Do the Hokey Pokey

A friend brought me back some New Zealand candies, one being the the Cadbury Crunchie. It boasts of “Golden hokey pokey honeycomb” in its description. Turns out hokey pokey is a term to describe sponge toffee- hard toffee with an additional baking soda/vinegar reaction that results in lots of tiny air pockets. This air-infused toffee thus has a honeycomb pattern and results in a surprisingly light and crispy bite that melts quickly in your mouth. One can easily finish this large bar without realizing it because it feels like eating a chocolate covered cracker. The Crunchie’s airy nature reminds me of a few bars that are currently trying to expand into lighter textures and crispier consistencies- such as the Butterfinger Crisp, or the Three Musketeers Truffle Crisp. But, Cadbury had this one early, from the 1920’s in fact. Too bad it’s taken almost a century to see this texture come out in candy bars again, but better late than never!