There’s no question about it – chocolate is delicious. However a lot of us worry that it may be just a little too sinful to truly enjoy.
Well I’ve got some great news for you! One word – FLAVONOIDS!
They’re found in the vegies and fruits and contain some mighty powerful antioxidants. Now the main ingredient in chocolate is?
COCOA! Cocoa contains flavonoids called flavanols and procyanidins – These two compounds come from the flavonoid “family” that includes resveratrol, found in grape juice, and EGCG, found in green tea. When people consume these substances in chocolate and cocoa, the antioxidant status of their blood increases.
This rise in antioxidant levels helps protect us from damage to the heart and blood vessels, while it also guards our DNA from damage that can lead to cancer.
In addition, the flavanols and procyanidins in chocolate improve the function and flow of blood vessels and help control inflammation.
The antioxidants in chocolate have generated a lot of interest because studies show that these compounds are more powerful antioxidants than EGCG in tea, which is a strong antioxidant.
One study that compared the total antioxidant activity in single servings of cocoa, green tea, black tea and red wine scored cocoa markedly higher than the rest!
ALSO – Surprisingly, the fat content of chocolate is not a reason to avoid it. Technically, chocolate contains saturated fat, but the particular type of saturated fat – stearic acid – is unique because it does not raise blood cholesterol.
How exciting!
Have a piece of chocolate and enjoy the benefits!
Looky here! Our ever so talented employee, Erin, has snazzed-up our Twitter background! Damn you’re talented, girl!
(And yes, it may be Erin writing this entry right now…)
Check it out!
Choo Choo Bars were originally a Nestle product. They are now made by Lagoon.
It has been approximately 20 years since Choo Choo Bars left the shelves, but people have never forgotten them.
There is many a fan base calling for the whereabouts of Choo Choo Bars. The re make of this classic is sure to bring lovers into a tither scouring the specialty lolly shops for them.
A Choo Choo Bar is a Hard Toffee like Licorice Bar.
They can be sucked from one end or broken into pieces to make it more manageable to consume.
Wrapped in an iconic blue wrapper with a picture of an old steam train,
each bar is 20gm and is available individually or in boxes of 50.
Lollyworld has been inundated with joyous customers purchasing handfuls of Choo Choo Bars and in some cases whole boxes of the Licorice Sticks.
This one is super simple, however the popularity of it has ensured we keep the Maggi Onion Soup sachet WELL stocked!
This is a New Zealand favourite and absolutely delicious!
Ingredients
- 250 g can NESTLÉ Reduced Fat Cream
- 1 packet MAGGI Onion Soup Mix
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice
Method
- Combine all ingredients together in a bowl. Cover and chill for about 30 minutes
Pop Tarts
History
Pop Tarts were originally developed by Post, who had discovered a new way of keeping food fresh using foil. The foil-packed pastry now known as “Pop Tarts” was announced in 1963 as “Country Squares”.
Kelloggs quickly developed the competing product, and six months later, “Pop Tarts” were released and were so popular, Kelloggs simply couldn’t keep up with demand.
The original product was not frosted, however once it was proven that the frosting could survive the toaster, the first frosted Pop Tarts were released in 1967.
In 2001, The US Military dropped 2.4 million Pop Tarts in Afghanistan during the US invasion.
2005 saw Pop Tarts hit the Australian supermarket shelves very briefly. A limited range of flavours and marketing failures led to them quickly being removed, and has since become a product that can only be imported from the USA.
You can find Pop Tarts on Lollyworld shelves in a wide variety of flavours. By and far the most popular is Chocolate Fudge Pop Tarts. Other flavours vary and are always available.
They come in a box of 8 (four packages of 2 Pop Tarts) and are delicious straight from the package, or warmed in the toaster.
Available to purchase in store at Lollyworld, Lawnton or online @ www.lollyworld.com.au.
New Zealand Lolly Cake Recipe
Here is a recipe for New Zealand Lolly Cake – all ingredients available at Lollyworld.com.au or our store in Lawnton, Brisbane.
This is one of the easiest recipes I’ve ever come across and is massively popular in NZ – DELICIOUS to boot!
120 g (1.5 sticks) of butter
250 g of Malt biscuits (one packet)
180 g of Fruit Puffs
200 g (1/2 can or 7 ounces) condensed milk
shredded coconut
a pinch of cinnamon (optional)
Crush the biscuits roughly to give the cake a nicer texture. mix in cinnamon, if you want it.
Warm the butter and condensed milk in the microwave for 30 seconds until the butter is very soft. It’s ok if the butter melts a bit.
Mix the fruit puffs with the crushed biscuits, add butter and condensed milk.
Mix well.
Scoop up the mixture and roll it into a log shape.
Roll in coconut until its completely covered.
Refrigerate.
As a big fan of American candy and soda, I must say working at Lollyworld often makes it hard to maintain a staple diet of anything less delicious than a divine Hershey’s Cookies and Cream bar, coupled with an ice cold can of Dr Pepper.
As I was discussing Lollyworld’s giftbasket range with Andrew G (God bless him, owner and operator of HEAVEN aka Lollyworld), I came to a realisation; I would rather receive a sweet giftbasket than a bunch of flowers, ANY day!
In my mind, I replayed the times in which I’d received a monstrous bunch of flowers at work or home (and the not-so-monstrous bunches which were somewhat more frequent). I then remembered the vague joy and more importantly, smug pride I felt moreso at getting flowers and knowing I’d left the other girls in the office somewhat seething with jealousy, followed by throwing them out a few days later when they were looking brown and a little on the gross side. (The flowers, that is. Not the girls.)
Flowers = a lovely, but EXPENSIVE short lived gesture which ends up in the bin, 12 seconds after you’ve received them.
SO, as Andrew and I fiddled with new gift box ideas, I thought, “HOLY TOLEDO, I’d MUCH rather receive one of THESE bad boys!”
Why? Cheaper, for starters. By a long shot. Your average bunch of pretty weeds is generally around the $100 mark with delivery. The gift baskets are only around half that. What’s more, I’d get a hell of a lot more FUN out of one! Every single time you pop a delicious Gummi Bear into your mouth, you’ll be reminded of what a sweet, sweet gesture it was!
Great, now I really want some Gummi Bears. Andrew, can I have the store keys, please?
Does anyone agree? And more importantly, does anyone need my address? I’ll have the American Candy basket, please. PURCHASE ONE FOR ME, HERE!
- Erin Jaye
USA Gift Basket
- 2 to 3 scoops (about 1 cup) vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt
- 1/2 cup cold milk
- 3 tablespoons REESE’S Chocolate Peanut Butter Topping
- 1 REESE’S Peanut Butter Cup, unwrapped (optional)
2. Garnish with peanut butter cup, if desired.
Chocolate begins with a bean – cacao bean from the cocoa tree grown in countries bounded by the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn including Central and South America, Malaysia, Indonesia, West Africa and Mexico. It has been mashed and eaten for centuries. Cocoa butter, an expensive ingredient and direct by-product of cocoa beans is often substituted for less expensive vegetable fats, thereby reducing the richer qualities on experiences in a good chocolate. Cocoa butter melts at body temperature adding to the overall pleasure of chocolate.
The English word chocolate is derived from “xocolatl” (or “chocolatl”), the chocolate drink that was enjoyed by Aztec royalty. This drink, however, bears little resemblance to what we associate with modern chocolate. “Xocolatl” was made from dried and roasted cocoa beans that were pounded then mixed with water to make a thick paste and was consumed cold.
In 1519, the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez found Aztec Indians making this drink. Aztec Emperor Montezuma reportedly drank 50 or more portions daily. Cortez subsequently brought the beans back to Spain where the chocolate drink was made and then heated with added sweeteners. Spain wisely began to plant cacao trees, but consigned the processing of cocoa beans to monasteries under a veil of secrecy. They kept the recipe to themselves for nearly 100 years, but the secret was finally leaked to the rest of Europe and eventually the world.
Chocolate Trivia
The Aztecs considered chocolate an aphrodisiac and subsequently all chocolate based foods were strictly forbidden to women.
Ironically, according to several studies, chocolate is the number one food craved by women.
Chocolate contains the same mood lifting chemical, phenylethylamie, produced by the brain when you fall in love.
Chocolate is an excellent source of vitamin E and a good source of phosphorous, calcium and iron.
There is no proof that chocolate causes or aggravates acne. Nor that it causes tooth decay. In fact, there are indications that the cocoa butter in the chocolate coats the teeth and may help plaque from forming.
Research at the University of California has found that chocolate carries high levels of chemicals known as phenolics, or antioxidants like those found in red wine, and may help lower the risk of heart disease.
White chocolate is not true chocolate because it contains no cocoa solids. Instead, it’s usually a mixture of sugar, cocoa butter, milk solids, lecithin and vanilla, hence it’s sweetness.
Chocolate should be stored, tightly wrapped, in a cool, dry place. If stored at warm temperatures, chocolate will develop a pale grey “bloom” caused when the cocoa butter rises to the surface. Under ideal conditions, dark chocolate can be stored for 10 years. However, because of the milk solids in both milk chocolate and white chocolate, the shouldn’t be stored for longer than 9 months.
Dr Pepper has been available at Lollyworld since we first opened our shop doors.
Dr Pepper soft drink out sells all other drinks in store with a ratio of 3:1 against our 2nd most popular drink, Cherry Coke.
In the last year more than 4,000 cans of Dr Pepper soda have passed over our Brisbane shop counter. That’s not just people walking into the shop but also delivering cartons all around Australia. So no matter where our customers live they can still enjoy their favourite can of Dr Pepper.
Dr Pepper soft drink