Tag: ZINGERMAN’S CANDY MANUFACTORY
Taking craft candy bars to new levels of excellence with Ca$hew Cow candy bars
If you still haven’t had one of these amazing artisan candy bars, you might not yet know what you’re missing. Thanks to the hard work of the crew at the Candy Manufactory, what most of us knew as junk food and a quick way to get a sugar fix, has been transformed into a set of candy bars so complexly flavored and so compellingly good that they’re pretty much redefining the category. There’s a good bit of magic and mystery in every bite!
The very catchily named Ca$hew Cows have a homemade cashew brittle (made from cashews, sugar, butter, and a hint of sea salt) base, blended with a mix of milk chocolate, cashew butter, and some crisped-rice on the inside, along with pieces of cashew that have been roasted in butter and sea salt. All of which is again dipped in that very dark chocolate. You get a really nice texture, a touch of crunch from the rice, and a really lovely modest, mouth-filling flavor that never strikes me as overly sweet. A great way to boost your energy in the afternoon and/or end your evening. If you want to make them an elegant dessert, simply slice the bars into half-inch thick slices and serve them on a beautiful plate with toasted nuts and dried fruit.
How good are they?
Jamie LeBoeuf, long time confectioner, Candy Manufactory production manager, and a Staff Partner this year and next says:
For me, the Ca$hew Cow and Peanut Butter Crush bars have some substance and a satisfying texture to them. Where the Original Zzang!® and Wowza have the airy, sweet nougat, and the What The Fudge has the dense, sweet fudginess to them, the Ca$hew Cow and Peanut Butter Crush present a totally different texture. They are not quite as sweet as other candy bars. I love the mild, buttery flavor of cashews. The big cashew pieces and cashew butter have lots of protein and nutty richness, plus the crisped rice cereal keeps them from being too dense and heavy. The little hint of salt brings out the cashew flavors and brittle bits add some roasty, caramelly sweetness. I like to think of them as breakfast bars. When I skip breakfast and need a little mid-morning snack, a Ca$hew Cow mini is just the thing to hold me to lunch time.
And Dane Peterson at the Deli describes them as:
10 out of 10. Best candy bar on the planet. Better than any other candy bar. “It is ELITE” The cashews are roasty, toasty, and glowing. He even loves that it sticks to your teeth slightly because then he can taste it for like 20 minutes, he is literally praising God for the existence of this bar.
Come by the Candy Store on Plaza Drive (inside the Coffee Company) to get a Ca$hew Cow at the source! Or grab one at the Deli, Roadhouse, or any number of other spots in town and around the country.
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Almonds, hazelnuts, and pistachios transformed into easy-to-enjoy sweet spreads
If you’re looking for a lovely little touch of something sweet to brighten a dark winter day, drop by the Candy Store (inside the Coffee Company, down the block from the Bakehouse) to check out these great little nut spreads from Sicily. They’re crafted by a small family-owned company run by a trio of fruit farming brothers-in-law near the town of Ribera on Sicily’s southeast coast (due east, straight across the sea, from Tunis). The family is dedicated to tradition, to preserving Sicilian culture, and to the sustainability of the land—a commitment that’s reflected in the quality of their confections.
Nuts have long been an essential element of both eating and economics in Sicily. Almonds came to the island about 1000 BCE from the Middle East. Not long after, Romans brought pistachios from their eastern colonies. (They’re still known today as festuca, from the Arabic, in the local dialect.) Sicily’s volcanic soil contributes significantly to the quality of the nuts, which are found in a wide range of dishes, both main courses and desserts. Pistachios are particularly prized, so much so that police helicopters hover over the fields as harvest approaches to prevent crop-theft.
The good news here is that we don’t have to engage in any unlawful activity to have access to these nut spreads. They are all, very properly, placed right on the shelves at the Candy Store—almond and pistachio, pistachio and hazelnut, hazelnut and chocolate, and also a very Sicilian orange and lemon spread. All are sweetened with sugar, another key local ingredient imported by Arab conquerors to the island in the 9th century (Sicily was one of the first places in Europe to have it). The company name, Scyavuru, means “scent,” or “fragrance,” in Sicilian dialect—you’ll understand why when you pop open the lid and catch the great aroma that emerges. You can use the nut spreads to top off your toast, spoon some into a Bakehouse croissant, or put a bit on a plate before you scoop some gelato on top. The staff at Scyavuru layer the different nuts as you would a parfait, so the small glass jars look as lovely as the spreads inside taste. As they say in Sicilian, Bon appititu!
Want more of Ari’s picks?
Sign up for Ari’s Top 5 e-newsletter and look forward to his weekly curated email—a quick roundup of 5 Zing things Ari is excited about this week—stuff you might not have heard of!
Rosh Hashanah begins tonight! Let us help you celebrate the new year. Here are some delicious offerings around the ZCoB.
Zingerman’s Deli
We’ve got a full Rosh Hashanah menu, available for pick up starting today at noon. From an assortment of Zingerman’s Bakehouse challah to beef brisket to baked knishes, the Deli’s got a variety of great dishes and desserts to help you sweeten up the new year!
And don’t forget out annual Honey Sale. To make things extra sweet this year, the Deli’s entire honey selection is 20% off until September 24th.
Zingerman’s Bakehouse
It’s not a celebration without treats from the Bakehouse, and we’ve got some great special items for the holiday. Available September 15th thru 30th.:
Challah Turbans—Our fresh egg and clover honey bread in the traditional round shape for the new year. Available with or without dark rum-soaked raisins.
More Rockin’ Challah—Traditional Moroccan challah, a beautiful 5-strand braid brushed with honey and topped with poppy, sesame, and anise seeds.
Honeycake—A dense spice cake made with buckwheat honey, brewed tea, almonds and golden raisins.
Babka—A traditional Jewish loaf of sweet bread, its name means “little grandmother” in Yiddish. It all started when nuts and seeds were twisted up with scraps of challah dough on Shabbat, then it evolved into the modern day chocolate version when Jews arrived in New York. We start with a rich buttery brioche dough, paint it with dark chocolate, sprinkle it with chocolate crumble and orange-syrup-soaked raisins. Available daily in September.
Zingerman’s Candy
We’ve got lots of special confections just in time for the holiday!
Dark Chocolate Covered Matzo—We drench our matzoh in dark chocolate and then we sprinkle it with sea salt.
Dark Chocolate Sesame Halvah—Our Sesame Halvah has big, delicious sesame flavor. This special version is dipped in dark chocolate, making it extra good!
Rosh Hashanah Superzzang—Our original Zzang bar, but so much bigger and with special Rosh Hashanah packaging. It makes a great host gift!
Zingerman’s Candy Manufactory is opening a new shop later this year, and in the meantime, we’re hosting a candy pop-up in the new space. Come join us this Friday, May 26—pop in any time between 11:30-3:30pm. We’ll be sampling new candy and selling our sweet stuff at special prices! See you there.
The new Zingerman’s Candy space is at 3725 Plaza Drive, Ann Arbor.
Valentine’s Day is exactly one week away, and here at Zingerman’s, we’ve got a huge crush on the Candy Manufactory’s new Valentine’s Day gift box. Not only does this lovely wrapped box include a dozen bite-sized versions of our newest creation—Peanut Butter Crush Zzang® candy bars—it also has a rather charming love story behind it.
Years ago, when Candy Manufactory’s founder Charlie Frank first started developing his recipe for Peanut Butter Crush bars, he had one thing on his mind: wooing the girl of his dreams. “Love started it all when I created the first Peanut Butter Crush for my [now] wife, Katie—her passion for chocolate and peanuts was my inspiration,” says Charlie, adding that he wanted to wow her with something better than “run-of-the-mill” peanut butter and chocolate candies you find in the grocery store.
He more than succeeded! The filling for Peanut Butter Crush Bars is an unbelievably luscious combination of creamy peanut butter, crisped rice, peanut brittle bits, and a touch of sea salt with a bit of milk chocolate mixed in. All of this is covered in dark chocolate. The crushed texture will steal your heart just like it stole Katie’s.
He used to just make them for Katie on special occasions, but lucky for us—and her—he decided to put them into production. “I was delighted when he decided to turn them into a bar for more people to enjoy!” says Katie. “It remains a favorite that I look forward to having more regularly now.”
“I courted her with these, and now we have three kids!” says Charlie. “They love them, too.”
Who knows—these candies might make you fall in love (again)!
You’ll find these Peanut Butter Crush-filled Valentine’s Day boxes at all Zingerman’s retail locations for just $19.99. Get ’em for you favorite girl or guy—they also make a great teacher’s gift.
Candy demonstration class
The man behind the sweet dreams of Zingerman’s Candy Manufactory, managing partner Charlie Frank, will be leading a candy demonstration class on Wednesday, October 7th and Thursday, October 8th, 6-8pm.
Charlie’s passion for all things chocolate and sugar is infectious, and his knowledge of the science behind them is extensive. Charlie returns to BAKE! this time to share his all-time favorite confection, the amazing Four Brothers confection. In this class, you’ll observe Charlie making two recipes, each with their own sweet techniques: gianduja, a delicious chocolate-nut spread; and dragée, coating individual nuts in caramelized sugar. Charlie will then combine the two, and enrobe them in chocolate to create the sensational Four Brothers. At the end of class you’ll taste some of the freshly made candy.
Charlie first experienced this nutty, crunchy, creamy creation when he was attending the Culinary Institute of America in New York on a Zingerman’s staff scholarship to study confection techniques. So why is this the candyman’s favorite confection? “I still remember the smell of those caramelized roasted hazelnuts,” Charlie says with a dreamy smile on his face.
Don’t miss your chance to experience the candy that makes Charlie sigh, and sign up today!
See you soon!