Caramel
These were and unexpected, yet thrilling find for me. I was shopping in the Grove Farmer’s Market on Fairfax and 3rd here in Los Angeles. I saw this package tucked into one of the lower candy shelves, and picked it up because of the large image of the cheetah on it. I don’t speak a lick of French, but I could decipher a bit from the import tag on the back. It only really translated “Le bonbon tendre au gout sauvage” description on the front, which roughly translated to “The tender candy with the wild taste”. That was enough to sell me on it, and I brought it home with me.
I had to open the package once I got all my necessary photos out of the way. I tasted one and immediately understood the description. These are licorice caramels.
The bad holds a bunch of individually wrapped caramels. They come in colorful wax wrappers that mimic the bag they come in. The caramels have a beautiful color to them, like a dark “dulce del leche”. It smells slightly sweet and is firm to the touch.
The flavor is excellent. You first tastes notes of licorice, with sweet, earthy flavors. Then the sweet creaminess of the caramel bit comes through, adding the tastes of butter and cream. Together they makes a very creamy, rich flavor that is both mild and flavorful. I have to admit, licorice and caramel makes a pretty awesome combination.
Caramel isn’t something I crave very often, so I’m not sure this is a candy I’d come back to often, as delicious as they are. However if I do see other varieties of Krema out there, I’ll be sure to give them a shot.
Cybele from also did an excellent review over at Candyblog.net.
Rating: Will Buy Again
This is the last of the Michel & Augustin Petits Carres bars I bought while out shopping with my sister. The last two bars I tired the Dark Chocolate and the Hazelnut Dark Chocolate were unimpressive to be honest. The cookies crust bottom was hard and sometimes overcook to the point of it looking burnt. The chocolate center is flavorless and strangely gummy. So as I prepped for this review, I’ll admit, I wasn’t excited. I don’t like “being a hater” and panning bad candy. I try to look for the good in everything. These are just…in this strange middle ground. They’re not horrible, not to the point where I gag and spit it out. That’s usually the signal for a “Not Worth It” or “Inedible” review on the blog here. No, these are just a good idea executed terribly.
So today is the Caramel Milk Chocolate flavor. Same format, just different flavors. This is the only milk chocolate one I had, as the other two were dark. I’m curious to see if there’s any difference.
Much like the Hazelnut Dark Chocolate, the cookie edges here are darker and somewhat burnt/over cooked looking. They’re also incredibly hard to break, which is annoying since I hate have a crumb explosion every time I wanted to take a piece. The chocolate center tasted more chocolatey and sweet. I didn’t really taste any caramel. I did get a nice flavor of salt toward the end like the dark chocolate one, and I am unsure if it came from the cookies crust or the caramel.
This bar was better than the other two, but still not enough to redeem them all for me. Again, it’s a good idea, just not terribly well done. It’s mediocre at best, and now I know these just dn’t do it for me.
Rating: Might Eat Again
Links Michel & Augustin Webpage (French)
I was contacted some time ago by Palmer’s Candies in regard to reviewing some of their products. I was a little worried at first, because the previous experience I’ve had with Palmer’s chocolate is the “mockolate” candies you see sold in large bags at the holidays. They come in adorable packaging and the flavor isn’t very chocolatey at all, it just tastes very sweet. I decided to give Palmer’s Candies a chance, since one look at their website and you see they do lots of other confections besides the stuff you see during the holidays. I was excited to give their other offerings a try, so here we go!
Kiddie Chow:Like the “Muddy Buddies” Chex cereal recipe. Crispy square cereal with chocolate and powdered sugar. The flavor is crispy and sweet. You don’t’ get any flavor from the cereal, but you do get a hint of chocolate and a nice, refreshing sweetness from the powdered sugar. The cereal is perfectly crispy and gives a great texture. The sweetness isn’t too overpowering as one might think. the chocolate flavor isn’t as intense as I’m used to, but that is a difference in the recipe I’m sure. There aren’t messy either, the powdered sugar sticks to the pieces really well.
Peanut Butter Crispy Yums: Little mounded treats with a coating of chocolate and peanut butter stripes. They’re very soft, and the chocolate sticks to my fingers when I handle them. they smell sweet and peanutbuttery. The peanut butter inside is smooth and creamy ,with bits of crispiness to it, as if it has a crumbled up Butterfinger n it. It’s a delightful texture contrast. The peanut butter is salty/sweet and has a nice roasted peanut flavor. I don’t taste any of the chocolate, which, makes me wonder if it’s really mockolate. But since there’s not ingredients label I can only surmise. Still, they’re tasty and can see peanut butter fans enjoys these a lot.
Caramel Swirl Pretzels: Pretty looking with white chocolate base covering the pretzel with caramel stripes. They smell tangy and sweet like yogurt raisins. They taste tart, of the yogurt coating on the pretzels. They’re sweet and tangy. I don’t get too much of a caramel flavor in there. Its a nice sweet/salty combination, and therefore it’s a satisfying snack. The pretzel is fresh and crunchy and really is a great texture element.
Peanut Butter Swirl Pretzels: The smells sweet, no scent of chocolate or peanut butter. They’re pretty to look at, dipped in chocolate and drizzled with a line peanut butter. The pretzel crunches nicely so it’s good and fresh. The flavor is a nice mix of sweet and salty. I taste the starch and salt of the pretzel, and the sweetness of the chocolate coating. It doesn’t really taste much like peanut butter to be honest. It jut comes across as a sweet coating on a pretzel, which, is tasty, but not as the description really lends one to believe.
Peppermint Skippers: They’re little domes of chocolate with a peppermint center. They look like little mountains, actually. Pretty cute. They smell sweet and of peppermint oil. The peppermint interior is a think, sticky fondant. It’s very dense and grainy and extremely tasty. The chocolate exterior compliments it perfectly with a nice sweetness that depends the peppermint flavor. These taste like a richer, more intense York Peppermint Pattie.
I admit I was a little hesitant about these free samples at first. I knew I’d be sent something I’d appreciate, but these exceeded my expectations. It’s good to know that my old opinions were challenged. My boyfriend was a big fan of the Peanut Butter Crispy Yums, as were the friends I shared these with. Personally my favorite were the Peppermint Skippers, as I really loved the creamy center of those. Which, may I remind you readers, peppermint is a very hard sell for me. Overall I was impressed with this sampling and I look forward to trying the Twin Bing that Palmer’s also sent me. That review coming soon!
Rating: Will Eat Again
Links Palmer Candy Website
I just happened to find myself in the mall the other day, and whenever I’m there I make sure to pop by the See’s Candies store to see if they have anything new and delicious. I was in luck, as I saw this limited edition of “Double Caramel” truffles right on the shelf. New See’s candy, yay!
So what is “Double Caramel” exactly? According to the box it’s a brown sugar caramel layered with a chocolate butter caramel. This is all surrounded by a coating of their milk chocolate to boot, so you can bet I was salivating while I was reading this description in the store.
Once I had these prettied home and photographed, I was finally ready to open the box. They are sizable bonbons, and I mean sizable. There’s six of them to the box, which is 5 ounces. To give you an idea, they’re size of golf balls. Awesome, right?
The smell sweet and chocolatey.
They are very dense to bite into. The chocolate is thick, but soft, and the caramel is extremely smooth and dense. The caramel is extremely soft and you get all the buttery, creamy, sweetness that you expect from a good caramel. Mixed with the luscious milk chocolate exterior, it’s heaven. You can’t really taste the difference between the two different caramels. You get the flavors all mixed so you taste the best flavors of each part.
What can I say? These are simply wonderful. Since they’re so big, you only really need one at a time. They go fantastically with a cup of coffee. I saw these in both stores and online, so you should try some if they’re still available!
Also check out Cybele’s review of the over at Candyblog.net.
Rating: Will Buy Again
Links See’s Website
Despite the fact that “candy season” is now over with the departure of Easter, there’s still new and yummy stuff to be found. The new Twix coconut is an excellent example. This limited edition candy is a fresh new take on a Twix bar and has that new, spring-like vibe to it. I was sent a sample from Twix for this bar, which is lucky for me since I haven’t been able to find it out and about yet.
This Twix immediately stands out from the other varieties out now, which are regular Twix and Twix Peanut Butter (no word on if Java or the very old Cookies n Cream will ever make a return). This coconut Twix has a pretty white wrapper giving it a fresh and tropical feel. The red lettering and green palms on it are a nice color balance and give it a nice splash of color.
Opening up the package, the bars smell like a normal Twix to me. The aroma of the sweet chocolate with a hint of the buttery caramel. There’s a slight hint of starch I pick up on, which must be the cookie part.
I break off a piece and immediately the caramel is fresh and chewy. It strings away even as I pull the broken sections further apart. I bite the caramel to disconnect the pieces and was surprised to find I got the flavor of the coconut along with the caramel. It’s a taste of coconut oil, which is fresh and flavorful. Sadly, no actual flakes of coconut in here, which would have really made my day. The texture of the Twix is awesome, as your teeth sink into the fresh caramel first then hit the crunchy cookie bottom. The coconut flavor blends nicely in, but it gets a little lost for moments in the caramel and cookie, but it’s certainly the most powerful flavor in the bar and it’s the one that lingers on your palate afterward.
This Twix bar is tasty for sure, and a must for any coconut lover. I am seeing more and more coconut flavored stuff on the market these days, which I find exciting. I look forward to when they take it to the level of Almond Joy or Mounds, by adding real coconut in there. Regardless, if you’re looking for a neat twist on an original Twix I’d recommend this as it’s flavor, tasty and fun.
Rating: Will Eat Again
Links Twix Website
