So last week my boss (Amanda at Bake It Pretty) gave me a whole bunch of violet hard candy that had passed its expiration date.
They are all-natural, violet shaped candies. They taste . . . well, they taste OK. They’re certainly not terrible (Jason keeps a container at his desk at work, as emergency candy) but they are not our favorite either. Think hard candy that vaguely tastes like old lady perfume, and you’re on the right track. Their main draw is how cute they are.
So, the question is what do we make with them? We have been brainstorming for a while and we haven’t come up with anything great. So we’re putting the question out to you. What would be a good vehicle for flower-shaped violet-flavored hard candies? Send us your suggestions, either as flavor combinations (like “I think raspberry muffins with peppermint extract and violet candies would be good”) or as actual recipes (and don’t worry if they’re not vegan. We can veganize them for you).
In two weeks from today, we will post the winning idea/recipe on the site, and the winner will receive a batch of their recipe baked for them (by us) and delivered to their doorstep (by the US Postal Service).
We are really excited about this give-away, and we really hope you will participate in it!
Looking forward to imaginative responses,
Ian
Sugarbomb Bakery 
My first thought was that those flowers are just asking for a honeybee. I’d do a very dark chocolate cupcake with a lemon frosting and put a candy bee on the candy flower.
Great idea, Alison! We’ll have to keep an eye out for candy bees . . . Keep the ideas comin’!
–Jason
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I am thinking vanilla cake pops, coated in white almond bark and decorated with disco dust and one or two candy violets.
When I hear they’re “old lady perfume” candies, I’m thinking garden party. With tea infused cupcakes, maybe earl grey in a vanilla cake. With lemon/honey frosting. All nice and light tasting to match the candies.
Lemon curd tartlets garnished with the candied violets…raspberry donuts with violets as “sprinkles”
A dark chocolate cupcake with blackberry cream cheese filling, frosted with blackberry cream cheese icing and topped with one or 2 of those adorable flowers. I think that’s would be a cute idea. I have a recipe too, if ya’d like!
Maybe crumbled and dusted along the top of some lemon bars?
Had two ideas!
Make homemade caramels and dip them in dark choclate and place the candy on top.
Make vanilaa bean cupcakes and melt some candies to make a violet buttercream icing and put one on the top of each.
They are very pretty candy accesories.
Back in August I made my mother-n-law a regular yellow cake, cut it was sculpted to look like a terracotta flower pot (It was covered with marshmallow fondant) I made fondant violets to got in the top of the pot. I’m thinking these would have been cute to use as the flowers instead.
I’m also wondering how the cake would taste with some of these candies crushed and mixed in…maybe with strawberry or raspberry filling and white chocolate frosting….
The violets are so dainty and spring-like! I was thinking maybe some green-tea (matcha) cupcakes with something light on top as well…like a lemon-lavender frosting. It’d be like a bite of Spring! 🙂
I actually love violet candies … I’m weird, I know. I think you should top a vanilla bean cupcake with a tangerine and honey frosting and then add the violet candies on top. Now I’m hungry, lol!
I’m thinking of putting them in the food processor, grind them up into a powder (if that is possible, not knowing the consistency). I’d make a buttercream icing, with the powder from these, giving its perfumey taste, maybe add a little honey to it. Then put a little bit of the powder in the vanilla cake recipe, depending on its taste strength. I would almost treat it like lavender, make a tea from it to add to the cake? Maybe a little black/blueberry to sweeten the cake, and add a purpley color, while complimenting to the perfumey taste/fragrance.
Honestly, when I think violet, I think Lemon!!! SO I’m thinking something like this!!! http://sweetlavenderbakeshoppe.blogspot.com/2010/07/lemon-meringue-cupcakes.html
first think I though of was lemon too. OMG lemon meringue cupcakes sounds like heaven.
I’m thinking of something honey. A honey buttercream with maybe a rich vanilla cupcake?
I think they look like african violets. Perhaps, you should make cupcakes as a vehicle to hold a dirt cup. Like a thick crust of chocolate cookies, that you then fill with pudding and some more “dirt” on top. then just 2 little green frosting leaves with a violet in the middle.
or…since pudding really isn’t cupcakes, you could do a cookie crust at the bottom, chocolate cupcake batter dumped on top, and then more crunchy cookies sprinkled on top before baking. then like a chocolate ganache with the 2 green leaves and a flower on top.
Oh boy, I do love coming up with recipes so I have several for you to consider:
1. Violet Lollipops: take one bag of white candy melts and carefully melt in microwave. Crush at least one cup of violet candies in a heavy duty plastic bag with a hammer etc. Larger chunks would look prettier. Add crushed candy to melted candy and pour/scoop into flower shaped lollipop molds, and add lollipop stick. While lollipops are still sticky, add a whole candy violet on top. Refrigerate till firm.
2. Violet shortbread triangles: Bake your favorite shortbread recipe in a round pan. Let cool 5 minutes. Cut into triangles. Cool completely. Crush one cup violet candies in heavy duty plastic bag. Melt one package white candy melts in microwave. Dip edges of shortbread cookies into melted candy. Place triangles on wax paper and sprinkle with crushed violet candies. Let harden.
3. Violet French Macarons: Bake some french macarons, tinting the cookie shells a violet color. Crush one cup violet candies. Make a white chocolate ganache for the filling and add the crushed violet candies to that. Pipe filling onto one cookie, and top with another. Then using some left over ganache, pipe a bit onto the top of each assembled cookie sandwich (as the glue) and top with a whole candy violet.
4. Fudge Flowers: Make some white chocolate marshmallow fudge, and add one cup crushed violet candies to that. Cut the fudge into flowers using a small flower shaped cookie cutter. While fudge is still a bit soft, top each fudge flower with a whole candy violet.
Hope you like them!!
First, I would make a fresh lavender cupcake. For the top, I’d make a lemon buttercream frosting. To decorate them, I’d crush some of the violet candies together with some fresh lavender to make a shiny/sparkly Violet/Lavender dust to sprinkle on top of the buttercream and top each with one of the violet candies. Mmmm, my mouth is watering.
Well I am thinking since they are past their best before date who is REALLY going to want to eat stale perfume flavoured candy that smells like my 1970’s eau de toilet that came in my doll kit when I was 8 or something like that ;o)
I read that Amanda was going to make faux Cake and being as I am a shabby chic faux cake specialist here is my recipe …
Lay them all out on parchment paper and spray one side with acrylic varnish, any will do. Then air dry 8 hours flip over and repeat. Then make some volcanic ash bumble bees because Alison waaaaay up there as the first comment has it going on! Make your faux cake a loverly yellow colour because yes violet and lemon and or honey and bees is the knees. Okay so that said you can pipe with the volcanic ash clay as well. See where I am going with this. Love your contest! Please dont eat them ❤ Here is the link to the volcanic ash clay … You can buy it wholesale too ;o) http://www.paperclay.com/
I love violet candy mainly because I grew up with them (English candies called Parma Violets) and I think they’d go well with some light citrus or berry flavours. Maybe lemon cupcakes with blackberry frosting (for a hint of purple) with one or two flowers on top? Or even honey?
What a neat contest! Those candies sure are elegant, just like their naturally beautiful origins! I think of spring and their cute little faces lighting up our walkway at our home i grew up in back in Wisconsin. On that note, you must highlight their delicate features and keep the little flower in tact. If it were me, I would make something that is reminiscent of spring- berries, lemon, fresh clean flavors come to mind, lightness…. Perhaps simply a meyer lemon cupcake with a subtle vanilla bean “buttercream”, maybe with a fresh strawberry filling secretly inside! The frosting would have to be perfectly smooth and rounded and place one little violet on top, maybe with a mini sprig of lavender or thyme behind it, to keep it in the garden-new life- spring is here theme. I like the idea of a pretty ivory top with the bold purple violet and a little green. cute! I can almost taste it….. 😀
Golly,
There are so many great ideas posted. I too think of lemon frosting over vanilla cupcakes. But here is an alternative idea: Violet candy reminds me of the cheap perfume oil I used to buy in New Orleans and wear to the bars. Red velvet rose-flavored cup cakes with orange-vermouth flavored icing (dyed orange), topped with a plastic king cake baby surrounded by violet candies. I also thought gold nonpareils and perhaps a streak of glitter would be a nice touch.
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A vanilla bean cupcake with lemon buttercream would be perfect for them.
i’d love to see those on a simple springy white cake with violet petals mixed in and a lightly lemon scented buttercream. so lush.
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the fresh lavendar cupcakes with lemon buttercream sound yummy!
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What? Don’t you think they are fabulous candies!! I’m french you know, and my grandma used to give me those candies and also poppy candies all the time; I love them and thing they taste fabulous. I’ve also been living two years in FL, i then understand that sometimes the matter of taste is just cultural ^^
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The candies evoke the following words for me: calming, fresh, sunshine, and light. So, the following cupcake idea comes to mind for me:
Shortbread Cake with a Light, Lemon Filling and Iced with a Fluffy, Minty, Lemon Buttercream
I would decorate the cupcake with round, beige/ivory fondant cut-out to resemble lace and one of the candies laying on top of the lace. The cupcake liner would be lavender with a small, yellow ribbon tied around it.
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