Visit the Stateside Candy Co. for all your yankee cravings

I’ve ordered a few American food products from the Stateside Candy Co. in the past – mostly around Thanksgiving when I’m needing marshmallows and canned sweet potatoes. This online retailer also supplies Nigella with all those American ingredients she uses in her recipes. I could spot a bag of Toll House chocolate chips from a mile away.

I noticed the Stateside Candy Co. had opened up a shop in Aldershot. Sometime last week I asked Scott where Aldershot was. He is my human Google Maps and after making a face at my random choice in English towns, he replied, “Too far to go for whatever shop is out there.”

Damn. That man knows me too well.

About 20 minutes later, he looked up from behind his laptop and said, “Do you want to go away this weekend? We could do an overnight in Hampshire.”

And because Hampshire sounds like somewhere Keira Knightley and Emma Thompson’s characters would vacation in a period drama, I said yes, yes, I would love to.

He continued, “We can go to Aldershot and stop by that shop if you want.”

Yes! Yes!

“And then on Sunday we can go to the Farnborough Air Show.”

Oh. Ohhh. I get it now.

***

It took us nearly five hours to get to Aldershot. It should have taken 1.5 hours. If that. The M25 was horrendously busy and I was bored out of my mind. I was saving my magazines for the air show. I watched as “my” day slowly slipped away. I was really scared we wouldn’t make it to the shop before it closed, nevermind the antiques centre I wanted to check out in Farnham.

But we made it just in time.

I snapped these photos before an onslaught of customers arrived and then I had to abandon the camera so I could focus. I must have walked around the small shop a dozen times before putting anything in my basket. (In the end, I actually put a few things back on the shelf. Really wish I had bought those Fruity Pebbles.)

I was tempted by the biggest jar of dill pickles I have ever seen.

But Scott pointed out that it probably wouldn’t fit in our fridge.

And he certainly wasn’t being a part of purchasing an £11 jar of pickles.

Then he passed out at the sight of the price tag for Fruit Loops. I stepped over his body to grab a reduced bag of Cheez-its.

The woman in front of me spent £150. On Fluff and Mountain Dew and Crisco and a bajillion boxes of Macaroni & Cheese. The guy behind me watched as I paid for a can of A&W root beer. I saw he had a few cans in his basket. We gave each other a knowing nod.

I got out of there with a £22 bill. It would have been worse but I had Scott recovering in the car, waiting to judge me.

At least I know I’ll be back there in two years when the next air show is on…