Halloween Candy

As promised, part 2 of my Halloween series. The treats. Let me preface this by saying that I have a huge sweet tooth. I think the only reason that i don't have a billion cavities is my equally big love of cheese and high in bone-strengthening calcium dairy products. That being said, I am not a Chocophile. While most girls go gaga for Jacques Torres and Godiva, I always preferred cookies and pastries, or fruity candies.

I basically lived on Diet Coke and Skittles in high school. Many people can attest to this, though they will tell you I also ate a fair number of quesadillas (see, there's the cheese). I tasted the rainbow every day, and it gave me the energy to power through cheerleading and dance classes, with a smile on my face (ok, not always, I was a teenage girl, after all). Also, they helped me make better friends, because unlike most people, I only like the orange, yellow, and green ones. No red or purple for me, so if you were in my vicinity, you lucked into a handful of strawberry and grape nuggets of yumatude.

So the first thing going in my Halloween bucket is the bag of skittles. And add right on top of those the Starburst, practically the same thing in square form. (By the way, this is exactly what our treat collecting containers looked like when I was a kid.)

I'm also a big fan of the Reece's Pieces. I know a lot of people prefer the cups, because of the chocolate and peanut butter combo, and I have nothing against that flavor mingling, but I prefer the little bits of PB in a crunchy shell. These also make an awesome ice cream or frozen yogurt topping, but let's keep this to what you can throw in your candy bucket.

Now, if i am going to get chocolate, I need some nuts or cookie or something to break up the solid hunk of choco. My favorite of the M&M's to come out of the flavor experimentation is the almond one. I am happy to eat my way through a bag of the peanut ones, but the almond is ideal. You can almost pretend it's a healthy snack, like you could throw them in a bag of trail mix, and it wouldn't be that far off. Plus, the Almond M&M dude is a big blue guy, and blue are my favorite M&Ms (yes, I know they all taste the same), plus I like tall guys. Done and done.

When it comes to the chocolate bar, I like to go for either a Snickers or a Twix, and either way, they are so much better after a day in the freezer. I'm pretty sure it's mostly because once the caramel layer freezes, it becomes crunchy and easy to eat, instead of a goo that gets stuck in every crevice of your teeth.

I can do a Crunch bar, a Kit Kat (especially the white chocolate one, so good!), a York Peppermint Paddy (how can you not like candy that freshens your breath at the same time). For that reason, I also like some Mentos, though not sure they really count as candy. And I'm good with Sour Patch Kids, Swedish Fish, some Smarties (but these get boring before long, and make your tongue tingle), and lolly pops of all varieties (but not all flavors). Also, who doesn't love Pez in a fun dispenser? I'm not a collector, but I enjoy them as much as the next person.

But no Almond Joys or Mounds for me, not a fan of the coconut. A plain Hershey bar is too much chocolate in one bite, and can we please agree that Candy Corn is just a soft mound of corn syrup, and therefore totally disgusting? Also in the reject pile from my candy collection: Charleston Chew (too much chew, too much stickiness in the teeth), Tootsie Rolls (again, they are all in my teeth), Jelly Beans, Twislers, and probably some other random little pieces whose brands I haven't bothered to learn.

Help yourself to my leftovers.

Also not appropriate Halloween fare: apples, tooth brushes, pennies, raisins. Take note, if it isn't bad for you, it isn't a real treat.

Look next week for my next Halloween installment: scary stuff.