Favorite New England Candy Brands & More
From Necco Wafers to old-fashioned maple candy, this collection of favorite New England candy brands is sure to satisfy any sweet tooth.
By Aimee Tucker|Aug 26 2019|
Coffee By Design | Portland, Maine
Photo Credit : Katherine KeenanNew England may be known for its comfort food repertoire of baked beans, brown bread, and Yankee pot roast, but that doesn’t mean we Yankees don’t love the occasional candy indulgence. From penny candy classics to old-fashioned homemade treats, here are a few notable New England candy brands and recipes.
Favorite New England Candy Brands & More
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Necco Wafers
Since their debut in 1847, Necco Wafers have been a classic American candy with nostalgic appeal. Even tearing the paper to unroll the tube does it, with that puff of powdered sugar and the mingling flavor-scents, both sweet and spicy, hitting your nose. The combination may seem odd by today’s candy standards, but the flavor blend is a familiar one if you grew up eating Necco Wafers, and just one bite (which is more of a snap!) makes the time travel complete. Sadly, Necco’s parent company declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2018, and the Necco Wafer (along with Sweethearts conversation hearts and Canada Mints) were sold to the Spangler Candy Company of Ohio, best known for their Dum Dum Lollipops. Spangler quickly announced plans for both Necco Wafers and Sweethearts to return to store shelves in 2019. Learn more here.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Ribbon Candy
If you look forward to long-held traditions at Christmas, you probably love Sevigny’s Thin Ribbon Candy. Made in Brockton, MA, the colorful, compressed swoops of candy in flavors such as cinnamon, peppermint, wintergreen, and orange have been sweetening the holiday season in New England and beyond for more than 150 years.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Mary Janes
A chewy peanut butter and molasses taffy, the Mary Jane (also made by Necco) is a nostalgic New England penny candy favorite. Named after the creator’s favorite aunt, the candy is instantly recognizable thanks to its yellow and red illustration of a bonnet-wearing little girl, part of its packaging since the beginning back in 1914.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Saltwater Taffy
Ah, the perfect summer treat! Most people agree that saltwater taffy was first popularized at Fralinger’s, a shop on the Atlantic City boardwalk, around 1883. Though the recipe does call for some salt, the taffy was never actually made with saltwater; according to The New York Times, the name may simply refer to the boardwalk’s proximity to the sea — and we’ve got plenty of that here in New England. Goldenrod Kisses from York, Maine, are a staff favorite.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Sky Bar
Sky Bar has four separate milk chocolate chambers, each filled with the sugary goodness of caramel, vanilla, fudge, or peanut flavor. For those who can’t make up their minds, a Sky Bar is the perfect choice. Why settle for one flavor when you can get four?
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Needhams
Potatoes are the “Maine” ingredient in needhams, a dark chocolate–covered coconut-cream treat. For the best homemade needhams, be sure to start with warm (not hot) mashed potato for a smooth filling, and don’t be afraid to return the chocolate to the heat for a moment or two if it starts to cool and thicken while you’re still dipping the squares.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Necco Sweethearts
Expressing love and affection on Valentine’s Day is a tradition dating back centuries, but here in New England, the practice is extra sweet. Why? Necco Sweethearts! Made by Necco in Massachusetts for nearly 150 years, Necco Sweethearts, the pastel candy “conversation hearts” stamped with sweet phrases of love and friendship, are the most popular non-chocolate Valentine’s Day candy.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Maple Candy
Pure maple syrup (what’s left when the sap is heated until most of the water evaporates, leaving a concentrated syrup behind) gets most of the maple sugar glory, but there are many who also look forward to an annual maple candy treat, be it a single piece or an entire gift box. Prized for its crumbly-meets-creamy texture and deep maple flavor, maple candy is made when the sap is heated beyond the syrup stage to the crystalline stage, where it’s then whipped and poured into decorative molds to harden. The results are both beautiful (thanks to the molds) and delicious.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Potato Peanut Butter Candy
Simple and sweet, this retro peanut butter and potato candy roll has only four ingredients and is a simple and inexpensive way to make something sweet. It’s often associated with the Great Depression, when times were tight and ingredients like tomato soup and mashed potato made their way into desserts.
Which New England candy brands are your favorites? Let us know!
This post was first published in 2017 and has been updated.
SEE MORE:
75 Classic New England Foods
8 Favorite New England Desserts
6 Classic New England Sandwiches
I miss waleco chocolate covered coconut bars!
Skybar is my favorite ever since I was youg. Hard to find it anymore. Some drugstores here in W.MA (Rite-Aid) use to sell it but not anymore.
NECCO Wafers are probably my favorite candy of all time. I buy them by the case on Amazon.
I always have a stash of Necco wafers on hand, in my purse, in the car and in the house. My daughter lives in MA and sends them to me, also purchase them at dollar tree!
Don’t forget about those Wintergreen patties. They are still availabel in some markets.
Always have them on hand, love them!
I love the chocolate tipped thin mints at Tucks in Rockport, MA. Can’t pass them up whenever I visit the Rockport area.
Mary Janes are my wife’s favorite, hard to find in South Carolina
But Amazon sells them
If there’s a branch of Mast General Store near you, you should be able to find Mary Janes in their candy barrels. I like the taste of Mary Janes, but I haven’t eaten one since I broke a tooth on one about 35 years ago.
Try Vermont Country Store for favorite oldies.
Welches Fudge YUM
Canfield Corner Pharmacy has lots of these candies in stock plus many more! Located in Woodbury, CT, they are going to be reopening the soda fountain, too! Building dates from 1875 and has great creaky floors.
Most of these can be found at Cracker Barrel Restaurants!!!
I REMEMBER………..WHEN MY YOUNGER SISTER (AUNT) & I (AUNT) WERE GROWING UP, IN CT……….THERE WAS A PENNY CANDY STORE………IN MERIDEN, CT……..WE WOULD EACH GET A WHOLE QUARTER, TO SPEND ON THOSE SWEETS!!!!!! WHAT AN AWESOMEEEEE MEMORY!!!!!!!
Where can I buy these sweets in England
Where are wintergreen patties available?
Where can I buy MARY JANE candy in Maryland ? Miss it — would love to have some.
I’m looking to purchase Sky Bars. Are you selling on line or could you tell me who has them please?
After Necco dissolved, most of its products went to the Spalding company in Ohio, but not Skybars. They were then brought back, and are now privately owned by Duck Soup in Sudbury (who also have a ton of other fantastic candy, including rare and often exclusively British candies, FTR). The website is simple enough: https://www.skybarcandy.com/ and Duck Soup’s website is https://quackquackquack.com/
I am opening up a gift baskets business and would like very much to be able to buy from your company wholesale. Hoping to hear from you. Thank you !!
I purchased some much loved Necco wafers at a Dollar Tree here in Texas and was quite disappointed. The clove, chocolate and licorice were always my favorites but they pretty much all tasted the same. The clove had ZERO clove flavor and where I used to be able to tell the color solely by taste, this was impossible now.
Maybe they “forgot” to flavor these, hence arriving in Dollar Tree?????? Bummer!