Category Archives: Candy by Color

Candy by color tips on matching color schemes to candy and other fun facts about candy of every color from ACandyStore.com.

Ancient Candy

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Candy in one form or another has been around for thousands of years. Honeycomb was probably the first ready made candy of the earliest humans. From then forward honey was and continues to be a favorite natural confectionary sweetener. Early Egyptians also favored honey as a sweetener and often used it to sweeten fruit and nuts, such as dates and almonds, to create the first Egyptian confectionaries.

Romans used honey to create candy too. Ancient recipes have been preserved which indicate that the Romans used boiled nuts and honey, sprinkled with ground sesame, as a candy treat. This would have been the precursor to modern nougat. Pine nut candy was the confectionary of choice in medieval courts (in the early days of candy it was a luxury of the rich). This candy was made from a mixture of breadcrumbs, cane sugar, honey, ginger and pine nut kernels. This would have been similar in flavor and texture to the Roman treat.

Meanwhile in the ancient dynasties of the East the art of candy blowing was begun during the Tang Dynasty of the first century. In this process the confectioner/artist lifts a caramel mixture onto a stick which is formed into a single open ended funnel with sides dabbed with wheat flour to prevent sticking the sides together. The open end is then closed and the ends pulled into the shape of a thread-like spout. Air is blown into the spout and as the funnel expands into a sugar bubble, it is quickly shaped into the animal of choice. All this has to be done in a matter of seconds before the sugar hardens and loses its pliability. The finished product is stained with food coloring to create the features of an animal.

Meanwhile many North American Indian tribes had candy from the first century onwards. Tree sap and the bark inner layers were particularly popular as chewing gum as well as fruit seeds and plant stalks. Catkins mixed with animal fat were also a well loved treat.

All of these favored first candies bear a resemblance to some of those still preferred today. Honey continues to be an excellent choice of sweetener and of course nuts and seeds are staples of the candy makers, even of the 21st century. It would be fair to say though, that the ancients would certainly have envied the vast selection and assortment of candies available in modern times. While we may think we have come along way in the presentation of candy as well, it is arguable that no one has ever outdone the candy blowers’ animal creations, in either the past or today.

A Lesson in Gobstoppers

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Gobstoppers to teach science, what a concept! The entire class is given a gobstopper to suck and told that they are sucking away the layers of the planet. The first layer is the earths crust, easily recognized as gone from the gobstopper when the outer color of the blue planet is breached and the students have revealed the outer mantle. This layer is thicker than the earths crust and represented by a change in color which changes again when the student reaches the inner mantle.

At this stage the students have learnt the three outer layers of the planet and are associating this experience with sucking on candy. The lesson is appealing to the tactile, auditory and visual learners in the class which means every student is getting this in the learning style that suits their character, and the geology lesson isn’t over yet. The students now reach the outer core, again represented by a change in color, the gobstopper globe is now approximately half the size it was when it was whole and the texture of the core is softer than the mantle.

As the student sucks nearer to the center the globe will continue to become softer and change in color and soon students will come to the inner core of the globe and their gobstopper. Here the texture of the gobstopper and the earth globe becomes soft and malleable. In the earth globe that is because the temperature has risen to 10 000 degrees Celsius. In the gobstopper it is simply because the delicious gummy center, and the end of the lesson, has been reached. Who is the first student in the class that can say what this inner core is made of and why it is softer and hotter than the outer core?

Candy Containers and Cookie Jars

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Just about everyone loves candy but some people are particularly fond of what the candy comes in. There are numerous collectors of candy containers and cookie jars (which include cookie containers) and in fact there are a plethora of books written on the subject. The most notable well written prose on the subject of candy containers and cookie jars are these:

Album of Candy Containers by Jennie D. Long.
Complete American Glass Candy Containers Handbook/With Supplement by George Eikelberner.
Collectors Guide to Candy Containers: Identification and Values by Douglas Dezso and Leon and Rose Poirier. Over 500 color pictures of all kinds of candy containers.
Collectors Encyclopedia of Cookie jars Book III by Fred, Herndon, and Joyce Roerig.
Collector’s Encyclopedia of Cookie Jars, Book II, by Fred Roerig, Joyce Roerig.

    For those who love the rich combination of candy and history there are some interesting reads for you as well.

    Candyfreak by Steven Almond
    The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars by Joel Glenn Brenner

      The psychology of candy has long been a source of interest to candy makers, parents and psychologists alike. While we all know that candy calls to mind associations, usually pleasant and often from childhood, books have been written which actually profoundly describe the impact that candy can have in some people’s lives. For one such story which is both well written and entertaining read:

      Candy and Me (A Love Story) by Hilary Liftin

        In addition to books for candy and history lovers and collectors of candy containers and cookie jars, there are conventions, website blogs, chat rooms, clubs and trade fairs all dedicated to these hobbies and interests. The fascinating world of candy extends far beyond our personal favorite titbits.

        Music and Candy

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        The count-down to Valentine’s Day is truly on and for those who want to make a huge impression, it’s pressure time. If you have musical talent though, you are in luck and the battle is half won. Nothing will melt a woman’s heart (or a man’s) like a box of chocolates or flowers and a serenade. So get out your instruments and start tuning up because these are the most romantic and sexy love song suggestions and you may want to take a week to practice!

        This one is short and sweet and will surely melt his or her heart. The song is by Candy Dulfer and it’s called, What Does it Take.

        What does it take
        To win your love for me
        How can I make
        This dream come true for me

        Ooh I just got to know
        Oh baby cause I love you so

        I tried I tried I tried I tried
        Every way I could
        To make you see how much I love you
        I thought you understood

        Oh, I gotta make you see
        What does it take to win
        Your love for me

        For the rapper or rockier music artist keen to put the love and the candy in the music, nothing will tell her how you feel like Candy by Kool Moe Dee. The part we can print (it is a bit forward) goes like this…

        It’s like a million chocolate candy bars, chocolate kiss
        But you go better with nut, so put me into your mix
        I make it chunky but funky, a chocolate kiss with a twist
        Cause I’m addicted like a junk food junkie, honey’s my fix
        Since I’m Kool as ice cream maybe one day
        I make your love come down and make a sundae
        For breakfast, lunch or dinner you’re a tasty treat
        Too much dessert can’t hurt, come taste and eat
        Freak freak y’all, to the beat y’all
        I’m droppin on honey like free fall
        Happy as a kid inside a candy shop

        This song is ‘slightly’ more suggestive and a good option for a valentine love you know quite well rather than a first date!

        Horse & Pony Candy

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        Horses are perhaps the animals closest to human beings in terms of relationships because they provide us with services, loyalty and friendship more than any other animal apart from possibly dogs and cats. Ask any horse owner and they’ll tell you their horse or pony is a friend. Also like humans, horses and ponies love candy; all kinds of candy.

        Most horses and ponies will eat anything sweet with great pleasure. Like most parents most equine moms and dads are willing to allow a certain amount of sugar in the diet of their charges. For the health conscious horse owners who cannot bring themselves to allow candy on its own, candy apples are both nutritious and delicious.  Horses and ponies also go gaga for blackstrap molasses which, in addition to being an equine favorite, contains ingredients which are really good for health including the molasses as well as the salt and vinegar which all horses require for optimal well-being. The molasses contains vitamins, calcium, magnesium, potassium and iron. Considering these are all minerals many horses have deficiencies in, molasses is a great and healthful treated served straight up or, for a treat both rider and horse or pony will enjoy, tray molasses salt water taffy.

        For those horse lovers who want to make their own horse and pony sweet treats molasses cookies are easy (makes approximately 25 cookies depending on the size):

        Ingredients:

        1 ½ cups all purpose flour

        1 cup bran

        1 cup molasses

        1 cup grated carrot or apple

        Preparation:

        Preheat oven to 375F

        Grease 2 cookie sheets

        Put aside a small bowl of white sugar and a drinking glass with a flat bottom.

        In a large bowl mix all the ingredients thoroughly. The mixture shouldn’t be too wet, and should stick together – add flour if necessary. Place teaspoonfuls 1 ½ inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Grease the bottom of the glass, dip it in the sugar and stamp the cookies to flatten a little. Bake for 10 minutes.

        Every horse will love molasses and most will also enjoy other treats. For individual tastes it is a matter of trial and error to find out what the best treat or reward will be for any specific horse or pony.

        Island Candy

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        The best candy for a steamy hot day and therefore a favorite of the islands is not surprisingly candy that offers a sense of cool refreshment like coke bottles or Haribo peach and gummi raspberries candy. Closer to home on Coney Island fruit candy also rules although lollipops and cotton candy come a close second.  But, there is something about island heat that makes fruit shaped candy an unbeatable treat. Fruit candy, maybe just because it looks like fruit, offers a startling sense of sunshine and sand. Or how about sitting in a cool ocean beach, lapping up the waves and sucking on a coke bottle – doesn’t that just makes you feel downright cool and content?

        Of course cool refreshment isn’t the only feeling induced by candy. There is candy that can be associated with making a person feel warmer and cosier or even more energetic, less stressed or more attractive. Chocolate is certainly a warmer candy feeling food, hot cocoa and thick dark bars call to mind roaring fires and snuggling under covers.  High glucose candy will give you a boost, suckers will reduce stress and chewing gum is a definite anxiety reliever. In fact some studies have shown that brain activity settles from an anxious state to a more stable state while chewing gum.

        Some candy, and it’s an entirely individual experience of course, just jets a person back to childhood with a single bite or smell. Whether it was the candy store cabinet items you longed for as a kid or the candy rope necklace given by your best friend, each of us has a memory associated with candy that epitomises our youth. Speaking of young, it isn’t just the memory of a candy type that is so nostalgic, it’s the way we ate the candy. It was sucking a gumball till you got right to the gummy inner or, for some, sucking just long enough to be able to breach the candy’s outer core and reach the gum.

        The Tradition of Valentine Candy

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        Back in ancient Rome they used to celebrate a young man’s entry into adulthood, or his rite of passage, during an event called the Fertility Festival which lasted several days and began on the 13th. On the first day the festival opened dedicated to peace and love. During the second day, February 14, the names of willing single women were placed into an urn and one was drawn by every young single man. These paired couples were partners for the following year which, on the Roman calendar began that March. Although there was no guarantee of commitment often these couplings, after a year of being together, would result in marriage.

        In the fifth century the Christian church in its efforts to stamp out such pagan and sexual conduct created a coinciding holiday celebrating a Christian saint remembered for his devotion to love (Saint Valentine). They retained the idea of drawing names from an urn but instead of placing the names of willing women into the urn they placed the names of saints for young women and men to draw out and emulate for the following year. Needless to say this tradition was not nearly as popular as the former version. The new tradition also took away what was previously a great opportunity for a single male to find a partner, and visa versa. To make up for this single men began creating presents of written greetings of affection for girls they liked. They would present these on the 14th of February.

        This tradition spread and evolved over the years so that during medieval times in England the names of single men and women were put into urns and drawn in pairs. Each couple would exchange gifts and be sweethearts for a year in which the man was bound by honor to court and protect his sweetheart. This tradition was made official when King Henry VIII declared February 14, Saint Valentines Day.  The old traditions and the new were thus combined to create the Valentines Day we know today, in which sweethearts give each other gifts like flowers or candy and declare their love.

        Glucose – We need it!

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        Glucose, the sugar used to make candy, is an essential nutrient for the human body. It isn’t just necessary for energy levels either, glucose is critical for maintaining healthy body function, it is as important as other nutrients such as proteins, vitamins and minerals. In fact it is the most important of all the carbohydrates that the body requires and most people don’t even realize that glucose is a carbohydrate.

        Carbohydrates are the main dietary source of glucose. Rice, potatoes, bread, tortillas, cereal, milk, fruit, and sweets are all carbohydrate-rich foods. Many fruits also contain good glucose levels. Some people experience a condition called hypoglycemia which means that they don’t have sufficient glucose in their system. Symptoms of this can include fatigue, shaking, dizziness or fainting. Lollipops and suckers are particularly pleasant sources of glucose that have the added benefit of feeding glucose levels in the body slowly and steadily over a period of time.

        So what exactly are carbohydrates? They are the superior short-term fuel human beings need because they are simple to metabolize and better for us than fats or amino acids. Glucose is the most important carbohydrate because the level of glucose is used as the main control for the central metabolic hormone, insulin.  But it isn’t just humans that use glucose; it is used as an energy source in most organisms, from bacteria to humans.

        Candy isn’t the only source of glucose but it is, for many people, the most pleasurable source of glucose. Let’s face it, there aren’t many of the body’s requirements for health and well-being that are such a pleasure to ingest while providing the body with an essential and health promoting nutrient. For anyone needing an occasional energy burst and especially for those people prone to hypoglycaemia, candy is an excellent source of glucose available in a flavor and texture to suit anyone and everyone – guaranteed!

        Hard Times Sweetened by Candy

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        As the global recession seems to drag on and on candy consumption, which peaked in the U.S. at the height of the recession, continues unabated. It seems that stress and difficult times are inducement for candy consuming comfort. That’s good news for candy suppliers who have experienced across the board sales increases since 2009. Candy pundits attribute the rise to the benefits of candy as an inexpensive comfort food.

        Interestingly the last big candy boom was during the depression of the 1930s which certainly supports the idea that when times are tough people eat more candy. The great depression also prompted the creation of a number of popular confections which remain favorites today such as Snickers, Tootsie Pops, Mars bars with almonds and Three Musketeers, all created in the early 1930s. Pretzel filled M&Ms have just been introduced and it will be interesting to see if the world will enjoy another candy creation boom.

        Many professionals, especially in the world of business are using candy to assuage battle worn customers, clients and employees. Some professionals who have always had candy available to visitors are finding they have to fill their candy bowls significantly more often. When it comes to comfort candy, traditional candy is the most popular. The nostalgia of childhood candy, like hard candy and gumballs, (coupled with the expense of gourmet products) make these the ones people crave most in a recession and during hard times.

        The benefit of candy isn’t just rooted in nostalgia and fond memories. Chocolate, licorice and other ingredients in candy do raise endorphin and serotonin levels in the people who eat them. Raised endorphin and serotonin levels equal increased happy feelings and mood. Some candy makers won’t use fructose corn syrup because they say it is bad for the brain neurotransmitters that carry the happy hormones.

        Some studies have shown that difficult times increase sales in other indulgences like alcohol and cigarettes. Next to these, candy appears to be an excellent and fulfilling alternative for relieving stress and lightening the mood. Plus, there is no SIN tax on candy!

        Valentines Day Candy

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        Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, chocolate fondue for two anyone? A special trend for a unique and romantic date is chocolate fondue by a roaring fire. Fruit can be used for dippers but my personal favorite is marshmallows. The chocolate remains smooth and creamy over the fondue flame and is good for hours of candle/fire lit romantic banter.

        The recipe:

        7 ounces chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate

        2 tablespoons lukewarm water

        4 tablespoons heavy cream

        2 tablespoons cherry or orange liqueur

        1 tablespoon sifted, unsweetened cocoa powder

        ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

        Marshmallows

        Whole fresh strawberries

        Thick slices of banana

        Directions

        In the bowl of the fondue pot combine the chocolate and water. Stir over warm water until the chocolate melts and is smooth. Add the cream, liqueur, cocoa powder and cinnamon. Stir until the mixture is smooth. Place the fondue pot over the fondue flame and arrange the fondue forks, fruit and/or marshmallows on a serving tray. Using the fondue forks spear a fruit or marshmallow, dip it into the chocolate sauce and enjoy!

        Of course if you haven’t got time for this kind of Valentines Day effort, or if the relationship isn’t that intimate –yet, chocolate and candy are tried and true courting success. Excellent Valentines Day chocolate/candy choices include: pink or red milk chocolate hearts, valentine gummi sanded hearts, Peeps vanilla or strawberry cream hearts and of course chocolate roses. Or, what about conversation hearts candy? These are still my personal favorite because they recall the most innocent days of childhood when love was pure and uncomplicated. Those little hearts shared by friends with the words I Love You, Be my Valentine, I’m  Yours, I Hope, and a raft of other gorgeous little sayings that mean so much.

        Say I love you with chocolate or candy and you are sure to get it right this year. Whether you choose a very adult romantic chocolate fondue for two, or the more playful conversation hearts which are certain to make your true love smile, you won’t go wrong with candy on Valentine’s Day.