Is a marshmallow a candy?

[Gori the Grey]

For people who need a break from Trump threads:

I asked a store clerk named Randy*
"Where are marshmallows located?" and he
Took me (to my surprise)
Past the baking supplies,
And pointed instead at the candy.

Are marshmallows candy? If a bunch were sitting out, would you say to yourself, "Oh, I think I'll eat some of that candy over there!"?

If they're not candy, though, what are they? A baking supply? (As I originally thought). A confection?

*name changed to protect the improperly rhyming.

 

[Kyriakos]

Is it cold in Narnia?

 

[civvver]

hmm I think at my grocery store they're always by the chocolate chips which are in the baking isle. But chocolate is a candy too, it's a candy used for baking. So it is a candy but it's primary purpose is in recipes (who eats marshmallows plain?) so it should be by that stuff.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

hmm I think at my grocery store they're always by the chocolate chips which are in the baking isle. But chocolate is a candy too, it's a candy used for baking. So it is a candy but it's primary purpose is in recipes (who eats marshmallows plain?) so it should be by that stuff.

I'd have voted for that if it were an option.

 

[Gori the Grey]

Not where should it be located. What is it? It's an ontological question I'm asking.

 

[Lexicus]

They are candy, and I've eaten them plain before, and I'll probably do it again.

 

[Gori the Grey]

You can wrap a big block of chocolate, name it "Chunky," and shelve it with the candy bars.

You could never wrap a big marshmallow and shelve it with the candy bars.

Spoiler :

You'd have to dry it out first, and then you could call it a Peeps

 

[Farm Boy]

You can also take a bag of them, cut them into pumpkin shapes and add some orange food coloring. Or pink hearts. Or green trees.

 

[BvBPL]

My employer has a team that helps to determine under which category for sales tax purpose a particular item falls. One of the more interesting aspects is determination of what is and what is not candy. I asked one of the candy subject matter experts who informed me that whether or not marshmallows are candy depends on the state in question and how the state defines a “piece” of candy. However, because marshmallows do not contain flour the general rule is that they are not candy. So it depends on where you are, but your quick and dirty rule is that they are not candy.

 

[warpus]

It doesn't matter if marshmallows are candy or not. Sometimes they are, sometimes they aren't

What matters is that we either change the spelling to marshmellow or start pronouncing it as marshmallow. The current half-arsed approach to marshmellow pronounciation is BS

 

[BvBPL]

Both pronunciations are acceptable.

 

[Gori the Grey]

My employer has a team that helps to determine under which category for sales tax purpose a particular item falls. One of the more interesting aspects is determination of what is and what is not candy. I asked one of the candy subject matter experts who informed me that whether or not marshmallows are candy depends on the state in question and how the state defines a “piece” of candy. However, because marshmallows do not contain flour the general rule is that they are not candy. So it depends on where you are, but your quick and dirty rule is that they are not candy.

It's fascinating to learn that a question I posed just for sport is one that certain people have had seriously to consider.

But flour can't be the determinative element of a candy! 3 Musketeers has no flour and it's surely a candy!

 

[Valka D'Ur]

If they're not candy, though, what are they? A baking supply? (As I originally thought). A confection?

Yes, and yes. They are also a candy. They are also dessert at a wiener roast.

 

[BvBPL]

It's fascinating to learn that a question I posed just for sport is one that certain people have had seriously to consider.

But flour can't be the determinative element of a candy! 3 Musketeers has no flour and it's surely a candy!

I misunderstood my coworker and sought clarification.
In fact, the presence of flour is a contraindication of a foodstuff's status as candy.

 

[Gori the Grey]

Well, that's not right either. The little biscuits in Kit-Kats or Twixt certainly use flour (I'll go buy one in the vending machine to confirm; just for research sake, mind you), and they're both candy!

I'm sure it's a way for stores to distinguish certain candies from, say, pastries. But absence of flour can't be definitive. It can only be a counter-indicator.

 

[BvBPL]

I dunno, man. It’s not my thing. I work on much less complex stuff like international taxation treaties. From what I picked up, a candy generally is in a bar, drop, or piece form and does not generally contain flour. This means some states treat things like Pixie Sticks as not-candy because Pixie Sticks are just granules of sugar and not in a bar, drop, or piece form. It would not surprise me at all that some state would not count Kit-Kats and similar as candy because of the presence of flour.
It is weird though. Some states treat Breathe Right nasal strips as medical prosthesis, taxing them in the same way as a wooden leg.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Well, I'm glad the flour business got clarified. I'd have lost sleep over that one.

It should be noted that the on-line store selling bags of straight cereal marshmallows (none of that healthy oat part for the true Lucky Charms connoisseur) lists them as candy.

 

[Zkribbler]

Definition of candy:

1. 1 : crystallized sugar formed by boiling down sugar syrup
   
   
2. 2 a : a confection made with sugar and often flavoring and filling b : a piece of such confection
   
   
3. 3 : something that is pleasant or appealing in a light or frivolous way <visual candy>

Definition of marshmallow:

A marshmallow is a sugar-based confection that, in its modern form, typically consists of sugar, water and gelatin whipped to a spongy consistency, molded into small cylindrical pieces, and coated with corn starch.

Under definition 1 of candy, marshmallows are not candy because they are not boiled. Under definition 2a of candy, marshmallows are candy because they are a confection made with sugar.

 

[Gori the Grey]

You see why it's a difficult question, then!

 

[BvBPL]

Under definition 1 of candy, marshmallows are not candy because they are not boiled.

Yes they are.