I'm all about this! M & S are certified chocoholic/junk food junkies. And I know... that's because *I* am too. :-) As I was reading my morning news and websites, I stumbled across this awesome information that was posted on my local TV news site. Here's the link they provided:
http://forums.parenting.com/blogs/daily-fave/posts/25-things-do-all-halloween-candy25 Things to do with leftover candyUse It in the Kitchen:
Freeze it. Throughout the year, add it to milkshakes, sundaes, ice cream, and plain cookie dough. (For a quick milkshake, add mini Butterfinger or Snickers bars to ice cream or frozen yogurt and milk. Bonus: add a banana.)
Bake it into cakes. Try peanut butter cup cookies or brownies with fun sized candy bars inside. Or just put it on top of cakes and cupcakes, or stir it into icing. (For great recipes see recipegoldmine.com/candybar.)
Make it a (sort of) healthy snack. Fill celery stalks with cream cheese and top with Peanut M&Ms.
DIY trail mix. Open bags of little candies like M&Ms and make your own trail mix by adding pretzels, nuts, and dried fruit.
Bring it to the Thanksgiving table. Remember how your mom used to make yams with marshmallows? Try using leftover candy corn.
Adults Only:
Pair it with wine. The chocolate, caramel, nuttiness of Snickers go great with tawny ports, and the cookie-like Twix goes well with a smooth scotch (starchefs.com).
Make homemade flavored vodka. Just drop it in a bottle and let it soak for awhile to make your own homemade, creative tasting alcohol.
Put chocolates into your coffee for a quick, easy mocha.
Keep some in your purse for when you need a sugar fix, or your kid needs to be bribed.
Get Crafty:
Use it to wrap gifts. Save wrappers to decorate boxes, or garnish boxes with candies. Try stuffing it in gift bags instead of using tissue paper, or put it inside coffee mugs or any other gifts that could use some filling.
Make an advent calendar for November. Put candy in Dixie cups and cover with tissue. On the tissue, write numbers 1-30, and place the cups sideways on a large poster board to form a calendar. Let kids punch through the tissue to get their treat each day. (alphamom.com)
Use it as a learning tool. Let kids practice counting or do their math homework with little Reeses Cups or Hershey Kisses.
Turn it into a science experiment. Kimberly Crandell, who has three kids and an aeronautical engineering degree, came up with 10 ways to turn leftover candy into a learning experience. scientificblogging.com)
Plus:
Save and use next year for a Halloween wreath.
Make Christmas ornaments.
DIY candy necklaces.
Save it for a gingerbread house.
Use the wrappers for Christmas cards or decoupage.
Make a board game and use the candy as playing pieces.
Put it in a piñata for your next birthday party.
Give It Away:
Bring it into the office. It will disappear in no time.
Donate it. Bring to nursing homes, doctor's offices, and women shelters.
Send it overseas. Operationshoebox.com will gladly take donations.
Let your kids make a care package and send it to their grandparents. Your parents (most likely) were not running around the neighborhood begging for treats in a witch hat, like your kids were.
Let's Be Honest: You can always just eat it. ETS: from the Pensacola News Journal... RECIPES!Recipes
Brownie candy pizza
1 package fudge brownie mix
6 ounces candy-coated milk chocolate pieces (such as M&Ms)
1 cup white chocolate chips
Any other chocolate or caramel small candy pieces or chopped candy bars
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 12-inch pizza pan. Prepare brownie mix according to instructions and add 1„2 cup of candy pieces. Bake at 350 for 15 to
18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted is almost clean when removed.
Immediately after removing from oven, press the remaining candies on top of the brownie. Melt the chips in the microwave on medium (50-percent power) for about 30 seconds. Stir and spoon into a plastic sandwich bag. Cut corner of bag and drizzle over the pizza.
Slice into wedges and serve when completely cooled.
Butterfinger cheesecake
3 (2.16-ounce) Butterfinger candy bars, finely chopped
Graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup melted margarine
1 package no-bake cheese cake
1½ cup cold milk
Reserve ¼ cup finely crushed Butterfinger bars for garnish. Divide the remaining candy in half.
Crust: Combine graham cracker crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar, ½ of finely crushed Butterfingers and 1/3 cup melted margarine. Using fork, press mixture against sides and bottom of 8 or 9 inch pie plate.
Filling: Pour 1½ cups cold milk into small mixing bowl. Add cheesecake package contents and beat at low speed with electric mixer until blended. Beat at medium speed 3 minutes longer. Fold remaining finely crushed Butterfinger bars into filling mixture. Pour into crust. Chill 1 hour.
Garnish with reserved ¼ cup finely crushed Butterfinger bars. Refrigerate, covered.
Candy bar pie
1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1 (9-inch) pie crust, chilled
4 (1 1/2-ounce) chocolate-coated nougat candy bars
1/3 cup chopped nuts
Add the lemon juice to pie filling. Place in pie shell. Thinly slice candy bars over top. Sprinkle with nuts. Bake in a preheated 450 degree oven for 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees. Continue baking 10 to 15 minutes more. Cool and serve.
Source: www.cdkitchen.com
Peppermint patty brownies
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups unsalted butter
4 ounce squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped
4 ounce squares semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
5 large eggs, beaten
24 small (such as York) peppermint patties
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. In a small bowl, whisk flour and salt.
In a heavy 4-quart saucepan, melt butter with unsweetened and semisweet chocolates over low heat, stirring frequently, until smooth. Remove from heat. With wooden spoon, stir in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs; stir until well mixed. Stir flour mixture into chocolate mixture just until blended.
Spread half of brownie batter into prepared pan. Arrange peppermint candies in a single layer over batter, about 1/2 inch apart. Spread remaining batter over top.
Bake about 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted 1 inch from edges comes out clean. Cool brownies completely in pan on wire rack before slicing.
Source: "Brownies! Good Housekeeping Favorite Recipes," Hearst Books via www.delish.com.
Creative candy ideas
- Freeze and crush candy or melt it, then add to milkshakes or use as an ice cream topping.
- Crush and use to top plain cheesecake.
- Hide them in the back of the freezer for holiday recipes.
- Finely crush hard candy and suckers to add sweet sparkle to homemade chocolate-covered pretzels.
- Freeze and chop bite-size candy bars and use them to replace chocolate chips in a batch of chocolate chip cookies.
- Save any and all candy to use in the construction and decoration of a holiday gingerbread house.
