Gummy Madness!!

It's hot and it's summer so that can only mean one thing: Extreme Gummy Invasion! I received lots of gummy samples lately, so No-Nuts and I got down to business. I'd like to say beforehand that I really do appreciate that more and more companies are trying to make better-for-you candy, particularly in the area of colors and flavors. Less artificial junk, more real stuff. That's a good thing. We took that into account when we taste-tested these gummies and gave extra points for healthiness, but flavor was definitely important.
On a side-note, I took the Sugar Baby to a little seaside candy shack a few weeks ago. I figured I'd let him pick out a few little pieces of candy. Holy cannoli, what a scam. The cheapest thing in the place was a regular-sized Hershey bar with Almonds for $1.50. The lady tried to sell me on a tiny bag of gummy worms for $4.95. She kept telling me they were made with 30% fruit juice. Apparently she didn't know who she was dealing with. Anyhow, enough of that. Onto the gummies.

Goody Good Stuff Tropical Gummies:
No picture available because we ate them without thinking. The gummies came in cute shapes, including a bunch of bananas and a palm tree. 

No-Nuts:

"The first one I tried was banana-flavored and good, especially because I don't like banana-flavored things
Raspberry/strawberry-flavored: Okay, but definitely not my first gummy choice
Palm tree: I don't know what flavor it was but I didn't like it. Too much tropical, but with no specific fruit flavor. Probably palm tree flavor."

Me:
"I was impressed with the banana ones, as banana is a difficult flavor to do well. I have to agree with No-Nuts about the Palm Tree. I'm thinking it was probably papaya or some other stinky tropical flavor like that." (Addendum: we finally figured out it was supposed to be coconut.)

Conclusion: These gummies are all-natural, dairy-free, gluten-free, gelatin-free and fat free. In addition, No-Nuts would only buy them if they were free.


Goody Good Stuff Sour Fruit Salad

These are fruit-shaped gummies with a sour citric acid dusting.

No-Nuts: "They reminded me of Peach-O's, but not anywhere near as good.
The pear flavor was different, and I liked it but ... you know."

Me: "The grapefruit was good, but I like grapefruit flavor in general. The thing with these is I was waiting to be hit with "SOUR," but they were really just like fruit slices that you'd buy at CVS for 2 for $1."

Conclusion: I was ready to give major points to these for their natural ingredients, in particular the spinach. The first ingredient is corn syrup, but it's candy for cryin' out loud. A little corn syrup never hurt anyone.
Overall, three stars out of five.

Surf Sweets Sour Berry Bears

These are little gummy bears, all red and orange. They're all-natural, made with organic fruit juice, no corn syrup, gluten-free, vegan. That covers a lot of bases.

No-Nuts: "They were pretty good."

Me: "I really liked these. They had the sour punch I was looking for."
Overall, four out of five stars.



Welch's Tangy Fruits
These are jam-packed with artificial colors, flavors and other suspicious ingredients.
No-Nuts: "I love these. Four stars."
Me: "I hate these. One star."










 Gimbal's Sour Lovers

A giant, 11-ounce bag of cute heart-shaped gummies in 12 (TWELVE!) flavors that are thoughtfully listed on the back.
No-Nuts:
    " Fuji apple :)
     Blueberry: very sour
     Watermelon: +++"
Me: These were yummy.
Four out of five stars. Would've been five out of five, but the artificial colors drop it down a notch.

I Got Presents!

If you think I'm looking a little more fashionable lately, it's not a trick of the eye. Check out this super cool backpack that Gretl von Schokolat made for me. She made this beautiful bag, complete with Chips Ahoy, Fun Dip and M&M wrappers, from her own wild imagination. Totally cute, right? She is one talented Chiclet.And then today, No-Nuts said, "I have a present for you." I had just driven to the far stretches of Connecticut, along one of the longest, most boring roads you could ever imagine, to dump off her mattress, box spring and bottles of booze she left in my freezer "Collected Works of Shakespeare." Yes, she has flown the coop and entered the real world. So she handed me this bag:Oh how sweet! A Pandora bracelet. Or necklace. Or ring. Or ... a bag of Skittles Fizzl'd Fruits and two very sketchy pieces of candy she got from the international crowd she works with.I've pondered trying the Skittles for a while now, but was never motivated enough to actually seek them out. The flavors are Berry Punch, Melon Berry, Raspberry, Strawberry and Wild Cherry. They look like regular Skittles, except they're covered in a powdery substance that actually does fizzle on your tongue, similar to the center of a Zotz. I thought the Berry Punch was pretty gross, but the other flavors were good. I wouldn't choose these over Sour Patch Kids, but I wouldn't turn them away if someone gave me a package for, say, lugging their crap halfway across the state.
The other two candies have nary a trace of English on them, nor do they have a recognizable fruit. Given my recent experience with international candy, I'm hesitant to try them. I think I'll save them for another night when I'm feeling a bit braver, or after I've had a few shots of Shakespeare.

Genuine Belizian Chocolate

No-Nuts was here over the weekend moving all her junk into our house just to visit and she brought along a surprise: a chocolate bar straight from Belize. Her friend had gone there and I asked her to bring me some chocolate back.
"Here you go," said No-Nuts. "I think it's missing an 'R'." (She's getting more clever by the day.)
The bar had seen better days by the time it got to me. I'd say it probably melted and re-hardened about 4 times. You want to see chocolate bloom? This thing had blossomed! But still, we had to try it.
It was kind of difficult to thoroughly taste it, which I'm assuming is because of the abuse it went through. It had a very airy quality to it, similar to an Aero bar. But you could definitely tell this was the real deal. The chocolate had almost a savory quality to it.
We peeled off the sticker that said "Milk" to see what was underneath. It just said "Dark," nothing exciting like "Contraband" or "Monkey" or anything.
Half of it remains in my fridge and I'm sure it'll be there until next Christmas when I decide to clean out the refrigerator.

New York: The Dessert Edition

When the cousins were here, we took a trip into New York City to freak the Ice Cube Queen out walk around and see the sights. After getting pulled over for driving the wrong way down a one-way street ("Are those cars coming towards us?!"), we went to Max Brenner's for some fortification. The problem with that place is, you go in wanting lunch-- a sandwich or a salad-- but then it all goes to hell once you see the dessert menu. We were clever about it though; we split three lunches in order to save room for these:Chocolate cake with a mini chocolate shake and vanilla ice cream; Chocolate and toffee fondue with bananas tempura and strawberries; and a chocolate pizza with bananas, peanut butter and marshmallows. And we ate every last bite. And the piece de resistance? A picture of No-Nuts in front of the Nut Box. What a wonderful day!

Nut-Free, Vegan and Gluten-Free Valentines

Everybody has at least one friend with special dietary needs. There's Lactose-Intolerant Lucy, who is forced to eat frozen "dessert product" instead of Ben & Jerry's; Celiac Cicely, who still eats pizza but pays the price two hours later; and Vegan Violet, who wonders why she never gets an invitation to dinner parties.
So what's a guy or gal to do for Valentine's Day for their special-needs sweetheart? Fortunately there are major candy options in these enlightened days. Let's look at a few.Any parent of a school-age kid knows the importance of the peanut-free zone. At the Sugar Baby's school, the rules are strict: no products with nuts or made on machinery with nuts. I'm so thankful that he has no nut allergies; it makes life a lot easier. But for his little friends with sensitivities (and, of course, let's not forget No-Nuts) there are companies like Vermont Nut-Free Chocolates. They have chocolates, truffles, granola bars and jelly beans, in addition to holiday goodies, like these heart-shaped sweets.
For some vegan chocolates with a spiritual bent, Wei of Chocolate offers a unique product. Their organic dark chocolates come in cute little flower shapes and are packaged in environmentally-friendly bags packaged by nymphs and wood sprites. (Okay, I made that last part up.) For your crunchy granola, crystals & moonbeams partner, check out their Herbs & Spices chocolates:

Daily Gratitude - 65% cacao with cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and other "chai" spices together with herbs traditionally thought to encourage mental clarity, immune system support and be calming and relaxing, like lemon balm, rhodiola and codonopsis.

Daily Love - 74% cacao with a subtle blend of cinnamon, mace and a chili finish, together with South American maca, eleuthero and astragulus, herbs thought to support the immune and adrenal systems.

Sensual Love - 74% cacao with a smoky, earthy blend of five herbs respected by indigenous cultures worldwide for their gentle aphrodisiac qualities, like maca, shatavari, gingko biloba, epimedium and catuaba bark, together with a two varieties of chilis and some tasty spices.

They also have a line of chocolates with flower essences with names like Inner Clarity, Inner Peace and Inner Delight.

It just doesn't get any groovier than that.

And last, but not least, I'd like to share a recipe I made a couple of weeks ago for a gluten-free flourless chocolate cake. I know, I can see you rolling your eyes. Flourless Chocolate Cake is so '90s, with its ooey-gooey molten chocolate center. But this was totally different. It wasn't molten. It was fudgey like a brownie with a crisp outside and dense inside. We served it with homemade cinnamon whipped cream and strawberries. I don't know how everyone else felt about it, because I was too busy staking out a second piece to care. Let me point out that this was a super easy recipe. I highly recommend it. (Note: I refused to go out and buy chocolate for the recipe, since I have so much candy in the house. I decided to use five dark chocolate Dove hearts and it worked out perfectly.) You can find the recipe here.

Last Minute Gifts: Candy Cane Vodka!

Hey kids! Want a cheap, easy, last-minute gift? Well No-Nuts did, so just follow her lead:
1) Tell Aunt you need to have four gifts by tomorrow
2) Look around and see what Aunt has
3) Assemble stuff gathered from around Aunt's house into coffee mugs and wrap with Aunt's festive cellophane bags while simultaneously texting, talking and baking cookies

Actually, her gifts came out really cute. She filled coffee mugs with candy canes (mine), hot chocolate (mine), Hershey Kisses (hers) and little bottles of my homemade Candy Cane Vodka* (mine). The vodka looked really pretty-- it was a nice pink color, and I even had some peppermint candy labels that were perfect. ("Candy Cane Vodka?" you're saying.) Why yes. Here's the recipe:

Candy Cane Vodka
Crush up five to ten mini candy canes and combine in a container with plain vodka. Note: do not use bottom-shelf vodka, or you'll end up with something that smells like a cross between Christmas trees and divey bars. Let vodka sit until candy canes disintegrate (a couple of days). Strain using a sifter and a coffee filter. Pour into bottles and attach cute labels. Add to hot chocolate, or make a martini rimmed with crushed candy canes.

*Yes, she's 21.

Gummy Candy Corns

I took No-Nuts back to school this week and helped her move into her dorm. The first thing she wanted to do was move her bed around to face the opposite direction, so she got one of the R.A.'s on duty to do the heavy lifting while she crawled under the bed to set up the risers. Unfortunately, the bed landed on her finger instead of the riser, thus "breaking" her finger (she claimed), which meant that I got to put all of her stuff away--including all 35 bathing suits-- while she nursed her wound with a bag of frozen peas (which, by the way, she ate half of, even though they were frozen). Then I spent the night in her dorm room (yes, I really did), which I think pretty much absolves me of all Auntly duties for the rest of the year, at the very least. In any case, it turns out that her school is located near the Munson's Chocolate factory. I worked at one of their retail stores during college (best job ever!), so I thought I'd stop in to see what the factory digs were like.
They're very secretive over there; no tours, although they do show a video of life behind the scenes. I got all nostalgic and regaled No-Nuts with my stories of working at the chocolate shop: how the toilet got plugged when the night shift flushed a pound of fudge down it and I had to deal with the mess the next day; the time I was working alone and a mouse ran across the floor and I jumped on the counter; how we used to dare each other to eat the grossest stuff in the store (and that's how I discovered my love for dark chocolate orange jellies which they no longer make), and how one woman flipped out on me because she didn't like the way I wrapped her chocolate poker chips and said her five-year-old daughter could've done a better job, at which point I said, "Fine. Here's some wrapping paper. Let her do it."
Anyhow, to make a long story short, they had these gummy candy corns which I thought were so cute. They have the same bite as Wonka Puckerooms (not as soft as a gumdrop, not as hard as Dots), but the flavor is actually candy corn. That's what it's supposed to be anyway, although it almost tastes like buttered popcorn jelly beans. No-Nuts said she thought she liked them at first, but then realized that if she wanted candy corn, she'd just eat candy corn. Good point.
These aren't made at the factory; the label says Made in Spain, so I'm guessing you can get them at lots of specialty candy stores. They'd be really cute on cupcakes. And speaking of cupcakes, stay tuned ... the Sugar Baby went to his girlfriend's birthday party today where he got to decorate his own cupcake with candy. You won't want to miss this one.

Random Candy Tidbits

There's been a lot going on around here this summer. Or rather, not around here, but everywhere else. We've been on the road a lot and I have all sorts of random candy tidbits to share.
First of all, we spent a week with the von Schokolats and extended family, at which time we divided into two teams and had a huge scavenger hunt. One of the items on the list was a package of Coconut M&Ms. The Baroness was the only one who found them. First she went to Rite Aid, but no luck. Then she went to the dollar store, where she found a display for them, but it was empty. She somehow managed to find the last package in the store. So it was 2 points for the Evil Knievel team. Woo hoo!* Overall, they were a hit. I thought they had that fake suntan lotion kind of coconut taste, so I was a bit disappointed. I don't have a picture, because somewhere along the way, the package got used as a coaster.
During that same trip, "Uncle Subtle" found a candy store and bought me a present: a licorice pipe and Mary Janes. Um, trying to tell me something in code? Nice. (In fact, he had never had Mary Janes before which led to a discussion about them. As they're made by Necco, I suppose they might be a New England thing. I thought everyone knew what Mary Janes were.)

[*Unfortunately, our 2 points for the Coconut M&Ms were negated by the 10 points the Baron won in the drinking contest and the eating contest--Five lobsters in one sitting-- and the 2.5 points won by Uncle Subtle in the marshmallow-and-toothpick construction contest.]Not really candy, but sweet nonetheless: Bazooka Betsy gave No-Nuts a giant box of fortune cookies that she's been saving from all her Chinese take out. Unfortunately, due to the extreme humidity, the cookies became so soft we were able to unfold them into perfect circles. So No-Nuts decided to do a craft project with the fortunes. Strangely enough, there were no duplicates. Perhaps they really are one-of-a-kind fortunes! (Art project is not shown. Actually, art project was never really made.)

And lastly, my partner-in-crime put together a goodie bag for me to get me through the many long drives I've made this summer. Check out these British beauties: Smart Alecs, Aero, Bounty, Milky Bar, Lion, Lee's Chocolate Mint and Galaxy Caramel. I had the Aero on a night I was particularly craving chocolate and it was blissful. I don't understand why Aero bars don't have less calories than other candy bars, though. It seems like they should, considering they're filled with tiny air bubbles. The Galaxy Caramel was particularly exciting, because I've never had one and a friend recently recommended it. She said she had them all the time while she was serving overseas and hasn't had them since then. All I can say is: YUM. This was like the Caramello of yore, when they were actually good and not grainy. The chocolate was smooth and the caramel was all flowy. So good. So there you have it, a few sweet tidbits to start off your week. What about you? Do you have any candy news to share?

Made in China

No-Nuts has a friend who traveled to China this summer, so I was the lucky recipient of some Chinese candy. We did a taste test before we left for vacation last week and guess what? I have no idea what I did with my notes. Dang!
Well, suffice it to say, I won't be running to my local Asian grocer to try and find any of these. The long yellow one had a picture of a shrimp on it. No wait, I think it was more of a big, antennaed prawn. Wow! Couldn't wait to try that one. Fortunately, it tasted more like a Butterfinger and less like shellfish. The brown one and the rectangular green one also tasted similar. The stripey one on the bottom tasted kind of like those chocolate-filled straws you see at Christmas, and the two squares to the left were chocolate, possibly with a hazelnut filling. Given my fear of Chinese foodstuffs, I'm happy to say that it's been over a week and I'm still alive and kicking.

New Wonka Gummies: No Artificial Colors or Flavors!

I was pretty psyched earlier this year when I found out that Wonka would be releasing two new products: Sour Puckerooms and Sluggles Gummies. These sounded like just the kind of fun candy the market has been lacking for a while, because, let's face it, gummie worms and bears can only excite and amuse for so long.
The Sour Puckerooms are little mushroom shaped gummies with a sour dusting, similar to Sour Patch Kids. The flavors are cherry, grape and lemon/orange.
In contrast, the Sluggles are sweet and come in bug shapes (but not gross bug shapes, thankfully). The flavors are orange, grape, lemon and strawberry. I found them at Target.
I tossed the bags to No-Nuts and she went for the Puckerooms first. "These are good!" she said. I agree. They are good. Not too sour, but just puckery enough to have you reaching for another one. I like the contrast of the rough sour stuff against the smooth, chewy gummy.
The Sluggles are good, too, although I always prefer sour. These have a dense chew and a slick surface.
My overall thinking was, these are good. But how are they any different than any other gummie candies? One look at the ingredients will tell you: no artificial colors or flavors. Very cool. This is a big deal for parents of kids who have sensitivities to artificial ingredients, so yay for Wonka!

Lamar Odom and No-Nuts: Candy Soulmates?

They say there's no such thing as coincidence, so what, dear Yumsters, does this mean?

The Ice Cube Queen sent me an article from some Florida newspaper about Lamar Odom's favorite candy. (In case you don't know--because I certainly didn't--he's a player for the Lakers.) Apparently he's a candy fiend and he's quoted as saying, "It's funny because the games I played well were the games where I ate candy for breakfast." Nice!

But here's the thing: his favorite candies are listed as Twizzlers, Gummi Bears, Hershey's Cookies & Cream, Life Savers and-- as he called them, "Peachy sugar-coated rings," (otherwise known as Peach O's). So, onto the freaky part:

Madame Yum Yum: "Hey No-Nuts, what's your favorite candy bar?"

No-Nuts: "Cookies & Cream."

MYY: "What's your favorite candy?"

No-Nuts: "Peach O's. Or Gummi Bears. And I like Twizzlers, too."

Dun-Dun-Dah! What could this mean? Does this mean that No-Nuts is really meant to be a professional basketball player? Or does it mean that Lamar Odom would make a successful college student majoring in math? What do you think?

Chocolate Road Trip: Burdick Chocolates

One of the women in my Super Secret Writers' Group is such a font of information when it comes to where to find things, particularly if you're looking for something strange (tentacle porn--don't even ask); unique (egg poaching pods); or just really cool. So when I told her that Mr. Goodbar and I were going to Vermont this past weekend, she said we had to drive over the border into Walpole, New Hampshire to go to L.A. Burdick Handmade Chocolates. She didn't have to tell me twice.

Saturday morning, we stuffed ourselves into the car after a delightful breakfast and made our way south. (I'll skip the part where Mr. Goodbar decided to drive OVER the mountain in mud season, instead of around.)

In any case, let's get right to it. You can get all the FAQs at the website; here's what you need to know from me. This is a tiny jewelbox of a store with incredible hand-made, European-style chocolates. Their signature chocolates are these:Chocolate mice! They also make penguins and, for Easter, bunnies. How can you resist?According to the brochure, each bonbon is hand-piped or hand-cut, using no molds. In addition, the pieces are "miniature in the European fashion, providing the ideal portion to enjoy a complex, intense chocolate flavor."

I love that the pieces are so small. (Contrast this with the Kohler chocolates, where each one was big enough to feed Octomom's family for a week. Not that I'm complaining about the size of those; I like big chocolates just as much as little ones.)

The selections range from exotic to ... more exotic. Some examples: Pistache (White chocolate ganache with pistachios, lavender and herbes de Provence); Honey Caramel Truffle (Caramelized honey with herbs and vanilla, dusted in cocoa powder); Lemon Spice (A whipped rum & lemon ganache, enrobed in milk chocolate and topped with grated Trinidadian spices). You get the idea. Traditionally I'm not much for these "fancified" chocolates; I prefer to stick with nuts, caramel and creams, but these looked so good, I had to get some. I was starting to get a touch of ADD in the store, what with all the bonbons, mice, Easter bunnies and drink mixes. I wasn't sure what to choose.

No-Nuts, on the other hand, was just looking for something that wasn't nutrageous. She decided upon a Jaffa (Dark chocolate ganache, whipped with freshly squeezed orange juice). In the end, I decided upon an 18-piece sampler with one mouse, and a beautiful stick of nougat (picture forthcoming). I must say, though, this shizz is expensive-- over $50 a pound. But since Mr. Goodbar treated himself to a book ("Country Wisdom Know-How"), I figured I could splurge on some chocolates and add a little European class to his hill-billy ways.

The chocolates I've had so far have been delicious. I'm saving the mouse for last.

P.S. There is a bistro attached to the shop with delicious looking cheeses and desserts, but we were still too full from breakfast to partake. Next time.

A Visual Review of Mike and Ike Italian Ice

After reading the review of Mike and Ike Italian Ice on Candy Addict, I've been on the lookout for them. Mr. "I Don't Like Candy" Goodbar is the true Mike and Ike aficianado in the house, but the "Italian Ice" part just intrigued me. So the other night I found myself stood up for a dinner date by a very well-known, shall we say "minimalist" cookbook author, so I figured I'd see what I could find at the local Walgreen's, since I already had coverage for the Sugar Baby. Lo and behold, I found what I was after. I excitedly brought it home to Mr. Goodbar and No-Nuts for their professional observations. You can read "real" reviews at Candy Addict, Candy Blog, and Wisconsin Candy Dish.
As for here, well, you get a one-word review from each of our verbose critics. Try to imagine it more as art therapy for the kiddies than a food review.
First up, from Mr. Goodbar:


And from No-Nuts:

There you have it. As for me, I have this thing against "cooling" products. Back in the professional taste-testing days, we worked seemingly forever on this nasty British drink that tasted okay at first, but left your mouth and throat feeling all cool afterwards, like you'd swallowed some Vicks VapoRub. So sadly, I'm not a big fan of the Mike and Ike Italian Ice.

Pondering the Candy Cane

Isn't this the cutest? The very fabulous June made it; that's her dog Kelly up there. So let's talk candy canes. It's been brought to my attention by the Ice Cube Queen that my other sister Bazooka Betsy is the candy cane aficianado amongst us. When I think back to Christmasses past, I envision Betsy sitting on the couch in her p.j.'s, reading the TV Guide and sucking on a candy cane until it formed a weapons-grade pointy spike.
It seems that No-Nuts has followed in her steps and claims peppermint bark to be her favorite holiday treat. And she made me steal a candy cane off the Christmas tree at the spa so she could enjoy some peppermint refreshment before her massage.
Yesterday I took the Sugar Baby to see Santa Claus. Most parents hesitate at this first meeting. Will their child cry? Scream in terror? Pull Santa's beard? I knew better than to worry. When we got there, Santa was busy talking to some other kids. The Sugar Baby ran right up and started waving at Santa, then leapt onto his lap. Santa gave him a really cute stuffed kangaroo and Mrs. Claus handed him--gasp!-- his very own candy cane.
Forget the chocolate cupcakes, oatmeal cookies, cider and hot chocolate. He wanted his candy cane right there and then! He held it for a while and turned it upside-down and said "Jumping J!" because, you know, he's my little brilliant prodigy. Then he sucked on it for a while and proclaimed, "This is really good!"
When Mr. Goodbar came home from work on Friday, he handed me a candy cane that apparently is filled with chocolate. I haven't eaten it yet; I'll let you know how it goes.
So, dear Yumster, what are your thoughts on candy canes? Do you like the big ones or the little ones? Do you crunch them or suck on them to make them all pointy? Do you like traditional red and white or the fancy new-fangled all different colored and flavored ones?

No-Nuts Has Left the Building

She couldn't take it anymore ... the crying Sugar Baby, the 9 p.m. bedtime, the 6 a.m. alarm clock, the constant quoting of Flight of the Conchords ... so No-Nuts packed her Vera Bradley bags and she's outta here. Actually, it's back-to-school for her. So, drumroll please ... After an entire summer of eating countless bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches; Trader Joe's caramels; four blueberry cakes; 2 dozen Forgettable cookies; Peach-Os; pizza bagels; tuna noodle casserole; licorice; Dove chocolates; an entire jar of hot fudge for dinner one night; and all of the Sugar Baby's leftover grilled cheeses and macaroni and cheese dinners, she LOST FOUR POUNDS. Son of a @&#($!

Listen Up, LifeSavers Product Developers!

No-Nuts and I had a bonding experience last night. One we would've rather not had, but the evil hellishness of it all is over and now we can laugh about it. Or not. We went to the airport last night to pick up the Ice Cube Queen who was flying in for a visit. We left the house at 7 p.m. and made a stop at IKEA where, as we were perusing the Ektorp and Popoli and Hammerschobuntubin furniture, we got a call saying the flight was delayed. Fine. So we drove home, watched an episode of Buffy, and then left the house at 10:30, driving through blinding rain and lightning, arriving at the airport at 11:30 p.m. It was then that we found out that the flight was diverted to Rhode Island and would be arriving ... when?? No one had any idea. We had no choice but to park in the Dunkin' Donuts parking lot and wait out the evening. We passed the first hour by playing 20 questions ("Is it a donut?" No. "Is it a new Southwest Chicken Flatbread?" No. Forget it. Stupid game), and then quickly succumbed to watching the rain pour down in waterfalls on the windshield. No-Nuts drifted off to sleep, and I went into some faraway La-La-Land where, as thoughts swirled around in my head, I had the most ingenious revelation: they should make a roll of all-citrus LifeSavers. Check it out: tangerine, pineapple, Key lime and grapefruit. I would totally dig that. So what do you think, LifeSavers people?

Eventually the plane landed and we got home at 4:30 a.m.-- just long enough to take a cat nap before the Sugar Baby's 6 a.m. internal alarm clock went off. But the evening wasn't a total bust. The Ice Cube Queen had plenty of candy leftover from the flight-- gummy worms, a chocolate alligator and yes, a bag of Circus Peanuts.

Mamba is to Starburst as Wine Gums are to Gummi Bears

Until this week, I'd never had a Mamba. Sure, I'd seen them, but I just never felt that instant attraction that I felt with, say, a dark Kit Kat or the 100 Grand with peanuts. So I was pretty excited when No-Nuts came home from work the other day at the Mafioso Deli bearing gifts for all of us: a business card from a Japanese caterer for Mr. Goodbar, a business card with a picture of a puppy on it for the Sugar Baby and a pack of Mambas for me. Well, her and me.

The package says something like, "Picked from a selection of raspberry, orange, strawberry and lemon." There was no lemon in this pack; disappointing for me, good for No-Nuts. What can I say? They're similar to Starburst, except they're a little more sophisticated, slightly more subtle. I particularly liked the orange, which tasted like a Creamsicle.

Before I even begin, let me do a full disclosure: Buzz Bites is a Candy Yum Yum patron. This, however, has no bearing on what I'm about to write. My policy is, if you send me something to try and I hate it, I just won't write about it. I'm not out to make or break a company, and I'm certainly not the Roger Ebert of candy reviewing, so my two cents is just that, two cents in an ocean of pennies.

Having said that, on with the post. Buzz Bites are "chocolate energy chews" that look disconcertingly like bouillon cubes. I don't have much experience with caffeinated candy, simply because Mama Yum Yum loves her the java. I drink coffee all day long, so the last thing I need is more caffeine. But in the interest of my coffee-hating readers (oh, how tragic!), I had to try one. Here's the deal: it's pretty fudgey and very sweet. It left a lingering aftertaste in my mouth, but it wasn't a bad aftertaste. I didn't feel the need to immediately brush my teeth as I would after having, say, a diet soda. As for the caffeine effect, well, I'm just not a good judge because, as I said, it runs through my veins. So I had get input from another tester.

Yep, you got it: No-Nuts is earning her keep by being the Candy Yum Yum summer intern guinea pig. She tried one and said it was pretty good and she thought it gave her some energy. (Hmmm, I'd have to agree since she cleaned my stove after eating one.)

Each chew is 25 calories and is the equivalent of one cup of coffee or 1.25 energy drinks. If I was the type of person who 1) didn't like coffee and 2) could satisfy my sweet tooth with just one piece of candy, I'd say these would be a good option. And if I was looking for a business opportunity, I'd start selling these in college dorms during finals week. What a gold mine that would be!

Chocolate Skittles? WTH? (Just trying to keep it family-friendly)

I've seen these Chocolate Skittles around and I've always thought I should pick some up and try them, but I just find it hard to get excited about chocolate "flavored" things. So I was totally psyched when My Connection hooked me up with a package. Not willing to trust my own judgement, I got No-Nuts and Mr. Goodbar involved in the taste test. Herewith, the proclamations from No-Nuts, which I totally agree with:

Brownie Batter: "It tastes like chocolate-flavored Chapstick."

S'mores: "Tastes like S'mores Pop Tarts." (Actually, I've never had those, so I can't say if that's true or not. But they didn't taste like S'mores to me.)

Vanilla: "Why are these in the chocolate mix?"

Chocolate Caramel: "Tastes like a Tootsie Pop."

Chocolate Pudding: "It's accurate, but it has a grassy aftertaste."

And this, from the Killjoy Mr. Goodbar:

"The problem with Skittles is that they're the epitome of something that tastes artificial. You know it's not real. So why would I eat those over these?" (He says as he stuffs a Licor de Cafe Borrachito in his mouth.)

No-Nuts is in Da House!

Yesterday was an exciting day in Yum Yum Land, because we have a new member: No-Nuts! My niece is going to be spending the summer with us because that's what every 20-something wants: to spend her summer with her freaky aunt and uncle who listen to weird music and go to bed at 9. She presented me with this lovely "Fudge Love Truffle" which took all of my willpower not to eat on the 3-hour ride home. But I was strong and I waited just long enough to take a picture. It was yummy-- a hunk of chocolatey fudgey-truffle covered in more chocolate. Fantastic!

I'm thinking of having a special feature for the summer: "The No-Nuts Weight Watch." Right now, she's teeny-tiny (which is good, since I didn't have any adult-sized hangers for her closet, only Henri's little wee ones), but I wonder how she'll fare after spending a few months in the Candy Yum Yum offices. She needs some meat on her bones! My hope is that she'll be my new taste tester and I can simply live vicariously through her. Yeah, right.