LilSugar

Delilicious: Monster Candy Eyeballs

LilSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:00:22 -0700

I know it is only a short while before my lil ones come home with bags of treats, so I wanted to try to make my own candy! Epicurious had a great recipe for a frightful version of buckeye candy; traditionally it is a peanut butter ball that is then coated in a thin layer of chocolate. With a little creative dunking and a bag of M&M's, these candies are transformed into a spooky, yet, scrumptious monster eyeball.

Kids can definitely help with the whole process because the recipe only requires a microwave. You might even be grateful as mixing the peanut butter and powdered sugar is best done by hand and can be a pretty messy job! The finished candies would be cute packaged in small gifts bags as a ghoulish treat for your kids' friends! Children of all ages (including adults) are bound to love this classic combination, so if you want to get started on your own eye-poppingly delicious candy for Halloween keep reading for my tips and recipe.

Will You Be Handing Out Candy This Halloween?

LilSugar — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 06:00:58 -0700

Kiddos who get a toothbrush for a "treat" may claim they were tricked instead. Folks who choose not to pass out candy may be patting themselves on the back after the recent report that youngsters who indulge in the sweet stuff as tots are more likely to land in the slammer as adults. As a child, I always avoided the houses that passed out apples, stickers, and toothbrushes but now as an adult I appreciate when my wee ones pull out something other than candy from their trick-or-treat bag. Halloween is approaching, and we want to know what you plan on passing out.

Let Them Eat Cake...And Candy Canes!

LilSugar — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 06:00:23 -0800

I've never bought into the whole concept that candy makes kids hyperactive so I've never denied my children sweets when it came to holiday festivities. But, now there's reason for the moms who do attribute their tykes' energetic behavior to treats to relax. This Christmas, let your lil one have a candy cane. Guess what myth topped the list of holiday myths? To find out, read more.

On the subject of sugar making kids hyperactive, one report said:

The researchers cite 12 controlled studies that couldn’t detect any differences in behavior between children who had sugar and those who did not. Even when kids had a diagnosis of hyperactivity problems or were said to be more sensitive to sugar, they did not behave differently whether they ate sugar-laden or sugar-free diets. In fact, the biggest effect of sugar may be on parents. Parents rate their children as being more hyperactive if they are told the child has consumed sugar - even when the child hasn’t really had any sweets.

Slice of the Yule log, sweetie?

Source

ECOWEEN: Ghost Lollipops

LilSugar — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:00:47 -0700

If you're looking for an earth-friendly treat that may cause a bit of fright go with ghost lollipops. Toddlers love projects so enlist your lil ones help in wrapping each individually wrapped organic sucker in a sheet of recyclable tissue. Tie it off just under the candy with a piece of string, ribbon, twine or raffia found around the house. Then have your child use a black pen to decorate the flying friends faces with good or ghastly expressions.

For a clever way to carry the treats to a school party or to line them up for trick-or-treaters, have your youngster paint the upside down empty tissue box with some eco-friendly paint. After drying it overnight, puncture small holes in the top and insert the ghosts.

Halloween Candy Quiz

LilSugar — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 07:00:24 -0700

Whether you collected it in a pillowcase or plastic grocery bag, Halloween memories were made of candy. And, that nostalgia comes wrapped in the form of all kinds of sweet treats. Take this quiz and see if you can guess the candies.

Take the quiz

Do You Let Your Children Eat Their Halloween Candy?

LilSugar — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 04:00:00 -0700

'Tis the season for trick-or-treating! When it comes to the night of collecting candy, do you allow your children to indulge in the fun and the treats? A recent lilsugar post got our readers fired up about the issue.

Mommy Dearest: Take the Loot or Give Halloween the Boot?

LilSugar — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 15:00:24 -0700

Mommy Dearest,

I don't like giving my three and four-year-old daughters candy. We've never gone trick-or-treating for this reason. But, this year all the families in our cul-de-sac are throwing an outdoor party since the holiday lands on a Friday. There will be food, games, face painting and to my chagrin, each house will be handing out candy. My husband is all for the festivities and thinks I'm taking the fun out of everything. Should I let my girls trick-or-treat and confiscate the candy or not allow them to participate at all?

- Say No to Candy

To read the response from Mommy Dearest, read more.

Say No to Candy,

Children get to be carefree for such a short time and many of the best memories come from holiday festivities - trick-or-treating, putting carrots out for the Easter bunny and making valentines - why rob your daughters of one of childhood's simplest pleasures? I agree with your husband, the point of collecting candy on Halloween is to be able to indulge in a piece or two. Perhaps you could make an exception this once so your daughters can participate in what sounds like a fun and age appropriate event. That's my opinion, but let's let the lilsugar readers chime in.

- Mommy Dearest

Submit a question for this feature at the Mommy Dearest Group on TeamSugar.

Suck It Up! Get Instant Chocolate Milk From a Straw

YumSugar — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 15:28:50 -0700

A few months ago, I told you guys about straws that help flavor milk. We finally got our hands on some and wanted to let you know what we thought. The straws come in packs of six and are available in three flavors: banana, strawberry and chocolate. However, because today is National Chocolate Milk Day, we're going to focus on the chocolate.

I started off by taking a pint of milk and dividing into three cups. Then I put one straw into each cup. The straws are rather unique, they're a bit larger than normal straws and have three small openings on each end. The openings are big enough to allow milk to pass through, but small enough that the chocolate "beads" don't escape.

To be honest, I was expecting it to taste overly sweet and weird, but it was surprisingly good and rather interesting. There was no clumping powder or syrupy mess, instead all the chocolate remained in the straw. In fact, you might even say it was like a chocolate filter. As the milk passed through, it slowly dissolved the beads and created a flavor infusion. After several minutes of the straw in my glass, my milk had a very light brown hue, and eventually the beads dissolved completely.

View 5 Photos ›

If you've got kids, or are one at heart, this will make a great afternoon surprise. The product, which is produced by Felfodi, was just announced at the Candy Expo and will hit the shelves soon.

Kelly Ripa Urges Candy Spelling to Reconcile With Tori

LilSugar — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 12:12:58 -0700

Can't families just get along? The cohosts of Live! With Regis and Kelly certainly think so. The duo seem to be playing matchmakers this week, or rather rematchmakers. Yesterday, Regis told Kate Gosselin he sees a Cinderella ending for her and Jon. Then this morning, Kelly urged Candy Spelling to reconnect with her daughter Tori, even offering to sit down and have dinner and a drink with them so they could let bygones be bygones. Guest host Anderson Cooper seems to be the only one who doesn't own a pair of rose-colored glasses. The newsman called Candy out on the letter she posted to Tori on TMZ, asking her why she thought that was the way to end an estranged relationship. Do you think Candy and Tori should put their differences aside?

Candy Spelling Publicly Attacks Tori...Again!

LilSugar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:03:13 -0700

When Candy Spelling wrote an appreciation of Mommy Dearest, Joan Crawford, my eyes popped. While her recent attack on daughter Tori via TMZ isn't as shocking, it still bewilders the mother in me. Why would a parent choose to publicly criticize their child? To decide for yourself and check out a portion of what the elder Spelling wrote, read more. She said:

Life has consequences. What you say is on the record. Other people have feelings.

I have a vested interest in this subject. My daughter, Tori's, two-part season finale revolves around my granddaughter's first birthday party
and how she has made what seems like an agonizing decision to invite me.

Cue music. Cue sideways glances. Cue Lights.

I did get an invitation just in time for the RSVP deadline. I'm sure its delivery will be on next week's episode with some comment about my house or driveway or street or something they won't like. I wonder if that will be spread out over one part or two. Sigh.

A big party wasn't how I envisioned meeting my granddaughter for the first time; but, hey, this is Hollywood, and my grandchildren have become reality show props, too.

Do you think Candy has a point in taking Tori to task or is the Spelling matriarch just being completely inappropriate?