Yesssss! Halloween is imminent, which means candy corn has started appearing in the aisles (although, let’s be honest, the bags of bright orange and yellow kernels began appearing right after Labor Day in a lot of stores that jumped the holiday gun!) As my number two favorite candy*, my love for candy corn is not shared by everyone or even very many. In fact, based on straw polls of who likes candy corn taken at every place I’ve worked over the last 20+ years, I have no idea who is eating all the bags of candy corn that appear on shelves every October. I can only imagine that there are a lot of closet snackers not confident enough in their candy choice to raise their hand when asked if they like candy corn, but they secretly purchase bags of it in the middle of the night. That’s not me. I have always been a candy corn fan and have shouldered the groans and unfiltered jeers of “Yuck. How can you eat that stuff?” from friends and coworkers. If I really think about why I like candy corn, in addition to the honey-sweet taste, I think it has a lot to do with the fun look and its connection to Halloween, which is my favorite holiday. I’ve always loved scary movies, dressing up and trick or treating, and decorating my house and office. So maybe in a roundabout way, every time I bite into a candy corn kernel, I’m reliving all my past Halloween memories…although sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, and maybe I just like the whole taste experience! Here are some additional thoughts to ensure your candy corn journey is a good one:

• A true connoisseur of candy corn knows that Brach’s is the only brand to buy. Brach’s candy corn has a lovely sweet honey taste and a soft-ish texture that combine to make a perfect confection. I’ve tried other brands, and they just don’t compare — they’re either too sweet, too hard, or not the correct size. 
• Eating candy corn is a lot trickier than it appears. Okay, this is where the ridicule from non-candy corn lovers amps up. To properly eat candy corn, you must bite off each layer, starting with the white nib, then the orange middle, and then popping the yellow top into your mouth. Of course, you can just pop an entire kernel in your mouth, but actually savoring each layer will provide the whole candy corn-eating experience. There is a lot of controversy about whether each layer has a different flavor, but like the similar controversy with different M&M colors, it has yet to be proven or disproven.
• My favorite way to eat candy corn. So, eating each kernel layer by layer is ideal, but I actually enjoy eating candy corn another way. I loved going to carnivals when I was a kid (creepy carnies aside), and one of my favorite treats was getting a candy or caramel apple that quickly devolved into making me a sticky mess. Well, I have a way for you to recreate that fairway favorite at home with candy corn. Sit down at a table with a fairly large red apple and a bag of Brach’s candy corn. Now, starting at the top of the apple, push the candy corn kernels into the apple, white nibs first, all the way until the yellow tops are flush with the apple skin. Do this all the way around the apple, placing kernels about an inch apart. At this point, you’ll probably have to wipe the apple with a napkin as the juice tends to drip down the sides, and it gets sticky as the juice mixes with the candy corn…yep, back to a sticky mess at the fair! Anyway, once the apple is covered, it’s ready to eat. If you’ve spaced the kernels correctly, each bite should deliver a throwback memory to that favorite candy apple taste…enjoy, and you’re welcome. 🙂

Need more of a candy corn fix, check out this recent USA Today article: https://apple.news/AflAB3IhTSUGDFWPcLeH0qQ

*A mix of Plain, Peanut, and Peanut Butter M&Ms has forever secured the top spot!