May 2010

  • Skittles: Original, Wild Berry, and Sour

    By erika on 5/30/10 1:13pm
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    The original Skittles are - and I don't think I'm alone in this - impossible to improve upon.  Every so often the Skittles people decide to make fancy versions, and that's fine.  I guess they get bored.  Who knows.  But the important thing is, those other Skittles don't take away from the glory that is the original Skittles.


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  • Look! Candy Bar

    By erika on 5/28/10 1:17pm
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    There aren't many candy bars that incorporate punctuation into their names.  In fact, I can't think of any off the top of my head.  (For some reason I thought that the Whatchamacallit bar ended in an exclamation point, but that turned out to be wrong.)  Not counting apostrophes (used to indicate the possessive, as in "Reese's Peanut Butter Cups," and as an abbreviation, as in "Hershey's Cookies 'N Crème") the only one I could scrounge up is the Oh Henry! Bar.  


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  • Airheads

    By erika on 5/21/10 3:32pm
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    Airheads are a sui generis candy.  On the Tree of Candy Life, I suppose technically Airheads must be descended from taffy.  But it's really a thing unto its own, like the platypus or the tardigrade. 

    I mean, taffy has that distinctive tug and pull, whereas Airheads have no actual chewiness.  They look like they will be chewy, but they dissolve in your mouth into an odd sort of crumbly stickiness which is hard to explain.  Their texture is much more like that of a fruit Mentos, which are made by the same company.


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  • Peanut Chews

    By erika on 5/19/10 2:28pm
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    One thing I love about writing these reviews is that it totally justifies my dubious candy choices.  For example, this bright red box of Peanut Chews.  Which I bought at the dollar store.  That's right!  Mystery dollar store candy!  C'mon, where's your sense of adventure?

    The box is generously sized, and notes that these are "original dark" Peanut Chews.  Although given the box's use of the word "choclatey" (a terrible euphemism is never a good sign) I had my doubts about "dark."  


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  • Aebleskiver

    By lisala on 5/11/10 3:12pm
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    Æbleskiver are a Danish pastry, roughly akin to doughnuts, or Sufganiot. Literally, æbleskiver (it's a plural) means apple slices (the singular form is æbleskive). They're usually described as spherical Danish pancakes; I would argue that they're lighter than pancakes. Traditionally they were made with small pieces of apple in the batter. They're cooked in a pan that's usually cast iron, though in the middle ages they were copper, with round indentations. You oil the pan, heat it, and pour the batter in the holes. The batter is made of eggs, milk (or cream or even buttermilk), a little salt, and a leavening agent (yeast or baking soda).

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