WE ALL have our favourite childhood lollies - a packet of something sweet that evokes a deep nostalgia whenever we pass it in the supermarket or milk bar.
But one of our country’s most beloved and enduring confectionaries can only be found in an unlikely place: Your local chemist.
Glucojels (or, as most of us know them, ‘chemist jelly beans’) have been a fixture in pharmacies since 1941. That makes them a remarkable 75 years old this year.
Generations of Australians have memories of being bought a small bag during a trip to pick up a prescription, or on a sick day home from school, each colour a different delicious flavour, each packet a game of ‘avoid the aniseed ones’.
These jelly beans owe their consistent position at chemist front counters to their legitimate medical function. Unlike other jelly beans, Glucojel are made from glucose, the form of sugar most easily absorbed into the blood stream.
Since the glucose-filled beans are manufactured to a standard weight of 3.5g, they provide a simple way for diabetics to manage blood sugar levels. Similarly, runners and cyclists have used them for years as a glucose and energy boost during a workout.
This might explain why so many of us have fond memories of finding an open packet in our mum’s handbag or in the car’s glovebox.
To celebrate Glucojel’s 75th birthday, we’ve put together a few sweet recipes that capture the sweet perfection of these Australian made and owned treasures. Obviously, though, we wouldn’t recommend using any of these finished recipes for medicinal purposes.
Jelly Bean Bark
This incredibly simple recipe can be made with whichever chocolate you prefer, and dotted with any lollies you like. The mix of white chocolate and multi-coloured jelly beans is particularly joyous though, and perfect for a party.
Ingredients
500g white chocolate
100g candy melts in one colour, or 50g each of candy melts in different colours
A packet of jelly beans
Approx. 1 tablespoon hundreds and thousands (or other sprinkles)
Method
Line two flat baking trays with baking paper.
Using either a double boiler (a heat-proof bowl placed over a pot of simmering water) or a microwave, slowly melt the white chocolate until it only just becomes a smooth paste.
Be careful not to overheat it.
Keep the melted chocolate warm.
In a second bowl, melt the candy melts using the same method (or multiple bowls if using separate colours).
Pour the white chocolate out onto the prepared baking trays.
Smooth it out slightly with a rubber spatula.
Flick spoonfuls of melted candy melts onto the white chocolate.
Repeat with a second colour if you like.
Using a skewer or knife, create swirls of colour in the surface of the white chocolate.
Evenly dot the jelly beans into the bark, using as many as you like.
Push down slightly to ensure they set in the chocolate.
Finish with an even sprinkling of hundreds and thousands.
Transfer the baking trays into the fridge for an hour, or until the chocolate sets.
Remove the bark from the baking paper and break into evenly sized shards.
Jelly Bean, Popcorn & Marshmallow Cake
This isn’t a ‘cake’ so much as it’s a giant gathering of sweet things in the shape of a cake. But when something tastes this good - and looks this colourful - we’re not about to start splitting hairs. Feel free to add Malteasers, nuts, pretzels, Smarties or anything else you like.
Ingredients
¾ cup unpopped popcorn or 5 cups popped, unsalted popcorn
1 cup coloured popcorn
1½ cups jelly beans
1 tablespoon Copha
2x 280g packets of marshmallows
Plus: any other chocolates or confectionaries you feel like adding
Method
If using unpopped popcorn, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pot until shimmering, then add popcorn. Add lid and shake pot every 20 seconds or so - kernels will take a minute or two to start popping.
Keep shaking pot regularly, removing from heat once the popping sound has stopped.
Spray the inside of a bundt cake tin with oil spray.
In a very large bowl, combine the plain and coloured popcorns, jelly beans and any other chocolates or confectionaries you choose.
Using either a double boiler (a heat-proof bowl placed over a pot of just simmering water) or a microwave, melt the Copha, then add the marshmallows.
Melt these slowly (heating in 20 second bursts if using a microwave), stirring often until smooth.
Pour the melted marshmallows into the bowl of popcorn mix and stir quickly, ensuring the jelly beans get evenly dispersed.
Spoon the marshmallow popcorn mix into the bundt tin (it will be very sticky).
Wet your hands slightly, then push the mix firmly into the tin.
This will help it set into the shape, and make it easier to remove once set.
Transfer to the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Once it’s set, lightly pull at the edge of the marshmallow to carefully remove the ‘cake’ from the tin.
Top with additional jelly beans, sprinkles or other decorations.
Use a wet knife to easily cut slices for serving.
Jelly Bean Ice Cream
This a no-churn ice cream, so it doesn’t require any fancy equipment. It’s beautifully creamy and rich, but it melts quickly - so eat it fast!
Ingredients
Note: this makes roughly three scoops of ice cream, so for best results, repeat the recipe a few times with different coloured jelly beans.
2/3 cup jelly beans - all one colour
200ml thick (or ‘whipping’) cream
2 eggs
75g caster sugar
Additional jelly beans to stir through
Method
Combine the single-coloured jelly beans in a small pot with the cream.
Warm over a low heat until simmering, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat and leave to cool (the colour, sweetness and flavour from the jelly beans will impart into the cream).
Once cool, strain the jelly beans from the cream and discard them.
Leave the cream in the coldest part of the fridge to chill for one hour.
Using a stand mixer or hand beaters, whip the eggs and sugar together until very thick.
Clean the stand mixer/hand beaters and whip the cream until it becomes almost solid.
Add a few spoonfuls of the thick egg mixture to the cream and fold through with a rubber spatula.
Once incorporated, add the rest of the egg mix and fold carefully (trying to keep as much air as possible in the mix).
Transfer to a plastic container and place in the freezer.
After one hour, add additional jelly beans (chopped if you prefer) to the ice cream and stir. Refrigerate for a further two hours before serving.
Tristan Lutze is a food writer and photographer who fondly remembers going with his grandma to the chemist when he was a kid and begging for a sneaky bag of jelly beans. He never got it. Please follow him on Facebook and Instagram to help ease his pain.
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