Fall Flavor Frenzy: 5 Must-Try Pumpkin Spice Treats

 

Thanks to Starbucks and their iconic Pumpkin Spice Latte (also known as PSL), the arrival of fall is now synonymous with the warm, inviting flavors of pumpkin spice. This delightful blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves has transcended the beverage world and found its way into an array of treats and confections.

Let’s dive into some delicious ways to satisfy those PSL cravings now through November with creative pumpkin spice-inspired confections!

Photo credit: Amy’s Gourmet Apples

Pumpkin Spice Caramel Apples

Why not elevate the classic caramel apple with a pumpkin spice twist? For a limited time only, Amy’s Gourmet Apples dips a granny smith apple in caramel, before coating it in white chocolate. Lastly, the bottom is coated with graham cracker crumbs and topped off with a drizzle of orange chocolate for a seasonal spin.

Photo credit: Lore’s Chocolate

Pumpkin Seed Bark with Sea Salt

Get inspired by the flavors of fall with a pumpkin seed chocolate bark. Lore’s Chocolates sprinkles crispy, candied spiced pumpkin seeds and sea salt on top of dark chocolate. Put your own twist on this idea by adding chopped nuts, dried cranberries, or even candy corn. Your customers will love this festive treat!

Photo credit: Speckled Hen Chocolate Company

Pumpkin Spice Truffles

Craft rich, creamy pumpkin spice truffles by blending chocolate ganache with pumpkin puree and spices. RCI member Speckled Hen Chocolate Company makes a pumpkin truffle with real pumpkin, cream, butter, chocolate, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg all piped into an adorable mini chocolate pumpkin shell. 

Don’t have bite-sized pumpkin moulds? Consider rolling your pumpkin truffles in graham cracker crumbs or crushed pecans for an extra crunch.

Photo credit: Trolley Treats

Pumpkin Spice Popcorn

Add a twist to popcorn by drizzling it with white chocolate and sprinkling pumpkin spice seasoning on top. Trolley Treats adds pumpkin candies to their festive fall popcorn mix. This sweet-and-salty treat is perfect for movie nights or cozy fall gatherings. Package it in festive bags for a fun, shareable snack!

Photo credit: Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Company

Pumpkin Pie Peanut Butter Cups

If you love pumpkin and you love peanut butter, we can’t think of a better way to celebrate fall! Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Company blends natural peanut butter with pumpkin and pumpkin pie spices to make the ultimate fall confection. This concept could also be applied to a peanut butter meltaway recipe. Consider adding a sprinkle of crunchy graham cracker crumbs as a finishing touch.

These confectioners are embracing the pumpkin spice trend in creative ways, offering a variety of delicious options to satisfy consumers’ fall cravings. So go ahead, indulge in the flavors of autumn and make the most of this pumpkin spice frenzy!

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.

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Let’s Talk Turkey: 8 Ideas for Gobble-Worthy Chocolate Turkeys

 

After Halloween, we know you’re already preparing for the next holiday (and the next, and the next)! If you’re looking for new ideas to make your customers gobble more of your chocolate this Thanksgiving, then look no further! We’re sharing 8 gobble-worthy chocolate turkey ideas for everyone and every budget.

Photo credit: Quix Chocolate

Hand-Painted Chocolate Turkey Centerpiece
This beauty is for the Thanksgiving “host with the most” looking for a show-stopping fall centerpiece! Hand-painted, oversized moulded chocolates, like this one crafted by RCI Member Quix Chocolate in Ferndale, Michigan, also make for an eye-catching display in your retail store. Consider displaying a single large moulded piece, like this, to suggest special orders for large centerpieces.

Even if you sell one or none, these magnificent pieces can help represent your talent, artistry and broad range, along with serving as a conversation starter both in-store and online—so don’t miss an opportunity to show these items off through your social channels!

Other RCI members have shared how they use large moulded items as a holiday giveaway or raffle off with the proceeds going toward a local cause.

Photo Credit: Graham’s Chocolates

Chocolate Turkey Pop
There’s just an extra something special about moulded chocolates on a stick! We think this chocolate turkey pop by Graham’s Chocolates looks especially regal with the addition of a shiny orange bow, and the way it's styled in front of a festive stack of pumpkins really draws the eye.

Photo credit: The Madelaine Chocolate Company

Foil-Wrapped Mini Chocolate Turkey
Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful! We’re grateful for RCI Supplier Members, like The Madelaine Chocolate Company who makes high-quality chocolate moulded pieces like these cute foil-wrapped mini chocolate turkeys (and other moulded turkeys of literally every shape and size) so you don’t have to! We love how The Madelaine Chocolate Company shares lifestyle photos of their chocolate turkeys as part of picture-perfect table settings on their social media pages illustrating how their products can be used to elevate any Thanksgiving table.

Photo credit: Water’s Edge Chocolates

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Turkey
Before you go looking for the wishbone, let me tell you that this teeny, tiny turkey is actually a chocolate-covered strawberry made by RCI Member, Water’s Edge Chocolates of Tullahoma, Tennessee. Pretty convincing, if you ask us! If you already have a following of chocolate-covered strawberry lovers, you’re going to want to click here for a video tutorial by Taste of Home!

Photo credit: Bruce’s Candy Kitchen

Chocolate-Covered Nutter Butter^® Turkey

Transform your chocolate-covered Nutter Butter^® cookies into cute little turkeys with the addition of a turkey face sugar decoration and candy corn. If you don’t have these sugar decorations, consider using candy eyes and hand-piping the beak and wattle with colored chocolate. 

Photo credit: Bruce’s Candy Kitchen

Chocolate-Covered Oreo^® Turkey

RCI Member Bruce’s Candy Kitchen of Cannon Beach, Oregon shares another example of how to transform a chocolate-covered Oreo^® into a sweet turkey tom! We especially love the preview of their festive packaging in the background.

Photo credit: One Little Project

Peanut Butter Cup Turkey
If you make your own peanut butter cups or a similar round-shaped chocolate, or even a chocolate-covered sandwich cookie, use your imagination to create an elevated version of this turkey that is sure to be even more delicious than it is cute. Click here for a tutorial by One Little Project.

Photo credit: Frugal Coupon Living

Pretzel Stick Turkey
Everyone loves the salty, sweet combination of chocolate-covered pretzels! Here’s another idea that your customers are sure to gobble up! The addition of sugar eyes, a candy-coated chocolate and yes, more candy corn, to your chocolate-covered pretzel sticks concludes our compilation of gobble-worthy chocolate turkeys.

While Thanksgiving is probably not a big sales holiday for your business, any reason to catch the attention of shoppers before Christmas could lead to a big sales opportunity! Even if you don’t have time to try these ideas this year, we encourage you to try something new for Thanksgiving! With each sale, make sure to invite customers back to do their Christmas shopping or sign up for your 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.

5 Surprising Ways to use Sweet Potato in Confections this Fall

 

This week we’re gaining inspiration from one of the most underestimated fall ingredients—the sweet potato. While it’s unlikely that the sweet potato currently holds a spot in your collection of candy ingredients, we’re hoping you’ll give this surprisingly versatile super spud a chance to prove its worth in your candy kitchen this fall.

If sweet potato casserole is part of your family’s Thanksgiving spread, you may have thought to yourself, “this is good enough to be dessert!” That’s not just because of the gooey, toasted marshmallows on top. When roasted, sweet potatoes weep liquid which can be reduced to a naturally sweet, thick and creamy texture similar to caramel sauce. Add sugar, butter and heavy cream to make a more earthy variation of caramel or omit the dairy completely to make a vegan caramel.

Photo: Oh My Veggies

Spiced Sweet Potato Caramels
Like sweet potato casserole, but better! This recipe is similar to pumpkin caramel, but with pureed sweet potato. You could use canned sweet potato puree to save time, but more importantly, consider layering this caramel with marshmallow to achieve the full sweet-potato-casserole effect. Or coat in chocolate and top with sea salt, because, why not?!

Photo: Dude Sweet Chocolate

Dulce de leche and Sweet Potato
Though a turkey shape may be a timelier application here, we’re loving this combination of dulce de leche, sweet potato and sea salt encased in dark chocolate.

Photo: AllRecipes/Bruce’s Yams

Salted Cashew Sweet Potato Fudge
Although unexpected, canned yams and cashew butter contribute to the rich flavor of this fudge recipe. Give it a try and you may find it to be a new fall favorite.

 

Photo: Mission Chocolate

Sweet Potato Dark Chocolate Bar
Inspired by dulce de batata (a Dominican sweet potato pudding), this bean-to-bar chocolate maker uses sweet potato as substitute for animal milk in their vegan chocolate line.

Sweet Potato Caramel Sauce
This approach is not for everyone, but if you enjoy experimenting and can appreciate a very minimal ingredient list and/or want to grow your vegan customer base, this two-ingredient recipe for sweet potato caramel sauce may be worth a try. This sauce could be used for savory or sweet applications and could the base for a number of other sweet potato experiments.

Move over pumpkin and make room for the versatile sweet potato as a new favorite fall ingredient! Not only is the sweet potato a beloved addition to many holiday potlucks (shout out to sweet potato casserole and pie!), it is also a superstar in the vegan community. If you find the humble sweet potato as endearing as we do, share your sweet potato confections on RCI’s Facebook page @retailconfectioners.

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.

Snag this idea: Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa Bombs

 

This sweet idea from RCI partner, Tomric Chocolate Systems, combines two of the hottest trends this fall—pumpkin spice and a hot cocoa bomb all in one unmistakably fall package.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock recently, you’re likely well aware last year’s hot cocoa bomb trend is just as hot as ever. Stand out from the literal hundreds, if not thousands, of cocoa bombs on the market these days by offering something more unexpected, a pumpkin spice hot cocoa bomb, in the shape of—you guessed it—a pumpkin!

Photo credit: Tomric Systems

Click here for detailed instructions on how to recreate this exact look using Tomric’s H-855 mould and their recipe for pumpkin spice hot cocoa to fill your pumpkins!

Although today is National Pumpkin Day—this concept can be celebrated throughout November and can be marketed to customers as a fall holiday hostess gift or even as centerpieces for the Thanksgiving table. If this cute little gourd has you feeling inspired, look at your inventory of hollow moulds that could also be converted into unique hot cocoa bombs like this.

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.

Tip 208: 3 Ways to Add Holiday “Cheers” to Your Confections

Add a little holiday “cheers” to your confections this season. Perfect for holiday parties and gifts, we’ve curated three ideas from RCI members that incorporate beer, wine and spirits into their confections.

Joy Lyn's Candies makes Beer Brittle
and Jalapeno Beer Brittle

Beer Brittle

Joy Lyn’s Candies of Paradise, California partners with a local brewery to create a peanut brittle made with Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale. Coined as “Beer Brittle,” this popular confection is made in small batches and offers a subtle hint of hops and malt. Given the popularity of the product, Sierra Nevada has allowed Joy Lyn’s to display their logo prominently on the front of the brittle packaging. Joy Lyn’s continues to expand their line of Sierra Nevada flavored products, including a jalapeno beer brittle and a Hop Salt Sout Caramel, as its name suggests, the caramels are sprinkled with salt infused with hops.

Irish Whiskey Truffle Shots

Kakao Chocolate presented their Irish whiskey truffle shots
 to RCI members during Candy Clinic at the 2016
Annual Convention in Indianapolis.

Kakao Chocolate of St. Louis, Missouri has developed an indulgent Irish Whiskey Truffle Shot, by piping Irish whiskey ganache into recyclable sample cups and topped with cocoa nibs. When making the ganache, they add the whiskey at the end so the alcohol doesn’t cook out. If your store hosts a holiday open house, this would be a fun and unexpected treat for adult guests.

Elevated Candy Co. shared their black currant brandy-infused truffles
with RCI members during Candy Clinic at the 2016
Fall Conference in Vancouver, BC.

Black Currant Brandy-Infused Truffles

Elevated Candy Co. of Port Townsend, Washington took the popular pairing of wine and chocolate to create the Black Currant Truffle. This popular confection is made by incorporating a local black currant-infused brandywine into their ganache and finishing the piece with a dash of red Hawaiian alea sea salt.

There are countless ways to incorporate beer, wine and spirits into your confections. Here’s some more ideas (plus, recipes), sure to warm the belly during the cold-weather months ahead; cinnamon whiskey-infused marshmallows coated in chocolate, Beer and Pretzel Caramels or uber-trendy red wine hot chocolate.

If you decide to incorporate beer, wine or spirits into your confections, know that regulations vary from state to state. Check with your local liquor control commission and familiarize yourself with regulations put in place by your state, as many prohibit the sale of confections that contain alcohol.

Stay connected with RCI through Facebook for more tips and inspiration dedicated to the retail candy maker. Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tip # 206: Give Thanks with a Chocolate Cornucopia

Photo courtesy of Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate

Turn heads with this bountiful display, which can be filled with chocolates, chocolate-dipped fruits and other fall favorites. Remind shoppers through merchandising that this tasteful cornucopia would make for the perfect dressing for their holiday table or a welcome and thoughtful hostess gift.

Chocolate Cornucopia

Recipe courtesy of Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate

Materials needed:

• (1) 12” wicker cornucopia

• (1) one-gallon plastic storage bag

• roll of tape

• pastry brush or latex glove

• vegetable brush

Ingredients:

• Peter’s Lenoir™ semisweet chocolate

• non-toxic, fresh salal leaves*

• gold and copper luster dust (optional)

*Commonly known as lemon leaves. Available through floral supply shops.

Directions:

Cornucopia

Cover outside of 12” wicker cornucopia with a one gallon plastic storage bag, fitting snugly; secure with tape. Using a pastry brush or latex-gloved hand, apply three thick coats of Peter’s Lenoir™ semisweet chocolate over the surface, allowing each application to dry before adding the next. Remove wicker cornucopia; peel away and discard bag.

Chocolate Leaves 

Scrub non-toxic fresh salal leaves* with vegetable brush; rinse thoroughly and air dry. Use a small metal spatula to coat the back side of leaves with Peter’s Lenoir™ semisweet chocolate. Clean edges of excess chocolate. Chill until dry. Grasp leaf near the stem, gently pulling it away.

Decorating the Cornucopia  

Trim ragged edge of the open end. Attach large chocolate leaves along open end, overlapping and extending them slightly over the edge. Use increasingly smaller leaves until entire top and sides of cornucopia are covered. Brush with gold and copper luster dust (optional).

Learn techniques like this and others at RCI’s Chocolate Boot Camp in Waterbury, Connecticut February 20-23, 2017. Register now at retailconfectioners.org/bootcamp.

Stay connected with RCI through Facebook for more tips and inspiration dedicated to the retail candy maker. Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tip #172: Give thanks to your customers and staff year around!

 RCI members Peterbrooke Chocolatier (top) and Madelaine Chocolate Company (bottom)
showcase their turkey-time treats on social media.

Thanksgiving is the time of year when we all take pause to give thanks to the people and things that bless and enrich our lives. For businesses, this often takes form in a variety of thinly veiled ploys to lure shoppers in the doors for a sale or an open house. Not that there is anything wrong with this, because it is also the one of time of the year when shoppers are most willing to spend money. However, unless you are practically giving away flat-screen TVs or have pyramid display of this year’s Tickle-Me Elmo crowding the aisles, chances are you’ve got a lot of competition just to get shoppers in the door on Black Friday.

The point is, although Thanksgiving is a nice reminder to thank the people who make an impact in our lives, it shouldn’t be the only time we recognize loyal patrons for their business or celebrate a winning staff before they run the marathon of holidays. Plus, consider what kind of lasting impression a sincere gesture of gratitude makes when the reason for the gesture is just because.

Before planning a New Year’s Eve gala for your staff or customer appreciation event next March, keep in mind even small gestures can make a big impact when they are sincere.

Help Scout, a web-based help desk that empowers businesses to deliver exceptional customer service, compiled 25 ways to show your appreciation to customers and your team. Some of their ideas ooze with creativity and others are fail-proof but often forgotten. Click here to see what they've come up with. Chances are you will find at least one idea (or a dozen) that you could apply to your business.