Wanting to be Peanut Butter, But NOT!

I believe I have waxed poetic about what the heck nougat is before, but I'm going to do it again. Because it's weird. And it kind of pisses me off.

Speaking of weird, I HAVE to share with you my favorite quote of the day. This is in reference to that serial killer down in South Carolina. S.C. State Law Enforcement Deputy Director Neil Dolan said:

"We have him. He's our serial killer. He was unpredictable. He was scary. He was weird."

Just like nougat.

Okay this is from Wikipedia:

Nougat (pronounced /ˈnʌɡɨt/ or /ˈnuːɡɑː/ (Commonwealth) or /ˈnuːˌɡət/ (US) is a term used to describe a variety of similar traditional confectioneries made with sugar or honey, roasted nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios or hazelnuts are common), and sometimes chopped candied fruit. The consistency of nougat can range from chewy to hard depending on its composition, and it is used in a variety of candy bars and chocolates.

There are two basic kinds of nougat: white and brown. White nougat (which appeared in Montélimar, France, in the 18th century) is made with beaten egg whites and is soft, whereas brown nougat (called nougatine in French) is made with caramelized sugar and has a firmer, often crunchy texture.

Whatever. Like THAT clears anything up.

Check this out:

This is Trader Joe's Lumpy Bumpy bar - see right there on the box where it says peanut nougat? Here's where it gets its name:

Ew.

And here's the nougat:

Seems to work with the Wikipedia definition. It's white, soft, and basically lame. Boring. It is EGG WHITES after all. Woowee. The caramel is nonexistent and the only peanut taste I can detect is from the peanuts themselves. The dark chocolate seems good, although it overpowered everything else. Save your money. The packaging is more creative than the candy.

Now here's my love, Reese's:

You can't read it here, but the wrapper says: light and fluff peanut butter flavored nougat. Now after learning about mockolate, we know that when it says "flavored" it means - tastes like, but isn't. Chocolate flavored, means this ain't real chocolate, but it tastes like it (aka mockolate). So this must be peaNOT butter.

While this is way better than the Lumpy Bumpy bar, it's no good either. Nougat blows. And it all tastes different. This isn't chewy or hard, it's kind of soft like a Three Musketeers bar. But it does taste more like peanut butter. But why bother with it? Have a Reese's! This is scary and weird.

Oh there's more:

This wrapper reads: terrific chewy nougat with peanuts.

This is more like the Wikipedia definition - it is chewy - like break your teeth chewy. I'm not big on the the teeth breaking part and it just doesn't have enough flavor to be worth all the work, much less the calories. BLEECH.

Who invented nougat and what haven't they been killed?

Oh yeah - the French. Figures.

Oh - it gets weirder.

Taffy has almost the same ingredients as nougat and this stuff sure tastes like the white stuff in the Big Hunk:

These are mini Abba-Zaba bars. A nostalgic candy (with creative new packaging) I found in Cracker Barrel. These and the Big Hunk are made by Annabelle's - one of those still standing small American candy makers that I love. But these were no good in my book either. The "taffy" is filled with peanut butter rather than having peanut in it. Either way - too hard, not worth it.

A MUCH better product is Wolfgang's Peanut Butter Kisses (reviewed about a year ago when I visited their factory in PA). Their taffy is soft and chewy and there's a lot more peanut butter - delish!

Nougat - unpredictable, scary, and weird. A candy serial killer. Don't say you haven't been warned.

How to Spark a New Idea

What is the difference between creativity and stealing? Is there really anything new under the sun? Snickers latest offering is Snickers Rockin' Nut Road:





I discussed Annabelle Candy's Rocky Road bar in an earlier blog - it's available only out West. Now I'm not saying that Mars STOLE Annabelle's candy bar - the Snickers are different, but..... They do have almonds instead of cashews, and not as much marshmallow, but....

It really is difficult to come up with a completely new idea. Hey, it's getting harder to even come up with a halfway creative idea! Why?

Well, a lot of great ideas have already been developed. We looked at the fact that the world's longest lasting and, in my humble opinion, best, candy bars were invented more than 70 years ago!

I also think we don't take much time to really think - we want new, fabulous ideas and we want them now! I don't think you can always produce a great idea on demand. But if you need a new idea, I might have some ideas for you.

1.) Take a vacation. Now this doesn't have to be long or expensive. It does need to be somewhere you have never been before. New settings get those creative juices flowing.

2.) Read a book or watch a TV show or see a movie - something outside the genre you usually like, that is critically acclaimed. I tend to watch the same type of shows, read the same authors, but when I branch WAY out, I always enjoy it. My favorite find - Mad Men - I watched it because of the reviews and I love it. Critics don't always get it right, but a lot of times they do. When you need new ideas, think about what makes great work great.

3.) Look at some art. You don't have to spend all day in a museum. Just pop in and check out something. Wander around a sculpture garden. I recently took a look at Raleigh's new Shimmer Wall - amazing. And you have to see it for yourself - see how the wind moves each tiny tile. See the wind made solid. Breathtaking. All art is this way - you need to see it for yourself, in person.

4.) Think of crazy new combinations. Things that you like, but that don't immediately seem to have any relationship. (My leadership and chocolate and motivation and chocolate seminars came from this tactic. But alas, so did bacon and chocolate.)

5.) Learn from the candy makers - make it bigger (King size bars), or smaller (M & M's minis), or cover it in chocolate (chocolate covered Oreos) or peanut butter (Whoppers). Can you tweak something you already have or are already doing? If something is working, just tweak it.

6.) And maybe stealing isn't that bad. If Annabelle's Rocky Road is only available out West, hasn't Mars done us a favor by bringing a version of it to us? Is originality overrated? I'd rather have one good Reese's cup than three Bacon Bars. Just because it's new or different doesn't mean it's better. But if people didn't keep making new things, we might never have gotten the Reese's Cup in the first place!!

7.) Change the format or the shape. A book becomes a TV show becomes a comic book, etc. A Reese's Cup becomes:

a regular candy bar. This is like anti-originality. I don't really get this one. I don't like it as much as the cups - not as much peanut butter - more chocolate. I would have fought this tooth and nail if I'd been in the product meeting. I would have said, "I'm okay with trees and hearts and pumpkins, but not bars! Reese's is not a bar, Reese's is a cup! It's all about the peanut butter!! The peanut butter!!" I would have had to be carried from the meeting, screaming "The peanut butter!!! The peanut butter!!" Sadly, I was not consulted.

They didn't ask me about the Bacon Bar either.

On the Rocky Road

If you read yesterday's blog, you know I'm in Oklahoma. I feel compelled whenever I am out of my home state of North Carolina, to try whatever candy bar, cookie, dessert, or baked good that I don't have at home. Today (besides way too many cookies at the conference - if I see cookies, I must eat them - it's a sickness) I had a Rocky Road bar from the Annabelle Candy Company. Annabelle's is one of the few remaining independent candy companies, so I really, really wanted to love this candy bar. This is the third Annabelle's candy bar I have tried, and so far, I am not in love (although I want to be!).

Here's a little about the company - founded in the 50's, named after the owner's daughter (who now runs the show):

http://www.annabelle-candy.com/about/

Here's what their web site says about the Rocky Road (their signature bar):

ROCKY ROAD: A delightfully light, fluffy marshmallow topped with flavorful roasted cashew nuts, crunchy malt, and covered with rich chocolate. This item was the creation of our founder Mr. Sam Altshuler. Rocky Road is still made the old fashioned way, by hand, layer by layer. We use a unique process that maintains the softness and fluffiness of marshmallow, making this product stand head and shoulders above most marshmallow products on the market today. Combined with fresh roasted cashews and rich chocolate, this bar is truly delicious and literally melts in your mouth. Currently we have three flavors: Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, & Mint Dark Chocolate. Rocky road is predominately distributed from the West Coast to the West of the Mississippi. And can be found in most major Drug Chains, Grocery & C-Stores. Rocky Road is a true corner stone of our company since 1950.

Here's what I say - too few cashews, too much marshmallow - especially for the 240 calories! That's the best thing about the marshmallow - lots of bulk, not many calories!! You can have 8 chocolate Peeps for that!! Eight!! I was very disappointed. Give me a Snickers Bar.

I have also tried the ABBA-ZABA described on the web site as thick rich chewy taffy, with a rich creamy peanut butter filling in the center. And I have to say, Wolfgang's Peanut Butter Kisses blow the ABBA-ZABA out of the water. (I wish I had some of those right now....mmmm...Oh, sorry - I was having a moment.)

But I'm not giving up on the Annabelle Candy Company. I want to support the little guy (or gal in this case). I want as much diversity in candy as possible. I love the idea of traveling the world sampling crazy candy bars! And any company crazy enough to make a Sour Apple ABBA-ZABA bar - yes, sour apple taffy and peanut butter filing - well, I just like knowing they're out there. And yes, I want to try one.