Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
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CANDY COUNTER "When you put chocolate over something salty, it immediately becomes a novelty factor that appeals to the child in all of us. Things like this are just innately yummy." —Kara Nielsen, CCD Innovation Nuts Offer a Mixed Bag Though salty and crunchy, nuts alone are harder to define with cravability factors, Julius says. Yet still, the addition of choco- late or other sweet toppings makes them more attractive and desirable to both the brain and the palate. Keeping it simple with chocolate. Hubbard Peanut Company, Sedley, Va., gives "super extra-large" Virginia salted peanuts a light coating of milk chocolate. The company describes its Choco Covered Hubs Salted Peanuts as a satisfying, sweet, nutty and lightly salty snack. On the darker side, Marich Premium Chocolates offers Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Cashews (also in organic). "The salty-sweet combination definitely makes them a hit," says Troy Van Dam, Marich's executive vice president and COO. The company, which has been chocolate- and toffee-coating nuts for more than 25 years, has expanded its nut line over the past several years to include different flavor combinations. Among its nut confection products, Koppers Chocolate offers Luxe Nuts, a blend of almonds and hazelnuts covered in milk or dark chocolate and mixed with other color-coated or natural glazed almonds. Layers of flavor. "Cashews are extremely popular and lend themselves well to various flavor combinations—especially when you add a twist to them," Marich's Van Dam says. He adds that the company's Coconut Curry Cashews in white chocolate are par- ticularly popular not only because of the salty and sweet pairing but also because they hit a popular ethnic food category. A new item added to the Asher's line of popcorn is the company's Boardwalk Crunch: marshmallows, nuts, buttered pop- corn and pretzels in milk or dark chocolate. "This popular item is based on the combi- nation of salty and sweet and incorporates favorite flavors from summertime resort towns," McBride notes. San Francisco's Recchiuti brings together several products to create its Asphalt Jungle mix. Salted almonds and hazelnuts are coated in milk chocolate with hints of burnt caramel and combined with Cherries Two Ways (a mix of chocolate- covered dried Michigan tart cherries and candied wild Italian cherries) and crispy Peanut Butter Pearls to create the popular mix. "The salty component balances out the depth of flavor and draws on the smoky notes from the burnt caramel syrup," says master chocolatier Michael Recchiuti, who adds that the salt also balances sweetness. As manufacturers continue to blur the lines between salty and sweet with products that possess characteristics that customers crave, the way we eat traditional salty snacks will continue to evolve. "There is no doubt that when you put chocolate over something salty, it immediately becomes a novelty fac- tor that appeals to the child in all of us," adds trendologist Kara Nielsen. "Things like this are just innately yummy." |SFM| Nicole Potenza Denis is a contributing editor to Specialty Food Magazine. Summer Fancy Food Show Booth 5015 40 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE ❘ specialtyfood.com