Whatchamacallit (candy)
Encyclopedia
Whatchamacallit is the name of a candy bar
in the United States
made by The Hershey Company
. This candy bar was first introduced in 1978. Since 1987, Whatchamacallit has included peanut
-flavored crisp with a layer of caramel
and a layer of milk chocolate coating. In the late 80s, a commercial was created in a New Wave
style referring to the bar in various ways to say "whatchamacallit
", including names that had been made-up, such as "wowzamadoo". Hershey's Whatchamacallit is found in recipe
s for various food items including pie
s, cookie
s, cheesecake
s, and cupcake
s.
In Canada
, an identical candy bar is marketed by Hershey's as Special Crisp, but does not have the wide distribution in Canada that the Whatchamacallit has in the United States.
with cheaper oil substitutes. Such cost cutting was done to avoid price increases for the affected products.
Hershey's changed the description of the product and altered the packaging slightly along with the ingredients. Though the new formula still contains chocolate, according to United States Food and Drug Administration
food labeling
laws, products that do not contain cocoa butter cannot legally be described as milk chocolate. Instead, such products are often referred to as chocolate candy.
Other products that no longer contain cocoa butter (and thus cannot, in the United States, be described as containing milk chocolate) include: Hershey's Kissables
, Krackel
, Milk Duds
, and Mr. Goodbar
.
, cocoa
crisps
, and peanut butter
inside.
Candy bar
A chocolate bar is a confection in bar form comprising some or all of the following components: cocoa solids, cocoa butter, sugar, milk. The relative presence or absence of these components form the subclasses of dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate. In addition to these main...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
made by The Hershey Company
The Hershey Company
The Hershey Company, known until April 2005 as the Hershey Foods Corporation and commonly called Hershey's, is the largest chocolate manufacturer in North America. Its headquarters are in Hershey, Pennsylvania, which is also home to Hershey's Chocolate World. It was founded by Milton S...
. This candy bar was first introduced in 1978. Since 1987, Whatchamacallit has included peanut
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...
-flavored crisp with a layer of caramel
Caramel
Caramel is a beige to dark-brown confection made by heating any of a variety of sugars. It is used as a flavoring in puddings and desserts, as a filling in bonbons, and as a topping for ice cream, custard and coffee....
and a layer of milk chocolate coating. In the late 80s, a commercial was created in a New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
style referring to the bar in various ways to say "whatchamacallit
Placeholder name
Placeholder names are words that can refer to objects or people whose names are either temporarily forgotten, irrelevant, or unknown in the context in which they are being discussed...
", including names that had been made-up, such as "wowzamadoo". Hershey's Whatchamacallit is found in recipe
Recipe
A recipe is a set of instructions that describe how to prepare or make something, especially a culinary dish.-Components:Modern culinary recipes normally consist of several components*The name of the dish...
s for various food items including pie
Pie
A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that covers or completely contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients....
s, cookie
Cookie
In the United States and Canada, a cookie is a small, flat, baked treat, usually containing fat, flour, eggs and sugar. In most English-speaking countries outside North America, the most common word for this is biscuit; in many regions both terms are used, while in others the two words have...
s, cheesecake
Cheesecake
Cheesecake is a dessert consisting of a topping made of soft, fresh cheese, usually on a crust or base made from biscuit , pastry or sponge cake. They may be baked or unbaked...
s, and cupcake
Cupcake
A cupcake is a small cake designed to serve one person, frequently baked in a small, thin paper or aluminum cup...
s.
In Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, an identical candy bar is marketed by Hershey's as Special Crisp, but does not have the wide distribution in Canada that the Whatchamacallit has in the United States.
History
- 1978 Product introduced.
- 1987 Reformulated with added caramel.
- 2002 Product available in King Size.
- 2002 Updated product packaging.
Ingredient changes to reduce production costs
In 2008, the Hershey Company began to change the ingredients for some of its products, replacing the relatively expensive cocoa butterCocoa butter
Cocoa butter, also called theobroma oil, is a pale-yellow, pure edible vegetable fat extracted from the cocoa bean. It is used to make chocolate, biscuits, and baked goods, as well as some pharmaceuticals, ointments, and toiletries...
with cheaper oil substitutes. Such cost cutting was done to avoid price increases for the affected products.
Hershey's changed the description of the product and altered the packaging slightly along with the ingredients. Though the new formula still contains chocolate, according to United States Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
food labeling
Mandatory labelling
Mandatory labelling or labeling is the requirement of consumer products to state their ingredients or components....
laws, products that do not contain cocoa butter cannot legally be described as milk chocolate. Instead, such products are often referred to as chocolate candy.
Other products that no longer contain cocoa butter (and thus cannot, in the United States, be described as containing milk chocolate) include: Hershey's Kissables
Hershey's Kissables
Hershey Kissables were a chocolate candy sold by The Hershey Company from late 2005 to 2009. Comparable to M&Ms, Hershey Kissables were shaped like miniature Hershey's Kisses and were coated in a thick sugar shell....
, Krackel
Krackel
Krackel is a chocolate candy bar made by The Hershey Company.Krackel contains crisped rice, and is similar to the competing Nestlé Crunch bar made by Nestlé. Krackel originally sold as an individual candy bar product, and is now only available as one of the four varieties of Hershey's Miniatures. ...
, Milk Duds
Milk Duds
Milk Duds are a caramel candy, historically enrobed with milk chocolate and currently enrobed with a confectionery coating made from cocoa and vegetable oil. They are currently manufactured by The Hershey Company. Milk Dud's are an excellent source of Calcium, containing as much Calcuim as an 8 0z...
, and Mr. Goodbar
Mr. Goodbar
Mr. Goodbar is a chocolate-flavored candy bar containing peanuts, whose packaging can be easily identified by its distinctive yellow background and red text. It is manufactured by The Hershey Company and was introduced in 1925...
.
Thingamajig
In 2009, Hershey's introduced Thingamajig, a limited edition version featuring chocolateChocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
, cocoa
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
crisps
Crisped rice
Crisped rice refers to a method of cooking rice which leaves the grains with a crisp, airy texture.It is created in much the same way as popcorn; in short, the reaction of both starch and moisture when heated within the shell of the grain...
, and peanut butter
Peanut butter
Peanut butter is a food paste made primarily from ground dry roasted peanuts, popular in North America, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and parts of Asia, particularly the Philippines and Indonesia. It is mainly used as a sandwich spread, sometimes in combination as in the peanut butter and jelly...
inside.