Chocolate University Online Blog
Over 60,000 shoppers voted M&M’S Pretzel Chocolate Candies as the 2011 Product of the Year.
The food product category was Candy & Snacks, and the Mars Chocolate Company came out on top during a selection process that had consumers voting for their favorite innovative product. The products were chosen based on 4 key elements; appeal of innovation, usage, satisfaction, and purchase intent.
The M&M’S Pretzel achieved high marks across all elements but scored highest in satisfaction.
The Product of the Year award is hosted in 28 countries and is the world’s largest consumer-voted program of its kind.
According to the shoppers, the sweet and salty combination makes M&M’S Pretzel candies irresistible.
M&M’S have been around since 1941. There are permanent varieties of M&M’S as well as seasonal ones. You’ve got your milk chocolate, dark chocolate, milk chocolate peanut, dark chocolate peanut, Almond, Peanut Butter, and Baking Bits. Whew!
But wait, there’s more! You’ve got personalized, minis, Halloween, Valentines, Easter, and don’t forget, Pretzel!
Ok, I think I’m done. And craving M&M’S for some reason!
Categories: chocolate in the news
Tags: chocolate candy, grocery product, M&M's, Mars, product of the year
OMG! Home of the Famous Chocolate covered Potato Chip, “Chippers”. That’s what Carol Widman’s Candy Company proudly boasts. And I completely agree!
Carol Widman’s Candy Company is located in Fargo, North Dakota. They’ve been making quality chocolates for four generations. I’m not sure when they started making chocolate covered potato chips, but they have perfected them. They come covered in milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, peanut butter, and white almond.
It really doesn’t matter which coating you choose, so pick your favorite. No matter what, the Chippers are down right addicting.
I can’t stop eating my milk chocolate chippers. Good thing I can still type while my mouth is full or this blog post would never get published.
The chocolate is smooth and creamy, with soft caramel and nutty notes. The potato chips are crispy, salty, and extremely fresh tasting. According to the company’s website, www.carolwidmanscandyco.com, they use Red River Valley Potato Chips, made from a locally grown red potato known for its excellent robust flavor.
I am a little nervous about sharing my enthusiasm for this incredible chocolate gem. What if they run out?
Or, perhaps worse yet, what if my family finds out I ate them all and accidentally forgot to share?
Categories: chocolate review
Tags: chocolate candy, milk chocolate, potato chips
2004 was a tumultuous time for Chicago-based chocolate retailer Fannie May. It was the year they declared bankruptcy. More than 200 stores were closed.
Fannie May began in 1920 when H. Teller Archibald opened a chocolate shop on LaSalle St. in Chicago. In 1946, the famous Fannie May Pixies® were introduced and it continues to be their best selling item. Pixies are caramel covered nuts drenched in chocolate.
In 2006, 1-800-Flowers.com bought Fannie May in the hopes of turning its fortunes around. Now, with increased online sales, it is once again becoming a thriving business.
According to David Taiclet, president of gourmet food brands for 1-800-Flowers.com, people care about Fannie May products and the memories that go with them. The new owners plan on keeping the decades-old candy recipes. These recipes may not be trendy, but they certainly have a loyal following.
By the end of this year, 2010, Fannie May will have a total of 85 stores in 6 Midwest states and will produce about 10 million pounds of chocolate.
Categories: chocolate in the news
Tags: caramel, chocolate candy, chocolate covered nuts, Fannie May
As promised here are two recipes. The first is for Candied Orange Peel. The second is for Jellied Orange Candies.
For best results you’ll have to temper the chocolate so review those instructional blog posts, or refer to your Chocolate University Online lesson materials, if you need to refresh your memory.
Candied Orange Peel
• 1 large navel orange
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate, chopped
Using a vegetable peeler, cut the orange peel from the stem end of the orange down to the navel end, forming long 3/4 to 1-inch-wide strips. Bring the water to a boil. Add the peels and cook for 1 minute. Drain and then rinse the peels under cold water.
Stir the sugar and 1/2 cup of fresh water in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil. Add the orange peels and simmer over medium-low heat until tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer the peels to a sheet of parchment paper to dry and completely cool. This will take at least one hour.
Melt and temper the chocolate. Dip the orange peel completely in tempered chocolate and allow to dry and harden at room temperature. |
I recommend trying both recipes so you can discover your favorite. Here’s the second…
Orange Jelly Candy
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 1 package (1-3/4 ounces) powdered fruit pectin
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/8 teaspoon orange oil
• 5 drops each red and yellow food coloring
• Semisweet chocolate, chopped
Grease a 9-inch square pan with 2 teaspoons butter and set aside. In a large saucepan, combine the pectin, baking soda, and water. The mixture will foam. In another saucepan, combine sugar and corn syrup. Bring both mixtures to a boil. Cook until foam on pectin mixture thins out a little. Bring the sugar mixture to a full rolling boil (about 4 minutes).
Gradually add pectin mixture to the boiling sugar mixture, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute. Continue to stir constantly.
Remove from the heat. Stir in orange oil and food coloring and immediately pour into the prepared pan. Let stand at room temperature until set – about 3 hours.
Dip a knife into warm water and use it to cut firm candy into squares or rectangles (fingers). Melt and temper the chocolate. Dip the pectin shapes into the tempered chocolate. Shake off excess and allow to dry and harden at room temperature. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate candy, orange
If you like the flavor combination of chocolate and orange, did you know you could enjoy it three different ways?
- chocolate-covered orange peel
- chocolate coated orange jelly sticks
- orange flavor-infused chocolate
Perhaps you are already of lover of Terry’s Chocolate Orange, the one that you bang on the counter and sections of chocolate wedges that look like an orange come apart.
Or, you fancy candied orange peel like I do and blogged about last week. Candied orange peel is a treat made from boiling long, thin curls of orange peel in sugar until it turns into something similar to fruit leather. Then it’s turned into perfection by coating with a premium dark chocolate.
And then there are orange jellies, aka orange jelly fingers or orange jelly sticks, that are candies made from pectin. These are a little like jelly beans or gummy candies and range from soft textures to hard.
As you already know, my favorite type is the chocolate covered orange peel, but sometimes I am in the mood for orange pectin jellies. I prefer the softer pectin recipes because the orange flavor is released faster and mingles with the chocolate better in my mouth.
Tomorrow, I will post a recipe for candied orange peel and orange jelly candy. This way you can compare the two types, side by side in written form. And, for the more adventurous, an invitation to make and eat!
Categories: fun chocolate facts
Tags: chocolate candy, orange
The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is an international retail franchisor of chocolates and confectionery products. 21 years ago a man named Frank Crail started the company in the old-west town of Durango, Colorado.
I recently tried their version of chocolate-covered candied orange peel. Chocolate-covered orange peel is one of my favorite chocolates, and I like to try various recipes from chocolate shops around the globe.
The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory’s version of candied orange peel was excellent! The texture was chewy with a nice snap (I know that sounds strange but if you have ever eaten candied citrus you know what I mean) and the sugary sweetness was just right, not overly sweet. The chocolate was a bit subdued by the intense orange flavor. Just at the finish, the chocolate lost its intensity and bitterness. Overall, I enjoyed the great flavor combination. As always with good chocolates, I was left satisfied yet looking forward to more.
According to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate factory website, www.rockymountainchocolatefactory.com, they make about 300 chocolate candies you can choose from; clusters, caramels, creams, truffles.
By the way, you can make candied orange peel at home and dip it in your preferred chocolate. But I will warn you that the job is time consuming. Just make one batch and you’ll see why buying some will not only save you the hassle, but you will also realize why chocolate covered candied orange peel commands a high price!
Categories: chocolate review
Tags: chocolate candy, chocolate covered fruit, dark chocolate, orange
Do you want to know the most popular chocolate treat for this year’s Halloween?
 Chocolate fangs and all things vampire! It’s not a shock, of course, thanks to the “Twilight” movies and “True Blood” television show.
Chocolatiers say many varieties of chocolate fangs are flying of the shelves. Some of the vampire teeth are solid dark chocolate while other are filled with fudge or peanut butter.
68% of kids say they want their Halloween candy to have chocolate, 9% go for lollipops, 7% would rather have gummy candy, and another 7% prefer gum.
No matter what the candy is made of, the main thing that makes Halloween candy popular – the grosser the better! And throw in some crazy, cool packaging and you’ve got the kids hooked.
Categories: chocolate in the news
Tags: chocolate candy, Halloween
Here’s a recipe for pretzels dipped in caramel and then covered in semisweet chocolate. These are a little fussy, but oh-so-good!
Caramel Dipped Chocolate Covered Pretzels
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 20 caramels
• 2 1/2 teaspoons water
• 36 pretzel nuggets
• 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
Grease a cookie sheet with the vegetable oil. Combine the caramels and the water in a saucepan and melt over low heat, stirring frequently, or in a covered dish in a microwave at full power, for 1 1/2 minutes. Dip the pretzel nuggets, a few at a time, into the caramel and remove with a fork to the greased cookie sheet. Refrigerate until caramel is firm.
Temper chocolate; Quick Method:
Melt 3 ounces of the chocolate. Remove from heat. While the chocolate is warm, but not hot, mix half of the remaining 1 ounce of chocolate into the melted chocolate. Stir until completely melted. Then add the final solid piece of chocolate. Stir until melted. The chocolate should feel as though it is thickening.
Lift the caramels from the sheet and dip, one at a time, into the chocolate. Coat completely and lift with a small fork. Shake off excess chocolate by rapping the fork on the edge of the bowl lightly. Remove any drips from the bottom by running the fork across the edge of the bowl. Slide the candy onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or wax paper. Allow to cool until solid. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: caramel, chocolate candy, pretzels
Almond Bark or candy bark is a thin confectionery coating usually made with nuts and added flavors (like peppermint or vanilla) and/or added colors. The “bark” can be sold in blocks or discs for home candy making and dipping. This is not “real” chocolate, but a confection commonly used in place of real chocolate because it hardens without having to temper it first.
The term bark is typically associated with confectionery coating, but I have seen chocolate bark being sold, especially around holidays. I think that regardless of which type of coating the bark is made from, the common factor is that the final product resembles bark on a tree; thin and bumpy.
Here are two recipes for bark; a real chocolate version and a Halloween version…
Chocolate Marble Bark
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 ounce white confectionery coating, melted
• Almonds (or any of your favorite nuts), chopped
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. In medium saucepan over low heat, melt bittersweet chocolate just until soft. Stir until smooth. Temper the coating. Stir in nuts.
Spread mixture on paper-lined cookie sheet to 1/4-inch thickness. Drizzle with melted white coating, swirl with toothpick. Cool 10 minutes at room temperature or refrigerate until firm. Break into pieces. |
Here’s the festive Halloween version…
Halloween Bark
• 16 Halloween-colored chocolate sandwich cookies, broken into small pieces
• 1 1/2 cups pretzels, broken into small pieces
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 1 1/2 pounds white confectionery coating, chopped
• 2 cups candy corn
• orange and brown sprinkles
Spread evenly the broken cookies and pretzels and the raisins onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Melt white coating in a double boiler, or in the microwave (careful! white coating burns easily) and stir until melted.
Pour coating over the goodies in the pan and spread the top flat to coat evenly and as thinly as possible. Top with candy corn and sprinkles. Let cool until firm. Break into pieces and store in an airtight container. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate candy, confectionary coating, Halloween
As a kid, I used to have a designated dresser drawer in my room where I would store my Halloween candy. I would try to make it last as long as possible. After several years of this practice, my experience told me to eat my favorite pieces first because some candy just didn’t taste good after a while. What I didn’t know at the time was that candy has a shelf life.
Shelf life is the length of time a product may be stored without becoming unsuitable for use or consumption.
This shelf life for candy can range between two weeks to a year. The length of time depends on the type of candy, along with correct packaging and the proper storage conditions.
Chocolate has a shelf life, but it doesn’t go from good to bad very quickly. Most milk chocolates last from six to nine months and dark chocolate at least a year, sometimes more. Chocolate may “bloom” (turn gray) but this just means that it may not be at its best anymore, but it can still be eaten safely.
Candy that is coated in chocolate generally has a shorter shelf life because of what the center is made from. Chocolate-covered nuts, caramels or fruit fillings will oxidize or go rancid faster than a bar of strictly chocolate. These candies can get grainy, change in color, and acquire off-flavors and after-tastes.
A good rule of thumb is the softer the candy, the shorter its shelf life.
Looking back, storing candy in my bedroom dresser drawer wasn’t the best way to keep chocolate. The dresser was located next to the radiator (anyone remember radiating heat?), exposed to extreme temperature fluctuations. Loose in a drawer also exposed it to too much air.
Storing chocolate at a constant 65 to 68 F and keeping it in an air tight container is the best way to keep that Halloween, or any of your favorite candy, good to eat for a long time.
Categories: chocolate education, chocolate in the news
Tags: bloom, chocolate bars, chocolate candy, Halloween, shelf life
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