.  Fortunately I had a couple of friends dig me out of the this hole and get me back on the right path.  Hopefully this week I'll get over it and start back up on the right foot.

CC

This Week In Candy

Today I'm going to let you know about a little something about a project I'm working on.  I'm presently writing the second, more detailed, pitch for a book about the history of chocolate.  Right now I'm researching everything I can on the subject.  It's a pretty big task, but it's remarkably interesting as well.  I've decided that I'm going to post my progress on this blog now and again, as well as ask any questions I might have on the subject.  If you happen to fancy yourself a chocolate expert, even if you're not a professional chocolate maker, I'd like to hear from you.

It's also the time that I announce that I'm leaving Greece.  In about four months I'm moving on to a new and fun destination.  I'm not sure when, if, or how I'll talk about my new home, but things will change for sure at Candy Critic.  There's also going to be a transition where I'll be back at home (Canada) for a month or so.

This week we're going to bring back our daily Snack Fact on our Instagram feed.  We took the week off in Venice, and frankly forgot to post last week, but we're back with all kinds of crazy snack facts.  This week also marks the re-birth of the Junk Fud podcast.  The initial plan is to release two episodes a month.  Some will be short little stories and informative facts (delivered by yours truly), others will be interviews and chat sessions with my friends.  We'll be sure to post them all on the blog when they go up.

CC

Fistiki Fest (Pistachios Everywhere)

Last weekend I visited a festival on the Greek island of Aegina called the "Fistiki Fest".  For those that don't speak Greek "fistiki" is Greek for pistachio.  I love going to festivals, and I particularly love festivals based on foods.  The best kind of food festivals to go to tend to be based on ethnic foods (like a Greek food festival, or a Chinese food festival) or food festivals based on a particular harvest, like this one.  I was really looking forward to this festival because it was celebrating the harvest of my favourite nut, and I wasn't disappointed at all.

Festivals can really be hit or miss in my opinion.  I've been to festivals where they're supposed to be celebrating one thing, but most of the vendors and entertainment have nothing to do with the namesake of the festival.  Who wants to go to a rib festival and buy potpourri, or cat T-shirts?  I've also been to some festivals where they don't work with the environment around them.  Local festivals are the best when they include the locals and local business.  This festival really celebrated the pistachio, and it also celebrated the community where pistachios grow.

The first thing this festival got right was the premise, pistachios.  It's a simple premise, the nuts are harvested at this time of year, and now is the time to try them as fresh as possible.  There's no side ideas or extra events in the Fistiki Fest, just pistachios.  Since the community is such a big producer of these nuts there are plenty of people in the area that can cook with them, and show them off.  It's also nice to know exactly what you're in for; Fistiki (Pistachio) Fest is pretty clear what they're celebrating.

When walking along the main festival street you're hit with one particular theme during this festival, pistachios.  While there were a few non-pistachio businesses on the route, I would have to say that at lest three quarters of the booths at this festival sold pistachios or pistachios related products.  The great thing about pistachios is that they're a very versatile nut that you can use in liquors, baking, soaps, and even just on their own.  Fortunately the people of Aegina (particularly those that set up this festival) know the versatilities of this nut, and know that a festival is a great place to show it off.  If you had dropped me off at this festival and not told me what the main theme was, I could have easily figured it out.

As I've said above, the fact that this festival was celebrating a local crop, that many of the local people depend on for a living, makes it a better festival.  You can see the pride that everybody in the town has over their crop, and they really love the idea of showing it off.  Since it's a small town the festival is not that big, but since it's so tied into the local people, you can find pistachios throughout the town, and it becomes an extension of the festival itself. If you walk about 30 minutes towards the outskirts of town you'll even come across many pistachio farms (freshly harvested).  Even many of the restaurants use pistachios in their cooking, so off the beaten path you can celebrate this awesome nut.

This was by no means the biggest festival I've ever been to, but it was one of the best.  Unless you really hate pistachios I highly recommend you stop by Aegina around the middle of September.  You'll not only come to a fun festival with all kinds of great ways to sample pistachios (I tried complete raw/fresh pistachios for the first time), but you'll also see a community that is proud of their harvest.  Everyone we met was very friendly, and the desserts where spectacular.

CC

The Many Halvas Found In Greece

Halvas (this is the Greek spelling) while available in many places all over the world really hasn't caught on as a popular dessert treat in many countries.  Halvas, loosely translated, means sweet food. For the most part halvas is a dessert specialty often found in Middle Eastern, Jewish, or Greek bakeries.  It's kind of a shame, because not only are there many varieties to choose from, it offers such great potential as a candy ingredient too.  Most people are not really familiar with the many varieties available either, and often they've only tried one variety.  People also don't understand how much better this treat can be when it's fresh.  Since moving to Greece I've been lucky enough to sample so many varieties of halvas both fresh and packaged.  A dessert I used to think very little about has quickly become one of my favourite sweet treats.

Sesame halvas is probably the kind of halvas that most people have tried.  Chances are the Sesame halavas you sampled was imported from somewhere in the Middle East or Mediterranean, and it probably wasn't that fresh.  Unfortunately this particular kind of halvas is the easiest to ship, and also unfortunately it's the kind that often turns people off of halvas forever.  Don't get me wrong; there are many great Sesame halvas in the world, however many of the pre-packaged varieties just don't cut it.  They're dry, chalky, and have no discernable flavour.  A good Sesame halvas should taste of toasted sesame with a hint of chocolate sometimes.  It should melt in your mouth almost like a honeycomb.

Semolina halvas was the first step I ever took outside of the dry sesame halvas world.  At first it terrified me, it looked nothing like sesame halvas, and I already thought I didn't really like Halvas as it was.  This particular halvas is much softer and moister than the sesame halvas.  Because of this, its shelf life is very limited, I've made batches of this only to see it go bad in a couple of days.  When you get it fresh, it's absolute perfection.  Best of all, one of the keys to making semolina halvas flavourful is in using syrups, and you can flavour these syrups any way you like.  This means that this halvas has an unlimited choice in flavour potential.  If you can boil it in sugar and water, you can use it to flavour semolina halvas.  The base ingredient, semolina, has a slight toasty flavour, so it can really work with just about any sweet syrup concoction, even maple syrup would work.  Add a few nuts into the mix and you can have a really creative sweet treat.

Farsala halvas is the most mysterious of all halvas.  Many candy makers I've spoken to say it's the most complicated of all halvas to make.  The recipes for the high quality stuff are closely guarded secretes, but one of the key ingredients I’ve learned is cornstarch.  It's said that the highest quality Farsala halvas is only available in its origin town of Farsala in Greece.  Fortunately for me the piece you see above was purchased there, and I can attest to this claim.  Farsala halvas has a shelf life of about 1 week in your refrigerator, but nothing is better than getting a slice that is still warm, straight out of the oven.  It's not as gelatinous as it might appear, and the texture is best compared to the filling in a sugar pie or butter tart.  It's very sweet, and since it’s primary ingredients are cornstarch and sugar, it's not very healthy for you.  The thing is, as soon as you take a bite of this sweet treat, the strangeness of its texture and the fact that it's completely unhealthy for you will fade out of your mind.

As I mentioned before, halvas is a very versatile sweet.  One way to really enjoy any variety is to cover it in chocolate.  While halvas can be very sweet, it's often also fairly nutty as well, and this combination lends itself well to blending with chocolate or cinnamon.  I've only touched on many of the varieties of halvas available in the world, you can get them made with many different seeds, nuts, and flours, each lending a different flavour into the mix.  While you may only be able to buy the packaged variety of chalky sesame halva at your local store, the Internet is filled with many halvas recipes well worth trying at home.  This is a sweet treat well worth sampling in its many forms, and in particular well worth sampling as fresh as you can get it.

CC

This Week In Candy

Well I'm back from what I can only describe as an exhausting vacation.  While the trip did not focus on any candy adventures, being the Candy Critic I couldn't avoid sampling a few great sweets.  Most notably I learned a little more about a treat I had merely sampled in the past called Farsala Halvas.  Seeing as one of my stops on this trip was to Farsala, the place that this treat originated, I couldn't help but learn a little something about it, and I couldn't help but sample some of the best.  While I've talked a little on this blog about Halvas, later this week I'm going to break down the differences between the many varieties, and let you know why you should be sampling them.

Also on this vacation, I was inspired to start up a few new ideas on this blog.  To start it off, I'm going to start taking a look at awesome candy merchandise, in a section I'll call "Awesome Candy Merchandise".  I think that candy is much more than the sweet treats we eat, I think it's part of our culture, and some of things you can buy with a candy theme are pretty awesome.

Finally, I'm still working out my details for a future trip I have planned to Scotland and Northern England.  If you have any suggestions for must see, and must eat stops, let me know.

CC

Crete Sweet

The Isle of Crete is the largest of all Greek islands, it has a unique culture that is a little different than the rest of the Greek islands, and the mainland as well.  Geographically it's fairly far from the mainland, and it wasn't until 1912 that Crete became officially part of Greece.  So what does that have to do with the sweet treats that I sampled?  With an influence from Greece, but not a direct connection, Cretan food has a really unique twist. It's very Greek inspired, but with changes based on local products and tastes.  There is a pride in the local products, even the simplest of dishes show off the ingredients, instead of the process.

One of the great specialties of Crete is these sweet cheese pies.  They're covered in local honey and filled with a cheese that has a slight bite to it, but is smooth and creamy.  The balance between the cheese and the sweet honey is just perfect and the filo crunch gives it a great texture.

As I said above, Crete takes many classic Greek recipes and makes them slightly different, some might argue better.  The Loukoumades (Greek donuts) are a great example of this.  They're light and fluffy, not very oily at all, and similar to the sweet cheese pies, they're covered in a wonderful local honey.  It's a very simple Greek dish made to perfection.

Crete also has a great deal of Venetian history as well, and they're not ashamed to show it off.  Because of this connection to other Southern European countries, they're cooking will often contain sweet treats you might find in France and Italy. The crepes are fantastic and the gelato is wonderful all over the island.

The best thing about enjoying sweet treats in Crete is the delivery.  There is never a sense of urgency when you're eating, and some of the best customer service I've ever had in Greek restaurants came from Crete.  Sure there are some pushy restaurateurs, but many places really know how to make you feel relaxed.  This is perfect, because enjoying your sweet treat slowly next to the sea or in a small pedestrian street really makes it taste so much better.

CC

Mark Gets Some Treats

Our friend, and regular follower Mark, mentioned to me that he'd never tried Turkis (or Greek) delight before.  I couldn't let this stand, and promptly sent him a package in the mail.  Mark offered a great insight into his candy experience, and agreed to let us share his tale:

I knew the mail lady was here by the exclamation, "Oh yuck! you got a bird".
Instantly the thought crossed my mind," the cats are at it again, fearless hunters of birds, snakes, squirrels, groundhogs, and the like!

I spoke with our mail carrier and we discussed the cats and their inclination to hunt and drag their catch to our doorstep.

Turning around I spied our mailbox, typical mail? Nope, not today!

I saw a package that was very neutral to natural in color.

"What is this?" I think.

I read the senders name and see a familiar C. Stewart.

Now I am excited! What could it be? I think.

Very intrigued with the surprise that is hidden between the layers of envelope. I remember a conversation about candy and junk food, and I realize; this could be the famed and hard to find Turkish delight we spoke about!

After trying to open the bulky envelope with my bare hands, I come to the realization that I require the help of my trusty scissors!

I cut through one layer of envelope to be greeted with a second durable delivery device!

y anticipation is growing as I snip, snip, snip to find concealed a bar of one of my favorite treats, sesame seed candy! Oh wow! My grin proceeds to travel laterally yet slightly longitudinally at the ends. I pull out a second container the reads" Greek Traditional Delight; Lokoum with Rose" Now I am feeling like, well, a kid in a candy store.

I am perplexed, which should I open first, the old favorite or the never before experienced Lokoum?

Decisions, decisions!

I break down and realize, I can only open one at a time, which should it be?

I decide based on kid logic that I shall open the old favorite first and while enjoying it, I will open the second.

I delicately tear open the sesame candy bar and pause, what would a Candy Critic likely do at this point. I look over the slightly thin bar noticing what looks to be a purposeful mixing of light beige, oak, flesh colored sesame seeds.

I take a deep inhalation of the candy and savor the slightly smokey, slightly vanilla, toasted oat like smell.

It is a very pleasant fragrance. I can wait no longer and I take a bite.

The flavor is a wonderful mix of toasted sesame, toasted oats (even though I know there are none in the candy) and a very mild and not over sweet glucose product and the tell tale slight bitterness of sesame in it's varied stages of toasting.

Ah yes, a wonderful and honestly, not so typically sweet, treat from a world away.

Now that being said, I want to find out what this Turkish/Greek delight thing is all about. I stop and look over the package and ingredients. Not only is this Turkish/Greek delight, it is rose flavored!

My family and friends know that I have a unique palate. I enjoy treats that are not your everyday run of the mill snack/junk food. I enjoy a floral breath mint (that contains no mint or minty flavor at all) called C. Howard's Violet mints.

I open the package and am greeted by the sight of a clear tray the size of a compact disc case, with four chambers that are about an inch in depth.

I remove the plastic wrap and cautiously smell the treat, caution solely based on the fact that whatever lies in the recesses of this package is covered with a fine heaping of powdered sugar and should my wife see me with white powder on my nasal area, I believe she would suspect me of shady behavior!

Picking up one of the powder white treats the size of a half melted ice cube, I slightly squeeze to check firmness. This treat is pretty durable even for it's small size.

With anticipation I take a bite of the treat and instantly, as if someone painted my palette with flowers, the taste of rose fills my olfactory senses. There is no mistaking the rose, it is vibrant yet soft in aroma, a delightful edible incense that is very reminiscent of the many roses that I experienced as a child at my grandmother's, where roses seemed to be a frequent sight and smell.

I wonder a question in my mind as I enjoy a second rose delight, "I wonder if the people who eat this on a regular basis use a tapping method to remove the powdered sugar", which is in no short supply.

The very fact that this package arrived with a bit of disgust from the mail lady is an ironic thing.

"Oh yuck a bird" turned into "Awesome Friday Afternoon"

Mark

This Week In Candy

From Berlin to an Island.  That's how I move these days, from the chill of the German air, to the hot and sweaty-ness of a Greek Island.  As always I'm writing this before I've actually left, so I'm not sure if I've been posting all about this epic adventure to the island of Crete.  I can tell you that I'm most likely having a few of the island's specialty treats, unfortunately at this point I'm not really sure what they are.

While on this trip I'm hoping to not only be inspired to write a few blog posts and even a few reviews  but also to work on writing a few magazine type articles as well.


Since I am away again this weekend, I'm not putting up a new review till later in the week, when I get back.  I may also have to forgo the Candy News this week, however if I come across an article or two while on my travels, and I have internet, I'll post them to our Twitter Page.


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Classic/Creative Candy Advertising

Whenever I visit a Greek island, I always think about ice cream.  I think this combination of Greek frozen yogurt, and Ben and Jerry's might work.  I'm not really sure about the Peanut Butter and Bananas though.  Greece didn't really get into banana's until the last 20 or so years, and most Greeks I know hate peanut butter.  I think this would have worked better with a walnut and honey mixture instead.

I found this ad here.

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