Maybe since the printer malfunctioned this year and many Sweethearts won’t have messages — “Be Mine,” “Love Bug,” and such — we’ll finally give up on the season’s worst candy that for some reason remains popular.
Every February, we seem to forget what experience has taught us and toss a couple of those tiny message hearts into our mouths. Disappointment sets in as we’re reminded the texture is repulsive. And what’s with the trick that they all taste the same? It seems that nostalgia can rule our taste buds.
Sweethearts almost stayed in the past where they belong, but public outcry brought them back: In 2018, when the owners of Sweethearts — the New England Confectionery Company, aka NECCO — went out of business, the brand was soon scooped up by Spangler Candy Company.
How can such a cute little candy taste so terrible? What I’ve gleaned from my classes on confectionary science is that this chalky, crunchy texture and flavor — or lack thereof — all comes down to how these candies are made.
The recipe for the chalk-flavored hearts is simple: First, mix together corn syrup, table sugar, gelatin, and gums (tragacanth, xanthan, acacia) with water to make the…
