Candy Kitchen #flashfiction

60 Replies

This week at the Carrot Ranch, Charli Mills challenged writers to In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that features a candy kitchen. You can interpret the phrase creatively or stick to the traditional. Is it sweet? Ironic? Any genre will do. Go where the prompt leads!

My thoughts about a candy kitchen went straight to Roald Dahl’s book Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. What an incredible candy kitchen that was. And then there was the song The Candy Man performed by Sammy Davis Jr.

Who wouldn’t want to be a kid in a candy store, or better yet, a kid in a candy kitchen?

I thought of the busy kitchen of my childhood, with my mother making sweets for Christmas treats. There were rum balls and peanut brittle, chocolate bark and caramel fudge, coconut ice and marshmallow, and who knows what other sweet delights. I don’t remember them all. But I do remember one more recent Christmas when the choice of sweets became a philosophical rather than taste decision.

This is a fictionalised version of the incident. I hope you enjoy it.

Marshmallow Waves

The cooks bustled about my kitchen making sweets to gift.

“I love homemade gifts,” she said.

“Especially when we get to share,” he said, sampling largish crumbs of fudge and coconut ice.

“Marshmallow is amazing,” she said. It mixes up so light and fluffy,”

“What’s in it?”

“Sugar, water and gelatine.”

“What’s gelatine?” he asked.

I dared not tell the vegetarians, but he searched for information on his phone.

“We can’t eat that,” he spluttered. “Gelatine’s made from animal bones!”

The marshmallow mix, so light and fluffy, was binned. Not even a taste for me, although I’m not vegetarian.

Thank you blog post

Thank you for reading. I appreciate your feedback. Please share your thoughts.

60 thoughts on “Candy Kitchen #flashfiction”

  2. Jules

    I don’t remember making candy or cookies that much. But we alwasy dreaded the ‘Fruitcake’.
    We would alwasy take bets on how many years old it was, and who had it last… 😉

    (What a waste of good marshmellows!)

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      That’s a funny fruitcake story. Some would say it’s a ‘fruitcake’ fruitcake story. (I’m not sure if you use the term fruitcake over there to mean someone a little loopy.)
      It would be a waste of marshmallows. 😂

      Liked by 1 person

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  4. Hugh W. Roberts

    I love marshmallows and have treated myself to salted-caramel favoured ones this year. They are divine. Hence I have to be careful and not eat the whole box. If I like something, I’m not bothered about what’s in it. If I dislike the taste of something, then it seems I am.

    Liked by 1 person

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  5. Patricia Tilton

    Oh, to remember the days when we didn’t care and just ate food. Not a marshmallow fan, so probably wouldn’t eat it either. But there is gelatin in many things. We have become so health conscious that we have let go of things we enjoyed eating. Loved the first Willy Wonka film. Great to see the performance by Sammy Davis Jr. — didn’t realize it was a top hit! A walk down memory lane!

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      I’m pleased you enjoyed the post Patricia. I didn’t know that The Candy Man was from the film Willy Wonka. I had thought it was older than that, so it was a good reminiscence for me too.

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  6. Pingback: Candy Kitchen « Carrot Ranch Literary Community

  7. Rebecca Glaessner Author

    Oh no! Not the marshmellows! Our 8 year old would go bonkers at the thought of that. Glad that’s not our kitchen, she’d be kicking out the cooks in a heartbeat. Marshmellows aren’t a personal favourite but I remember having to stay away from soft serve ice cream because of the gelatine while pregnant, that wasn’t a fun time…

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    1. Norah Post author

      I wouldn’t have thought about gelatine in soft serve ice cream. I thought if it was a problem for pregnancy it would be in the ‘soft’ like the soft cheeses etc. Thanks for letting me know. We learn a little more each day.

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    1. Norah Post author

      You are okay, Darlene. There are many other treats without gelatine. I haven’t found a suitable replacement for making my favourite mango cream pie though. Agar agar doesn’t set with some fruits, including mango. 😢

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    1. Norah Post author

      No, it didn’t cross my mind, D. They were adults in charge of their own lives. I didn’t even think about it, until he asked the question and was looking it up before I could say. I remember holding my breath as he looked it up, knowing what he was going to find out and what the reaction would be. It was all quite funny really. It was probably as devastating as finding out the Easter Bunny’s not real. (Shhh. You didn’t hear that from me.)

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      It’s not all true, Anne. I just remember being amazed that they didn’t know what gelatine was. I can’t remember what happened to the marshmallow. I remember my anxiety when he said he was going to look it up and I knew what he was going to find out. I hadn’t given it a thought until then.

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      Oh I’m so sorry, Kate. You didn’t know either? I thought everyone knew. Everyone used to talk about it trying to gross each other out in my teenage years. I couldn’t believe they didn’t know.

      Liked by 1 person

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  13. Prior...

    The Samir Davis video was a flashback
    cute story
    And I think a lot of marshmallow today is made with corn syrup – and I
    guess the gelatin (gelatine) had healthy benefits – that is for those who could ethically eat it

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      I think you’re right about the corn syrup instead of the sugar, but the gelatine is still in it. Now that I think about it, she was probably using corn syrup. I might still have a jar in the cupboard. 😅
      And health benefits – I think I might remember being told as a child that it was good for hair and nails. Whether that’s true or not, I don’t know.
      You’re right about the eating too – there’s a lot more we need to consider about what we put into our bodies than just whether it tastes good.

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      I’m pleased it made you smile, Pete. It was quite funny at the time. I don’t really remember the whole event (I did say it was fictionalised). Really all I remember is their reaction when he decided to find out what gelatine was made from and my disbelief that they didn’t already know. 😅

      Liked by 1 person

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  15. robbiesinspiration

    I love the original Willy Wonka film and all the songs, Norah. The newer version – not so much! To scary. Gelatin is made from animal bones and cheese used to be made using calf rennet. I can’t help thinking that it is only middle class people who can afford to be so fussy about food. The poor eat what they can get.

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    2. Norah Post author

      I agree with you about the Willy Wonka films, Robbie. Though they suffer criticism for many other reasons now. We live in a changing world. Changing for the better, I hope. Your reaction to the gelatine issue is interesting, Robbie, and so true. Though I’m not sure the poor would be making marshmallows. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

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          1. robbiesinspiration

            HI Norah, I try to help people. I don’t like knowing people are going without food. Yesterday, I dismantled my gingerbread project and packaged it up for the beggars. It was pouring with rain but there they were trying to scrape a few coins together to buy food. They were very happy to have the gingerbread. It really pains me, seeing beggars on the street.

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    1. Norah Post author

      I can’t actually remember what happened to the marshmallow, just their reaction to finding out what gelatine was made from. I thought that anyone in their thirties and university educated would know. I must have missed that chapter when educating my daughter. 😅

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      1. Norah Post author

        No, I couldn’t, Anne. But you’re welcome to use it if the need arises. 😅 I was just stunned they didn’t already know. Thirty-something and university educated. I must have missed that bit when Bec was growing up.

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