Sugar Plums

Sugar plums are associated with Christmas through The Nutcracker ballet and Clement C. Moore’s poem “A Visit From St. Nicholas.” But by the time the poem was written sugar plums were on the way out and they are not really a popular candy. But the poem and the ballet fixed the candy firmly in the public imagination as an essential part of Christmas. But children might be very disappointed if they received sugar plums in their Christmas stockings.

Sugar plums are made of dried fruits, such as prunes, cherries, figs, apricots and other fruits. The fruit was chopped up and mixed with honey, chopped almonds and sometimes spices such as anise, caraway or cardamom. The mixture was rolled into a ball and sometimes rolled in coconut or sugar. The candy was somewhat sweet and sticky.