After Halloween, we find ourselves literally buried in candy – even if you don’t have kids who trick or treat, you likely have a bunch of extra candy that you didn’t give away at your house. Here are some fun ideas on how to use up all that leftover Halloween candy from turning it into something else to donating it to introducing your kiddos to the Candy Fairy.
Candy Crafts
- Turn candy corn into a wreath – makes a perfect Thanksgiving decoration!
- Make an Advent calendar so kids can punch through each day to get a small treat so you can somewhat limit their sugar intake. Check out all the details on Alpha Mom.
- Save the candy for Christmas time when you need decorations for a gingerbread house.
Infuse Alcohol
You can infuse vodka with all sorts of candy to impart some sweetness. Some fun ideas are Starburst, Skittles, Jolly Ranchers, Lemon Heads, candy corn, and bubble gum. Use a glass container like a mason jar and let sit for at least 24 hours or up to a week.
Dessert Recipes
Most of these recipes are desserts (not surprising since we’re using candy), which you can enjoy or share with others:
- Banana Cake with Milky Way Icing
- 3 Musketeers Puffs
- Butterfinger Cookies
- Snickers Cheesecake Squares
- Almond Joy Fudge
- Creamy Milky Way Bar Pudding
- Hershey’s Candy Bar Loaf Cake
- Baby Ruth Brownies
- Chewy Milk Duds Cookies
- Heath Bar Blizzard
- Junior Mint Cheesecake
- Peeps® cookies – I made these for Easter using marshmallow bunnies, but you can use them with the ghosts as well
- Yams – for Thanksgiving, instead of topping yams with marshmallows, use candy corn!
- Trail Mix – mix in bags of smaller chocolate candies like M&M’s with nuts, pretzels, raisins, cheese crackers, etc.
Candy Fairy
Choose how many nights you’d like to have your child set out a set number of candy pieces, and the Candy Fairy will transform them overnight into a small toy.
Donate / Reverse Trick-or-Treating
You and your kids could find an organization or homeless shelter nearby in need of candy donations – your kids can even dress back up in their costumes for a “reverse” trick-or-treat! A local senior center or assisted living facility might also be a nice choice and would brighten the resident’s day. Or you can choose an organization like Operation Shoebox which is always taking donations to support the troops. Another organization that supports the troops is Halloween Buy Back.
Freeze Candy
Frozen candy is a treat you can savor all year round when you need a little kick of sugar. You can also use frozen candy in milkshakes or a sundae topping.
Sweeten Coffee
Instead of sugar, use chocolate for a quick and easy mocha flavored pick me up.
We hope these ideas help you use up all that leftover Halloween candy!
© Featured photo by bhofack2 from istockphoto.com