One Good Find: Clear Toy Candies

I'm a sucker for old-timey sweets, and Shane Confectionery in Old City, Philadelphia is about as antiquated as it gets: The shop has been dishing out handmade buttercreams since 1911, and when brothers Eric and Ryan Berley took over in 2010, they gave Shane a time-machine-like makeover, restoring the fleur-de-lis woodwork that frames the original display counters and returning the facade to its pre-war glory days by reinstalling curved glass display windows. The Berley brothers also introduced a new-old sweet to the Shane repertoire: clear toy candies, shiny molded treats made from a solution of corn syrup, sugar, water, and food coloring. In the 1700s, Pennsylvania Dutch families would give clear toys to children during the holidays; now Shane keeps up the tradition with their brightly-colored hard candies, which are poured by hand into century-old Philadelphia-made molds. The clear toys vary in shape with the seasons. I love this autumnal collection, with its tiny, shiny trio of turkey, squirrel, and acorn. This year, they'll adorn my Thanksgiving table—and get gobbled up at dessert.