Sugar Savvy

It felt like Christmas when the box of neatly arranged Ginger People foods showed up on my doorstep. Bags of colorful ginger treats were carefully stacked one atop the other. What was even more special…my husband hates ginger, at least in its pure and candy-like forms. These sweets were all mine!

My first trials were their Ginger Chews, three flavors, each excellent. However, my penchant for hard candy quickly turned my attention to the bag of Gin-Gins.

When I read “double strength” on the package I became a bit nervous. Don’t get me wrong, I love ginger, but double strength ginger is still slightly intimidating. I hesitantly opened the candy wrapper to discover a tasty looking yellow button candy. I popped it in, and my caution melted into pure enjoyment.

What I tasted was a deliciously sweet hard candy boosted with a pleasant ginger kick. A warm, slightly spicy heat emerged and took turns with the sugary sweet candy goodness.

Let the truth be told, I love this concept. Combining a hard candy for savoring, with the stomach-friendly properties of ginger is pure genius. As a post-meal treat, it is sure to satisfy and kick start the digestion process. Not to mention it is perfectly sized for travel (think car and airplane sickness). Of course, they are just plain tasty anyway.

The Ginger People call these candies “spicy-sweet pick-me-ups,” “warm and soothing,” with “pulses of sweet heat.” Really, I couldn’t put it better myself. They seem to have thought of everything…including a “recipe” for these little gems. They recommend dropping a Gin-Gin in your tea, just before steeping it with hot water.

This was certainly a very simple suggestion that must be put to the test. I selected a fairly neutral green tea for the initial taste test. The Gin-Gin added a very slight sweetness (two could have easily been added) and a hint of ginger warmth. This is definitely a teatime treat I will be experimenting with further.

My Extra Notes and Tips:

• Ingredients: Just sugar, glucose syrup, and ginger.
• One piece has just over 10 calories, if you can stop at one!
• Individually wrapped and very fairly priced, I recommend stashing these hard candies in your purse, and in the car for any unexpected queasiness.

Where to Purchase: All of The Ginger People’s products are available to purchase in stores or direct online for U.S. customers. Alas, they are not available internationally (via the web) as of yet, but hopefully in the future. Outside of the U.S. they can be found in select natural food stores in Canada, the UK, and Japan. They can also be ordered via Amazon.