Lord Stanley may not be visiting the HSBC Arena for a few more years – but if you can’t kiss one, have you considered eating one?  Like they say:  “…if you can’t beat them, eat them…”

Easter is almost here and we are definitely getting blitzed at the store.  Busy beavers?  Not really – how about Rabid Rabbits.  Good Grief!  I am now seeing chocolate rabbits in my dreams!  This has got to stop.

Did I mention that the new Wonka Bars are now in the store?  I certainly don’t have any time to take a tour of the Chocolate Factory, but I am on the lookout for that Golden Ticket!  If you have not yet seen the new line of “Exceptional” Wonka premium chocolate bars, then check out the new photo album on our FaceBook fan page – Bella Mia wanted to show you just a little something to get you in the mood for the Summer that has yet to arrive.  Choose the Chocolate Waterfall, Domed Dark Chocolate or the Wonka Scrumdiddlyumptious Chocolate Bar.  Or just drop one of each into the kids Easter baskets.

Can’t wait for YOUR Easter basket?  Need to visit Wonka Candy Land after that boring Monday morning Staff Meeting?  Then stop in our web store and check out the new Wonka arrivals.  MoJo would be proud!

What Is It With Kids & Chocolate Rabbits?

 You can’t say “No” to the little kids that still believe in the Easter Bunny.  And don’t get me going on where does Santa live during the other 11 months of the year…

If you live in Buffalo, or are just passing through, stop in the store and buy a few tickets.  Each ticket is $0.50 – but if you want more – 3 tickets are $1.00 and, for those who are feeling really “unlucky” – they can buy 8 tickets for $2.00  Need more information?  Just ask the Bella Girl behind the counter. 

As Clint Eastwood would say:  Feeling Lucky?  And now for the fine print…the winner does NOT need to be present to win and Tom (aka The Boss…) will personally call The Big Winner (that could be you by the way…) at 6:00 pm on April 2nd (Friday).  So, during your next visit to our store, just reach into your pocket (or wallet), buy your ticket(s) to win (maybe…).  Unlike Timmy’s Contests, you don’t have to “roll up the rim to win…”

Hey – Just try eating the ears off this Bad Boy!  If you win you have a few options:  You can take it home.  You can melt it down.  You can give it away.  You can try to hide it in your closet to see how long YOU can resist the Siren’s call of chocolate from the closet!  Ahhh…the irresistible aroma of Merckens chocolate!

Tickets Anyone?

What?  Can’t eat the whole thing?  Then perhaps you should consider just picking up a pound (or two…) of foil wrapped Merckens solid milk chocolate eggs.  These foil eggs are always popular at Easter and always look great in your Easter basket.  But watch out.  IF you win the GIANT Bella Mia Chocolate rabbit – you just may have to build an addition on to your house!

Enjoy the warmer weather and the next chocolate holiday! 

Hey – Did I mention that Sponge Candy is always good to find in your Easter Basket?  Thought so!

Bella Sweet Heats – Bella Mia’s latest chocolate confection creation is a unique combination of chocolate with a long lasting flavor of cinnamon.  Remember the classic candy Atomic Fire Balls created way back in 1954?  This was one of the first “spicy” candy treats that caught the candy world by storm….Or should we say blast?  An estimated 15 million of those round, spicy, hard candy “Atomic Fire Balls” are now consumed per WEEK by people all over the world.  Wow!  Now that was a success story!

The Bella Mia Candy Store is now in hot pursuit.  No – nothing as simple as Atomic Fire Balls or Hot Tamales.  Something much more subtle – and definitely with some chocolate in (or on…) it.  Discovered almost by accident while testing new chocolate recipes very late at night along with his trusty dog Mojo.  The Boss (that would be our Tom…Not Bruce…) was suddenly distracted by Mojo – No, don’t ask what really happened…and accidentally combined Merckens milk chocolate and cinnamon flavor.  Bella Sweet Heats are a new tasty chocolate treat gives you the smooth sweetness of chocolate plus a lingering taste of cinnamon.  

Looking for something definitely different?  Perhaps need a new candy to pass around your Man Cave during Super Bowl Half Time?  Want to enjoy something just a little bit hotter than those NFL cheerleaders – but don’t want to explain to your wife or Significant Other about those pesky lipstick stains on your shirt collar?  Then try Bella Sweet Heats and put a little bit of spice back in your life!

Select either plain chocolate (choose either milk or dark chocolate) or step up your game a bit and add sesame seeds or cashews to your Bella Sweet Heats.  Chocolate makes a great foundation to build on!  Enjoy the flavors of chocolate, sesame, cashews plus that lingering flavor of “spicy” hot cinnamon.

Available in either milk or dark chocolate.  Available in “bark style” (break ups) or large cluster style.  Sold by the pound.

Ronald Regan never had to worry about this stuff.  Sure, the Berlin Wall came down during his time in office – plus he was associated with taking short naps during Staff Meetings and eating a lot of Jelly Beans – but the stakes are now much higher now.  Those folks on the east side of The Wall may be easily confused with Russians further to the east.  But now those pesky Russians have upped the ante.  Jelly Belly Beans have morphed into something akin to a game of Russian Roulette.  I did warn you, didn’t I….

Caring for and sharing your stash of Jelly Beans is nothing new.  But BeanBoozled Jelly Beans take it to a whole new level.  The new BeanBoozled Beans are packaged in a new, nifty box with colorful graphics on the outside. However, when was the last time you enjoyed a candy that requires a “legend” or “key”.  Some people would call this additional information a “fair warning”.  Beware kids!  Stranger danger!

Now you can “pay your money and take your chances…”  Ten different colors of jelly beans BUT 20 different flavors.  Sound like a good deal?  Then you better keep on reading…

Flavor Danger – Beware!

The boys in the Taste Department at Jelly Belly have mixed up a few treats AND a few surprises.  Sure – you could just flip a coin and plunge ahead.  But a little strategy or Game Theory may be in order.  Basic math tells me that you have a 50 percent chance of getting a treat and a 50 percent chance of getting a “stinker”.   But who wants to look for that old textbook to read about probability and statistics.   Nope.   Not me!   Too easy!

And some of these flavors are downright weird!  When was the last time you looked forward to chewing on an “ear wax” flavored jelly bean.  O.K. – possibly back in Third Grade – but since you probably made it through Graduate School – you should know better.  My strategy?  Let the OTHER person reach in and take a chance.  If you are lucky – THEY pick up the Skunk Spray flavor, gag or possibly Up-Chuck – then you both get a laugh as you walk out of the room to have lunch…A great way to end that boring 3:00 pm Staff Meeting.

Get my drift?  Don’t be a hero.  Share the wealth!  Kinda’ like opening a door for a Senior Citizen – only to have them get hit by a bus!  Whoa…I’m kidding!  Jelly beans, Retro candy and chocolate candy is available from the Bella Mia Candy Store.

Why not put a few of these Jelly Belly beans in a dessert bowl during Super Bowl Sunday?   BeanBoozled Jelly Beans might just have those Big Guys running for the exits. Revenge is best served in a bowl!  Enjoy!

"New School" Bag Style

It seems that many visitors to the Bella Mia Candy Store are in “search of toffee knowledge” or perhaps just a Higher Existence!  Nestle Mackintosh Toffee fans are their name and toffee recipes are their game!  What the heck is going on in YOUR kitchen? 

"Old School" Mack Toffee

From grams to ounces, from bars to pieces, to what is the weight, from bags to bars (and back again…) – a lot of questions have been pouring in regarding Nestle Mackintosh Toffee – also known to Canadian toffee fans as “Mack Toffee”.   Just take a gander at this search queries & questions that showed up this week: 

Bella Mia Candy Store has all (if not most…) of the answers to all of your toffee questions:

Yes
No
56grams
170gram bags
1 gram = 0.0352739619 ounces
Maybe
Perhaps
6 or 7 pieces
Right Here!

Unfortunately, it’s up to you to match the correct answer to the applicable question…Still have a question or two?  Need to know more?  Looking for a reliable source of Mackintosh Toffee?  Need to get it delivered promptly, cheaply, or need your toffee delivered on a Saturday morning?  Having problems coping with Cookie Exchanges during the Holidays?  Always wanted to bake a batch of toffee flavored cookies using Granny’s time-tested recipe but you don’t know how to convert from grams to ounces?  Don’t have a copy of Granny’s recipes?

Then try one of these toffee recipes…You would have found them eventually: 

Mackintosh Mack Toffee Brownies
Mackintosh Mack Toffee Squares
Mackintosh Mack Toffee  Marshmallow Puffs

We suggest you order a bag (or two, or three, or four…) of Nestle Mackintosh Toffee pieces.  New shape.  New packaging.  Same flavor, texture and consistency.  Not too hard – Not too soft – Just Right!  Open a piece and chew up a storm of Canadian toffee flavor!

Toffee Grams to Ounces

You can spend a lot of time visiting every grocery store in your area – and don’t forget about all of those smaller convenience stores in your neighborhood – but you are NOT likely to find your Mackintosh Toffeeanywhere!  The traditional “slab” or “flat bar” format is long gone – some say that a fire destroyed the factory while other toffee freaks whisper among themselves that there was some mysterious industrial sabotage behind Nestle’s production problem – but whatever urban legend you want to believe – the problem is still the same.  Just where can you buy your Mack Toffee?  Mackintosh Toffee in the original format is just not around anymore.  All of the fun of freezing your toffee bars, then slamming them hard against a counter top is over!  Let it go!

However, if you still have your favorite toffee recipe that requires Mackintosh Toffee ingredients, Bella Mia Candy Store suggests you consider a bag of individually wrapped pieces of Mackintosh Toffee.  These colorful 170 gram bags are filled with about 20 individually wrapped pieces and, with a little bit of Metric Math you can convert grams to “ounces” for your favorite recipe.

Everything you need to solve your culinary equation is on the back of the Mack Toffee bag …Asking yourself just how many Mack Toffee pieces are in an ounce?  O.K. – let’s peek at the backside (no, not yours…) – I am now referring to the back of the Mackintosh Toffee bag that is…)   Here is what the Bella Mia Candy Store suggests:

The traditional “slab” style of Mackintosh Toffee Bar weighted 56 grams [ 1 gram = 0.0352739619 ounces ]  Therefore, a 56 gram bar of Mackintosh Toffee converts to 1.975 ounces.  The new 170 gram bag (individually wrapped toffee pieces) equals 5.9966 ounces – so just round that to 6 ounces…Information on the back of the bag indicates that 5 pieces = 40 grams = 1.41 ounces.   Divide that by 5 = weight of each piece = 0.282 = so round that to .30 ounces

Voila!  Each individually wrapped piece = 0.3 ounces –  Therefore, 6.5 to 7 wrapped pieces = 1.97 ounces = 56 grams = 1 bar (old style)

Once you solve your personal culinary equation – you might want to try this recipe!

Toffee Cornflake Squares

6 bars Macintosh Toffee (hopefully you were paying attention – if not review your metric math solution just one more time…)
1/2 can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup butter
8 cups cornflakes

Melt butter, toffee and add Eagle Brand condensed milk until well mixed and melted, stirring mixture constantly so it doesn’t burn.  Pour over Cornflakes and stir the mixture until everything is well coated.  Pat into greased 9 x 13 pan.  Let it cool, then cut into squares or drop into mounds on cookie sheet.  Yum!

What’s in it you ask? Well, you start with three scoops of Perry’s  

MoJo At Rest

ice cream – you can pick from either Vanilla or Chocolate or just mix them together.  The MoJo Sundae is topped with Peanut Butter Sauce and Hot Fudge Sauce, then you sprinkle some crumbled Oreo cookies on the top, add a squirt (or two) of whipped cream then finish off the whole she-bang with a bright red cherry on top!  Whooeee!  What could be better for you?  Not much!  Certainly beats a dish of dry dog food for dinner…

Actually, I’m not allowed to eat ANY chocolate (especially any one those Canadian Candy Bars or those delicious looking British Candy Bars that just came in…) or have ANY Hot Fudge Sauce – but I have been known to dip my hairy chin into a large bowl of Vanilla ice cream that is sometimes enhanced with a dollop of peanut butter sauce.  After all, ice cream is just frozen milk and we all know how good calcium is for your body.  A small but growing dog needs all the calcium it can get.  And yes, too much Peanut Butter Sauce is definitely not good for my slim physique – but what the heck, you’re only a dog once!  And remember, every calendar year puts 7 years on MY clock – so please don’t tell me it will shorten my life.  I fact, don’t tell me any short jokes at all!

Unless you live in Western New York, there is absolutely NO way you are going to get your hands (or a spoon…) into a MoJo Sundae – but you can still dream!  In fact, that is how I spend most of my days – laying around the house, sleeping and dreaming.  My day is sometimes broken up by an occasional pee break when I can get outside in the yard.

And no, the Boss won’t let me spend any time in his Bella Mia Candy Store due to those pesky Erie County, NY Health Department regulations, but it doesn’t bother me anymore.  I learned long ago to put on my “sad face”, hang around the kitchen after dinner and presto – a scoop of Perry’s Vanilla Ice Cream shows up in my bowl.  Life Is Good!

If you ever get a chance to try my MoJo Sundae, give me some feedback on FB.  I won’t be able to reply, but I always enjoy it when someone reads me the email.

Hey – Gotta’ go and chase a bus!

O.K. – sit down and take a coffee break, or candy break, or whatever!  Our contacts in the Nestle Marketing Department in Ontario, Canada have confirmed that the traditional MackIntosh Toffee Bar can be filed under “Long Gone”…So let it go!

However, don’t panic!  What YOU can do is consider Plan “B” – which is MackIntosh Toffee pieces that are individually wrapped and sold in 170 gram bags – that would be about a 6 ounce bag for all of you metrically challenged folks out there.  Works out to about 20+ pieces per bag.  Should be enough to get you through a long day at work, sustain you in the library working on those Calculus problems or keep your blood sugar levels up while you are sitting around the Student Center watching the girls walk by.  In my case, it was usually watching the girls say “Bye-Bye” – but that’s another story for another day…

Bella Mia Candy Store thinks that either a 2 Item Pre-Pack or a 4 Item Pre-Pack will work out for you.  Enough to get along on your own – or if you want to be the “Big Man On Campus” – then our 4 item pre-pack can be passed around and you can still expect to get a few pieces back for later.  Nothing worse that trying to be generous and getting bit on the ass.  As my mother used to tell me: “…The road to Hell is paved with Good Intentions…”

Added Bonus:  if you are into the culinary scene, you can toss a bag of MackIntosh Toffee into your freezer for a few hours, take it out and put a few on the kitchen counter, then beat the “Be-Jesus” out of them to make smaller toffee bits – feel free to toss a few of the toffee pieces into your favorite cookie recipe.  We think that toffee flavor tastes great in almost any cookie.

The Marketing Department at Mars must be from another planet…Definitely NOT Mars…What were these guys thinking?

Delicious chocolate covering a tasty coconut center!

  If you have not been tuned to the Chocolate Channel or the Candy Channel this week – you may not have heard that Mars lost a legal battle when they tried to trademark the “shape” of their Bounty Bar.  Can you imagine what it cost to make the legal claim based on the unique shape of their candy bars?  Obviously, not a strong enough of a case to hold up in court…Nice try though… 

There may be two distinctive pieces inside each Bounty Bar – but surely whatever machine squeezes and shapes “The Twins” before they get wrapped and packed at the candy factory can’t be that unique.  Come On Folks – it’s just a candy bar – True, the Bounty Bar is a tasty little gem.  Even Saddam Hussein had a few Bounty Bars in his stash when he was found!  Now that is definitely a strong endorsement…What else comes to mind?  Mutiny On The Bounty?  A movie based on a “boat load” of candy in a wooden ship sailing around Tahiti?  Life can be good. Bella Mia Candy Store has plenty of Bounty bars in stock.  We import them directly from our distributor in Canada so there is no need to worry about the “sell by” date.  If you are in the Buffalo, NY area – stop in at our retail store and say hello.  You never know – if Tom The Boss is making a few of his locally infamous chocolate creations – he may even offer up a sample.  Doesn’t hurt to ask!

Aye Aye Captain Bligh!

Oh – No!  Not again!  Why can’t we just all get along?  Allegations of price fixing?  I remember something about that from Economics 101.  Oligopoly come to mind?  Thought so…Many serious chocolate fans may have been over paying too much for too long.  Or that’s what a few of the Government (G-Men) have to say…I can see as a well informed consumer, and assuming that my eyeglasses still work – that the product size has been shrinking while candy bar prices have either been steady or in the worse case, actually going up.  Now that is what the Bella Mia Candy Store calls a “double whammy”…

In the short run, I can see no solution.  If you like chocolate, you LIKE chocolate.  If chocolate manufacturers raise their prices, you probably will buy the same amount of their products and hopefully just chew a little slower or let the chocolate melt in your mouth just a little longer.  In the long run you will pay more – we saw that with copper, gasoline and a many other commodities last year…

There are just more of us (a reference to the Human Race of course..) and many things on Gods Little Garden (aka our Planet Earth) are finite in supply.  I don’t plan on eating any Soylent Green in my lifetime – but you never know.  Could be that Aunt Martha has to be recycled as a Protein Bar – you just never know.  I’m going to put my faith on the side of  of Modern Science!  But when it comes to price fixing and my candy bars – well, I have to draw the line somewhere.  As I get older, I appreciate more and more that there is “so much chocolate and so little time…”  So I better get crackin’ on trying any ( and all ) of the high quality chocolate and candy bars made in North America – possibly The World!

Since the Bella Mia Candy Store is right next to Canada, we get to bring you any ( and all ) of the “hard-to-find” Cadbury, Nestle and Kinder and will ship from our Retail Store directly to your door step.  We hope in our car, make the short drive across The Mighty Niagara River using any of the three Bridges that connect us to our neighbors to the north…and voila, we are in Wonka Chocolate Land!  And if the Bridge Traffic isn’t too bad, and the Customs and Border Patrol let us back in – we can get these items shipped out to you in very short order.  Our products are always fresh and delivered to you just in time for that Family Reunion, Corporate Picnic or just a bonfire on the beach…Pick up a box of Cadbury Candy and pass it around – make friends in high & low places…Cadbury may not beat a Cold Beer on a hot summer day – but when the sun goes down and it’s time to watch another sunset – it sure tastes good!