Good Old Fashioned Sweets

If there’s something we’ve learned in the year and a half we’ve been open, everyone (and we really do mean EVERYONE) has a special candy that really takes them back. Back to grandma’s house, back to summers in the tree house, back to yearly packages from abroad, back to those memories only a very specific taste can revive. We’re an absolute sucker for those stories and find ourselves “going back” from time to time, even when we least expect!

It is safe to say that there are a number of holiday-related treats that take people back and even if the following aren’t a part of your gastronomical memory, you just may find a new sweet to come back to for years to come.

Robertson’s Candy is a Canadian company based in Truro, Nova Scotia and, without intending, they have become a major part of the collective childhood memories for many Canadians, both Maritimer and mainlander. Operating since 1928, this company is still family owned and operated, (a feat unto itself) and using traditional recipes perfected through years of practice, they produce confections such as barley toys, chicken bones, humbugs, ribbon candy and sponge taffy.

Barley toys, or clear toys, may be familiar to you already, especially if you recall the entry from last year where we declared our love for them, but what about the others? Chicken bones are beautiful pale pink candy sticks flavoured with cinnamon and hiding a chocolate center. We get a strange look every so often when offering someone a chicken bone during the holidays, but those moments where they bring back holiday memories and feelings long forgotten are what makes them so special to us. Making them even more special, like much of their candy, Robertson’s only produces them once a year for the holidays – once they’re gone, they’re gone and you’re going to have to ration your supply to make it through the long months ahead (we know – we have!).

Humbugs are perhaps a bit more common, even if only because of Ebenezer Scrooge and his famous line. Robertson’s again, makes these delicately flavoured boiled sweets during the holiday season. Lightly flavoured with peppermint, Robertson’s humbugs evoke holiday memories far and wide as they continue to be a wildly popular treat throughout the UK and Canada. Blackadder fans will no doubt recall the holiday episode wherein Blackadder offered Baldrick a humbug.

Ribbon candy and sponge taffy round out our offerings from Robertson’s and make an impressive showing. The satiny sheen of the delicate and brightly colour ribbon candy almost makes you want to hang it on the tree instead of eat it, but, of course, it won’t make it to our tree! And the sponge taffy, something so simple, is delicious on its own, but becomes even more enticing when used in holiday baking – we’ll let you know how we fare with this next week!

Don't forget this Saturday's cupcake flavours:
Mango: Pure mango cake with sweet mango frosting.

White & Black: Madagascar bourbon vanilla cake with bittersweet dark chocolate frosting and chocolate sprinkles.

December's cupcake menu will be up shortly and for all your instant candy news, check out our Facebook Page! Not only will you find the blogs, but also we'll update you whenever a popular or new item is back in stock (malt balls, anyone??). Never miss your fix again!

Labels: barley toys, Candy, chicken bones, humbugs, ribbon candy, Robertson's, sponge taffy

posted by The Candy Store @ 12:24 PM