candy is magic...

Just wanted to start my first post in Year 11 by expressing gratitude and saying a huge thank you to each and every one of you for all of your lovely comments on Monday and on Queen Michelle's instagram post. As she said, it means everything that you are with us on this journey as we bumble along through the blogosphere.

It seems fitting that I post something I don't think I have ever posted before. A recipe book. Well that's maybe stretching get truth a tad. This is a book about sweets or to be more specific candy. Jami Curl, the owner of the legendary Portland-based candy company QUIN, has published Candy Is Magic – Real Ingredients, Modern Recipes, and oh my goodness what a delicious treat it is...

Chai Tea Lollipops, Honey and Sea Salt Marshmallows, Chocolate Pretzel Caramels, Cherry Cola Gumdrops—this is not your average candy, or your average candy book. Candy-maker extraordinaire Jami Curl breaks down candy making into its most precise and foolproof steps. No guess work, no expensive equipment, just the best possible ingredients and stop-you-in-your-tracks-brilliant flavor combinations. She begins with the foundations of candy; how to create delicious syrups, purees, and “magic dusts” that are the building blocks for making lollipops, caramels, marshmallows, and gummy candy. But even more ingeniously, these syrups, purees, and magic dusts can be used to make a myriad of other sweet confections such as Strawberry Cream Soda, Peanut Butter Hot Fudge, Marshmallow Brownies, and Popcorn Ice Cream. 

I had to laugh when Jami said “We don’t make wimpy caramel at QUIN,” 

So now we can thank Portland for keeping it delicious as well as weird.

Good Work Portland!!!

Queen Marie