Tag: BUNNY TAILS

If you’re reading this, you’re probably interested in full-flavored, complex food, so there’s something we need to talk about with regard to confections. Let’s face it, not all the seasonal (including Easter) candy many of us enjoyed as kids generates the same enjoyment in us now that we’re adults. Maybe, we think, there is no truly delicious, yet fun Easter candy that will delight our inner kid AND our current taste preference for less sweet, more complex confections?

I’m so happy to tell you that we’ve been making and selling our delicious Marshmallow Bunny Tails here at Zingerman’s Candy Manufactory for a good seven years, and our luscious PB&J Fudge Eggs and Chocolate Almond Fudge Eggs for almost as long. There’s so much about them that’s special, and I might even say, remarkable!

Bunny Tails are made of marshmallow, which you may know we make year round in vanilla and chocolate versions. Marshmallows start with lots of whipped egg whites—4 dozen egg whites per batch, in fact! Along with sugar, the classic marshmallow is made with kosher beef gelatin from Great Lakes Gelatin. The two flavors in every bag of Bunny Tails are Raspberry, made with seedless red raspberry preserves from Clearbrook Farm in Oregon, and Toasted Coconut, made with Italian coconut jam. Whipped up into the glossiest peaks imaginable, there is just a few minutes to scoop all of this fluffy ‘mallow into a pastry piping bag with a star tip and form the Bunny Tails before it cools and the gelatin sets up.

Yes, that’s right! Each and every Bunny Tail we make is piped by hand! (We joke that we wish we could hire Popeye™ with his super strong forearms to help us in production.) A second candy maker covers the Bunny Tails in either sugar or toasted coconut as they are piped out onto a tray. Then they are set aside to dry for a day to develop a nice chewy texture.

To make the Eggs, wonderful, rich peanut butter chocolate fudge is scooped out into an egg shape, topped with a dollop of seedless red raspberry preserves and then coated in dark chocolate. Lots of almond paste from California and dark chocolate go into the fudge for the Almond fudge egg before it, too, is dunked in dark chocolate. We take a lot of care to work and knead our fudge thoroughly to ensure large grains of sugar don’t form, allowing for a silky texture.

Old fashioned handmade candy-making techniques and attention to detail, along with using great ingredients, really does let you taste the difference. Your inner kid AND your grown up palate will be happy!

Each year, just in time for spring, the Zingerman’s Candy Manufactory creates something very special that’s sure to delight young and old alike. We’re talking about our delicious Bunny Tails! Soft pillows of tasty, handmade Candy Manufactory marshmallow in the shape of Peter Cottontail’s best-known asset! Bunny Tails come in either raspberry or coconut flavors, and are only available for a very limited time (March 1st – 31st).

We decided to take a behind-the-scenes look at how Bunny Tails are created, and Managing partner Charlie Frank was good enough to give us a tour with the cameras rolling.

Bunny Tails are only available until March 31st, then they’re gone until next year! You can find them at most Zingerman’s businesses, as well as these fine establishments:

Bunny Tails are handmade in small batches at the Candy Manufactory using the best, all-natural ingredients and traditional methods. We start by combining gelatin, hand-cracked egg whites, real vanilla bean, and boiling sugar in a large mixer. Then we add either real raspberry jam or coconut jam, depending on which flavor is needed. The ingredients are added slowly and carefully to ensure a smooth mixture, and then whipped until the batch is nice and fluffy.

From there, the still-warm marshmallow goes into old-fashioned pastry-piping bags, and is piped out onto large sheet pans. Time is critical at this step, because the marshmallow becomes firmer as it cools. Staff work in pairs, with one piping out the Bunny Tails, and another generously coating the new tails with either sugar crystals for the raspberry flavor, or fresh coconut that’s been toasted on-site. Once coated, the Bunny Tails are cured on racks for 24 hours prior to allow the coatings to set and the flavors to fully blossom.

“The Bunny Tails came out of experimentation,” says Candy Manufactory Managing Partner Charlie Frank. “Years ago, the Wowza Bar was made with fresh marshmallow (it’s now made ‘slab-style’ with nougat), and we had some left over after we’d made a batch. So we tried a few things…” And Bunny Tails were born. Charlie also stresses the importance of ordering early, “There is a huge demand for these every year, and we only have them for a short time. Once they’re gone, they won’t be back until next year.”

Each big bag of fluffy Bunny Tails is filled with half raspberry and half coconut, so you don’t have to choose! The bags can be re-sealed to preserve freshness, and they make the perfect addition to any Easter basket.

Bunny Tails will only be available from March 1st thru March 31st.
Look for them at the Zingerman’s Deli, the Roadhouse, the Bakeshop, and Mail Order.

Don’t miss out on this very special treat!