It’s long been in my mind that eating raw cookie dough is bad for you. Whether or not that is merely an old wives’ tale, I can’t say. But when I saw cookie dough in a candy box for sale in the movie theater, I knew I wanted to try it. Because I’m a budget shopper, I waited until I could find the movie theater boxes on sale at my local dollar store. I stocked up on Fudge Brownie Cookie Dough Bites, and bought extras for stocking stuffers. I later found out that these cookie dough candies come in three other varieties: peanut butter cookie dough, chocolate chip cookie dough, and a dark-chocolate-covered version of the chocolate chip cookie dough. Tongue twister or not, I was ready to start eating.

I opened up the box to find tiny bites of chocolicious dough, raw as can be, covered in an outer layer of milk chocolate. The outside was shiny and polished, like chocolate covered raisins or peanuts. But I much preferred what was inside this candy shell. Delicious cookie dough, just like mom always made. I bit into another, and another. These movie-theater boxes give you plenty of candy to share with friends, or you may want to save some for later. I nursed that box for as long as I could, stashed it in my sock drawer for those chocolate cravings, and brought it out again and again. The best part: you don’t have to sneak some from the bowl when nobody is looking. Fudge Brownie Cookie Dough Bites are perfectly safe to eat. How so? There are no eggs in the secret recipe, which is mainly flour, chocolate chips, and vanilla. Now that’s a brilliant idea.

I’ve tried a few other candies that are made to taste like cookies, and I haven’t always been pleased with the result. But if you buy Cookie Dough Bites, a product of the Taste of Nature candy company, you’ll be satisfied with any flavor. Just don’t try to bake them, or you’ll have a melted pile of cookie dough candy.

Tags: Brownies, bite size candy, cookie dough, milk chocolate, sweets

Brought to us by SweetWorks, Sixlets are the type of candy you loved as a kid and still get the urge to try every now and then. They were a product of Hershey’s until 2003, when the chocolate giant sold the product to SweetWorks, headquartered in St. Augustine, Florida. These tiny candy-coated chocolate balls are smaller than M&Ms with a bit less chocolate taste. The cocoa-carob recipe lends to a malted milk ball flavor. You’ll find these plastic-wrapped candy tubes in grocery store aisles, convenience stores, and dollar stores, but they are fairly difficult to find in some states. They come in autumn colors: red, yellow, green, orange, and brown. Different flavors are slightly distinguishable from the candy shells, but the orange one has the strongest flavor. The others taste mostly like sugar, with thicker candy shells than M&Ms. And though some candies claim to melt in your mouth (not in your hand), Sixlets definitely will melt in your hand.

SweetWorks produces various chocolates, hard candies, jawbreakers, and gums, including Chocolate Oranges, Niagara Chocolates, and kids’ candy like Nitwitz Banana Heads. Though the Sixlets package claims the candy is manufactured by Oak Leaf Confections (one of Sweetworks’ brands), it is not featured on Oak Leaf’s website. Perhaps the candy brand is in transition still as Sweetworks figures out which products it will market where.

Even if it is somewhat of a mystery where Sixlets come from, the package is endearing and features a friendly caterpillar with a body made of Sixlets candies and a smile that says “dig in.� And with that kind of an invitation, how could I resist? These tiny chocolate beads do give off more of a malted taste than I prefer, but I love how tiny they are. You can really pop in several at a time and make the nearly 2-ounce package last and last. Whether you are trying Sixlets for the first time or are picking up a pack for nostalgia’s sake, these little candies are unique, offering something different from M&Ms. But one question remains: If they are “Sixlets,� why only five colors?

Tags: candy coated,  Sixlets, chocolate candy, sweets, malted candy 

 

Have a hankering for a golden ticket? You may not find one under the wrapper, but you will discover a gold outer wrapper sealing in the chocolate and graham cracker goodness that is the Wonka Bar. Produced by Nestle, the Wonka Bar and other Wonka candies are pure fun for fans of the novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, or the 2005 Johnny Depp movie of the same name. (The 1971 Gene Wilder film was named differently: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.) In all of the above stories, young Charlie Bucket finds hope and a golden ticket inside the wrapper of a Wonka Bar, which leads him on a once-in-a-lifetime adventure in Wonka’s candy factory. For any child or adult who knows the story, there’s a certain magic that comes with opening up a Wonka candy bar, or sucking on an Everlasting Gobstopper. They may imagine themselves on a boat ride through a chocolate river, or even utter those nonsensical words: “Oompah, loompah, doopity doo.�

The Wonka Bar comes in two sizes, 1.3 or 2.6 ounces. The bar is pure milk chocolate with crunchy graham cracker pieces inside. Sectioned off like a Hershey bar, you can break it off and eat just a square at a time, which is great. I love this chocolate bar, and not just for the nostalgia factor. It’s smooth and chocolately without being boring. The crunchy graham cracker adds significant flavor without taking away from the chocolate.

You may not have realized, but many Nestle products have the Wonka name attached to them. Pixy Stix, Lik-M-Aid, Laffy Taffy, Nerds, Runts, Bottle Caps, Shockers, Tart ‘N Tinys, and Gobstoppers are all Wonka brand products, which only increases the fun factor of these already fun candies. And the Wonka Company, which opened in 1983, still runs golden ticket sweepstakes from time to time, giving away prizes like a trip to see the American Idol finale and results show. But whether or not you can afford just one Wonka Bar or a thousand, the chances of finding a golden ticket are slim. Lucky for you, the chocolate bar is incentive enough.

Tags: graham cracker, milk chocolate, Wonka Bar, crunchy candy bar, sweets

From the moment I saw the package that these mints arrived in, I was intrigued. The elegant black and green box is only a hint of the upscale candy that was waiting on the inside. The entire package – the box, the name, and the candy itself – is a perfect combination that makes you feel like the upper crust of society just by popping one of these after-dinner mints in your mouth. Once I opened the box, I was surprised to find that each mint was individually wrapped in a brown, waxy-like paper, too. I knew that the taste I was about to experience was going to be one that I would undoubtedly enjoy.

These mints reminded me of the ones that I would buy when I was with my parents at the restaurant. They were in a jar by the cash register and they cost like five cents. Although the After Eight Dark Chocolate Thin Mints have a much better taste, they still bring back a sense of nostalgia to those good ol’ days when I had not worries and I had to ask if I could buy a mint for a nickel.

The convenient box contains 25 individually wrapped after-dinner thin mints with a strong minty inside. Made by Nestle’s European Chocolate Company branch, these mints not only taste chocolate and minty, but they also help to freshen your breath and give your mouth that cool feeling. They also have a gooey quality to them that makes them fun to set on your tongue and wait until the chocolate melts, leaving only the mint taste. At one time, they were deemed England’s finest mints, but now they are available in over 60 countries, including the United States and Canada.

Since each mint only has one gram of fat, you can savor a few of these at the end of each dinner. With the elegant box, these are also a great gift idea for Christmas or any other occasion. You just can’t go wrong when you give me candy as a gift.

Tags: specialty chocolate, chocolate mint, Nestle, sweets

One of my favorite things about the Frank Ford Eggs is that they are a no-frills candy. With all of the many combinations to choose from nowadays, it’s hard to just find something that is plain milk chocolate without almonds, caramel, or any other addition to the creamy goodness that is just plain milk chocolate. The Frank Ford Eggs satisfied my desire for this. These candies are just simple milk chocolate balls (or eggs, rather, since it is almost Easter and they are more oblong than balls) and they just melt in your mouth like chocolate is supposed to do. The milk chocolate used in these candies is much better than plain chocolate, too. Rather than leaving a bitter taste in your mouth the way that plain chocolate does, milk chocolate is creamier and has a richer and smoother texture that you will undoubtedly enjoy. Dark chocolate is simply too strong of a taste and white chocolate often does not taste like chocolate at all. Milk chocolate is the perfect medium for chocolate.

Since I’ve never heard of the Frank Ford candy company before, I was a little hesitant about what to expect. I ate one at first, but then I put the other three in my mouth at the same time. This was a great way to experience a mouthful of delicious milk chocolate that you can savor for quite a few minutes. If you buy a package of Frank Ford chocolate Easter eggs, I would suggest enjoying them several at a time. It’s fun. Or, if you would rather make them last longer (which is totally understandable once you see how good they are), you can enjoy them one by one. Either way, you will want to stock up.

The Frank Ford Eggs come in festive foil wrapping around Easter. The pastel colors – blue, pink, green, and yellow – attract your eyes and immediately make you think thoughts of spring. The wrapping for these chocolates is also plain. Other than the colored foil, there really is no other decoration added to the packaging. They also make a great addition to the candy dish on your coffee table because it will be a colorful display that will make your guests want to have a piece right away.

Tags: milk chocolate, chocolate eggs, Frankford, Easter candy, sweets

Just in time for Easter, the Mars Candy Company released their fun novelty version of their M&Ms. Contained in a fun pastel green plastic Easter egg, these M&Ms have the same great taste that the classic candy has had for decades, but the colors on the inside are festive pastels that make you get excited about the approaching spring season. On one side of each individual candy, there is the trademark “M� that we’ve all come to know and love. On the other side of each candy, however, is a little tiny drawing that is in some way related to spring, such as a small little flower or grass. The pastel colors of purple, green, yellow, blue, and pink are a nice change from the normal colors that the company makes available throughout rest of the year. They should just have the pastel colors be the normal colors because they have an added since of fun.

The serving size for this item is two ounces. In each egg, there is approximately 50 M&Ms, which equals about two handfuls. If you have a spouse, you’re going to want to share these, but otherwise just pop as many in your mouth as you can and let them “melt in your mouth – not in your hand.� These fun little pieces of milk chocolate with a candy coating is one of my favorites. What I like to do is get a handful and then hold them until the candy coating is softened before popping the entire handful in my mouth. Sometimes the candy coating is a little hard which ruins my enjoyment of the candy, which is why I like to soften them up a bit.

The Mars Candy Company also offers Easter varieties of other products, including Easter peanut M&Ms. These are basically the same concept, but with the classic peanut on the inside of each candy. These are fun at Easter time because they are egg-shaped candies, too. The Mars Candy Company has produced a great product in their M&Ms and they continue to satisfy many sweet tooths across the world.

Tags: Chocolate eggs, M&Ms, Easter candy, candy coated, sweets

The Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg has the traditional taste that you have come to expect from the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, but without the shape. When I opened it, it didn’t really resemble an egg, but rather a large glob of peanut butter and chocolate combined. To me, it doesn’t really matter what shape it is…as long as it’s good. I do enjoy the traditional cup shape of the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups because they are more fun to unwrap because of the ridges. But the egg tasted just as good. I also like the fact that the cups come with two per package. Once you eat one, you know you have another right behind it. With the egg, there is only one.

Does it really get much better than peanut butter and chocolate? I mean, besides peanut butter and jelly, there are very few combinations that have become legendary in our food crazed society. But Reese’s has perfected the combination to be a perfect balance for the taste buds. Besides, since the chocolate is made with Hershey’s chocolate, you can be sure that you’re not disappointed.

The Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg is only offered during the Easter season. The yellow and orange packaging is more attractive than the traditional orange and brown packaging. But it’s like I always tell my wife, “It doesn’t matter what you’re wrapped in, it’s not going to be on but a few seconds.� This is just as true with my candy. I couldn’t care less about what the packaging or even the candy looks like…I just care about what’s inside.

The Reese’s peanut butter cups actually started out as simply peanut butter cups without the chocolate covering. This changed once the cups became popular and the Reese’s company merged with the Hershey’s company. It’s one of the greatest partnerships in the history of America – Bogey & Bacall, Abbott and Costello, Reese and Hershey. Now, the company offers several varieties of their popular candy, including white chocolate, dark chocolate, peanut butter mixed with caramel, inside out varieties, and big cups to please any candy lover’s desire.

Tags: Reese’s, milk chocolate, peanut butter eggs, Easter candy, sweets

I used to be anxious about Easter time because I was waiting for the Cadbury Easter Egg to be sold at the corner store. But nowadays, I don’t get excited about that. Now, I get excited about Easter because of the Cadbury Caramel Egg. The Cadbury Caramel Egg took the rich milk chocolate from the regular Cadbury Egg and put a big gob of gooey caramel in the center. The best way to enjoy one of these is to bite off half of the egg to expose the creamy caramel nougat on the inside. Once exposed, you can either put rest of the candy in your mouth or you can do as I like to do – scoop the delicious nougat out of the bottom half of the egg with your tongue. This way, you can savor the creamy nougat taste and still have the rest of the milk chocolate egg to satisfy your sweet tooth. I like the Cadbury Caramel Egg much better than the original because the egg yolk-looking center in the original always seemed weird to me.

The wrapping for the Cadbury Caramel Egg was the first thing I noticed about the candy. The shiny gold foil wrapping automatically draws your attention to the potential goodness once you unwrap it. With spring flowers on the package, it also helps to get your in the mood for the warming spring season.

Another great thing about the Cadbury company, besides its amazing candy, is that they have an awesome interactive website for their customers or potential customers. Visitors to the site can take part in a virtual factory where you can make virtual chocolate and other deserts. Their website also offers a podcast competition that is open to the public. You might also enjoy the wide-variety of e-cards that you can send to friends or the Cadbury themes for desktops and screen savers, including ones where you can splat Cadbury eggs on your screen. Not only is their product fun to eat, but they also give their customers other great resources to have a good time.

Tags: Cadbury egg, caramel egg, milk chocolate, Easter candy, sweets

I’m not a huge fan of vanilla, but I absolutely love Hershey Kisses. Hershey’s brand of chocolate just has its own unique taste and texture that simply cannot be duplicated. Its silver wrapping duplicates the silver wrapping that you’ve come to recognize as a Hershey Kiss, but the Vanilla Crème Hershey Kisses have a fun tan-colored swirl that circles around the kiss. These would be great in a candy dish with some other Hershey Kiss varieties for a fun and colorful display. Chances are, though, that once you have a guest, your candy dish will be empty before they leave. Yes…they are just that good.

I wasn’t looking forward to tasting the vanilla, thinking it would mess up my normal enjoyment of a Hershey Kiss. But once I bit down, I was hooked. The vanilla taste wasn’t overwhelming as it subsided to the chocolaty goodness that I love about Hershey’s chocolate. The middle felt like a creamy nougat of vanilla, but it was a subtle vanilla taste instead of an overwhelming one, which is what I was expecting.

Hershey Kisses have been around for nearly a century and they continue to make their trademark teardrop-shaped candies for people who enjoy them. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it. Many people have referred to the shapes and size as oversized chocolate chips. This is one of their best-selling candies in the history of their company and their new varieties have done nothing but increase their sales and popularity all over the world. Not only do the new and exciting tastes get you excited all over again when you hold a handful of Hershey Kisses, but the fun wrapping is just another aspect of the fun. Until 1968, they only offered the shiny silver foil wrappings, but they began offering different colors around Easter of that year. The pastel colors that they used were for a limited time during Easter and eventually they began offering special edition wrappings for other holidays, including Valentine’s Day and Christmas. They never cease to try to satisfy their consumers. In fact, with over 80 million individual kisses are produced on a daily basis by two separate factories, they seem to have done an excellent job at being a satisfying treat for any sweet tooth.

Tags: Hershey kisses, milk chocolate, bite size candy, foil wrapped candy, sweets

I love Hershey Miniature candy bars. I love all of the Hershey products and the Hershey Miniatures line brings many of their best products into one bag. I can enjoy the various tastes of the Hershey candy bars without the guilt of eating an entire candy bar. By the time I’m doing enjoying the Hershey’s miniatures, however, I’ve probably ingested the equivalent of two full-size candy bars. The small size is great for others, though. You can enjoy a small piece of candy after dinner to satisfy your sweet tooth, but without the guilt of eating too many calories.

Hershey Miniatures come in a bag of individually wrapped small candy bars. The most popular line of miniatures includes the following:

Krackel – crisped rice in milk chocolate. If you’ve had a Nestle bar, you know what this is. But Hershey Krackel is comparable if not better. This is my personal favorite because I like the crunch in addition to the milk chocolate creaminess. For Easter, this one comes individually wrapped in pink pastel foil.

Mr. Goodbar – I’m not a huge fan of peanuts, but I enjoy Mr. Goodbar. Pretty much anything mixed with chocolate tastes good – that’s my theory. This simple mixture is delicious, but it’s just not my preference. For the Easter line of Hershey Miniatures, the Mr. Goodbar variety comes individually wrapped in pastel yellow.

Milk Chocolate – There really are few things that compare to the simple and exquisite taste of plain Hershey’s milk chocolate. Without any other frills or combinations, Hershey Milk Chocolate stands alone as one of the best tastes in the world…or at least that’s my opinion. For Easter, this miniature candy bar is wrapped in shiny turquoise blue foil which is a stunning contrast to the other colors in the package.

Mildly Sweet Special Dark Chocolate – I’m not a huge dark chocolate fan, so this is my least favorite Hershey Miniature. Don’t get me wrong, though. I still enjoy it. But if I have to choose between the four, this one would be my least favorite. For Easter, this one is wrapped in a shiny green foil.

You just really can’t go wrong with anything made by Hershey’s. Their miniatures line has been satisfying sweet tooths for almost 70 years and they continue to please candy lovers. Recently, the company has began offering a nut-lovers line of miniatures. Although I’m not a big fan of nuts in my candy bars, I’m excited to try these next.

Tags: Hershey’s chocolate, foiled wrapped chocolate, Easter candy, milk chocolate, sweets