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7 New Candy Favorites For Halloween

YumSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 05:50:42 -0700

As much as I love celebrating Halloween, some parts of it - like haunted houses, trick-or-treating, and even certain kinds of candy - remind me I'm not a kid anymore. That's why I've decided to introduce some alternative, homemade confections that are refined enough for even an adult gourmand such as myself. Curious to know what my new candy favorites are? Keep reading to find out.

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Happy Hour: Izzi Sambuca

partysugar — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 16:15:42 -0800

While YumSugar was busy learning about caviar at the Fancy Foods Show, I was searching the Italian section for exciting new drinks. With its smooth, easy-drinking liquid, and clear anise-y taste, Izzi Sambuca caught my eye.

Sambuca is a popular Italian liqueur that's great for sipping on a cold afternoon. The distinctive flavor of licorice is prominent, but not overpowering. Izzi makes two kinds: premium original and Sumbuca al Caffé, a variation on theme with subtle undertones of coffee beans and a rich caramel color. Both are warming, but not too strong, full bodied yet not syrupy, and slightly sweet.

Sambuca was popular at the show and Izzi's offerings were my favorite. I definitely plan on adding a bottle to my liquor collection. How about you? Have you tried Sambuca?

Taste Test: Young & Smylie Licorice

YumSugar — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 11:15:39 -0700

Being a big Red Vines and Twizzlers fan, I was excited to find out that Hershey's brand Y&S Candies was debuting a new line of "grownup," bite-sized soft candy, Young & Smylie licorice ($2.99). The licorice is sold in a resealable plastic bag, which locks in the candy's moisture and keeps it soft. Another thing I enjoyed about the packaging was the "licorice lore" on the back: Did you know that the licorice plant Glycyrrhiza, belongs to the pea or bean family?

Enough about the packaging, to see how Young & Smylie licorice tastes, read more.

Peach Mango: This fragrant flavor tasted natural, subtle, and not too sweet with floral and fruity notes of equal parts peach and mango. By far the softest flavor, I would recommend these fruit chews to people who normally eschew licorice for its rubbery texture.

Strawberry: The strawberry flavor wasn't as soft as the peach mango, and it didn't taste quite as natural. However, it didn't have the generic "red" flavor that is sometimes found in punch or mass-market licorice brands. People who love cherry and strawberry Twizzlers or Red Vines will gravitate to this choice.

Black Licorice: The licorice flavor wasn't overpoweringly sweet or spicy. As someone who doesn't care for traditional licorice, I found this to be surprisingly decent. It still wouldn't be my first choice, but if I had to eat black licorice, I would eat this one.

Overall, I had few complaints about these candies. I like the more refined flavors and they might have knocked my favorite licorice Twizzlers Nibs out of first place! To anyone who has tried the new Y&S licorice: what do you think of it?

Do You Like Black Licorice?

YumSugar — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 07:13:33 -0700

Which Will Win? Red Vines or Twizzlers?

YumSugar — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 03:01:33 -0700

In addition to being grilled cheese day, this Sunday is also National Red Licorice Day. To help us celebrate, the folks at Red Vines recently sent us a care package of various flavors. The Sugar HQ is actually full of die-hard Twizzler fans, so I decided to see what they thought of my fave Red Vines. I took the three Red Vine flavors - pink strawberry, red cherry and original - and strawberry Twizzlers and put them into unmarked bowls.

I then asked folks to come taste them, and rank them from fave to least fave. With 21 taste testers, the results were more or less split down the middle. However there were a few surprises with the Red Vines strawberry option. To see what happened in our oh-so-scientific taste-test, read more.

To begin, the votes were broken down as follows:

9 for original Red Vines
7 for strawberry Twizzlers
4 for red cherry Red Vines
2 for pink strawberry Red Vines

While this wasn't that interesting - nearly split down the middle like I expected - the surprising part was in the comments. Overall, we decided that Twizzlers have a plastic texture, while Red Vines have a rubbery texture. We also learned that if you were a Red Vines fan, then you ranked Twizzlers last, and vice versa. It was the difference in texture that seemed to be what people used as a ranker. Those who grew up with Twizzlers thought it tasted "more authentic" while Red Vines people thought their choice was the real deal.

The intriguing part came from the two die-hard Twizzler fans who ranked strawberry Red Vines as favorite. They thought the flavor was great - I thought the two were really close in flavor - and wondered how they could swap their loyalty so easily.

To follow up on this, I did a blind-taste test with a few other folks. They agreed that the flavor of the two were quite similar. Yet I was surprised that it received such few votes. Turns out it was the bright pink Barbie color that really threw everyone off. Folks told me they thought it should taste like Starburst, or something "tropical" and a few folks even swore it had to be pink lemonade.

In the end, it really comes down to texture, flavor and what you grew up with. What do you think? Have you ever forced yourself to do a licorice taste test? Do you think your results would change?

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In Season: Fennel

YumSugar — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:00:09 -0700

It's surprising that a hardy green such as fennel is so unknown to so many home cooks, especially considering the vegetable's adaptability: Its bulb, stalks, and fronds are all completely edible, either raw or cooked, and it possesses a pleasing, mild anise flavor. Although it's a perennial, fennel can be found at a reasonable price during Autumn months. Fennel newbies can sniff it at the market for a hint of the flavor to come. Select sturdy bulbs that are firm and free of blemishes, with vibrant, healthy fronds. Store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, for use within 3 to 5 days. Before preparing, trim the vegetable of any discolored or tough outer layers. Discover your favorite way to use it when you read more.

The Sweet Scoop On Dylan Lauren, Candy Connoisseur

YumSugar — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 09:15:10 -0700

Earlier this week, candy collector Dylan Lauren - the fashionable founder of Dylan's Candy Bar and daughter of designer Ralph Lauren - offered some of her favorite ideas for making weddings a sweet occasion. We caught up with Lauren in person while she was in town at Neiman Marcus promoting her Barbie 50th Anniversary candy line. The candy entrepreneur took some time out of la dolce vita to talk to us about her favorite guilty pleasure and offer more suggestions for bringing candy into the party mix. Find out what they are when you read more.

YumSugar: How did your Barbie candy line come about?
Dylan Lauren: I was approached by Mattel to celebrate Barbie's 50th birthday, since we have the same audience: women ages five to 80, who collect Barbie and collect candy. Mattel had personified Barbie, and decided that she likes to shop at Dylan's Candy Bar.

YS: You've traveled a lot. Do you have favorite candies from other countries?
DL: Actually, in November and December, we'll be featuring candies from around the world: Clodhoppers from Canada, and Australian licorice, which is really chewy, and Kinder and Kinder eggs.

Foreign candy looks pretty, but it doesn't taste as good to me - for example, Japanese candy looks pretty but I don't like the way it tastes. I like Swedish Fish, gumballs, Cadbury Creme Eggs, and strawberry licorice laces. I don't like fancy stuff - I like basic basics.

YS: You've said that you're a visual person. How would you use candy as decoration when hosting and entertaining?
DL: Color-coordinate your house with candy. Now that it's Spring, pastels would be a great color scheme. You can also focus on shapes; there's a candy for everything. Our East Hampton candy store is full of ocean-themed candy. We recently did a fashion party where we featured chocolate high heels. Candy crafts - like making candy jewelry or using candy molds - are great activities, too.

YS: What about candy arrangements?
DL: I love to have a vase of jelly beans that have been layered with different rainbow colors, topped off with candy flowers, or lollipops of different sizes. They make great centerpieces!

Do you have any gift recommendations for Mother's Day?
DL: Barbie is mother-daughter themed, and such a collector's item. I also have my Re-Treat bath and body line. Or chocolate tulips and chocolate butterflies.

YS: What's next for you?
DL: I'm coming out with a candy book in the Summer of 2010. It's about celebrating with candy for all occasions.

Source

Carnival In The Office - Skittles Carnival Reviewed

YumSugar — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 12:13:18 -0700

When I heard about the new limited edition Carnival Skittles (thanks for the tip candyblog!), I knew I'd have to try them. Luckily my local 7-11 had them in stock, so I purchased a pack and rounded up the recruits for a quick taste test.

The pack was a nice bright yellow color with five flavors inside. Here's what we thought of them:

Red Licorice (red): Tasted suprisingly like red licorice, although the texture was wrong with that flavor. No one could figure out why you'd want to eat red licorice skittles over actual real red licorice. Quote that sums it up: "Why would you make candy that tastes like candy?"

Bubble Gum (pink): This one tasted exactly like what you'd expect. It also has a similar texture, and is a bit odd when it disappears. Quote that sums it up: "Tastes exactly like Bazooka Joe bubble gum."

To see what we thought of the other three flavors, read more

Cotton Candy (teal): I thought it shouldn't have been blue, but was out-voted. It was nice like spun sugar, but I couldn't quite figure out which flavor it was. Quote that sums it up: "Tastes like a circle lollipop." (You'll have to ask Molly to explain that one)

Green Slushy (lime green): We all agreed, this one should have been named "Margarita" instead. Quote that sums it up: "When's happy hour?" Oh and surprisingly, although a geek did not know the flavor choices, he was able to identify it as "slushy" flavored.

Candy Apple (pale yellow): This was my personal favorite. It was sweet, yet slightly tart, sort of like apple flavored mentos. However, I'm not sure it was "candy apple" flavored - candy apple makes me think of those sticky red apples that are sort of just sugary tasting - but it was delicious. Quote that sums it up: "I could eat a whole pack of those."

In the end we thought they "nailed it" - the flavors definitely tasted like the flavors they said they were. Our biggest complaint that was if you took a handful, the flavor combo wasn't so great. However I personally thought that meant they "nailed that" too. I mean, have you ever mixed stuff at the carnival? Not exactly pleasant either.

Overall we'd eat them again, but we wouldn't choose them over the regular flavor. If it was a bag of the candy apple only, well then that might be a different story...

Fabulous Favor Idea: Color-Coded Candy

partysugar — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:00:35 -0700

Last night I went to a fashion party at Carrots with FabSugar, and I came across the cutest favor idea: color-coded candy! The boutique always decorates in orange and they carried the theme over to create a gorgeously delectable candy spread. I plan on re-creating the idea for an upcoming party. You can, too! To learn how, read more.

Start by collecting an assortment of clear, glass vases in different sizes and shapes. Cheap vases can be found at Michaels and Ikea.
Pick out a bunch of candy in the same color. For example, if red is the color for your bridal shower get skittles, red M&Ms, red starbursts, red malt balls, Hot Tamales, red licorice, etc. Heading to a local candy shop is a great way to get inspired or check out the Halloween aisle of your favorite drugstore.
Fill the vases with the candy, one sweet per vase.
Arrange the vases on a large table. Place some on stacks of magazines or turned-over bowls to add depth to the display.
Stack empty white Chinese takeout containers nearby.
Invite guests to take home a container of candy!

Wouldn't a color-coded candy display be fabulous fun at a baby shower or wedding?!

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What's Yummy This Week - YumSugar Weekly Recap

YumSugar — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 09:30:21 -0700

We want to know: What's your most treasured recipe?
Cool off with these watermelon margarita popsicles.
Finally, a way to make use of all your leftover cheese.
Get the behind-the-scenes scoop on PartySugar's black-and-white luau.
I rebuilt a deli classic, the reuben.
Did you just make a big move? If so, we've already done the planning for your upcoming housewarming party.
We've also got some helpful hints when cooking for two.
Help me shop for indoor grilling alternatives.
In our latest taste test, we gave the newest licorice on the market a thumbs up.
You may know it's in season, but how well do you really know your tomato?