What to avoid giving out for Halloween

by Nicole Weston, Posted Oct 26th 2006 @ 10:31AM

If, for some reason, you aren't familiar with the practice of giving candy out to costumed children on Halloween, you might want to take a look at the guide put together by Stuff Magazine explaining the best and worst things to give out. Eager trick or treaters look forward to participating in the ritual every year and we wouldn't want to disappoint them. The worst "treats" include:

Apples -- They're tasty, but they're not candy. They're "disappointing as hell for a little kid expecting a Snickers."
Marshmallows -- Yes, they're candy, but they don't usually come individually wrapped -- a must for Halloween treats.
A bag of pennies -- "It's like giving away a gift certificate for a piece of gum." Save up all those pennies and buy a bag of the real thing.
Smarties -- The U.S. Smarties are chalky and kids don't even seem to enjoy them, despite the fact that they sometimes eat them on the grounds that they still constitute candy. Try to get U.K. Smarties (similar to M&M's) or avoid the candy mixes that include these.
Anything homemade -- "This one is alright if you only give them to kids with neglectful parents." Any responsible parent is going to dump something unwrapped as fast as possible. Save your energy.
Raisins -- "People generally give them out under the pretense that they want to make kids healthier. In reality, they give them out because they hate fun." The boxed raisins never taste all that fresh anyway.

The best options would include "anything made by a real candy company," preferably king-sized versions.

After all, any resulting cavities aren't going to end up on your dental bill.

[Thanks, Patrick]

Source

Filed Under: Cooking With Kids, Lists, Did you know?, Ingredients, How To
Tags: apples, candies, candy, did you know, granola, how to, list, pennies, raisins, treat, trick, trick or treat, worst, worst halloween candies, worst halloween treats

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Reader comments (Page 5 of 23)

10-27-2006 @9:03PM Sonya said... Smarties are da bomb!!! I always hated those penut butter kisses. The ones wrapped in the orange or black waxy paper....YUCK!!
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10-27-2006 @9:46PM azura said... i LUV canycorn! and pez, and, smarties, and those peppermint patty things. i remember one of the best houses was the people who gave out boxes of crackerjacks, with the little prizes inside and stuff
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10-27-2006 @9:04PM JoAnne said... they still make Sugar Babies. Try Dollar General, if there is one in your area. I've seen Sugar Daddies, too.
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10-27-2006 @9:05PM Heather said... I love smarties too. But the person was right about the orange ones they do taste like the kids aspirn. I hated those!!!

That is right Average Betty - who really does like candy corn?????? Or those candy pumpkins like the candy corn. Yuck!!

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10-27-2006 @9:13PM Linda said... I discovered smarties when I worked in the middle school in my forties! The kids were cool enough to share and I got hooked and still am....they are awesome. So are PEZ.
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10-27-2006 @9:29PM Neuroguru said... Candy corn taste great and give the illusion that they have flavor-layers, when it is simply layers of the same candy food-colored differently. Kids never get too excited about them, but they make great vampire fangs when you stick a couple under your upper lip.
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10-27-2006 @9:11PM kathi proto said... CANDY CORN IS NASTY111111111 it's like eating orange/brown wax...my favorite was cigar bubblegum, and candy necklaces...
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10-27-2006 @9:24PM beth said... I think the candy that tops most of the kid's list for the yuckiest candy is those orange and black covered peanut butter taffy kisses!

I personally like them but my daughter thinks their disgusting!

Several of the kids, i know detest them.

Smarties are good. they come in a new flavor, sour! great stuff!

I leave the tootsie roll candies in the bowl for last. YUCK! YUCK!
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10-27-2006 @9:06PM Val said... Hey man, quit picking on Necco's, there great! Especially the rolls of all chocolate ones.
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10-27-2006 @9:07PM Kristy said... I'm with the majority, I love smarties. They are awesome espically for the little ones that have little mouths that can't chew the big sticky pieces of candy. The best treat though i think is Reeses peaunt cups! Yum.
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10-27-2006 @9:07PM Sue said... Smarties are the Best! And yes, there is someone who likes candy corn...me! I always look for to Halloween for that reason.
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10-27-2006 @9:07PM JoAnne said... my friend/neighbor is planning on healthy snacks since she lost 20 lbs. this year. I told her she'd better spray her house with Pam, since she's gonna get egged!
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10-27-2006 @9:09PM JoAnne said... I agree w/ Val on the Necco's. Except the pink ones - they taste like pepto bismol.
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10-27-2006 @9:09PM Tamara said... I LOVE the smarties too!!!! Also not fond of the pez either...too artifical tasting...giving out bags of mini oreo's this year and the under 2 yr olds get teddy grams..the parents seem to love them!!
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10-27-2006 @9:10PM JoAnne said... another neighbor sometimes hands out cans of cheap pop. nothing like dragging that around for 2 hours and then opening it. i think she's a little cruel!
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10-27-2006 @9:14PM Regina said... My husband and I both just love SMARTIES!!!! We love this time of year cause you can get a huge bag of them!! We actually fight over who's eating more of them than the other!! SMARTIES=YUM!YUM! (The purple ones are my favorite!) Has anyone seen the new giant SMARTIES? I haven't tried those. I think they're too big.
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10-27-2006 @9:12PM JEN said... I always thought smarties were boring.They were always the last thing eaten at my house. But my brother in law (who works for a candy importing company) brought my kids smartie dispensers. They look like pez dispensers.The last ones we got were super heroes. The kids liked them so much I actually had to go BUY smarties because we ran out.
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