Dear Santa...

We've been very good this year (so far).  It's a little early for this but since the holiday season gets busy both at BBx and at The North Pole, we thought we'd get our Dear Santa in early.

If it's not too much trouble, please send us a double twist wrapping machine for Christmas this year.  Either that or maybe loan us some of your elves?  We pay in candy and we saw Elf so we know how much elves like candy...

Also, will you take caramels and bourbon in the place of cookies and milk?  Let us know, we're flexible but we've got a really nice Maple + Bacon caramel coming out if you're into it...

Thanks in advance for all your help,
The BBx Team

Our Ingredients: Coconut Palm Nectar

The primary sugar used in Barbary Brix caramels is the delightfully healthy and delicious Coconut Palm Nectar! We use it for a lot of meritorious reasons, which I will now illuminate for you below...

1. It's the most environmentally sustainable sweetener crop in the WORLD! Well, at least according The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)...
2. It's lower glycemic than almost any other sugar!
3. It's good for you with vitamins, mineral and enzymes your body needs!
4. It tastes delicious on its own or in other foods - especially caramel!

I know what you're thinking... "Prove it!" So here goes...

Coconut Palm uses a very small amount of water compared to other sweetener crops. In addition, it is grown in tropical climates with lots of rain so the farmers don't have to do any irrigating. The plants themselves produce a very high yield of nectar for a small crop area and they also - get this - REPLENISH nutrients in the soil rather than depleting it. In addition, the farmers don't have to destroy the plant to harvest the nectar, making the sugar a renewable resource. On top of all that, unlike conventional sugars like white sugar (mostly made from GMO beets) the Coconut Palm Nectar is unrefined so it retains the vitamins, minerals, and enzymes your body needs in order to digest it well. Which, brings me to my next point - when you talk about lower glycemic sweeteners, it doesn't get much lower than this.

What exactly does that mean and why should you care? To get a really easy-to-understand explanation of how different types of sugars are broken down in your body, read our guest blogger, Alex Mart's post here! In the meantime, to make it short and sweet (pun intended), when your body processes sugars it needs certain enzymes and nutrients to do it without causing a huge spike in blood sugar.

Coconut Palm Sugar is loaded with B-vitamins, macro-nutrients like Potassium and Zinc, and plenty of good enzymes your body needs. Eating nutritious sugars, like this, allow your body to break the carbohydrates down gradually without depleting your stored mineral and vitamin resources. So, this is obviously good for everyone but the lower glycemic index make it especially good for diabetics, people with hypoglycemia and children who suffer from sugar-induced spastic episodes (so pretty much ALL of them).

Wanna see a comparison chart of different sugars' nutrient content? Check it!

Last, but certainly not least is the fact that Coconut Palm Nectar tastes amazing and is a perfect addition to our caramels. Not too sweet but rich and complex, it creates layers of flavor so you end up with a smooth, fragrant caramel that tastes like caramel, not sugar. Don't believe us? SF Weekly food writer, Jon Kauffman, recently described the flavor by saying: "While the Barbary Brix sweets are as sticky as conventional sugar caramels, the rice and coconut sweeteners give them a deeper, most complex flavor — similar to the difference between a piece of toast smeared with butter-flavored Crisco and one slathered in Irish cultured butter." You can read more of his review here.

Are you also wondering where we get ours from? I'll tell you anyway! While over two thirds of the ingredients in our products are local, there aren't currently any Northern California coconut palm farms so we import this ingredient from Big Tree Farms, a sustainable co-op of small scale farmers in Bali. The technique used by these farmers to collect the nectar is the least damaging to the tree as it involves collecting nectar from the flower (inflorescence) rather than "tapping" the tree for sap. Big Tree Farms' Coconut Palm Nectar is the most eco-friendly Palm Nectar on the market today and we feel great about their commitment to social and ecological responsibility.

Want to read more?? Here's some cool links:

• The FAO Report on Coconut Palm
• This research report from The Asian Palm Utilization and Conservation Project discusses the uses of palm in Asia and, specifically, addresses the merits of the three main collection methods used for harvesting nectar for sugar.
• Lots more about Big Tree Farms Coconut Palm Nectar: The Product Facts, FAQ
• http://www.naturalnews.com/028996_palm_sugar_natural_sweetener.html

Awesome Stuff Series: ColcaSac

Heyoooo! Sugar here...

So, I recently replaced my old, antiquated iBook with a shiny new laptop, which I desperately needed after leaving my desk job for the world of better-for-you sweets! Of course, I also needed a way to protect my little efficiency facilitator from damage so I went on the hunt for a case. I was looking for something that, like Barbary Brix candy, was made with quality, sustainable materials in a responsible manner.

What did I find? Only the coolest electronics case company out there, ColcaSac!! Not only are these babies handmade using sustainable materials but they are affordable and the company itself belongs to 1% For The Planet to boot! You can choose from tons of different designs for your iPad, MacBook, iPhone, or Kindle. They even make shoulder bags!!

I've been using my Lappy (aka laptop) sleeve for over a month now and it's FANTASTIC. I love how soft and snugly it fits. Speaking of snuggling, I feel like I'm tucking it into a fuzzy, warm sleeping bag every time I put it away. (Sweep tight, wittle Wappy!!) Bottom line, it looks great, does its job, and makes me feel good knowing how it's made. Needless to say, I'm a huge fan and I'm not the only one:

The iPad Fan Review

Mobile Tech Review

Buy Me an iPhone Video Review

ColcaSac has the Official Sugar Stamp of Approval!

BBx Caramel Bread Puddin' Recipe!! Try it today if you want to be popular.

Making bread pudding is like cheating at culinary skills!  It’s SO easy and SO satisfying.  We created a super simple caramel-inspired recipe that anyone can master on the first try.  Promise.  Impress your friends with amazing cooking skills you never knew you had!  You’ll be the most popular kid in the book club (or whatever club)!  We won’t tell anyone how easy it was if you won’t…


The recipe instructions are in the text below but check out this video for the step-by-step...

Quick notes:

We highly recommend you use a “Good” sugar!  You know, an organic one that isn’t over processed so you get all the nutrients and enzymes your body needs to digest it well.  For example: coconut palm nectar, evaporated cane juice, honey, brown rice syrup, agave, etc. Keep in mind, depending on the type of sugar you use, it may be more or less sweet.  You can change the quantity of the GRANULATED sugars in the recipe to your liking without affecting the way the dish turns out but be careful with the SYRUPs – they add more liquid.  If you substitute with one of the syrups, we recommend you use ~1 cup of syrup and use ½ c LESS of either cream or milk.

You can use ANY of our delicious caramel chews in this recipe.  Just remember, if you are using a variation with vanilla bean, chocolate, nuts and/or spices, you might want to omit one of those ingredients below.

Now, let’s do this thing!

Ingredients:

1 loaf fresh, soft bread (like brioche or challah) cut into ¾” - 1” cubes

3 Eggs

4 Egg yolks

¾  c. Sugar

3 c. Cream + 2 c. Milk (or 5 c. Whole Milk if you’re skimping on fat)

4 T. Sweet butter (aka unsalted), melted

¾ t. Salt

1 Vanilla Bean Pod, scraped (optional)

1 t. Ground Cinnamon (optional)

10-15 Salty Dog caramel chews cut into quarters

½ c. Chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

½ c. Chocolate chips (optional)

Lots of LOVE (Mom’s secret ingredient; works like magic.)

Equipment:

Small saucepan

Cutting board + knife

Baking sheet(s)

Medium mixing bowl

Large prep bowl

Electric beater or wire whisk

Greased 9x13 Baking Pan

Directions:

Gettings Started..

1. Preheat oven to 325°.
2. Spread your bread cubes out in a single layer on one or a couple of baking sheets.
3. Bake for 15 minutes to dry them out a bit.
4. Remove from oven and let cool.  Set aside in large prep bowl.
5. In small saucepan, melt your sweet butter and set aside.
6. Use small amount of melted butter to grease your baking pan and set aside.
7. Scrape your Vanilla Bean!  Not sure how?  Watch Sugar demonstrate or just cut it open the long way and fold it out flat.  Then use the back part of your knife to scrape the tiny little “seeds” out and set them aside.  The skin is potent so don’t throw it away!  Add it to a jar or bag of sugar and in no time at all you’ll have yummy Vanilla Sugar.  No vanilla bean pods??  Substitute with 2 t. Vanilla Extract.
8. Unwrap  your caramel pieces and cut them into smaller pieces by quartering them.  Set aside for later.

Now for the custard! 

1. Separate  your eggs!  Not sure how??  Check out Sugar's video demonstration or google it!  It’s easy.  You can save the remaining egg whites in the fridge for up to FOUR days to use in other things or just cook with a little salt and pepper for breakfast.
2. In medium mixing bowl, beat egg, egg yolks and sugar until a little bit frothy, about 1 ½ to 2 minutes.
3. Add in the cream and milk to your eggs as you mix.
4. Add vanilla bean (or extract), salt and cinnamon and mix until combined. 
5. (Just be nice to your custard and don’t over-beat it!)

The final pre-cookin’ steps!

1. In your large prep bowl, drizzle melted butter over your bread cubes and toss with your hands to get them all good and coated.  You can do this in stages, drizzling a bit then tossing, then drizzling some more, and so on.
2. Add caramel pieces, nuts and chocolate chips and continue tossing with your hands to coat as well.
3. Transfer your bread and goodies to your baking pan, making sure the goodies don’t all fall to the bottom of the pan but are evenly dispersed throughout the bread.
4. Pour your custard evenly over the top of the bread mixture, smooshing it in there nice and good with your hands.  The bread is going to act like a custard sponge so make sure they all soak plenty up!
5. Cover and store in the refrigerator for at least an hour (or up to a day).

Cook it up!

1. When you’re ready to cook it up, take your puddin’ out of the fridge while you preheat your oven to 350° and cook for 30-45 minutes or until it is cooked through (custard should be “set” or not runny) and golden brown on top.
2. Serve warm!  You can even add a scoop of your favorite ice cream or any dessert sauce if that suits your fancy.
3. Enjoy!  :)

COMING SOON! Recipe + Video: Sexy Caramel Bread Puddin'!!

In the short term, check out our trailer for a taste of what's to come...

Also available on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixTCAdasjy8

Or a 15 second clip on Tout: http://www.tout.com/tzh4k9

-Sug

What's this moustachey-looking thing in my bag of Emperor Norton?

To answer that question, first let's talk about The Captain's Secret 'Stache. Captain Sugar Bugs, the mastermind behind our delicious caramels, likes to keep things exciting by whipping up a little special something here and there; something different from our standard offerings.

Two months ago we offered The Mother Lode. We used our lowest-glycemic, most nutritious Bold-Fashioned recipe as the base caramel and topped it with a big dose of raw, organic cocoa nibs. Widely considered to be a superfood, no less! We like to think it's as close to a health food as you'll get in a piece of candy. This caramel has been so popular that we made another tiny batch and still have some in stock (for now).

This past month, we created The Emperor Norton. Like the Emperor, himself, it's pretty nutty! This yummy chew also uses our Bold-Fashioned caramel as the base and is infused with a touch of cinnamon and a lot of raw, California walnuts from a local family farm.

So, in honor of the Captain's Secret 'Stache, we've included a bonus "beerstache" in each and every bag! This is a versatile 'stache that can be attached to the mouth of any bottle (water bottles, beer bottles, soda bottles, etc.) to add a touch of class to every sip, all compliments of yours truly, Captain Sugar Bugs!

Enjoy your 'stache responsibly...

TAKE A POLL! Also, what people are saying about Barbary Brix caramel...

Well, it's official. People seem to love these little guys! We knew our family and friends wouldn't all be lying to us about how yummy they are but now that this product is getting out there to friends-of-friends and, well, perfect strangers alike, it has been exciting to hear the overwhelmingly positive feedback! Here's some of the things people have been saying:

"Yum! Now all other caramel is ruined for me forever..."

"Woah." [Taster scans frantically for a place to sit then plops down.]

"My dad, who hates sweets, destroyed the entire bag before my mom could get ONE."

"Your caramels make my heart sing."

"The Distinguished Gentleman saves lives." [From a diabetic person who used a bag to avert a blood sugar crash.]

"These are the best caramel candies I've ever tasted!"

"This is so good that if [REDACTED]s tasted like this, I'd become a lesbian."

"These are dangerously good!"

"Huh...I thought I hated caramel. Guess I was wrong."

"Your candy is habit-forming!"

Some of the adjectives we hear a lot are: soft, buttery, amazing, melty, delicious, creamy, orgasmic.

Some of the expletives we hear a lot are: wow, whoa, mmmm, holy $*!#.

We LOVE the feedback and love that people are enjoying our caramel! It is humbling and exciting and keeps us going, knowing we have something to offer that is satisfying and enjoyable but also is better-for-you than other similar candy and more eco-friendly to boot!

In terms of popularity, our Salty Dog has prevailed as the most popular but the Eligible Heiress and the Distinguished Gentleman aren't doing too shabby in the rankings. The devotees of the Bold-Fashioned and Madam Moxie are die hard and loyal. What's your favorite?

Moving on to other important topics, another thing we've been consistently hearing is a desire for a Variety Bag! Well, we're defo working on it but your feedback is super duper valuable, so help us out! Go on and vote on what combinations you'd like to see us offer!

TAKE THE POLL!

Hugs,

Sug

Everybody's workin' for the weekend...

Hey there ladies and gents!

Happy happy new year to you all!! It's been a little while since we've made a post but we haven't forgotten about you nor your tastebuds during this most frenetic time of the year.

This week I've been spending my days downtown doing an office temp gig 8-5, M-F. While I don't feel like I've been out of the corporate grind for thaaaaat long, there's lots of things I forgot about that go along with it, things both cool and not so cool. Such aaaaaaasssss:

• Having an acute awareness of the actual day of the week at all times (i.e. Ugh, it's Monday. Yay, Hump Day! Is it Friday yet??);
• When your computer or technology goes berserk, you can call up a guy in this magical place called "Eye Tee" and he'll come fix it;
• Being on a routine daily schedule (my body is totally going to wake itself up at 600a tomorrow, isn't it? Boo.);
• There are a lot of people who go to offices every day who secretly - or not so secretly - LOATHE IT;
• The exorbitant amount of money people spend on coffee (are we in the wrong business?);
• And, maybe my favorite...the free food and all the sparkle water I can drink!

I suppose like anything, the life of the forty-hour-a-week office drone has its pros, like health insurance and paychecks, as well as cons, like having to ride MUNI every day, but I think for now I'll try to stick primarily to Plan A: Build Better Candy Empire. (Fingers crossed Plan A starts to pay the bills around here sooner rather than later so I'm not doing temp gigs forever.)

On that note, we don't want any of you adoring fans out there to think that BBx has gone dormant; not the case at all. It's true that we had a whirlwind, exhausting and amazing holiday season and spent nearly every waking moment scurrying around like schizophrenic elves (or giants, as the case may be) cooking caramel and getting them out the door, but that doesn't mean we're burned out. In fact, we're fired up. Why? Because the People love Barbary Brix caramel and we won't rest until we give the People what they want! Which brings me to my next, very important point...

THANK YOU SO SOOOO MUCH FOR ALL OF YOUR HOLIDAY ORDERS AND SUPPORT!! We hope that you and yours are all a little bit fatter and happier as a result. Hehe.

All of that said, now that things have simmered down, we've been doing a bit of this thing called sleep, regrouping, patting ourselves on the back, eating meals at regular intervals, but not resting on our laurels. In fact, we're getting deep into Phase II of our strategic plan: Increase Production Capacity. Once we accomplish this, we'll be able to start distributing commercially (selling to stores who sell to the People), which we have always intended to be the main portion of our business. It's sliiiiightly less cyclical than holiday gifts, no? (Read: sarcastic wit, or at least a lame attempt at sarcastic wit.) I mean, how extra-excited would you be to conveniently pick up Barbary Brix products in stores where you shop for things like toilet paper and breakfast cereal?! Extra, extra. We know... We're on it. That long-term goal is still likely a long ways off but, to that end, we're in a serious investigation, networking, and research mode, vetting our various options for increasing efficiency and volume. Wheeeeee!

In the meantime, you don't have to be deprived of your favorite caramely treats! We are still filling online orders and have a number of events coming up where we'll be sampling and selling. In fact, our next event is happening two weeks from today!

On Friday, January 21, 2011 from 600-1000 PM we'll be posting up at the famous and historic Cotton Mill Studios (map) in Oakland for their upcoming art show and open studio event . There will be gallery displays by guest artists in addition to the artists and craftspeople who live there. Did I mention the apps, adult bevs, and music?

Check out these links for more info:
http://www.f3oakland.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/F3-at-the-Cotton-Mill/120253561362151?v=info

Hope to see you there!

Hugs,
Sugar