It doesn’t matter how old you are—everyone knows that the best part of Halloween is the candy, whether you’re trick-or-treating or buying it in bulk “for the office.” Every day this week, Bon Appétit staffers defend their absolute favorite candy, a thing we have very strong opinions about.
I feel like I could write that Reese's are a candy made of chocolate and peanut butter, and rest my case right there. What better ingredient combinations exist? But since I've been asked to write about 300 words, I'll keep going.
Reese’s are not a threat to your jaw, like Starburst or Tootsie Rolls. On the contrary: It’s smooth sailing as you bite through two supple layers of chocolate and a creamy peanut butter filling.
Unlike, say, Nerds or Pixy Stix, Reese’s are more than straight sugar—there’s saltiness and depth to the peanut butter that balances out the sweetness (that’s what we in the food biz call “nuance”).
They are a candy we collectively agree is so good, they’re worth eating year-round, unlike Krackel, which seems to appear just once a year in pumpkin buckets in miniature form. (Has anyone ever even seen a full-size Krackel?)
In fact, they’ve basically spawned their own cottage industry, with Reese’s cereals in the supermarket aisle and Reese’s ice cream in freezer section, not to mention countless fancy restaurants knocking off the dollar candy. (A word to these restaurants: Chocolate and peanut butter are always a good thing, but peanut butter mousse with chocolate ganache just don’t have the same magic as the original candy. You’re better off putting a Reese’s cup on a large circular plate for me; in fact, please do that. )
They are not disgusting, like candy corn or mellowcreme pumpkins. No, they are creamy and nutty, sweet and satisfying, the candy I’d save as a kid until after I had plowed through the Dots and Jolly Ranchers and other candies that weren’t nearly as wonderful.
One closing note: I am obviously not talking about the mini Reese’s, which have a grainier texture and a worse chocolate-to-peanut butter ratio than the full-size singles. But, come on, even those are better than candy corn, or pretty much anything else.