Here comes Peter Cottontail

It's time for an Easter candy review and I am excited to share that this season has brought one of the best seasonal candy variations that I can recall.

No need to save the best for last, Swedish Fish Eggs steal the season with snack sized bags that include two mini Swedish Fish and about 6 little Dot like eggs. In addition to great chew and flavor these treats strike a chord with a bit of humor on each package. Little Swedish Fish with bunny ears quip one of these three saying:  Why should bunnies have all the fun! What, you've never heard of Candiar? and Fish lay eggs too, ya know!

Far less exciting but still yummy are Sour Patch Bunnies. They are predictable and are exactly what they sound like - bunnies in original Sour Patch flavors.

Sour Patch Jelly Beans don't deliver the same chew that the original Kids do and the red flavor is 'Redberry.' They are ok but not worth hunting for during your Easter candy round up.

The number one selling candy at Easter time is chocolate, here are a few favorites.

M&M Milk Chocolate Spectacular Eggs - an egg sized version of the original staple. The larger size is enjoyable and cute.

M&M Peanut Butter Spectacular Eggs - oh boy, these deliver. I'm a fan of Peanut Butter M&Ms any day, bulk them up and give them speckled egg flair and look out. I'd fight someone for the last bag of these.

A classic Easter candy that warrants a revisit, the Cadbury Mini Egg packs a chocolate punch with a bit of a chalky shell. I prefer the M&M plain over these but both earn a place in the basket.

I look forward to Reese's Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs each year. Particularly great when they are a bit warm so the chocolate becomes melty. These taste like a traditional peanut butter cup but they surpass the miniature cups by having a chocolate 'shell' that is the same thickness on all parts and their shape makes for a better fit with the roof of your mouth.

Love them or hate them, Peeps are synonymous with Easter. This year Target was identified to carry a new Peep 'delicacy' called Peepsters. Truth be told, I was reluctant to purchase these. I am not a Peep fan and previous chocolate covered Peep taste testing has not impressed me. Peepsters come in dark or milk chocolate and boast a marshmallow flavored creme center. They are great! I like them because they really don't taste like Peeps. The center is a creme not marshmallow, it's a bit thick and isn't chewy, it is vanilla marshmallow flavored. I tried the dark chocolate and was pleasantly surprised.

I couldn't get myself to buy this Peep treat but shot a picture at Walgreens, eww. That's right, Peeps marshmallow flavored freezer pops.

This year I took my first stab at making peeps. Honey vanilla marshmallow chicks and eggs.

I haven't found my favorite Mike & Ike Jelly Beans yet, if you run across them treat yourself and pick up a bag. Great flavors, great chew, great size.

May your Easter basket be full of sweet favorites!

The Bully Took My Candy

It's the end of day 22 of the protests in Madison. It is beyond comprehension how we got here, what all has actually occurred and what will come tomorrow. All I know at this point is that I believe in what I am fighting for. It's simple really. It begins with respect. It begins with recognizing that yes, in fact, we are all created equal and that we are intended to be kind to one another. If we start here, we have everything to gain. If we start with our own agenda, driven by power and money, a lack of willingness to value others and to only put forth what we DEMAND is right, we have everything to loose.

I have been in the thick of protesting since this began. For me, this is about all of the issues that the bill challenges but more so, it's about the unwillingness to acknowledge the value of a two party system. The over arching umbrella issue is that Governor Scott Walker has dug in his Koch Industries work boots and pissed a line in the sand that says my way or the highway (no rail or bikes here). This is not how adults behave. At least not the adults I respect and admire.

The protests have become a hotbed of creativity and expression. It's like political Halloween each weekend. Best entertainment and people watching I can recall. Plus, everyone is so friendly and passionate that it's like a family. It is the most united-diversity one could imagine. 

Much more to share about the experience of this Movement in the future but for now, enjoy these sugar related signs of protest. The last photos tell the story of the 'Rally Bars' that I made and took to the Capitol for the protesters who were staying overnight.