FLYING SAUCERS

These are one of my all time favourites, taking me back to a childhood of local fairs and days out by the sea. My children equally love them and eat them exactly the same way, first making sure the sherbet filling is on one side then biting in half the rice paper casing, keeping the half with the sherbet in then putting the tongue in the half thats left and letting the sherbet and sugar casing dissolve.. yum! The sherbet-filled ricepaper discs, which have been around since the 1960s and remain a great favourite of many.

Clove Balls and Clove Rock

These sweets always remind me of a rather elderly lady who on a Sunday during service at church would ply us with clove balls in an attempt to keep us sat quietly. For some it worked, for others there was a quick attempt to try and get rid of the clove sweet without making too much of a scene. Whether loved or loathed, Clove balls have been around a very long time and still perform their function of cleansing the pallet today. Its pain relieving properties and numbing attributes of cloves are still used in medication especially for dental reasons to relieve toothache.
Yes it is an acquired taste but they are still deserving as having a major spot in the traditional sweets sections of many sweet shops today.

So, a little about where the Cloves sweets got there very unusual taste from, and that is mainly to do with its Clove ingredient.
The Clove itself is still used extensively today in cooking and medicine and comes from an evergreen tree normally found in Indonesia and India. The Cloves themselves are made from the flower buds of the tree which are first green but ready for harvesting when they turn a bright red colour. The clove is used extensively in medicinal treatment as a painkiller especially for dental reasons, so this may explain the popular use in a sweet that could be sucked, to relieve any pain from toothache.

So with a little bit of background I was interested to test these clove sweets on my two daughters (one of 15 and one of 9). I think the taste of the cloves for my 9 year old was a bit of a strange combination for a sweet, but my 15 yr old decided that it wasn't too bad. As for me it brings back plenty of memories and will always remain one of my favourites from by-gone days.

OUR LOCAL TRADITIONAL SWEET SHOP

We are lucky to have quite a traditional sweet shop locally where we get a lot of our sweets. Its one of those places that you walk in and are instantly transformed back to childhood with varieties of sweets you had forgotten. This is a lovely shop where all the sweets are displayed in their jars and literally fill the walls. Each week I will endeavour to purchase sweets from here and other smaller retailers locally and follow up with some pictures and tasting sessions! Its a hard job but someone has to do it .

If you arent as lucky as us to have a sweet shop like ours the there are places on the web to purchase these sweets. Some of the sites I have found for over the internet purchasing are..

http://bagsofsweets.co.uk/?gclid=CLr4i7_pzZsCFZ0U4wod7TsBKw

http://www.keepitsweet.co.uk/catalog/index.php/cPath/49/sort/2a/page/2

http://www.aquarterof.co.uk/index.php

These are just a few of the many that are on the internet... so happy shopping!

JUJUBES

Top : Tree from which jujube fruit grow, and above

dried jujube fruit

A prickly tree of the buckhorn family, with the unlikely name of the zisyphus, is the bearer of a plum like fruit with the even more unlikely name of the jujube. In the early part of the 19th century the juice of this fruit was used to flavour little gelatine lozenges, today the jujube is simply a fruit gum.

Preparation time : 30 minutes

Setting time : 24 hours

Makes : 700g (about 1 1/2 lb)

INGREDIENTS

175g (6 oz) dried apricots soaked overnight

OR

350g (12oz) fresh or frozen blackcurrants

275/300ml (1/2pt) water

450g (1lb) granulated sugar

50g (2oz) gelatine

150 ml (1/4pt) warm water

2 teaspoons lemon juice

FOR DECORATION

a little caster sugar

METHOD

1. Cook the apricots in 275/300ml (1/2pt) water until they are soft then sieve or liquidise them.

This will yeald approximately 275/300ml (1/2pt) thick puree. If you are using frozen

blackcurrants, put them un thawed without water until they are soft, and sieve and liquidise

them in the same way as the apricots.

2. Return the puree to the saucepan, add the granulated sugar and heat gently till it dissolves.

3. Meanwhile put the gelatine in a bowl containing 150ml (1/4pt) of warm water and place the

bowl over a saucepan filled with boiling water. Place the pan over a low heat until the gelatine

has dissolved.

4. Stir the gelatine and then the lemon juice into the sugar syrup.

5. Rinse a 18cm (7in) square sandwich tin under a cold tap and strain the mixture into it. Leave

the mixture to set overnight.

6. Cut into squares with a hot knife and toss the jujubes in caster sugar.

7. Serve in paper sweet cases and serve quickly as they do not store well.

BARLEY SUGAR

In his poem 'John Barley Corn', Robert Burns 1759-1796 declared Barley to be the king of grain, and the scots are justly proud of the bannocks of barley, their barley water and barley sugar. A recipe from John Notts cook and confectioners dictionary 1723 explains how you must first boil the barley in water and then strain it through a hair sieve. This modern recipe uses tangy lemon zest and juice for the flavouring instead of barley.

Preparation time : 50 minutes

Cooling time : about 30 minutes

Makes : 450g (1lb)

INGREDIENTS

450g (1lb) granulated sugar

6 lumps of sugar

1 lemon

200ml (7 fl oz) warm water

METHOD

1. Place the granulated sugar in a large heavy based pan. Rub the sugar lumps all over the lemon

to absorb all the lemon oil and add these lumps to the sugar and add the warm water.

2. Stir to melt the sugar lumps, then place the pan over a low heat until the sugar has completely

dissolved. Brush the sides of the pan with a warm pastry brush to remove any undissolved

sugar.

3. When the syrup is quite clear, bring it to the boil and heat to 132c (270f). Remove the pan

from the heat.

4. Squeeze the juice from half a lemon and strain it into the pan, slowly stirring it into the syrup.

5. Replace the pan onto the heat and bring the temperature slowly up to 152c (305f).

6. Remove the pan from the heat, allow the bubbles to subside and then pour the mixture onto a

marble slab or enamel tray.

7. Allow it to cool for about 2 - 3 minutes.

8. Using a sugar scraper bring the mixture together into a neat, rectangular shape. Working it

very quickly use scissors to cut the barley sugar into pieces 1.5 x 15 cm (1/2 x 6 in). Roll the

pieces out to an even thickness or flatten them with your hand and then twist them.

9. Place each twist on a sheet of non stick greaseproof paper. As the twists cool they will flatten a

little, but it should be possible to twist them back while they are still pliable. They will cool in

about 30 minutes and should be put in an air tight container immediately, as they will become

sticky if exposed to the air.

10. Wrap them in different coloured cellophane papers, as they will be deteriorate if left

unwrapped.

HONEYCOMB

This sweet is typical of the Sussex region. At the beginning of the last war, hundreds of children from south-east London were evacuated to Sussex. For many of them it was the first time they had seen the countryside, and also the first time they had tasted this home made sweetmeat, which even in rationing time could be an occasional luxury since the recipe calls for only half the amount of sugar usually used in sweet making. The honey comb should be eaten as quickly as possible (good news for sweet toothed people!) because it soon becomes sticky when it is exposed to the air.

Preparation time : 30 minutes

Setting time : 40 minutes

Makes : 350 g (12 oz)

INGREDIENTS

150 ml (1/4 pt) cold water

1 tablespoon golden syrup

225g (8oz) granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon warm water

METHOD

1. Put the cold water into a heavy based saucepan. Add the golden syrup, sugar and cream of

tartar. Place the pan over a low heat and stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar has

dissolved and the ingredients are well blended. Raise the heat to bring the mixture to the boil

without stirring. Continue to boil over a high heat until it reaches 154c (310f)

2. Meanwhile grease a 18cm (7in) square sandwich tin with butter.

3. As soon as the syrup mixture reaches the required temperature remove the saucepan from

the heat. Quickly mix in the bicarbonate of soda with the teaspoon of warm water and

immediately add that to the syrup mixture and stir in gently.

4. Pour the mixture into the greased tin and leave the honeycomb to set in a cool place. Mark the

honeycomb into squares just before it sets.

5. Eat it without delay as soon as it softens and goes sticky.

LEMON PASTILLES

In early tudor times pastilles were a little aromatic tablets, 'kindes of mixtures of paste to perfume withal', that were burned sick rooms too dispell evil humours! But by the end of the 17th century the word had more or less presumed its present meaning - that a flavoured lozenge of sugar paste that was sucked to sweeten the breath or bring ease to a sore throat. Early georgian dandies used to carry pastilles scented with apricot, cinnamon or orange flowers in their waistcoat pockets as a shield to the social hazards of the day! Lemon pastilles were probably invented at about the same period. They are highly refreshing and help, to ward off the fatigue of driving. ( I remember my Nan always having them in the car for long journeys)

Preparation time : 30 minutes

Setting time : 12 hours

Makes : 450 g (1 lb)

INGREDIENTS

350 g (12 oz) caster sugar

600 ml (1 pint) apple puree unsweetened

40g (1 1/2 oz) gelatine

75 ml (2 1/2 fl oz) cold water

1 tablespoon lemon juice or lemon essence

a few drops of lemon colouring (optional)

FOR THE COATING

2 teaspoons of cornflour

2 teaspoons caster sugar

METHOD

1. Place the apple puree and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over a low heat until really

thick, stirring occasionally.

2. Dissolve the gelatine in the water and add it to the apple mixture

3. Take the pan off the heat and add the lemon juice or lemon essence.

4. Add the colouring if required. Mix together using a wooden spoon and pour the mixture into a

non stick tin about 28 x 18 cm ( 11 x 7 in) and at least 2.5cm (1 in) deep. Leave to set for

about 12 hours.

5. When it has set, cut it into squares using a hot dry knife and remove them from the tin.

6. Mix the sugar and cornflour together. Roll each of the pastilles in the coating mixture and

place them into a paper sweet case.