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Cybele May's Profile

Website: http://www.typetive.com/candyblog

Location: Los Angeles, CA

About: I am the candy blogger.

Favorite foods: Candy, couscous, lentils, cheezits, chicken korma, cheese naan, just about any cheese, fresh figs, fresh crisp apples, mochi, anything made with barley, NY-style pizza (the kind you have to fold in half), hot & sour soup

Last bite on earth:

The Ten Most Recent Posts By Cybele May

From Required Eating

Trickle-Down Chocolate Trends

20070924chocoz.jpgOne of the fascinating things about the candy industry is that it's rather like fashion. The are the couture confectioners and the mass marketers. The coutures start the trends, create the flavor combinations, and drive the interest in the market by being daring, and, of course, the huge factories take what's up-and-coming and turn out the lowest-common-denominator versions.

The difference, however, is that although people may be interested in trying new things, for the most part they eat the same thing they've eaten since childhood, the same things their grandparents may have eaten. If you look at the top ten candy bars, every one of them has been around for 40 years or more.

I sat in on a session at the All Candy Expo on capitalizing on the hottest premium chocolate trends. Joan Steur was the moderator and the panelists were Michael Antonorsi of Chuao Chocolatier, Jean Thompson of Seattle Chocolates and Jaques Dahan of Michel Cluizel. Each were asked to list their three top three key trends.

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From Required Eating

All Candy Expo: A Few New Products

Editor's note: This is the first in a short series of dispatches from Cybele May of Candy Blog. She'll be filing notes and observations from her time at the All Candy Expo in Chicago.

If there is such a thing as too much candy, I think I may have seen it this week at the All Candy Expo in Chicago. The show is not open to the public but as a member of the media I've been able to attend the past two shows. This year's was the biggest yet as they moved into an even bigger space at the new McCormick Place West (the area of 14 football fields) which featured 480 exhibitors.

DSC09980New products are usually the most interesting and there were fantastic previews of items not yet on store shelves. But it's a crowded market already so it's unlikely that you may even see more than a handful of these 2,000 new introductions. A small fraction of the candies introduced stand the test of time. As a comparison, if you look at the list of top 10 candy bars, all are at least 25 years old. With that in mind, perhaps it's the spin-off that has the brand recognition is most likely to succeed.

I sampled a lot of candies and here are a few noteworthy ones:

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The Ten Most Recent Comments By Cybele May

From Talk

WTF Polenta?

We make it in a loaf pan. Let it set, cut into slices. Maybe make it with a little Parmesan in it, maybe some garlic & herbs.

Then pan fry them, throw a little bruschetta on top and serve with some Italian sausage. (So yeah, that's kind of like the pasta part of the dish).

From Talk

Tastespotting

Their terms seem to be a work in progress. They've changed at least twice today ... so cancel my earlier comment.

From Talk

Tastespotting

Wow, with new terms & conditions.

Any submissions become public domain.

From Required Eating

Eating Healthy Doesn't Have to Be Expensive

That list completely neglects grains. Brown rice, barley, bulgur, sprouted wheat, quinoa. When you eat the whole grain you get added minerals plus fiber.

We get a great pilaf mix from Trader Joes that has little garbanzos, some orzo, lentils and barley. It's fabulous an beats any high salt rice-a-roni.

And let's not forget the beans friendly little cousins, lentils plus garbanzos (and all things hummus).

From Required Eating

21+ ID Required to Buy Wine Ice-Cream and Sorbet

It's the same thing with chocolate "cordials" which usually have only 2-4% alcohol content ... getting a buzz off of such things might be what's making America fat!

From Required Eating

Give a Gift of Manly Chocolate This Father's Day

So it's the sugar in chocolate that makes it "feminine?"

From Required Eating

Photo of the Day: Smurf Gelato

I've had the Smurf Haribo jellies ... tastes like Swedish Fish.

From Recipes

Classic Cookbooks: Barley Casserole

Thanks for the ideas, Robin!

From Required Eating

Sweet—Like White On Chocolate: White Chocolate, Explained

I loves me some cocoa butter.

The Green & Black's White Chocolate bar is pretty awesome for something you can find at the drug store - loads of vanilla bean in it.

(I appreciate you, Clay, for not promoting that chocolate snobbishness that so many gourmets wield when they find out that people like that chocolate.)

From Recipes

Classic Cookbooks: Barley Casserole

I love barley. I'm definitely putting this on the list of things for The Man to make. Except he's not a mushroom fan. Any thoughts on a substitute?

Responses to Comments by Cybele May

From Talk

Looking to get rid of high-fructose corn syrup from your diet?

Just moved to Israel and I find that I can eat more (yay!), especially bread, because there is no HFCS in foods.

We discovered on our honeymoon 8 years ago that European Coke and Fanta are made with real sugar and boy does it make the American version tase icky; like the difference between regular and diet (yes, reformed diet soda drinker...)

From Talk

Looking to get rid of high-fructose corn syrup from your diet?

Langers just removed HFCS from there juice cocktails and a nice box telling people why it chaged from HFCS

From Talk

Looking to get rid of high-fructose corn syrup from your diet?

Free Fructose is the evil sugar but when bound up as it is in cane sugar beet sugar and fruit is it fine so avoid HFCS invert sugar, crystline Fructose and Fructose

From Talk

WTF Polenta?

I'm a polenta fan! I make polenta and spread it out on a jelly roll pan until it becomes firm. Using it as an appetizer during "happy hour", I use a small round cookie cutter to produce bite size pieces. The rounds can be topped with many things i.e. mushroom ragu sprinkled with romano cheese, goat cheese mixed with sundried tomatos etc. They are always a hit! In my opinion, polenta is a substitute for potatoes not pasta but I could be wrong! It's delicious any way you present it.

From Talk

Tastespotting

It seems different. The same people get published over and over, even if their pictures aren't so great. I used to submit before I renamed my blog, and now I can't seem to get them to take a thing I do.

I so looked forward to their return, but I guess you can't go back home! I'm happy that other photo posting sites have appeared.

From Talk

WTF Polenta?

I had a really good polenta side dish in a Brazilian steakhouse/churrascaria. It was crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, really good balance for a whole bunch of meat. I think they fried it. Here's a good recipe I found (not the same thing but similar):

Polenta with Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts

Ingredients

1 log pre-cooked polenta
1/2 log goat cheese
1 handful pine nuts, toasted
Oil for frying

Directions

Slice polenta into circles about 1/2-inch thick. Place in fry pan with oil and cook for about 30 minutes, turning once. Make sure both sides are brown and crispy. Plate slices and crumble goat cheese on top. Add pine nuts and serve.

Hillary
Chew on That

From Talk

WTF Polenta?

@Madelyn - Polenta is kind of like tofu, in the sense that it doesn't have much intrinsic flavor and has to be fairly highly seasoned in order to be interesting. I've found it needs more salt and more cheese than I think it should in order to taste good...so, it's not surprising that your blue cheese polenta turned out well. You might try the mushroom ragu again but season the polenta with a LOT of freshly grated Parmesan or Romano.

From Talk

WTF Polenta?

where i am from, when we eat cooked corn flour cream is as a sweet variety for breakfast... or on a cornbread or fritters. So polenta has never appealed a great deal to me. I tried making the solid kind with a mushroom ragu, but the results were so-so. I guess I did not season the polenta enough for my taste.

But I tried the other day a savory polenta version made with half-and-half and blue cheese that was AMAZING!!! I am planning on serving this for company soon...

Madelyn
KarmaFreeCooking

From Talk

Tastespotting

I read a 'similar' discussion recently on who owns blog comments once submitted for publication. There was no conclusive answer to this discussion, but perhaps a similar thread? It would be really interesting to discover the answer to both.

From Talk

WTF Polenta?

count me in as a major polenta lover. i eat mine with sauteed garlic and parmesan, with a big salad on the side.

i used to make an elaborate casserole with sliced set polenta and a cream sauce mixed with tons of fresh and dried mushrooms, all topped with cheese and baked. it was delicious but the last time i made it i realized it was really too rich.