How do you like your eggs?

And by that, we mean Easter eggs? April 17 will be here before we know it, but there’s still time to introduce some fresh ideas when it comes to chocolate Easter eggs. This week, we’re featuring EGGS-tra Easter eggs to help spark your imagination.

 

 

Smash Eggs
Say “goodbye” to hot cocoa bombs and “hello” to smash eggs! Many chocolatiers already have a hollow Easter egg mould in their toolkit, but what do you fill it with? Depending on the size of your mould, you may want to fill your smash egg with jelly beans, miniature foiled chocolates, truffles, chocolate-covered mini pretzels, chocolate-covered nuts and/or berries, etc. 

 

 

Some other unique ideas we’ve seen are eggs filled with tiny white chocolate chicks (cue “aww!”) and the more unexpected mini chocolate dinosaurs (cue gasp!). For even more dramatic effect, don’t forget the sprinkles, which will undoubtedly go flying upon impact between the egg and the mallet!

 

 

We love how RCI members Anderson’s Candies and Sarris Candies displayed their colorful smash eggs on their Facebook pages!

 

 

Easter Egg Overflow
There’s no surprise what you’re getting with Aldi’s Curious Inventions Easter Eggs! These Easter eggs are so packed with flavor, the contents are bursting through the chocolate shell. Although this does create a nice visual effect, the flavor combinations are just as intriguing.

There are six different varieties, such as banoffee (banana, caramel and butterscotch flavors); salted pretzel and orange; cookies and cream; popping candy; strawberries and cream (with real freeze-dried strawberry pieces) and the Billionaire egg, featuring chocolate and caramel fudge, white chocolate covered cookies and honeycomb candy.

 

Easter Egg Bark
Who says Easter eggs have to be three-dimensional? Here’s two examples of eggs that, despite their shape, don’t fall flat on the delivery!

It’s eggs-on-eggs-on-eggs with this chocolate bark by the LittleSugar Snaps blog that features loads of popular egg-themed candies. We love the swirls of color on the eggs by the Chocolate Pizza Company, plus the addition of a beautifully scribed name is an extra special touch.

 

 

Fruity Follies

 

 

These fruity lookalikes will have you doing a double-take! With a little imagination, Melt London transforms a standard three-dimensional egg into a strawberry filled with a chocolate strawberry cake.

Fruit lovers will undoubtedly fall for these lifelike pomegranate and lemon-shaped moulded chocolates sold by British grocery retailer, Waitrose. The pomegranate is made with caramelized white chocolate and real pomegranate, while the lemon version features white chocolate infused with zesty lemon flavors.

 

 

Animal-Themed Eggs
Take a walk on the wild side when pulling your inspiration from this barnyard bunch by Australian chocolatier,  Cacao or try a more abstract approach with the animal prints created for fashion designer Roberto Cavalli’s Italian coffee shop.

No matter if you like your chocolate Easter eggs more traditional or if you prefer a more unconventional approach, we hope this week’s post offers plenty of sweet inspiration this season!

Crave more?C lick here to subscribe and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices.  Follow us on Facebook for even more sweet inspiration.

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Even in the midst of a global pandemic, people found ways to spread joy and lift up their neighbors through acts of kindness. Even the smallest gestures made a big impact to those affected the most.

In many cases things seem to moving in a positive direction, yet, there are still many industries and individuals experiencing new or continued challenges with staffing and material shortages, burnout and etc.

With the arrival of spring this month and Easter around the corner, consider ways to create opportunities for members of your community to show kindness to others. Here’s some examples of ways RCI members are helping spreading joy through sweetness for you to use as inspiration.

 

 

Easter Basket Giveaway for Senior Citizens

For Easter of 2020, O’Shea’s Candies hosted an Easter basket giveaway for senior citizens living in nursing homes. Social media followers were invited to post the name of someone at a nursing home who would enjoy an Easter basket from O’Shea’s. Five winners were chosen at random and baskets of treats were delivered or shipped directly to the winners’ nursing homes across the United States.

You’re never too old for an Easter basket! This sweet contest is a way to give some much-deserved love to the elderly in your community.

 

 

Flower Power Artwork Exchange

In exchange for hand-drawn artwork by area youth, Aigner Chocolates offered free chocolate lollipops. In 2020, Aigner requested drawings of rainbows to cheer up front-line workers at their local hospital. This year, they tasked local kids and schools to draw colorful flowers for children and staff in the pediatric units at two local hospitals. Resulting in just over 1,500 drawings (more than double their goal), there’s no doubt the campaign made a significant impact to all the participants. Their efforts were so successful, Aigner Chocolates was highlighted on national ABC News. Click here to view the news story.

The success of a campaign like this relies on good word of mouth. Take advantage of all the channels available to your business to help spread the word. This may include social media, e-newsletter, in-store signage, press releases to your local media, etc. If your campaign involves kids, share your initiative with your local schools and ask them to help spread the word. If you team up with a hospital, like Aigner Chocolates did, they too may be able to spread the word.

“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the water to create many ripples.”

 

-       - Mother Teresa

With so many people in need of a little extra love and care, in addition to those with crucial roles in our community experiencing burnout due to continued challenges caused by the pandemic, consider what role your business can play to lift up your community and make its members feel appreciated and cared for. 

Crave more?Click here to subscribe and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices. Follow us on Facebook for even more sweet inspiration.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

 

No pre-bottomer? No problem! With RCI Chocolate Boot Camp course taking place next week, we’re sharing a quick and easy solution, demonstrated by Instructor Joe Sofia with Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate, for candy makers who do not have a pre-bottomer on their enrober.

 

 

This handy  tip uses chocolate wafers as the pre-bottom for, in this case, moulded peanut butter meltaways. Joe explained, "When you pop the meltaways out of the mould, they are ready for the full enrobing since the wafer will adhere to the meltaway." Joe also added that it's important to apply the chocolate wafer while the center is still liquid so the two stick together.

For this particular demonstration, a 22-millimeter silicon dome mould from Truffly Made was a perfect fit when using a standard chocolate wafer as the base.

If you’re interested in more pro tips like this, consider attending RCI’s next Chocolate Boot Camp course in August 2022. If you’re not a member of RCI and you would like to be notified when registration opens, click here to be added to RCI’s email list.

Crave more?Click here to subscribe and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices. Follow us on Facebook for even more sweet inspiration.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

 

 

This may come as a shock, but Irish potato candy did not originate in Ireland nor does it even contain potato, typically. These miniature potato wannabes are often made with a coconut-flavored cream filling moulded into the size of a small potato and rolled in cinnamon and/or cocoa, giving the illusion of a dirty potato.

With much regional appeal found in Philadelphia, it is believed Irish potato candy is actually a variation of a coconut-flavored cream dubbed “Irish” as the city experienced an influx of Irish immigrants. According to an article by Daniela Galarza published on Eater.com, “Prior to the Great Famine [in Ireland], which occurred between 1845 and 1852, America’s Irish population was fairly low. But during and after the tragedy, Philly’s Irish population boomed as families immigrated to the United States looking for a more stable future.”

Despite any likely link to Ireland, these deceiving little candies may be worth a try on your customer base for the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day on March 17. Stir up interest by introducing your potato candy as a limited-time offering and get creative to tie in with the Irish centric holiday.

 

RCI member, Dolle’s Candyland of Ocean City, Maryland makes their Irish potatoes extra decadent by coating coconut cream in rich, dark chocolate before rolling that in a blend of cocoa and cinnamon.

 

 

Milwaukee-based RCI member, Burke Candy & Ingredients uses a not-so-surprising, surprise ingredient to their Irish potatoes. For added texture, they combine shoestring potato sticks with their coconut dough before rolling the mixture in cinnamon and sugar.

Spread the luck o’ the Irish this St. Patrick’s Day by sharing these humble, but tasty spuds with your customers.

 

Requirements for the nutrition facts label on packaged foods were updated in 2016 to help make it easier for consumers to make better informed food choices. As a producer or seller of food products, businesses of all sizes are now responsible for listing the contents of their products. Unfortunately, with an extensive list of updates to the nutrition facts label, plus a global pandemic thrown into the mix, meeting the requirements has not been an easy task for many manufacturers over the last few years.

Although the FDA announced it would work cooperatively with manufacturers, as of February 2021 (read more), it’s important your business is compliant and prepared for the FDA to begin enforcing label requirements. Keep reading for a refresher on such requirements, as well as answers to common questions and actionable steps to ensure your nutrition labels are compliant.

The what if?

If a new customer comes into your store and purchases a product without a label on it, how are they to know if it contains potential allergens? If they are allergic to an ingredient that is not listed, who’s at fault, the consumer or business? A food label with proper nutritional information serves as insurance to the business, and also notifies the consumer of a potential health risk. Without proper labeling, similar items can get shuffled on a shelf and become a guessing game of what’s inside.

Who needs it?

All too often business owners believe they are too small in production volume to require labels on their products. However, if you are selling product to a customer that they can pick up and bring to the register, the product must be labeled for the protection of the consumer and your business. Proper labeling must include a product name, ingredients/allergen statement, sell by date, and weight using a minimum of 6-point font. Well-labeled products allow the consumer to make an educated decision on whether the product will adversely affect their health by consuming it.

FDA Nutritional Label Changes in Effect

Manufacturers with $10 million or more in annual sales were required to update their labels by January 1, 2020; manufacturers with less than $10 million in annual food sales were required to update their labels by January 1, 2021.

The FDA website provides an in-depth explanation of the new nutrition label requirements, but for now, here are the important points producers need to know to ensure they are on the right path to label compliance.

FDA Nutrition Label Revision Explained:

Easy Access to Information

 

• The well-known look of the nutrition label will remain the same, but important updates will be made to ensure consumers have all the information they need to make mindful decisions about the food they buy. These changes include increasing the type set size for data like calories per serving and serving size.
• Food producers will be responsible for declaring the actual serving amount and percent daily values like calcium, vitamin D, iron and potassium.
• The label footnote will be revised to better define what daily value means, “The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.”

 

 

 

Serving Size vs. Package Size

 

• Certainly, one of the most interesting changes to the FDA nutrition label updates is the serving size requirements. Until recently, serving sizes were determined based on amounts of foods and beverages that people “should” be eating. Moving forward, nutrition label updates must reflect the amount of food people are “actually” eating. Serving sizes have changed since they were suggested and published in 1993, with individuals eating larger single-serving portions.
• Many packaged foods are generally consumed in a single serving, though intended for several servings. The FDA requires packaged foods to list nutritional information for the total consumable package, apart from the recommended serving size. An example of multi-serving products generally consumed in a single serving would be “Big Grab” potato chips and packaged nuts. This new label format is termed “dual column” and aims to help consumers better understand portion sizes.

 

 

Next Steps: Reviewing & Editing Your Labels

Reviewing your product labels may seem like a daunting task depending on the number of items that you produce. It’s important to review any recipes that have changed in the past, or ingredients that have been substituted to make sure that they match on the label. Review and edit your labels in small groups to make the process of additions and revisions much more manageable. Here's some more tips to consider while updating your labels:

 

• Make sure each label is legible, ingredients should not be hidden or use smaller than six-point font.
• MUST HAVES: product name, net weight, sell by date, and ingredients that can be clearly read.
• Items do not have to be labeled if a product is being served to the customer from behind/over the counter.
• Software is available that will allow you to input recipes and ingredients to produce a nutrition fact panel. Look for software that is compatible with your current method of printing labels.
• Shelf talkers, or product information listed on the shelf is not a viable means of labeling products. This refers back to items being shuffled on shelves.
• Being transparent with customers on ingredients and contents is always a best practice.

 

Applying an accurate and up-to-date label to your products will not only help you remain in good standing with the FDA, but also help strengthen your brand and provide your customers a sense of security.

 

Crave more?Click here to subscribe and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices. Follow us on Facebook for even more sweet inspiration.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.