Irish potatoes: How Duffy's Fine Chocolates makes popular treat
GLOUCESTER CITY, N.J. (CBS) -- Saint Patrick's Day is a week away and there's a sweet reminder hitting store shelves in the Delaware Valley: Irish potatoes.
CBS News Philadelphia chief meteorologist Bill Kelly headed to a century-old candy store in South Jersey that is selling the homemade sugary treat that's become an annual tradition for many in the region.
"Irish potatoes. They're just amazing. They're coconutty. They are a little sweet," Duffy's Fine Chocolates owner Michelle Sieg said. "But then the cinnamon kind of cuts that sweetness. They're really good."
At Duffy's Fine Chocolates in Gloucester City, the boxes are being packed.
"It's definitely labor intensive," Sieg said. "You're on your feet all day and when your arms are going like this all day, you know your back is killing you, but it's all worth it."
Sieg has been working at the family business ever since she can remember.
"We have been in business since 1922," Sieg said. "I'm fifth generation."
Today, Sieg and her husband Eric run the candy shop.
The couple's story is equally as sweet.
"I married into the family," Eric said. "So, my earliest memory is Michelle bringing me candy in high school, trying to win me over with all the chocolates, and honestly, I wasn't a sweets fan. But 13 years ago, on Valentine's Day, she called me in because we had to do Irish potatoes and it was so crazy in here, I never left."
While Irish potatoes are mostly seasonal, because they are so popular at Duffy's Fine Chocolates, you can order them year-round.
Duffy's Fine Chocolates also ships all across the United States.