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These 6 curiosities about candied fruits have surprised us, and they will also call you attention. Some of them, like the calorie count for glace cherries, may even serve you as a sales argument. Candied cherries are not as loaded with kilocalories as it may seem and even have a healthy substance that resists processing …
More curiosities: the green candied fruits garnishing the Roscón de Reyes (the famous Spanish Christmas cake) are not made with green plums… And it was Churchill who prevented the production of candied cherries in French Provence from disappearing after World War II, because – guess what! – he loved fruitcakes. 🙂
In this post, you will find some anecdotes and historical facts about candied fruits that you probably didn’t know… Keep on reading!
✅ A candied cherry has only 15 calories
Candied cherries do not have so many calories as it might seem. 100 grams provide 291 calories, but who on earth eats 100 grams of candied cherries at one sitting…? If we count the calories by unit, a candied cherry has only 15 calories, so… Why should you remove the glace cherry from the cocktail you take from time to time or from the cake you occasionally indulge with…?
✅ The green candied fruits topping the Spanish ‘roscón de Reyes’ are not green plums…
If you have ever wondered which fresh fruit gives rise to the green candied fruit topping the Spanish typical Christmas typical ‘roscón de Reyes’, you might be surprised to find out that it is made of pumpkin or melon. Both fruits are candied and dyed with natural dyes (from spinach, sodium chlorifillin and copper) or other artificial dyes.
✅ Candied cherries “on board” of cocktails crossed the Atlantic from New York
The most famous cocktails in the world, from Old Fashioned to Manhattan or the old-style Dry Martini, have among their 
ingredients a single glace cherry, as you may know … But what is more unknown is when the cocktails crossed the Atlantic with their glace cherry inside. The cocktails could be born as a drink in the early nineteenth century in a bar in the French quarter of New Orleans, or in a hotel in San Francisco during the ‘gold rush’ in the middle of the same century. The origins are uncertain…
What is known is that in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these “urban” drinks of vibrant colors, made by mixing “expensive” alcoholic drinks, were already served in New York city. The Universal Exhibitions that took place in Paris and New York in the 19th century (with wealthy and sophisticated people crossing the Atlantic) made cocktails (with their glace cherry included) spread all over the world.
✅ Vibrant coloured candied fruits topping the famous Spansih ‘roscón de Reyes’ has a meaning
These striking candied fruits of the ‘roscón de Reyes’ represent the colours of the gems their Majesties, The Three Wise Men, worn in their tunics (green for emeralds, red for rubies …).
✅ Churchill evitó que desapareciera la producción de cerezas confitadas de La Provenza…
Churchill prevented the production of candied cherries from La Provence (France) from dissapearing … In the late nineteenth century, a British merchant named Matthew Wood began importing candied cherries to supply the well off in the United Kingdom. The idyll of the British with candied cherries (a key ingredient of their famous fruitcake) started those days. The business continued to operate until the food rationing system was established in Great Britain after the Second World War. Only stapled food imports were allowed since then…
The wealthy cherry producers of Apt in France, knowing that Churchill was very “fan” of their product, sent a representative to see him. The appointed representative explained to the British Prime Minister the situation: the British ban could make cherry production dissapear, as it was already in dire straits. And… if that happened, they would be compelled to cut down all the cherrytrees to grow an alternative crop. He mentioned that Churchill himself was very found of candied cherries in his fruitcake, so in that case he should stop having them… It is said that Churchill discreetly gave the necessary indications to allow French cherries to land in the British ports again…
✅ El proceso de confitado potenciaría un antioxidante en el que son ricas las cerezas
The process of candied cherries would enhance an antioxidant cherries are rich in… As it is known, the fruit is preserved in brine for some time before glucose is added. It was widely thought that in the processing the healthy properties of fresh cherries were lost. But the opposite occurs with an anticarcinogenic substance. In a recent report (2017) from the United States National Cherry Growers and Producers Foundation, food and nutrition expert Roberta L. Duyff assures that one of the antioxidant substances contained in the cherry (a flavonoid known as quercetin) could increase its presence in the fruit when processed. This could make some healthy diet-centered people eat candied cherries with no regret.
We produce and sell whole candied fruits for overwhelming cocktails and cakes
We are not surprised by Churchill’s decision about lifting the ban on candied fruits… And we are sure cocktails would not be the same without a cherry inside. In Lazaya we are the third generation of a family dedicated to the production, wholesale and export of candied fruits for all types of sectors, from cocktails to chocolate industry, bakeries, ice cream makers and restaurants and hotels. The quality of our products is kept under control from the cultivation in our own plantations in Aragon. We have a factory in Calatayud, which complies with the highest European safety standards that we accredit with the main certificates. If you need wholesale quality candied fruits with a certified origin, do not hesitate to contact us.
