Almond Joy Cake

Did you have a favorite candy bar as a kid? Lots of people have food favorites from childhood. Food is such a powerful memory maker. Seems those flavors, textures, visuals and tastes simply sear indelible memories in our brains.

Almond Joy was, and still is, my favorite candy bar. Yes, the sister of the Mounds bar, the Almond Joy has that whole almond sitting right on top covered in chocolate. It's like the crowning bite for the candy bar. While the Mounds bar was created in the roaring 1920s (1921) and was a hit with soldiers in World War II, the Almond Joy came 25 years later, 1946. Yes, America had ended the war and now decades of prosperity were ahead.

The jingle for Mounds and Almond Joy launched in the 1970s is what still sticks in my head today. 'Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't. Almond Joys got nuts. Mounds don't!' It was a resounding success! And, I was always one who felt like a nut and forever wanted to bite into a creamy coconut chocolate half of the bar, then save those nuts for the last bites!

This cake, the almond joy cake, is a tribute to my childhood favorite, the Almond Joy. It's everything good about life for me. Those carefree days growing up in the mountains of West Virginia. Scurrying off to the 'littl' store' (run by the coal company) with my nickle in my pocket to buy an Almond Joy. Or, going to the movie theatre with my dime in hand for buying something. The big dilemma? Deciding whether I wanted popcorn (oh, lawsy, it smelled sooooooooo good and was dripping with real butter not the fake stuff) and a cherry coke or an Almond Joy and a cherry coke. Maybe you know what I picked!

I'd love to hear what your favorite food candy bar was (or is) as a kid. Share with me in the comments. You never know, I just might try to replicate your fave into a sweet treat! xoxo ~ally