The Sweet Life of Sugar Mama Melissa Wedman

As a “dessertarian,” I pride myself in being a “foodie” in the dessert and candy genre of foods. In my amateur critique of candy, the caramels from Mollycoddled Hash Slinger are excellent confections. Four delectable flavors are available, each made with primarily Oklahoma sourced ingredients. While each fl avor is distinct (salted whiskey, browned butter honey, apple, and espresso), they are also velvety smooth, supple, buttery, creamy, and don’t stick to your teeth.

Melissa Wedman and her husband met in their hometown of Yukon where Justin’s great uncle, Andrew Wedman owned the local candy store in the early 1900’s. The
Palace Confectionary is now a historic building located in downtown Yukon. While growing up, Melissa’s own sweet tooth was developed with her visits to her grandparents’ house in Cushing, Oklahoma. Her grandfather, Frank Allen Sr. kept a supply of sweets next to his recliner ready to indulge his grandkids. Melissa’s father,
Frank Allen Jr. always enjoyed caramels. In the fall of 2013, two years aft er her father’s death, Melissa wanted to make a caramel to honor her father.

In the beginning, head sugar slinger Melissa experimented with recipes, throwing out lots of unsuccessful batches, but carefully writing down the recipes of the caramels that her family and friends determined were yummy.

She didn’t just experiment with recipes, “When I get involved in a project, I am obsessed with it. I researched the science of making caramel as well as the history of it.” It turns out that a lot of science goes into making a batch of caramel.

Melissa gave her friends and family her homemade caramels for Christmas and other gift giving occasions. Then her friends started asking her to make custom batches so they could share with their friends and family. Soon, Melissa had so many requests that she started an online Etsy shop, selling mainly to corporations for corporate gift s. Within two months of launching her Etsy shop, she had order requests from 16 states. Soon, Melissa exceeded the production limit in her own personal kitchen and had to find a commercial kitchen to make her caramels. She wanted to find a place that had a storefront, a kitchen, and an open area where patrons could see the caramels being packaged. She found a great place on North Rockwell in Oklahoma City, not too far from her home in Yukon.

Now, Melissa has shipped her delicious caramels to 49 states. When the citizens of Vermont find out what they are missing on these delectable yummies, they will soon be making orders as well. Her customers include several companies and celebrities. It takes Melissa two hours to make a batch of caramel on her “mollycoddled” gas stove, hence the name “Mollycoddled Hash Slinger,” meaning “spoiled chef.” Melissa also is intentional in buying ingredients sourced from Oklahoma and Made In Oklahoma products for her store.

“When you buy Oklahoma products, you are supporting Oklahoma’s economy, and the U.S. economy as well.” Melissa states that it is her mission to support micro to small businesses in Oklahoma, and was even on Good Morning America in May 2020 to talk about her growing business during the pandemic.

Mollycoddled Hash Slinger is located at 12100 N. Rockwell Avenue in Oklahoma City. Store hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10:30 to 5:30, and from 9 to 4 on Saturday. Online orders are available through the store’s website, www.mollycoddledhashslinger.net, or call the store at 405-506-9207.