Use 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.
