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Take my Candy Poll (below), and tell me about your own favorite candies in the comments... |
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Cleo Coyle, author of The Coffeehouse Mysteries and Haunted Bookshop Mysteries |
My poll is based on this year's sales figures for the Top Ten most popular candies in America. According to the National Confectioners Association, over 70% of the candy sold in the US this Halloween will be chocolate candy, so it's no surprise to see several Hershey brands on this year's Top Ten list.
I must admit, I have a soft spot for Hershey's milk chocolate bar and the place where it was first made...
In Hershey, PA, even the street lights are shaped like Kisses! (This photo was taken at the intersection of Chocolate and Cocoa Avenues.) |
No, not this guy!
This one... Milton S. Hershey.
* At the age of 15, Hershey (a Mennonite farmer's son who spoke "Pennsylvania Dutch" and had little more than a fourth grade education), began an apprenticeship with a candy maker.
* At 19, Hershey struck out on his own and started his own candy business in Philadelphia. But after six years, it failed.
* Undaunted, he relocated to Denver, Colorado, where he learned how to make caramels using fresh milk.
* Milton Hershey tried and failed again to launch a candy business. Finally, he went back to Pennsylvania, opened the “Lancaster Caramel Company” and became a great success. Before long it was employing 1,400 people and shipping all over the country.
* It wasn’t until Hershey reached the age of 36 that chocolate became his passion. In 1893, he traveled to Chicago for the World Expo where he stood mesmerized in front of machinery from Germany that made chocolate. He bought the machinery, shipped it back to Lancaster, and began coating his caramels with chocolate.
It’s here in the story that kids
across the country
across the country
owe Hershey a debt of gratitude.
* In the 19th Century, the process of making edible milk chocolate was a secret closely guarded by the Swiss. Drinking chocolate was more common than eating it; and the best-tasting chocolate (imported from Europe) was far from affordable for working families. But Hershey had a vision, and through trial and error, he came up with his own formula of milk, sugar and cocoa that allowed him to mass produce and distribute a melt-in-your-mouth milk chocolate candy bar.
Thanks to Milton Hershey, chocolate was no longer a luxury for the rich. His five-cent "Hershey Bar" was an edible chocolate that anyone could afford.
The company insisted on maintaining that five cent price from 1900 through 1969. (Click here to see historic wrapper designs.)
Given the Hershey's candy long history and its creator's commitment to remaining affordable for families, I must say it's nice to see it still placing high on a 21st Century list of America’s Top 10 Halloween Candies.
You can read more about this list (and the sales in units and dollars) by clicking here.
In the meantime, I invite you to...
Now I invite you to take my
"Trick or Treat Poll" below and
"Trick or Treat Poll" below and
leave a comment on this blog post.
(I would love to know your poll answer!)
Congrats to the Winner of this
Congrats to the Winner of this
adorable Reese’s Latte Cup:
Wendy West!
Wendy West!
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NOTE: If you do not see the poll above,
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NOTE: If you do not see the poll above,
Culinary Inspiration!
America's #1 candy
is the culinary inspiration for my
Halloween Recipe!
To get my recipe for...
Chocolate Peanut
Butter Cup Cake
click here.
is the culinary inspiration for my
Halloween Recipe!
To get my recipe for...
Chocolate Peanut
Butter Cup Cake
click here.
~ Cleo Coyle
New York Times bestselling author of
The Coffeehouse Mysteries
Yes, this is me, Cleo (aka Alice).
Friend me on facebook here.
Follow me on twitter here.
Visit my online coffeehouse here.
|
To view the
Coffeehouse Mystery book trailer, click here. |
The Coffeehouse Mysteries are bestselling
works of amateur sleuth fiction set in a landmark
Greenwich Village coffeehouse, and each of the
12 titles includes the added bonus of recipes.
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure Book #1 of The Haunted Bookshop Mysteries, which Cleo writes under the name Alice Kimberly To learn more, click here. |
I love resses.. but jelly bellys are awesome too
ReplyDeleteSnickers, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, Almond Joy
ReplyDeleteoh, jelly bellys are awesome! Pear is at the top of that list
I love caramels too.
Reeses, Hersheys and Three Musketeers. Jelly Bellies are good. I also like Cherry Mash!
ReplyDeleteI love candy corn, that was always my favorite when I went Trick or Treating!!!
ReplyDeleteI have to admit one of my favorites was the peanut butter flavored crunchy small candy, I don't know what they were called. Not butterfingers, there was no chocolate. They were beige with brown lines along the length.
ReplyDeleteI;ll bet you are talking about ZigZags. I loved them, too.
ReplyDeleteReese's are my favorite followed by Kit Kats
ReplyDeleteMy favorite treat was always Snickers bars. At the end of the night, I'd count how many I got and work out a schedule to make them last until Christmas.
ReplyDeleteBut all the peanut buttery candies are delicious! I'm a sucker for Mr. Goodbar, Chick O'Stick, Mary Jane Peanut Butter Candy, and Reeses (peanut butter cup or pieces!).
I love Reese's and Snickers, thanks for the history lesson on Hershey!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite are kit kats. Absolutely love them.
ReplyDeleteHershey bars are the best !
ReplyDeleteI love Hersey candy and use them quite often in Christmas goodies, especially M&M's and Hershey Kisses. I love Hershey Milk Chocolate for making S'mores!
ReplyDeleteThe first three are my top three. We always handed out mini Snickers at Halloween.
ReplyDeleteReese's Peanut Butter Cups will always be my favorite, though only a rare indulgence nowadays as I know they contain trans fats, which I am trying to eliminate from my diet. I grew up near Pittsburgh, so when I can find them I indulge in Clark and/or Zagnut Bars (the latter can be hard to find). I also enjoy Bun Candy Bars, both maple and vanilla, when I can get them (apparently there is a caramel flavor now, but I haven't had it yet). One chocolate bar that I really miss is the Triple Decker from Nestlé (layered white, milk, and dark chocolate) which I used to get as a child but which hasn't been available for decades. I think this one should be due for a comeback!
ReplyDeleteI grew up in Pittsburgh, I remember the Clark and Zagnut. My brothers and I would fight for them on Halloween. I found some Clark bars in a candy store about a year ago and unfortunately they were stale, it was very disappointing.
DeleteI new we had reached Nirvana when they came out with dark Milky Ways and dark Reese's Cups!
ReplyDelete(Sorry-I've been away and had no computer)
Ack! Just noticed my spelling--"Knew"
DeleteNow I'm craving M & M's!
ReplyDeleteLOL! Very cute post, Cleo! I'm stunned to see Reese's Cups in the lead. Who knew?
ReplyDelete~Krista
Well, this was fun! Thanks so much, Cleo. have a serious addiction to Reese's PB cups and managed to confine it to Halloween, when no matter how many I buy, there are never any left to give out to the kids. Weird or what?
ReplyDeleteMy two favorites are York Peppermint Patties and Heath Bars. Yum! So many choices--no wonder this is my favorite time of year!
ReplyDeleteCleo, I'm a Milky Way or Hershey's girl. BTW, when I put Hershey's as the candy of choice for my character Charlotte in the Cheese Shop mysteries, you can't imagine the flack I got. So many people thought she should like something more "gourmet," but Hershey's were her mother's favorite candies, and thus traditions get started, right?
ReplyDeleteDaryl / Avery
I love almost all things chocolate. But I'm especially fond of Reeses anything, M&Ms and I love Dove chocolates.
ReplyDeleteMy favorites are Twix, Snickers, Baby Ruth, $100,000 Grand and Almond Joys. And I can always eat nut-filled M&M's, Reeses and probably anything dark chocolate. Oh, nuts, now I am hungry!
ReplyDeleteHave to have Almond Joy, Hershey's milk chocolate, and Reeses'. Note to self-GO TO STORE!!!!!!! LOL!! I am with Elaine.....hunger pains are forming....
ReplyDeleteNow that I'm gluten-free for health reasons, I can't eat a lot of things, but boy howdy, chocolate is mostly ok! My favorite is anything peanut-butter, but i used to be in love with Ritter bars, that I'd get in various flavors from World Market (I see them now at Trader Joe's.) Bonus: the Ritter bar I liked had raisins, and my kids hated it, so it was all for me!
ReplyDeleteI voted for Almond Joy, Kit Kat, and the Hershey's Cookies n Cream. I added Ferrero Raffaello Almond Coconut Candy to the list as another favorite of mine.
ReplyDeleteI love peanut butter and chocolate. Coconut with chocolate is very healthy and love also. So Reese's Peanut butter and the Almond Joy are top of my list.