Of course, even more ubiquitous than decorations, toys, and even costumes are reams and reams of candy assortments and other tooth rotting delights. Just about every snack food you can think of tends to get doctored up in bat-riddled orange and black packaging around this time of year, even those you probably wouldn't naturally associate with it. (I'm looking at you, Goldfish crackers.)
Despite the commonality of it all, there are at least a few that I absolutely adore seeing return to the shelves each October. I think I smell a list-post coming on! Here are 5 sugary standbys of Halloween:
Of course! The Halloween season is never official for me until I see mountains of candy corn. While this is generally a "love it" or "hate it" affair, I honestly fall somewhere in the middle. I'm not usually the sort to buy it myself, but I'm glad to have a small handful if a friend or family member happens to be offering. It's not a taste I love, but there's a familiarity that somehow makes up for that. I do like the smell of it however, probably for the same reason. Stores usually have end caps or giant bins full of nothing else by this time of year, and I'm oddly always happy to see it.
Ghoul-Aid, with its patented "Scary Blackberry" flavor, is seasonal tie-in perfection. It's easy enough to slap witch silhouettes on your existing package layout, so any company that goes as far as dressing up their mascot and renaming itself with goofy puns has my full endorsement. My spooky, unhealthy soft drink affections may lie with Mountain Dew Pitch Black, but Ghoul-Aid has the edge given the fun packaging (and the tiny matter of still being around).
Okay, I'm pretty sure Hershey's Miniatures are sold all year, but I'll always associate them with Halloween and Halloween alone. I'm not a big fan of chocolate — especially not plain milk chocolate — but these assortments have motherflippin' Krackel, son. Krackel! This was the only way to enjoy that particular godlike candy bar until earlier this year.
The Miniatures certainly take a hit if Krackel is available for single purchase now, but it would still feel wrong not to have a bowl of them out for everyone to enjoy come October, 31st.
After candy corn, Reese's Pumpkins are always one of the earliest Halloween treats to turn up. They're actually a bit too sweet for me these days, but there was a time when I couldn't get enough of the things. I suppose you could argue that these aren't really that special since Christmas and Easter bring us similarly manufactured tree and egg shaped peanut butter cups, but you would simultaneously see me plugging my ears and shouting "I'm not listening" at the top of my lungs. No matter what, these bastards are always going to be a top-tier Halloween staple.
For me, Count Chocula, Boo-Berry, and Franken-Berry are about as iconic as it gets when it comes to Halloween. While I'm always thrilled to see anything on this list, General Mills' Monster Cereals will always be the reigning kings. This is merely an example of excellent branding however, because I can totally take or leave the cereal itself as far as taste goes. (I feel Fruity Yummy Mummy, which saw a brief return in 2013, is the only one with a strong enough flavor to fully excuse all of the horrible things you're putting into your body when you eat this stuff.)
I'm completely okay with the Monster Cereals not being the tastiest "food" however, because I just feel freaking good when I see these characters return to the grocery aisles each year. Just look at them up there. They're beautiful.
I think the best fun you can have with snacks around Halloween is in creating your own, but I have too much of a pop-culture obsession not to admire what's readily available on the shelves. Having grown up in the 1980s and 1990s, I'll always have an affinity for colorful mascots and the like. At the end of the day, treats along the lines of Reese's Pumpkins and Count Chocula amount to pure unbridled fun, and that's a big part of what Halloween is all about.
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