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Soap candy, floral gums and other Canadian confectionery oddities
The hunt for soap candies is finally over.
After five years of getting strange looks from every single candy shop owner he asked, my husband finally tracked down one of his favorite Canadian candies by going back to the source: Welch’s Chocolate Shop in Waterton Lakes National Park.
As a kid, soap candies were as essential as the boating on his family’s annual summer trip to the area just north of Glacier National Park in Montana.
Ever since I’ve known him, he’s always talked about these fragrant hard candies that tasted like, you guessed it, soap. (At first, I swore he was trying to pull a prank on me with a sud-producing gag gift like this one.) Dial hand soap isn’t exactly at the top of my list of favorite flavors, so I wasn’t surprised that he couldn’t find a single candy shop on this side of the border that carried them.
This summer, as much to prove that he wasn’t crazy as to place an order, he finally called up the original shop that he’d bought the candies at as a kid. Sure enough, they not only still sold soap candy, the red crescent-shaped candies at right, but they also carried floral gums, the small Dots-like treats that taste more like perfume than soap and apparently are one of the most divisive candies in the history of the UK.
A nice woman named Carol packed up an order and included a few other surprises like rock candy (not the crystallized sugar that we think of but rock-shaped chocolates) and Wolf droppings (self-explanatory in name, made with coconut and chocolate, which Ian also says are called macaroons).
The chocolate-based sweets were about what you’d expect, but I’d never tasted anything like the fragrant floral and unmistakeably soap-like notes in the other two candies. “It’s like licking a hand soap dispenser,” said a friend of ours who tasted them for the first time last week.
So what’s the appeal? Like lavender or rose hips, flowers can add a subtle layer of delicate flavor to both sweet and savory dishes, such as chocolate or chicken. I don’t mind a hint of floral in my tea or pastries, but this candy was like stuffing a field of blooming wildflowers into my mouth.
Oh, don’t forget the texture. Both floral gums and soap candy, which apparently are also called red moons or cherry lips, are relatively hard gummies when you first put them in your mouth, but suck on them long enough and they become so sticky that are nearly impossible to get out of your teeth.
Several British sites that specialize in nostalgic candy sell the floral gums, plus there’s a Facebook page dedicated to them, but I can’t find near the dedication to soap candy.
Have you ever come across these treats or tasted anything that blurred the line between “flower” and “soap”? What’s the furthest you’ve gone out of your way to get a favorite food or treat from your childhood?
Permalink | Comments (7) | Post your comment Categories: Chewing the fat
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By Lindsay Lehfeld
October 14, 2010 3:15 PM | Link to this
Thanks for sharing these with Luke and I when we came to visit! They were…interesting :)
By Kristina W
October 14, 2010 4:30 PM | Link to this
Yes I have hunted down “snowballs” they are filberts rolled in fondant about a million times and then in caster sugar. Found only to my knowledge now at the Vermont country store and I actually made that a stop on my trip last year to New England-I paid a pretty price but savored it all the way. I also remember bringing horehound to my kids and they thought it was the worst candy ever and wondered how I could have loved this as a kid. Just goes to show you good childhood memories stick in your brain, not so much the candy but the special moments when my Mom would give it to us.
By erw
October 14, 2010 5:29 PM | Link to this
For hard-to-find UK foods - try www.wisechoiceuk.com
By staff
October 14, 2010 10:51 PM | Link to this
I’m about ready to order Fanta Limon from Europe online. It’s made with real sugar and has this tart flavor that Sprite or 7-Up just can’t match.
By Trevor
December 11, 2010 12:02 AM | Link to this
Wow !!! I remember these as a kid. Loved them
Yes I am from Canada.
By enerislaplece
May 9, 2011 10:44 PM | Link to this
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By enerislaplece
May 10, 2011 1:24 AM | Link to this
Hi, my english isnt the really ideal but I think by regulary visits of the blog it will be far better from the next time. You have a great wrting design which is quick to understand and can assists persons like me to learn english. I will be now a regulary visitor of your blog.