Product review: LorAnn Flavor Oils

When it comes to cooking, I am an oddball. There are recipes I don't think twice about experimenting with and then there are others I wouldn't dream of changing. The same thing goes for ingredients. I am not typically choosy about name brand versus generic. One thing I will never sacrifice is the flavorings I use in my recipes. I grew up in a home where my mom exclusively used LorAnn Flavor Oils for candy making. The little 1 dram size bottles were a familiar sight during the Christmas season. I stopped making candy after my mom died and never thought twice about those little bottles again until I started making candy of my own 3 years ago. Suddenly I just had to have those bottles but I couldn't remember the name of the company. One day while I was shopping for chocolate molds, I came across a website that held a familiar sight- Mom's candy oils! I knew right away I would be buying some and made a list of the flavors I was most interested in.

My order arrived and I was eager to try out my new flavorings. Time has a way of distorting memories and I was afraid that the oils were not going to be as good as I remembered. I drug out my mother's old recipes and started out by making her peppermint patties and soft cinnamon balls-they were every bit as good as I remembered. The next recipe I dusted off was for glass candy. This was always one of my favorites to make as a kid. Mom's glass candy always seemed to have tons more flavor than anyone else's and I never could figure out why. Apparently it was the flavorings she used. LorAnn's call their flavor oils super strength and there is a good reason why. A one dram bottle is equal to one teaspoon of store bought extract and it packs a more powerful flavor punch.

LorAnn's offer their flavor oils in 80+ true tasting flavors. They offer the classics-cinnamon, peppermint, wintergreen, orange, lemon and cherry. They also have a great variety of hard to find flavors such as teaberry, honey, pralines & cream and marshmallow. LorAnn's is even offering more contemporary flavors in their lineup, such as pomegranate, cinnamon roll and key lime. LorAnn's offer their flavor oils in a variety of sizes depending on your candy making needs. You can purchase a one dram bottle, 1 dram twin pack, multi flavor packs and one ounce bottles. If you are in business for yourself, they even offer bulk packaging and wholesale pricing.

While these oils are often called “candy oils”, don't be misled. You can use these oils for a wide variety of recipes, including:

• Hard candy
• Fondants and buttercreams
• Flavoring chocolate and confectionery coatings (most of their flavorings are approved for use in chocolate and coatings)
• Fudge
• Taffy
• Cakes and cookies
• Perking up hot beverages (use sparingly)
• Flavoring ice cream

Aside from the amazing flavor these versatile oils will give your recipes, they are also certified kosher by Star-K. Most flavors are sugar free and all are gluten free.

Whether you are a professional or recreational foodie, I would recommend these flavor oils to anyone wanting to add a true-life flavor to their candy and baked goods recipes. You can find them on the web at www.LorAnnOils.com and at specialty cake and candy supply stores. Prices and selections may vary from store to store, but the quality will remain the same.