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Halloween Countdown - 7 Days

Halloween Countdown - 5 Days

I want this in my front yard.

Halloween Taste Test - Herr's Candy Corn Pretzels

Most of the "candy corn" flavored items I've come across usually disappoint. These actually do not. But then they don't actually taste like candy corn. They taste like animal cookies....the same sort of coating with the little sprinkles on top. And they are shaped like pumpkins. Works for me. What doesn't work for me? Not exactly healthy.

The coating and nonpareils are full of sugar. And there is palm kernel oil and artificial this and that. One serving is about eight pieces and will run you 140 calories with 21 grams of carbs. But this is Halloween, and the nature of the season is eating all those things that might not actually be good for you.

Found these at Target but again, I've lost my list of prices.

Halloween Taste Test - Godiva Chocolate Covered Pretzels

I wish I could tell you how much this little box of Godiva Milk Chocolate Covered Mini Pretzels cost, but I seemed to have misplaced my list that had all the pricing of the Halloween goodies I've bought. I found this at Barnes & Noble with all the other Godiva goodies near the registers. I know I was surprised that for Godiva it wasn't that expensive.

I bought this because the box was cute. If you were making a nice Halloween basket to give someone, this would be a perfect item to include. Wasn't the best chocolate covered pretzels I've had but they were certainly better than most of the cheap ones that seem to be around during the Halloween through Christmas season.

Barnes & Noble Cafes tend to have some cute Halloween items but most of them and any decor items Barnes & Noble sells tend to be gone by the time October rolls around.

Halloween Taste Test - Starburst Candy Corn

I've always loved Starburst Candy. Of course back in the day I'd separate the little squares by color...it was always pinks and reds first, and orange last. In fact if I was "sharing" (a rare occurrence with Starburst) I'd give out the orange to everyone and keep the rest for me. That's just the way I rolled. I would always keep the tan M&M's for myself too, but that's another story.

These aren't bad. They are just missing that really Starbursty flavor. Yeah, I know, Starbursty isn't a word but that's what I'm going with. These have a somewhat Starburst taste (which is actually pretty good) and a somewhat candy corn texture (that little waxy thing going on). But the aftertaste was a bit odd. I don't think I'd buy these again. I certainly couldn't figure out what kind of Halloween type of dish I could make with them.

I found these in a small 2 ounce bag but I do know they are being sold in full size bags (think M&M size). They are "original fruit flavored" which means cherry, orange, strawberry, and lemon. I actually didn't mind the orange version of these, go figure. The 2 ounce bag is 210 calories. The ingredients are basically sugar and corn syrup. The small bags cost me 89 cents each. The large bags were running about $4. As you can see, most of the candy was in pieces or stuck together...something to remember if you plan on using whole ones for a project.

You can check out the Candy Blogs review here.

Halloween Taste Test - Darkside Skittles

The "Darkside" here doesn't refer to anything Star Wars but to "The Other Side of The Rainbow" which is a tag line for this candy. Darkside Skittles I believe, are just a seasonal version of regular Skittles but not necessarily for Halloween. There isn't any Halloween decor on the packaging or anything that screams the season. They do though, fit right in with this time of year.

I've had Skittles before but not so much that I could tell you much about them, their varieties or flavors. The Assistant though, is a bit of a Skittles connoisseur so I made sure she tasted these to give me her thoughts.

She said these Darkside Skittles were mellower than the normal varieties. She didn't seem offended at all when I gave her the remaining Skittles leftover from everyones taste testing. In fact she smiled. I think that's a good sign. I found these pleasant. Can't say that I'd go out and buy them again. I'm more of a sour type person and these weren't at all sour. I have a feeling if you like regular Skittles, you'll like these.

The flavors included in the Darkside batch are Forbidden Fruit; Blood Orange; Pomegranate; Dark Berry; and Midnight Lime. One serving is about 1/4 a cup (40g) and will run you 160 calories. First three ingredients are: sugar, corn syrup, and hydrogenated palm kernal oil. I think I paid about $3 a box for these. For a rundown on how the different flavors taste, check out The Candy Blog's review of these here.

Halloween Taste Test - Snickers Peanut Butter Pumpkins

Peanut butter cups? Love them. Snickers? Grew up eating them...in fact, back in the day when I could eat a ton of candy and not worry about how it would effect the size of my butt...a Snickers bar was usually the candy bar I'd buy from the vending machine as a late afternoon snack at work. When I saw that there was a peanut butter version of a Snickers bar, I figured I'd hit the mother load.

And it wasn't bad. Both Mr. L and I liked it. Problem is...I kept thinking how I'd really like just a regular Snickers Bar and how I'd really like just a regular peanut butter cup (oh lets be real, a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup to be specific).  Don't get me wrong. I'd eat this peanut butter version of a Snickers bar in a heartbeat. But I'd still rather have my candy bars separate.

Halloween Taste Test - Seattle Chocolate

No matter where I go during the year, I'm always on the lookout for things to taste test for Halloween. I smiled when I came across this little Seattle Chocolates candy bar as I know how much Mr. L likes his chocolate bars and something with a bit of sea salt and toffee was right up his alley.

We really enjoyed this chocolate bar. So much so that I wished I had picked up more than one. The fact that it comes with a cute Halloween wrapper even better (I love the wrapper says "This product contains sea salt, but not "dead" sea salt"!). The Seattle Chocolates website also shows the candy bar is available in a Bloody Orange version. I'd love to find that one.

I know that I bought this up in the Napa wine country but I don't know where or how much I paid for it. You can find them online at the Seattle Chocolates website for $3.50. They also sell Christmas versions which I'm going to try to find for gifts.

I do know that if I could, I would buy these chocolates and give them out for Halloween. Well, after I ate about ten or so. And Mr. L had his fill. And we'd buy a hundred of them even if we only got a handful of kids to come to the door. Just in case.

Halloween Taste Test - Nightmare Before Christmas Jelly Belly

Last year we taste tested some Disney candy in the same type of packaging as these Jelly Belly jelly beans. So I admit I figured they were going to be horrible. But I guess Jelly Bellies are Jelly Belly jelly beans no matter how you package them because they tasted like, well, Jelly Belly jelly beans.

It's the packaging that really catches your eye on these jelly beans. Jack Skellington Nightmare Before Christmas. They would make great little gift items sitting on a table. But it's the jelly beans inside that count right?

The five flavors included are four of Jelly Bellys 50 Official Flavors (I had no idea there were official flavors!)...those four are Island Punch, Kiwi, Orange Sherbet, and Wild Blackberry. The fifth flavor is Mixed Berry Smoothie.

It was no contest that the Orange Sherbet and Kiwi were peoples favorites. They tasted like their names. Least favorite seemed to be the Mixed Berry Smoothie which is probably why it's not an official flavor.

Each jelly bean is four calories. 35 beans is a serving and there are about 3 servings per 4.5 ounce packaging. 36 grams of carbs a serving. First three ingredients listed: Sugar, Tapioca syrup, Modified food starch. I found these at Walgreens for about $4. Online Disney stores are selling them for up to $8.

One thing of note. The packaging says "manufactured in a plant owned by Jelly Belly in Fairfield CA". But just under that it says "Product of Thailand" so it wasn't made here.  Wonder if all Jelly Bellys are made overseas now? Or just these special ones?

I had no problem eating these. Even stuffing all the flavors in my mouth at once.

 

Halloween Taste Test - Candy Corn Oreos

Oreo's are now notorious for coming out with different colored and different flavored versions around the holidays. As for the colors...there is no taste difference that I'm aware of...they taste just like regular Oreo's. The flavored ones? Pretty hit or miss...some are pretty good (I'll run you down to get even one Gingerbread Oreo), and some, not so tasty (was not a fan of the Watermelon ones).

Around this time of year, you can usually find Candy Corn Oreo's in the stores. Well, I actually found Candy Corn Oreo's in the middle of August at Target. The first batch sold out pretty quick and maybe, if you're lucky, they still had some at the end of September. Didn't see them at the start of October. That's kind of the problem with these special Oreo's. They aren't sold everywhere and they sell out fast, so grab a bag (or two) when you find them.

The reviews on this between family, friends and co-workers were mixed.  What I heard:

-Very Sweet

-Almost too Sweet

-Taste like a frosted vanilla wafer

-Tasted like a green tea Kit Kat

-I taste marshmallow

-Kinda like a sugary frosted vanilla wafer

The one thing no one tasted? Candy Corn.

I will say...most people kept eating them, which is a sign that even though they might not be folks favorites...they'll keep eating them if they are there.

Calories are 150 for two. Cost was around $3 a package.