I’ve always had a thing for sweeties. Time combined, I lost weeks of my childhood trawling the Woolworths’ pick n mix aisle, agonising over how best to spend my pocket money. Obviously you have to have milk bottles, American hard gums, cola cubes, strawberry pencils, cherry lips, fried eggs, Fruit Salads, Black Jacks, fizzy cola bottles. Actually, everything pre-fixed with the word fizzy. The foam banana things, oh and the shrimps. Add a few of those mushrooms covered in coconut while you’re there. Hang on, how did I not notice those giant jelly snakes?
Before you know it, you’re weighing in at more than 6 months’ worth of pocket money.
With Secondary school came sweet nirvana – a local sweet shop called ‘Sweet Nostalgia’. All olde-worlde, stacked to the rafters with jars of every sweet imaginable. It wasn’t on the way to school per se, but we came up with a new route. All I remember about far too many of my classes is that numb tongue feeling you get from eating aniseed balls. That, and serious jaw ache from scoffing a hell of a lot of bubble-gum millions.
Since then, I’ve had a whole host of sweet shaped addictions. Jelly Snakes became a problem for a while, particularly the yellow ones. Percy Pig (and his friends) were perhaps a little too familiar. And, strange though it may sound, Polo Fruits had a very special place in my heart for a time. Most recently, I got hooked on some Swedish sweets called Bilar. Hmm I wonder if there’s still a bag lurking around here somewhere. Probably not.
And then I discovered macarons, and it was inevitable that the two loves of my life would collide before long. And when they did, something beautiful happened.
Palma Violet Macarons, Sherbet Dib Dab Macarons + Jars of Mini Sweetie Macarons
Watch this space for more confectionery-charged macarooning around.
Which sweet-shop inspired macarons would be on your hit list? Post your ideas below..
Alice's Bakery 