I'm back ... with Circus Peanuts!

Okay, I'm back. I think. I had some computer issues and was just feeling burnt out, but I think I'm back and rolling now. I've been scrolling through the hundreds of pictures on my phone trying to make heads or tails of all the food pictures I have. There's a lot of catching up to do.
Over the holidays, the Sugar Baby took all the empty Amazon boxes and set up his own candy(and medieval weapons) store. Sadly, it's gone out of business since then. His prices were way too high ($1 for a Tootsie Roll!) and the rent was pretty expensive.

I've been kicking myself for not buying these peppermint Circus Peanuts. What was I thinking? I would have loved to have tried them. Did any of you come across these over Christmas?

And Now, a Word from The Ice Cube Queen

The Ice Cube Queen is in town. She was barely on New England soil when she handed me two hand-written pages. This is what they said:

Dear Candy Yum Yum,
Just wait until the Sugar Baby is a teenager and you go flying around the world with him (or at least down to Florida to visit Mickey)! I'm sitting on a plane with the "no-name" niece and nephew. Actually, this is our second plane today.
Our day started early this morning when Jenny exclaimed, "I didn't realize that candy weighs so much!" Her carry-on bag was filled with candy!
As soon as we boarded the first plane, I said, "Bring on the candy-- what do you have?"
Yes, I've been brain-washed into thinking that you have to have candy at take-off and landing.
First, we opened the Good 'n Plenty box. Next ... don't cringe ... the Circus Peanuts! In the meantime, Tim opened his stash of candy. He had Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (I shudder to think how many packages he bought!) and a huge Hershey's Cookies & Cream bar.
Now we're on our second plane. Out came the Circus Peanuts and then the gummy worms!
What's left you say? Let me ask my sugared-up teens:

-Twizzlers
-Nerds
-Gobstoppers
-Oreo cookie bar
-Wintergreen mints

So if we get stuck circling the airport for hours like the last time we flew to Yum Yum state, at least we'll have candy.

P.S. Jenny informed me that she was going to buy the caramels with the white centers or cowtails, but she couldn't find them.

Well, Ice Cube Queen, it would seem that we're all cut of the same cloth! (I'll overlook the Circus Peanuts.) Perhaps they've earned their own titles. I shall call them: Carry-on Candy Girl (CCG) and The Reese's Kid. And by the way, of course you have to have candy at take-off and landing. It's a Candy Yum Yum rule!

White Circus Peanuts in Wisconsin Anyone???

A reader wants to know:


There is a horse cupcake recipe out there with white Circus Peanuts. Do you know of anyone in the Cedarburg, WI (@20 miles north of Milwaukee) area that might sell them?

Here in New England, it's high season for Circus Peanuts, so you can usually find the mixed bags, but I'm not sure about the Midwest. So.... anyone have an answer?

(FYI: You can see these cute cupcakes at http://www.hellocupcakebook.com/, and they also have a list of mail order places to get the white peanuts.)

Let's Get This Party Started!

As the kids say, "Woot!" This Friday will be the six-year anniversary of Candy Yum Yum! How cool is that? To celebrate (in addition to the Candy Giveaway), I'll be posting some of my favorite blog entries from years past.

I now give you some gems from 2006:

Circus Peanuts. My mother is the only person in the whole world who likes these orange-colored marshmallowy things. I bet secretly deep down she doesn't even like them. She probably buys them because she feels sorry for them. That's the way I feel, too. I hate them, but still have a fond affection for them. Kind of like the lamp in the IKEA commercial. The Circus Peanuts are not real. They don't have feelings.”

(2009 Editor's Note: Check out the IKEA lamp commercial here.)

Sunday, Aug. 10, 2003:

Just got back from Washington D.C. where Joy and I shared a wonderful candy moment on the Metro. We were sitting across from a guy who reached into his CVS bag and pulled out a package of Starburst. Now, instead of tearing the paper away at one corner, this is what he did-- he snapped the package in half in the middle! Brilliant! The best part was when I looked over at Joy and she looked over at me and we both knew we were thinking the same thing. Ha! Joy, however, was bothered by the fact that now all the little Starbursts would be loose in the bag rather than all nicey-nice in the package. Something to consider.

Sept. 24, 2003
What I would eat now if I wasn't doing this dang Weight Watchers:

• dark chocolate nonpariels
• vanilla cupcake with chocolate frosting
• grande moccacino with whipped cream
• chocolate chip cookies
• cream horn
• Any of the following: Devil Dogs, Ring Dings, Funny Bones, Yankee Doodles
• Scoop of chocolate ice cream with hot peanut butter topping
• Goldenberg's Peanut Chews

What I'm really eating: Pasta Fagioli and a glass of water

White Circus Peanuts! (And Pink and Yellow and Orange, Too!)

Here I am in the midst of Easter madness-- one of the biggest candy holidays of the year when I should be writing about bunnies and eggs and such-- when I got sidetracked once again by Circus Peanuts. It would seem that people are doing a lot of Google searches on white Circus Peanuts, I think because there's a bunny cupcake you can make with them. In any case, I decided to do a bit of searching myself and found these three Circus Peanut delights.

• From Drinkswap.com:

Circus Peanut Margarita Recipe

3 oz Tequila

2 oz Pisang Ambon

1 oz Lime Juice

Directions: Mix well in a blender with ice and serve in a highball glass that has been rimmed with jimmies. Garnish with a day-glo orange circus peanut.

• For the ultimate Circus Peanut lover: a 20-lb. case direct from Spangler. "Assorted flavors including vanilla (white), banana (orange), cherry (pink), and lemon (yellow)."

• And these, chocolate-dipped Circus Peanuts, from Monster Candy Apple:

So many options. Who knew?!

Circus Peanut Pumpkins!

My new fave mag is Family Fun. In the past, I used to love reading Esquire, Gourmet, Bon Appetit... but now it's all about finding ways to pass the time with the Sugar Baby, so Family Fun it is. This month they have instructions on how to transform Circus Peanuts and gumdrops into wee little pumpkins. Cute!

Do you like Circus Peanuts?

I've decided that one of my summer projects is to take a census of who in the world actually likes Circus Peanuts. I must admit, they really do fascinate me. I mean, come on, a peanut-shaped candy that tastes like banana-flavored insulation. Yum! Here's my list so far:

1) My mom

2) My dad

3) Cupcake Goggles and her boyfriend

So, how about you? Can I add you to the list?

The next Caldecott winner

The first official Candy Yum Yum! poll has closed and the results are in. Your favorite childhood summer candy is: PIXY STIX! Yay! They beat out wax bottles by one vote. So I declare today the official Candy Yum Yum Pixy Stix Day.
On the other end of the spectrum, no one voted for the lowly Circus Peanut. I feel like I need to give comfort to this misunderstood candy. I thought about writing a poem, but my creativity has been inhibited by too much wine last night and not enough sleep. Since I'm pretty up on my children's literature, though, I've decided to write a story. Envision this as a board book, with bright pictures.

Who Will Share My Circus Peanuts?

Lucky Henri! He has a bag of Circus Peanuts.

Henri is a good boy, so he wants to share his candy with someone.

"Daddy, do you want a Circus Peanut?"

"No way!" says Daddy. "I hate those things!"

"Mommy, do you want a Circus Peanut?"

"No thank you, Henri. I'm busy eating this Goldenberg's Peanut Chew."

"Who will share my Circus Peanuts?"

"Well," thought Henri. "It is shaped like a peanut. Maybe Mr. Elephant would like one."

"Mr. Elephant, would you like a Circus Peanut?"

"Why sure, little Henri, I'll try one. Yuck! These taste like banana. I don't like banana. Why don't you give one to Mr. Monkey."

"Mr. Monkey, would you like a Circus Peanut?"

"I'll try one, Little Henri. Yuck! These are chewy! I don't like chewy!"

"Who will share my Circus Peanuts?" cried Henri. And then he had an idea.

"Grandma, will you share my Circus Peanuts?"

"Of course, Little Henri. They're my favorite!"

And so Grandma and Henri sat on the porch and shared a bag of Circus Peanuts.

THE END