Freeze-dried candy provides new twist on favorites at recently opened Suring business Jolted

Go to any candy store and you will find M&M's, Jolly Ranchers, Nerds Gummy Clusters and Skittles.

Go to Jolted, which recently opened at 714 Main St. in Suring, and you will find them transformed into a new eating experience.

Laura Hackey, the manager of the shop, uses her freeze-drying techniques to put a whole new twist on your favorite candy.

"It’s kind of weird," she said. "You take a caramel M&M and the sublimation of the structure of the freeze-dry process basically busts open the shell, turns the caramel into an airy texture and you have what we call now marbles because we can’t use the trademarked name."

Sublimation is the conversion between the solid and the gaseous phases of matter, with no intermediate liquid stage.

Hackey gets excited as she describes the new treats created after putting them in her freeze dryers for a few hours.

Fruit Rollups – "Oh, they’re amazing freeze-dried. A totally different texture. No sticky, no mess. Parents of young kids love some of this stuff."

Taffy becomes creamy delights – "It turns (them) into a melt-in-your-month, basically airy, spongey texture. And at the end you get a jolt of flavor."

Hackey said this jolt sparked the name of the business, which also serves coffee.

"If I can’t jolt you out with caffeine, I’m going to jolt you with candy, and then I’m going to show you how to preserve your food and that is going to jolt some eyes," she said.

What is the freeze-drying process?

Different types of food can be freeze-dried – fruits, meats, vegetables, eggs and dairy, herbs and spices, cooked meals, and snacks and drinks.

"There are only two things that can't be freeze-dried and that’s oil and alcohol," Hackey said.

Users put food on a tray and slide it into the freeze dryer, where the temperature can reach about 50 degrees below zero. Then the vacuum pump creates a vacuum inside the locked chamber, according to a video posted on the Harvest Right freeze dryer webpage.

The freeze dryer gradually warms the food, where the water sublimates off as a gas and the food dries. Water generally makes up from 80% to 95% of raw food, according to an article published via the National Institutes of Health.

Freeze-drying does not shrink or toughen the food, and it retains its aroma, flavor and nutritional content. By just adding water, the food can be quickly rehydrated and ready to eat.

"You can eat it in the freeze-dry texture or you can reconstitute it to its original form," Hackey said.

Hackey said most candy can be processed in three to six hours. For lemons and limes, she said the process takes about 19 hours, while strawberries and other berries – "anything with seeds in them and a higher moisture content" – can take up to 60 hours.

In each of the two medium-sized dryers that Hackey uses, she can transform about 10 pounds of food in each run.

"It’s a nice way for people to take food on the go, for backpackers, campers, hikers," Hackey said.

Freeze-drying appeals to Jolted manager

Hackey has been involved in the greenhouse and horticulture business "pretty much for all of my life," she said.

She said she became hooked on the holistic growing of food, herbs and vegetables, and the preserving of them.

"Once the freeze-dried process was open to the public, or more readily available for classes and learning and such, I went into that route," Hackey said.

She said she found that process of food preservation better suited her. "I'm not a canner; I blow things up," Hackey said.

Plus, the freeze-drying process restores and retains 97% of the product it processes, she says.

Making sure everything up to code

Hackey said she is proud to be up to code by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

"There are a lot of people that unfortunately are unlicensed," Hackey said of other freeze-dried candy sellers.

"I went through a very, very, very detailed rigmarole to get this all up to code," she added.

Hackey said many other candy makers are "hobbyists" who make the treats out of their home. Since 2017, Wisconsin's home bakers can sell baked goods that are not potentially hazardous directly to consumers without licensing requirements, but the state is appealing that court order.

"This is such a new process, so as far to my knowledge on the state level, we are the first one in northeast Wisconsin to be a fully licensed, accredited kitchen that has the freeze-drying process available," Hackey said. "Now I could be wrong on that, but that is what my health inspector told us."

Hackey said the business is "steps away" from being fully licensed to also offer soups, also.

Plus, if people have extra food that they would like freeze-dried, Hackey says to contact her and she can add them to her schedule.

What else does Jolt offer?

Hackey said candy and coffee are "neck and neck" as her most popular items.

Jolted also sells some craft items, photography and hand-beaded items.

"While you’re waiting for coffee, you can kind of browse the candy selection, and look at the displays and give me a chance to get your coffee together," Hackey said.

Hours of operation

Jolted is open three days a week, "to start with, (as we try) to get the feel of the community," Hackey said.

It is open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Contact Kevin Dittman at 920-431-8416 or kdittman@gannett.com.

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This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: New Suring candy store Jolted offers freeze-dried twist on favorites