They say that variety is the spice of life. Well, Brach’s is delivering a variety of spices with its new lineup of holiday nougats.

Okay…so they’re mostly mints. But you get the idea. You might remember Christmas Nougats from going “treeing” at other people’s houses. They have these tiny little trees in the middle, and you can’t help but try and bite around the candy just so, in an effort to free the tree from a forest of nougat. And then, when you fail, you can’t help but try again. Over the years, I wiled away many hours this way, waiting for adults to finish talking. These candies, for many of us, are a signal that the holidays are really here.

Classic Peppermint Christmas Nougats

It all started with the Brach’s Peppermint Christmas Nougat. This red-and-white variety  is the classic soft candy of Christmas, but as a kid I shied away from them. But as an adult, curiosity struck. What I found is that these are actually quite addictive.

The texture seems to be hard before you open them. But the nougat softens as you chew, giving way to one of the cleanest and smoothest candy textures I’ve experienced. They’re really nice after dinner (and after dessert) to make your mouth all fresh and tingly. They’re more peppermint than sweet, so you feel like you’ve eaten a mint rather than a candy.

Wintergreen Christmas Nougats

Somewhere over the years, Brach’s decided to mix it up. So now those more inclined to eat Canada Mints can have a Christmas candy, too. Wintergreen is one of those bizarre flavors that you don’t think you want to eat on purpose. Pepto Bismol might have done that to us. But one bite of something Wintergreen that’s actually yummy, and you can’t stop eating it.

Brach’s Wintergreen Christmas Nougats are no exception. They have the exact same wonderful texture and festive design as the Peppermint nougat, but the base color is light green instead of white. These leave you with a distinct cool feeling in your mouth.

Cinnamon Christmas Nougats

Cinnamon might be the best variety for children new to the world of Brach’s Christmas Nougats. These also have the little tree design, but the main color is pink. When you open an individually wrapped piece, you’re immediately hit with a jolt of cinnamon fragrance. These are just remarkably pleasant, because they have potent cinnamon flavor without overwhelming you with a burst of heat.

Cinnamon Christmas Nougats give you all the texture of classic nougats, plus a cinnamonny experience without the annoying loss of flavor you get from chewing gum. Unlike the mint varieties, this one leaves your mouth feeling warm and toasty.

Chocolate Mint Christmas Nougats

And then there’s one more — the fun one. Brach’s Chocolate Mint Christmas Nougats take things outside the box. They abandon the classic tree design for a basic but totally cute irregular swirl. This makes them fun to smash, so kids — or you — might end up playing with them more than the others. The chocolate and mint layers are made from two distinct flavors of nougat. The chocolate is a really nice surprise. It has none of that essence-of-fake-chocolate taste, but rather adds a subtle chocolate tone to the distinct mint flavor.

I carefully nibbled at the mint layer of several of these, trying to decide what kind of mint it was. I gave up. It has the light green hue of wintergreen but the freshness of peppermint. And seems too much like a Peppermint Patty to be Wintergreen. Either way, when you eat the layers together, you still get that very consistent, smooth nougat texture, with a refreshing flavor that leaves behind notes of mint.

A Christmas Candy Tradition

The nutrition facts on these puppies makes them an indulgence that’s worth it. The stats are pretty similar for all varieties, so 5 pieces have around 160 calories and 3 grams of fat. That’s not bad at all for candy in any season. Stick with Brach’s to revive old traditions or start new ones. These candies are so unique, they won’t be forgotten.

We want to send a big “Thank You” out to everyone who submitted their candy stories during our Candy 1 to 20 Contest. We received stories that were funny, touching, nostalgic, and creative, all about learning with candy. It’s clear that candy certainly is a great motivator, and that the ways to use it are endless.

Check out the stories on the original post.

And the Winners Are…

• Owen Brelsford
• Candace Retka
• P. Chatwin
• Matthew Keller
• Kasee Johnson

Each winner will win a signed copy of the book “Candy 1 to 20” from Chronicle Books.

Watch out in the coming weeks for our next contest. Sign up for our newsletter to receive chances to win, special deals, and new product announcements!

Over the past few weeks, there have been rumblings and rumors of impending doom for peanut-butter lovers. Some people have stocked up on peanut products, while others are suspicious that these might be tactics designed to scare them into buying. After all, no one wants to hoard surplus supplies unnecessarily.

Well, the warnings have been confirmed. Some of our candy suppliers have even reported unavailable products. Due to a perfect storm of drought, rising energy prices, competing crops, and meager plantings, the U.S. is experiencing a peanut shortage. Overall peanut production is down 13%, and the price for a ton of runner (think peanut butter) peanuts is 266% what it was a year ago. This means that peanuts will be harder to get, and they’re about to be more expensive.

Over the last few months, many retailers and manufacturers have been absorbing rising costs related to peanuts. But Kraft is set to raise the price of Planters Peanut Butter by 40% on October 31. Jif will cost 30% more. And Peter Pan is right behind them. Candy producers are among the hardest hit, as they’ve also been struggling with rising sugar and chocolate costs. And sure, the market is sure to level out eventually. But prices aren’t likely to go back down until next September, and even that will depend on next year’s harvest.

So unless you’re planning to leverage the shortage to help your new diet, you might want to do a little stocking up.

Get These Endangered Peanut & Peanut Butter Items

	Boston Baked Beans
	French Burnt Peanuts
	Peanut Butter Kisses – On Sale!
	Peanut Butter Bars
	Peanut M&M’s

I had the unexpected pleasure of meeting some reps from Jelly Belly a few days ago. What wonderful people! And they left behind a single Harry Potter Chocolate Frog for my own personal enjoyment.

It’s the Crispy One, Not the Giant One

I’ve of course been incredibly curious about these. The giant version available at Honeydukes at Universal Studios has gotten a lot of coverage. But those reviews have been mixed — raving about the packaging and size of the frog, but mostly meh on the flavor and quality of the chocolate. Well, I don’t know who makes those, but it’s not Jelly Belly. Fortunately, the Chocolate Frogs available to the rest of us are more reasonably priced and more reasonable in size. It seems that what these lack in heft, they make up for in taste.

Nutrition and Whatnot

Now, I’m a label nerd, so the first thing I look at is nutrition facts. I like to enjoy my treats responsibly. The Harry Potter Milk Chocolate Frog with Crisped Rice is totally doable at 80 calories and 4.5 grams of fat. The other thing that struck me is that there are relatively few ingredients. This is real chocolate, complete with the cocoa butter you’d expect. For the gluten avoiders out there, you’ll unfortunately have to steer clear. The crisp rice is made with barley malt (scourge of foods that would otherwise be edible!)

The Magic Pack

So, the Chocolate Frog is wrapped in pretty purple foil packaging. It’s nothing you’re going to save forever. However, I was totally impressed with the way the important part — the collectible wizard card — is included. It’s enclosed in its own plastic sleeve that’s attached to the top of the wrapper. This suspends the card in the middle of the package, so it’s less likely to get bent or otherwise messed up before it gets to you, or in a backpack or what have you. It also prevents the chocolate from making contact with the card. So even if your frog melts, your card will survive unscathed. I’m sure that plenty of people will just keep the plastic on and build their collections in mint condition. I didn’t realize that the cards were holographic, either, which is a nice touch.

First Impressions

When you open the pack, you get a fragrance that’s chocolate plus a little bit more. Which is fitting, since that’s exactly what you’re about to eat. The chocolate frog itself is cute. It’s not lifelike, but I wasn’t particularly imagining or hoping that it would be. The little frog arms and legs (this guy is all knees) make it clear that you should start by biting off all the extremities.

A Crisped Rice Runs Through It

Since this is chocolate with crunchies (technically known as “crisped rice), I thought it important to compare with other crunchy chocolates. So I broke out a Nestle Crunch and a Krackle. I have memories of absolutely loving Crunch bars, so I didn’t expect the Chocolate Frog to fare very well in a head-to-head. Shockingly, it turned out to be my favorite of the three. The color of our Chocolate Frog matches Nestle Crunch almost exactly, and is a bit lighter than the Krackle. The frog has the fewest obvious crunchies and looks as though it’ll be the creamiest.

Flavor and More Flavor

I started with the Krackle, which built to an almost acidic bitter flavor that kind of turned me off. The Crunch was better, but also finished on an unpleasant note. It’s more appropriate for moments of “I want something crunchy” than “I want some chocolate.” The chocolate in the Frog turned out to be very creamy and not your typical candy-bar fare. It has a consistent, mellow flavor and a mild finish that’s completely devoid of yuckiness. The crisped rice in the Chocolate Frog is far more subtle than in the other bars. As expected, the texture of Krackle is quite a bit granier than the frog, and even leaves a grainy residue on your hands. Nestle Crunch places the emphasis on the crunchies, making it almost a different beast than the frog. In my frog, most of the rice was at the bottom, adding a nice layer of texture without taking over the whole show.

The Verdict

All in all, I was totally surprised by my Chocolate Frog. It includes a nice, quality collectible bonus, which legitimizes the Harry Potter branding. And it’s a genuinely good piece of milk chocolate. I can definitely envision parents eating the frogs and giving the cards to their kids. You can order these now at CandyFavorites.com!

Candy Favorites is delighted to be partnering with Chronicle Books to announce the release of Candy 1 to 20. This colorful new board book, published by Chronicle Books, uses vibrant photos of classic candies to teach basic counting skills.

To celebrate Candy 1 to 20, we’ll be giving away 5 copies of the book. Each of them is signed by the author! To enter, just share your experience of candy as a teaching tool.

Did you learn probability through the colors of M&M’s? Are you a teacher who uses the squares of Hershey Bars to teach fractions? Or was your favorite candy used as a reward as you learned important life lessons?

Since candy is a powerful motivator and positive reinforcement for all ages, the possibilities are endless. Send us your most memorable candy-fueled learning experiences, and you’ll be entered to win one of 5 signed copies of Candy 1 to 20. You can email us or submit the form below.

Winners will be announced Friday, October 28.

Contest Terms & Conditions

Submit Your Story!

Do you crave peanut butter? Do you hoard peanut-butter-filled wonders in your freezer? Do you keep some in the fridge to ensure suitable textures for all nature of cravings? Have the mothers of children screamed at you for the trail of allergen-rife wrappers you leave in your wake?

I understand.

Peanut Butter Candy is not the most socially approved preoccupation. You can’t just go around eating most candies filled with peanut butter all the time. It’s rude to steal them from your co-workers. It’s greasy and melty and will do terrible things to your body. So the only real options are to force yourself into moderation or to feel guilty about giving in. Well, there’s a better solution.

Because They’re Modest

Peanut Butter Bars are out there waiting for you to discover them. They’re a dark horse of the candy world. Maybe you’ve had them before and forgotten. These crunchy little guys have been made by Atkinson (the makers of Chick-O-Stick) since 1932. But their nondescript packaging, absence from mass-media advertising, and spotty availability add up to a whole lot of people being unaware of their brilliance.

For Texture Reasons

Peanut Butter Bars have a texture similar to the wafer-like crisp peanut butter of Butterfinger or Zagnut, but are more light and airy. For some reason not immediately apparent they’re coated on the outside with a thin, almost transparent, layer of white candy. But I trust these Atkinson people — this sugar coating is obviously crucial to all order in the universe. It enhances the texture and doesn’t mess with the robust nutty flavor. The layers of crunchy peanut butter splinter apart when you bite, filling your mouth with tiny wafers of goodness. There’s something substantial about eating these. Where peanut butter cups just kind of disappear no matter how tiny you make your nibbles, you get to experience a peanut butter bar.

The Ingredients are Real Words

Peanut Butter Bars smell like peanut butter cups, only more natural. With just 6 ingredients, it’s easy to understand what they’re made of. They’re not labeled gluten free, but as an avoider of gluten, I’m not afraid to eat them. They have no gluten-containing ingredients, and the package says they’re made in a facility that processes milk and soy, but not wheat.

For Health and Wellness!

It’s a total bummer to spend all your candy karma points in one place. And when you love peanut butter, that’s easy to do. Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Cups are bomb, and they have their own unique textural delights. But a serving size of 5 pieces packs in 15 grams of fat. Zagnuts are nice, but a standard-size bar has 9 fat grams. A Snickers Peanut Butter Squared has 13 fat grams plus all those extra ingredients. That’s all well and good and worth it for people who crave the chocolate-plus-peanut-butter combination.

But I’m concerned with the purists of the PB-loving community. All we really need is the peanut butter, but we prefer a more interesting delivery system than a spoon. Atkinson’s Peanut Butter Bars knock it out of the park. These M-80s of peanut butter explosion have 1 gram of fat in a 2-piece serving. So if you eat the typical candy-bar allotment of 200ish calories, you can have 8 peanut butter bars, and they’ll only contain 4 grams of fat!

So, basically, what I’m telling you is a way to indulge your peanut-butter candy craving more often and with less guilt.

And Bonus!

What better way to stave off hypoglycemia? Peanut Butter Bars are individually wrapped and stand up pretty well to heat, so you can totally keep them in your pockets. They’re even flat and quiet enough to eat in class (as long as you can resist biting them. You’re already indulging a craving! You don’t need to bite them, too!)

Of course, you’ll still have to pick up your wrappers. You are obsessed with a Big-8 allergen, after all.

Avast there, matey! It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day! Nay better way t’ celebrate than wi’ The Mariner’s Revenge Song (The video! Press Play!).

By command of Ye Olde Gangsta Name Generator, Candy Favorites be answerin’ to the name Cap’n Pete Bluebeard fer a day. If ye’ be lookin’ fer pirate booty on these high seas, ye be weildin’ yer keyboard smartly!

Cap’n Pete’s got no rum to spare fer yellow-bellied bilge-rats like you. We pick our crew by the cut of their jib! The decks need swabbin’, so start loadin’ up this loot befittin’ of a pox-faced landlubber.

Chocolate Gold Coins – So many pieces o’ eight! Stuff yer pantaloons with em’ before you walk the plank.

Licorice Pontefract Cakes – Black gold pillaged from a castle!

Wax Mustaches – Every pirate needs a mustache! It’s the only way to muffle yer voice while you get yer sea legs.

Pirate Flash Pops – Light the way, yarr larcenous, sea-drinking sea serpent!

Orange Slices – Keep the crew from gettin’ the scurvy!

Ye might be too late fer dressin’ up all piratey-like this year. But keep Cap’n Pete Bluebeard in mind fer all yer pirate-theme-party loot next year. International Talk Like a Pirate Day be the best day of the year fer celebratin’!

It’s amazing that, at the same time, we’re enjoying the final luscious corn cobs of summer and gearing up for Halloween. We know — you don’t want to talk about the end of summer. But Halloween is a guilty pleasure of a holiday that marks the kickoff of celebration season. And to better prepare you for stocking up on the “fruitcake of Halloween,” we offer our guide to classic and contemporary candy corns.

Traditional Brach’s Candy Corn

Brach’s is the only classic candy-corn flavor that’s true to tradition. This is the kind of corn you remember from your childhood (you know, when you liked to break apart the flavors)! It’s the most popular candy corn in the world.

Brach’s Indian Corn

Make a subtle twist with classic candy-corn that has a chocolaty burst at the end. Brach’s Indian Corn is a simple way to add some color and flavor (or even flair) to your Halloween treats. Use the leftovers to round out your festive Thanksgiving decor.

Brach’s Caramel Corn

This tasty twist on candy corn is best eaten in one bite. Its popcorn flavor is shockingly close to the real thing! These Milk Maid Caramel candy corns are a great way to please adults and less-conventional candy eaters this Halloween.

Brach’s Milk Maid Chocolate Caramel Candy Corn

Even chocoholics can enjoy candy corn this Halloween! This chocolate-and-caramel corn will add color and excitement to your treats. And with just 140 calories and zero fat per 19-piece serving, they provide guilt-free chocolaty goodness!

Brach’s Caramel Apple Candy Corn

A pretty exciting addition to the candy-corn universe, Brach’s Caramel Apple Candy Corn has a satisfyingly tart apple flavor (reminiscent of Caramel Apple Cow Tales) combined with a caramel-corn base. Eat the whole piece for a bursting blend of flavors, or separate the top and bottom to savor each of them separately.

Juju Candy Corn

Don’t let the name fool you — these soft candy corns won’t stick to your teeth. This twist on candy corn packs robust classic flavor into a melt-in-your-mouth gummy candy! They taste just like the real thing, but they’re more fun to eat. Make your Halloween and Thanksgiving treats more exciting and little-kid friendly with gummy kernels of candy corn.

So stock up on the basics. Buy in bulk. Don’t miss out on the million things you can do with candy corn, whether you eat it or not. Personally, I’m working on a candy-corn mural. If you do something interesting with yours, let us know. We might just feature you on our site.

The task of collecting the annual “Halloween Stash” is a tough one, we know.  You want to be the best on the block – the most popular house, the one the kids change their masks and come back to, the one they talk about the next day.

We at Candy Favorites know how it feels to achieve that honor (after all, we do have access to about 3,000 kinds of candy). So we’ve compiled a list of our favorites to help you achieve similar glory. We invite you to share your success (or horror) stories in the comments. After all, it takes a village to hand out great Halloween candy.

Top 5 Old-School Halloween Candies

5)  Penny Candy Americana Mix - Old is the new new! Not for the faint of heart, this huge array of retro candies is best for parties, giving to a whole family, or securing your own Halloween stash. It’s not unnamed hard candy. It’s stuff you actually forgot you loved: Mary Janes, Bit O’ Honey, Necco Wafers, Atomic Fireballs, Goetz’s Caramel Creams, Root Beer Barrels, Jolly Ranchers, and other old-time favorites.

4)  Brach’s Candy Corn - Brach’s is the candy of (just about everyone’s) childhood. If you’re a fan of classic candy corn, there’s none better. But if you’re excited for something newer, tastier, or chocolate-ier, Brach’s has got an array of super-sweet and more sophisticated flavors to choose from.

3)  Brach’s Mellowcreme Pumpkins - These squat little treats are absolutely polarizing. While some avid fans pick through their friends’ Autumn Mix and hoard them, other kids will throw them at each other. Either way, you and your kids will have fun with them.

2)  Palmer Pumpkin Pals – If it seems like Palmers makes a little foil-wrapped, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate treat for every holiday, sport, or event, it’s true.  This is one of those candies you forget that you love until you run across it again. Every kid should have some Palmer chocolates in their trick-or-treat bag! As a bonus, the foil comes in handy for wrapping up the used middles of all those Blow Pops.

1)  Wax Lips, Mustaches, or Fangs – The 70s are back:  Red lipstick & Bushy Mustaches are SO in this year.  These classic candies are tasty, fun to play with, and surprisingly new to tons of kids. These will get you dubbed “the cool house”, even if it’s only by other parents.

Top 5 Not-So-Old-School Halloween Candies

5)  Pop Rocks Pumpkin Patch Orange - This mix of green and orange Halloween Pop Rocks is a limited edition. Better yet, no one is expecting pop rocks when they come to your door. They’ll make yours the top house on the block. They’re also fun to send to school with your kid.

4)  Halloween Jelly Kabobs – Jelly + Candy + Icing + A STICK???  This is simply amazing.  Equivalent to giving out full-size candy bars, each of these substantial skewers features 4 jelly candies decorated with tasty icing.  No grilling needed (or recommended).

3)  Dark or Milk Chocolate Covered Peeps – Just because they’re peeps doesn’t mean they don’t deserve to dress up (as PUMPKINS!) for trick-or-treating, too!  There’s no reason to let Peeps stay stuck in the Spring. Chocolate covered peeps make an interesting, cute, and unexpected addition to your array of Halloween treats.

2)  York Peppermint Batty - An extra-special treat for all, these bat-shaped York Peppermint Patties are one of the candies most likely to be stolen by parents.

1)  Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins – Reese’s pumpkins are no laughing matter – especially when you get caught stealing them out of your little brother’s Halloween basket.  Be sure to have enough this year to satiate even
the hungriest monsters (Dad!) and freeze some for yourself.

It’s Mellowcreme Pumpkin season. The stampede commenceth!

Not since the (now long past) beginning of Cadbury Mini Egg Season have specific-seasonal-candy fanatics been faced with such great opportunity. But with great potential for joy comes the threat of another year of strife! The time for Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkin aficionados to act is now.

Thanks to CandyFavorites, you can stock up on Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkins now. You can have them delivered to your door or directly to the person who hides secret deliveries for you. And you can receive them in a rare and profoundly satisfying 5-lb shipment. Don’t count on grocery or drug stores. Other people are staking out the truck-arrival times! (You work during the truck arrival times!) Get your Mellowcreme Pumpkins now, and not only will you have all the Mellowcreme-y goodness you could ever need. You’ll also be master of your domain.

As with any passion, we bond over our love of Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkins. Over our frustration with Harvest Mix, over whether to cream them, over whether they actually contain fat. These passions cause us to lose friends, too. (But, you know, more Pumpkins for you when that happens.) But if applied correctly, Mellowcreme Pumpkins can be transformed into first-rate social currency. Here’s how to have happiness (not just, “Ooooh, I have so many Mellowcremes happiness.” That, plus real, legit, all-of-life happiness).

How to make Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkins = Happiness:

• Order our 5 lb. bag of Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkins. < (Just click this link!)
• Hide roughly half of them from yourself. This should be fairly simple, as you just have to entrust them to a friend who genuinely couldn’t care less.
• Enjoy your roughly 2.5-pound personal stash.
• Talk incessantly to your Brachs-Mellowcreme-Pumpkin-loving friends about how much you’re enjoying said stash.
• Wait until they’re impossible to find in stores. This may involve waiting through about 1 hour of post-Halloween candy-clearance time. Encourage your friends to have unflagging determination to find a treasure trove of clearance Pumpkins. Also reinforce the absolute truth that only Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkins are actually Mellowcreme Pumpkins and that no generic substitute could ever sate their ever-growing need for the real deal.
• Recover your hidden 2.5 pounds of Pumpkins from your patient, if befuddled, friend, mentioned in step 2.
• Determine whether you can part with some of your stashed Pumpkins, or if you need to buy another 5 lb. bag from Candy Favorites.
• Portion out whatever quantity of Mellowcreme Pumpkins you’re willing to share. (These don’t have to be equal, and portion sizes can certainly be in proportion to the amount that you care for and enjoy the company of each friend. Don’t forget to include a portion for yourself for the middle of summer.)
• Surprise your friends with delightful deliveries. Don’t just say, “Of course I’ll share my Mellowcreme Pumpkins with you, my dear friend.” Make it a big deal. Because it is a big deal. We’re talking about giving away your rations of life-sustaining goodness!
• Receive whatever you want most in life — love, glory, honor, accolades, forgiveness, peace, and the end of hunger in your lifetime (only amongst your friends, of course, and with regard to the very specific hunger for Brachs Mellowcreme Pumpkins.)

If this doesn’t work, make new friends. They’ve clearly been deceiving you with a false, less-than-all-in sort of love for Mellowcreme Pumpkins. And when someone does that, you’ve no use for them. You, after all, are a person who will share your favorite hard-to-find thing out of the goodness of your heart