Junk Food for Celebrations & Holidays
The Ultimate Halloween Junk Food Haul: Ranking My Candy Stash
Halloween is synonymous with trick-or-treating and accumulating a large stash of assorted candies, chocolates, and sugary junk food. Many enjoy the ritual of sorting, trading, and ranking their “haul.”
After a successful night of trick-or-treating, Liam dumped his pillowcase full of candy on the floor. “Time for the official ranking!” he declared. Reese’s Cups were S-tier, candy corn C-tier. His ultimate Halloween junk food haul provided weeks of sugary debate and enjoyment.
Christmas Cookies & Candy: When Junk Food Becomes a Holiday Tradition
Christmas celebrations are deeply intertwined with specific junk foods: elaborately decorated sugar cookies, gingerbread houses, candy canes, chocolates, and fudge. These sweet treats are central to holiday traditions, gifting, and festive gatherings.
Sarah spent December baking dozens of Christmas cookies – sugar cutouts, gingerbread men, and peppermint bark. The aroma of vanilla and spice filled her home. “It wouldn’t be Christmas without these!” she said. These sugary, festive junk foods were a cherished holiday tradition, essential to the season’s magic.
Birthday Cake vs. Other Junk Food Desserts: The Great Party Debate
While birthday cake is the traditional celebratory dessert, some argue for alternatives like cupcakes, donuts, ice cream sundaes, or even savory junk food platters, sparking a “great debate” over the ultimate party treat.
For Mark’s birthday, his friends debated: classic cake, or a tower of his favorite donuts? “Cake is tradition!” argued one. “But donuts are more fun!” countered another. The great birthday party dessert debate highlighted the evolving role of celebratory junk food.
Thanksgiving “Junk Food Sides”: Guilty Pleasures on the Holiday Table
Beyond the turkey, Thanksgiving often features “junk food sides”—sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, green bean casserole with fried onions, sugary cranberry sauce from a can, or rich, buttery mashed potatoes—beloved, indulgent guilty pleasures.
Chloe secretly loved her aunt’s sweet potato casserole, topped with a mountain of melted marshmallows. “It’s pure Thanksgiving junk food, and I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she confessed. These indulgent sides were as much a part of the holiday as the turkey itself.
Easter Candy Overload: Beyond Chocolate Bunnies and Peeps
Easter is a major candy holiday, characterized by an abundance of chocolate bunnies, marshmallow Peeps, jelly beans, cream-filled eggs, and other sugary confections, often leading to a significant “overload” of junk food.
David surveyed his kids’ Easter baskets, overflowing with chocolate bunnies, Peeps, and jelly beans. “It’s an Easter candy overload!” he chuckled. The sheer volume of sugary junk food associated with this holiday was both delightful and slightly terrifying for parents.
Super Bowl Sunday: The King of All Junk Food Feasting Days
Super Bowl Sunday is an unofficial American holiday synonymous with feasting on copious amounts of junk food: chicken wings, pizza, chips and dip, nachos, chili, and beer, making it a peak day for indulgent consumption.
Anna’s Super Bowl party spread was epic: mountains of wings, rivers of dip, and a “snackadium” built from chip bags. “Today is the king of all junk food feasting days!” she announced. For millions, the game was as much about the indulgent food as the football.
Fourth of July BBQ Junk Food Classics: Hot Dogs, Chips, and Sugary Drinks
Fourth of July celebrations typically feature classic American BBQ junk food: grilled hot dogs and hamburgers, potato chips, corn on the cob (often slathered in butter), coleslaw, and copious amounts of soda and other sugary drinks.
Liam flipped burgers on the grill for his Fourth of July BBQ. Nearby, bowls of chips and coolers full of soda awaited. “Hot dogs, chips, and sugary drinks – it’s the quintessential American summer junk food celebration!” he declared, embracing the patriotic indulgence.
New Year’s Eve Party Snacks: Ringing in the Year with Junk Food
New Year’s Eve parties often feature an array of easy-to-eat, shareable junk food snacks like appetizers (mini quiches, pigs in a blanket), chips and dip, cheese platters, and festive desserts to fuel late-night celebrations.
Sarah’s New Year’s Eve party table was laden with cocktail sausages, spinach dip, and sparkling cider. As midnight approached, guests grazed on these festive junk food snacks, ringing in the new year with bites of savory and sweet indulgence.
Valentine’s Day Chocolates & Candy Hearts: Junk Food as a Token of Love?
Valentine’s Day is heavily associated with gifting chocolates in heart-shaped boxes and sugary conversation hearts. These confections serve as traditional tokens of affection, making junk food a symbolic (if not entirely healthy) expression of love.
Mark bought his wife a large box of assorted chocolates for Valentine’s Day. “Is this a cliché?” he wondered. But the heart-shaped box and sugary candies were such an ingrained tradition, a sweet junk food token of his affection, that it felt just right.
St. Patrick’s Day: Green Beer and Festive Junk Food Treats
St. Patrick’s Day celebrations often involve consuming green-dyed beer and festive, often green-themed, junk food treats like cupcakes with green frosting, shamrock-shaped cookies, or dishes incorporating Irish stout or whiskey in less-than-healthy ways.
Chloe attended a St. Patrick’s Day party featuring green beer, cupcakes topped with bright green frosting, and “Irish Car Bomb” Jell-O shots. The festive, artificially colored junk food and drinks were an integral part of the holiday’s boisterous, indulgent celebration.
The “Office Birthday” Junk Food Culture: Cake, Donuts, and More
Office birthday celebrations typically revolve around communal junk food: a sheet cake, a box of donuts, or a platter of cookies brought in to share, creating a culture where sugary treats are a frequent workplace norm.
It was David’s turn for an office birthday. A large cake appeared in the breakroom. While a nice gesture, he reflected on how this “office birthday junk food culture” meant someone was bringing in sugary treats almost every week, making healthy eating at work a challenge.
Graduation Party Junk Food Spreads: Celebrating with Sugar and Salt
Graduation parties often feature extensive spreads of crowd-pleasing junk food: pizza, sliders, chip-and-dip stations, candy bars, cupcakes, and custom graduation-themed cakes, celebrating the milestone with indulgent, shareable treats.
Anna’s graduation party had a table groaning under the weight of mini hot dogs, a nacho bar, and a huge cake decorated with her school colors. It was a classic spread, celebrating her achievement with an abundance of familiar, comforting sugar and salt.
Wedding “Late Night Snack” Bars: Junk Food to Keep the Party Going
Many weddings now feature “late night snack” bars, offering guests comforting junk food like sliders, mini tacos, french fry cones, or donuts after hours of dancing and drinking, to refuel and keep the celebration going.
Liam’s wedding reception kicked into high gear around 10 PM when they rolled out a “late night snack” bar with mini grilled cheese sandwiches and tater tots. This fun junk food offering was a huge hit, giving guests the fuel to keep dancing till dawn.
Baby Shower Junk Food: Cute Themed Treats and Sweets
Baby showers often feature adorable, themed junk food: cupcakes with baby bootie toppers, pastel-colored candies, cookies shaped like rattles or onesies, and fruit punch, focusing on cute presentation and sweet indulgences.
Sarah’s baby shower was a sea of pastel pink and blue. The food table featured cupcakes decorated like rubber duckies and cookies shaped like tiny footprints. The emphasis was on cute, themed sweet treats – a classic spread of adorable baby shower junk food.
Cinco de Mayo: Chips, Guac, and Sugary Margaritas (Junk Food Fiesta!)
Cinco de Mayo celebrations in the U.S. often involve consuming festive “junk food” like tortilla chips with guacamole and salsa, tacos (sometimes Americanized versions), and sugary, often oversized, margaritas and other tequila-based cocktails.
Mark hosted a Cinco de Mayo party. Bowls of tortilla chips, vats of guacamole, and pitchers of sweet margaritas were central to the “fiesta.” While not all authentically Mexican, these items formed the core of his celebratory, if somewhat junky, spread.
The Best (and Worst) Holiday-Themed Junk Food Flavors (e.g., Pumpkin Spice Everything)
Companies release limited-edition holiday-themed junk food flavors (pumpkin spice, peppermint mocha, gingerbread). Some are beloved seasonal hits, while others can be bizarre or unappetizing misses, sparking much online debate.
Chloe eagerly awaited pumpkin spice latte season – her favorite holiday-themed flavor. However, she drew the line at “Turkey Dinner” flavored candy corn, one of the “worst” holiday junk food concoctions she’d ever seen. Seasonal flavors were a mixed bag of delicious and disastrous.
DIY Holiday Junk Food Crafts: Edible Decorations and Gifts
Many holiday crafts involve using junk food: making ornaments from candy canes, creating “reindeer” from pretzels and chocolate, or assembling edible gift baskets filled with homemade or store-bought treats and snacks.
David and his kids spent an afternoon making DIY holiday crafts. They glued candy canes into wreath shapes and dipped pretzels in chocolate to make “reindeer.” These edible junk food creations were fun to make and doubled as festive, if sugary, decorations and gifts.
How Different Cultures Incorporate “Junk Food” into Their Celebrations
Every culture has traditional celebratory foods that might be considered “junk food” by others due to high sugar, fat, or salt content (e.g., deep-fried festival pastries, very sweet holiday puddings, salty preserved snacks for special occasions). These are cherished for their cultural significance.
Anna, visiting friends in India for Diwali, was treated to an array of “mithai” – rich, sugary sweets made with ghee and nuts. While incredibly indulgent, these were integral to the celebration, a beloved cultural “junk food” specific to their joyous festival.
Navigating Dietary Restrictions Amidst Holiday Junk Food Buffets
Holiday buffets, laden with traditional and often unhealthy junk food, can be challenging for those with dietary restrictions (vegan, gluten-free, diabetic). Strategies include bringing a “safe” dish, focusing on what one can eat, and politely declining off-limit items.
Liam, who was gluten-intolerant, found holiday buffets a minefield. He learned to bring his own gluten-free dessert and focus on the naturally gluten-free options like roasted vegetables, carefully navigating the tempting but off-limits array of traditional junk food.
The Post-Holiday Junk Food Detox: Myth or Necessity?
After periods of holiday overindulgence in rich, sugary junk food, many feel the need for a “detox.” While the body naturally detoxifies, a return to whole, unprocessed foods and hydration can help reset habits and alleviate sluggishness. Extreme “detoxes” are usually unnecessary.
After a week of Christmas cookies and rich meals, Sarah felt sluggish. “I need a serious post-holiday junk food detox!” she declared. She didn’t do a juice cleanse, but simply focused on eating lots of vegetables and lean protein, letting her body naturally recover.
Kid’s Birthday Party Favor Bags: Usually Filled with Junk Food
Favor bags given out at children’s birthday parties typically contain an assortment of small, cheap junk food items like lollipops, small candies, plastic toys, and novelty sweets, a sugary send-off for young guests.
Mark looked inside his son’s party favor bag: a bouncy ball, a plastic spider, and a handful of lollipops and Tootsie Rolls. It was a classic assortment, the junk food items being an almost mandatory, if not particularly healthy, part of the kids’ birthday party ritual.
The Pressure to Bake (or Buy) Impressive Junk Food for Holiday Gatherings
During holidays, there’s often social pressure to contribute impressive homemade (or store-bought) baked goods and indulgent junk food dishes to family gatherings and parties, regardless of one’s baking skills or dietary preferences.
Chloe felt immense pressure to bake a “showstopper” dessert for the family Christmas dinner. Everyone else brought elaborate cookies and pies. Even though she preferred simpler fare, the expectation to contribute impressive holiday junk food was strong.
Leftover Holiday Junk Food: How Long is Too Long to Keep Eating It?
After holidays, households are often inundated with leftover candies, cookies, cakes, and other junk food. Deciding when to stop eating it and discard the excess to avoid prolonged unhealthy indulgence can be a challenge.
David’s fridge was still full of leftover Christmas fudge and cookies in mid-January. “How long is too long to keep eating this?” he wondered, battling the temptation to finish it all versus the desire to get back to healthier habits. It was a common post-holiday dilemma.
The Financial Cost of All That Holiday and Celebration Junk Food
The cumulative cost of purchasing special ingredients for holiday baking, buying themed candies, chocolates, festive drinks, and catering for celebration parties can add up to a significant financial outlay for junk food during festive seasons.
Anna tallied her December spending: specialty baking supplies, boxes of chocolates for gifts, festive sparkling cider, and ingredients for her New Year’s Eve party snacks. The financial cost of all that celebratory junk food was surprisingly high, a big hit to her budget.
Hanukkah Gelt and Other Festive Junk Food Traditions
Hanukkah traditions include eating oily foods like latkes and sufganiyot (jelly donuts) to commemorate the miracle of oil, and playing dreidel for chocolate gelt (coins), making these specific, often indulgent, foods integral to the holiday.
Liam’s family fried latkes and sufganiyot for Hanukkah, and the kids eagerly played dreidel for chocolate gelt. These specific foods, rich in oil and sugar, weren’t everyday fare but were cherished junk food traditions deeply tied to the festival’s story and joy.
Diwali Sweets: Delicious Treats or Festive Junk Food?
Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, features an abundance of “mithai”—rich, elaborate sweets made with ghee, sugar, milk, nuts, and flour. While delicious and culturally significant, their high sugar and fat content places them in the “festive junk food” category for many.
Sarah was gifted a beautiful box of assorted mithai for Diwali – ladoos, barfi, jalebi. Each bite was a decadent explosion of sweetness. “These are incredible,” she said, “but definitely a very special, very sugary festive junk food!” Their richness was part of the celebration.
Mardi Gras King Cakes and Other Indulgent Celebration Junk
Mardi Gras is celebrated with indulgent treats like King Cake (a sweet, often cinnamon-filled yeast cake decorated in purple, green, and gold, with a hidden plastic baby). Other rich, festive foods contribute to the pre-Lenten revelry.
Mark, visiting New Orleans for Mardi Gras, tried his first King Cake. The sweet, colorful, cinnamon-y bread was delicious, and the hunt for the tiny plastic baby inside added to the fun. This, and other rich NOLA treats, were quintessential indulgent celebration junk food.
Creating a “Healthier” Junk Food Spread for Your Next Celebration
It’s possible to create a “healthier” celebratory spread by offering baked instead of fried items, using whole grains, reducing sugar in desserts, providing plenty of fresh fruit and vegetable platters, and offering lighter dip options.
Chloe planned a healthier spread for her next party. She made baked chicken wings instead of fried, offered a yogurt-based dip with veggies instead of creamy ranch, and had a large fruit platter alongside a smaller portion of cake. Small swaps made a big difference.
The Role of Alcohol (Often Paired with Junk Food) in Holiday Festivities
Alcoholic beverages are common at holiday parties and celebrations, often consumed alongside salty, fatty, or sugary junk food snacks. This combination can lead to excessive calorie intake and less inhibited eating choices.
David noticed that at holiday parties, once the wine started flowing, his resolve to avoid the chip bowl weakened significantly. The combination of alcohol and readily available junk food often led to him overindulging more than he intended.
The Most “Overrated” Holiday Junk Foods (Hot Takes!)
Certain traditional holiday junk foods (e.g., fruitcake, candy corn, Peeps) are considered “overrated” or even disliked by many, despite their cultural prevalence, sparking humorous debates and “hot takes” on their true appeal.
Anna boldly declared fruitcake “the most overrated holiday junk food ever. It’s heavy, weirdly flavored, and nobody actually likes it!” This “hot take” sparked a lively debate among her friends about other polarizing festive treats.
Secret Santa Junk Food Gifts: Easy, Cheap, or Thoughtless?
Gifting junk food (a candy bar, a bag of chips) for Secret Santa exchanges can be seen as an easy and cheap option, potentially thoughtful if it’s a known favorite, or somewhat thoughtless if it’s generic and low-effort.
Liam received a generic chocolate bar for his office Secret Santa. “Well, it’s… a gift,” he thought, unsure if it was a safe, easy choice or just a bit thoughtless. The perception of junk food gifts often depended on context and known preferences.
The Nostalgia of Specific Childhood Holiday Junk Foods
Certain junk foods become deeply associated with childhood holiday memories (e.g., a specific brand of Christmas cookie, a particular Easter candy, a Thanksgiving dessert made by a grandparent), evoking powerful feelings of nostalgia when encountered in adulthood.
Sarah smelled a freshly baked pumpkin pie and was instantly transported back to her grandmother’s Thanksgiving table. That specific aroma, linked to a beloved childhood holiday junk food, was a potent trigger for warm, nostalgic feelings.
How Movie Marathons During Holidays Fuel Junk Food Consumption
Holiday periods often involve more downtime and movie marathons, which culturally pair well with continuous snacking on popcorn, candy, chips, and other easily consumed junk foods, leading to increased intake.
Mark settled in for a Christmas movie marathon with a giant bowl of caramel popcorn and a box of chocolates. The relaxing holiday vibe and back-to-back films created the perfect environment for mindless, indulgent junk food consumption.
The “12 Days of Junk Food” Christmas Countdown Challenge
A playful (and unhealthy) take on an advent calendar, the “12 Days of Junk Food” might involve trying a different specific junk food treat each day leading up to Christmas, often shared on social media.
Chloe decided to do a “12 Days of Junk Food” countdown for her blog, trying a different festive treat each day – from peppermint bark to eggnog-flavored donuts. It was a fun, if incredibly sugary, way to build holiday excitement.
Surviving an Office “Potluck” Dominated by Unhealthy Junk Food
Office potlucks often feature an abundance of cheesy casseroles, creamy dips, sugary desserts, and other homemade junk food. Navigating this requires strategies like bringing a healthy dish, focusing on smaller portions of indulgent items, and filling up on any available healthier options.
David faced the office holiday potluck: a sea of mac and cheese, seven-layer dip, and brownies. He’d wisely brought a large green salad and some grilled chicken skewers, ensuring he had healthier options to survive the otherwise junk food-dominated spread.
The Best Junk Food to Bring to a Summer Picnic or Cookout
Ideal picnic/cookout junk food is portable, shareable, and relatively stable in warm weather. Classics include potato chips, pretzels, watermelon (a healthier treat!), cookies, brownies, and pre-made sandwiches or sliders.
Anna was tasked with bringing snacks to a summer picnic. She opted for a large bag of kettle chips, a container of chocolate chip cookies, and some refreshing lemonade – classic, crowd-pleasing junk food perfect for a sunny outdoor gathering.
“Friendsgiving” Feasts: Often More Junk Food-Centric Than Traditional Thanksgiving
“Friendsgiving” celebrations, hosted by groups of friends, often feature less traditional, more casual, and sometimes more junk food-heavy dishes than formal family Thanksgivings, with an emphasis on comfort foods and easy-to-share items.
Liam’s “Friendsgiving” menu included mac and cheese, buffalo chicken dip, and a dessert table laden with store-bought pies and cookies. It was a more relaxed, junk food-centric take on the traditional holiday, focusing on fun and shared indulgence.
The Rise of “Charcuterie Chalets” and Other Holiday Junk Food Constructions
“Charcuterie chalets” (gingerbread-style houses made from crackers, meats, cheeses) and similar elaborate constructions using junk food components have become a trendy, creative way to display and serve snacks during holidays, blending food with craft.
Sarah saw a “charcuterie chalet” online – a miniature log cabin built from pretzel rods, with salami shingles and a cream cheese “snow” roof. This elaborate, savory junk food construction was a trendy, artistic new way to approach holiday snacking.
How Restaurants Market Special “Holiday Junk Food” Menu Items
Restaurants capitalize on festive seasons by offering limited-time “holiday junk food” menu items—peppermint milkshakes, gingerbread lattes, cranberry-glazed wings, eggnog cheesecakes—using seasonal flavors and novelty to attract customers and boost sales.
Mark couldn’t resist trying the “Candy Cane Crunch” sundae, a limited-time holiday special at his favorite diner. Restaurants, he knew, were experts at marketing these seasonal junk food creations to tap into festive cheer and drive sales.
The Guilt Associated with Overindulging in Celebration Junk Food
Despite celebrations being a time for indulgence, many people experience guilt after overconsuming rich, sugary, or fatty holiday junk foods, especially if they are trying to maintain healthy eating habits.
Chloe, after enjoying several Christmas cookies and a large slice of pie, felt a familiar pang of guilt. Even though it was a special occasion, overindulging in the celebration junk food often came with that unwelcome emotional side effect.
Regional Holiday Junk Food Specialties You’ve Never Heard Of
Beyond common holiday treats, many regions and cultures have unique, lesser-known holiday junk food specialties—specific types of festive cookies, candies, fried pastries, or savory snacks—that are cherished local traditions.
David, visiting a small town in Pennsylvania for Christmas, discovered “fasnachts” – special potato-based donuts traditionally made for Shrove Tuesday, but popular locally during the holidays. He loved discovering these unique, regional holiday junk food specialties.
The Competitive Sport of “Easter Egg Hunting” (For Junk Food)
Easter egg hunts, where children (and sometimes adults) competitively search for hidden eggs, often filled with candy and small junk food treats, transform a simple activity into an exciting, if sugar-fueled, “sport.”
Anna watched her kids frantically race around the yard during the Easter egg hunt, their bags quickly filling with chocolate eggs and jelly beans. The thrill of the hunt was as much about the competition as it was about the sugary junk food treasures inside.
Using Junk Food to Bribe Kids for Good Behavior During Holidays
Parents sometimes resort to using the promise of junk food treats as a bribe to encourage good behavior from children during stressful or lengthy holiday events, family gatherings, or travel.
Liam, facing a long car ride with his restless toddlers, finally sighed, “If you’re both quiet for the next hour, you can have a lollipop when we stop.” Using junk food as a bribe was a common, if not ideal, parental tactic for holiday survival.
The Most Creative Ways to Repurpose Leftover Halloween Candy
After Halloween, leftover candy can be creatively repurposed by chopping it into cookie or brownie batter, melting it into sauces, using it as ice cream toppings, or incorporating it into trail mixes or “monster” desserts.
Sarah had a mountain of leftover Halloween candy. Instead of just eating it plain, she got creative, chopping Snickers into brownie batter and stirring M&Ms into pancake mix. Repurposing the junk food felt slightly less guilt-inducing and more fun.
How Many Pounds of Candy Does the Average American Buy for Halloween? (Scary Stats!)
Americans purchase an enormous quantity of candy for Halloween, with national spending reaching billions of dollars. The average household buys several pounds, contributing to a massive seasonal influx of sugary junk food.
Mark read that the average American household buys around two pounds of candy per child just for Halloween trick-or-treaters, translating to millions of pounds nationally. The sheer scale of this annual junk food acquisition was, frankly, a scary statistic.
The “Ugly Christmas Sweater” Party and Its Inevitable Junk Food Spread
“Ugly Christmas Sweater” parties are a popular holiday tradition, almost invariably accompanied by a casual spread of festive junk food like themed cookies, cheesy dips, snack mixes, and often, spiked eggnog or other sweet alcoholic beverages.
Chloe donned her tackiest light-up Christmas sweater and headed to the party. True to form, the snack table was overflowing with Santa-shaped cookies, a cheese ball reindeer, and a punch bowl full of sugary “elf nog.” The junk food was as essential as the ugly sweaters.
Anniversaries & Junk Food: Celebrating Milestones with Favorite Treats
Couples often celebrate anniversaries or relationship milestones by indulging in favorite shared junk foods—the type of pizza they had on their first date, a specific dessert they both love—using food as a nostalgic and comforting way to mark the occasion.
For their anniversary, David and Lisa ordered from the greasy taco truck where they’d had their first unofficial date. Eating those familiar, messy tacos wasn’t about gourmet dining; it was about celebrating their shared history with a beloved, nostalgic junk food.
The Best “Breakup Recovery” Junk Food for a Solo Pity Party (A Different Celebration!)
Following a breakup, many people turn to specific “comfort” junk foods for a solo “pity party”—often a pint of ice cream, a large bag of chips, or greasy takeout pizza—consumed as a form of emotional self-soothing.
Anna, heartbroken, declared a “breakup recovery pity party.” Her essentials: a family-size bag of salt and vinegar chips, an entire sleeve of cookie dough, and sad movies. It was a different kind of celebration, fueled by quintessential comfort junk food.
Retirement Party Junk Food: One Last Office Indulgence
Retirement parties often feature a celebratory spread of cake, cookies, appetizers, and other junk food, marking a transition and offering colleagues a chance to share one last indulgent office treat with the retiree.
Liam’s retirement party at the office featured a huge sheet cake with “Happy Retirement!” written in frosting, alongside platters of mini quiches and cookies. It was a classic send-off, one last communal indulgence in familiar office junk food.
My Ranking of All Holiday Junk Food, From Best to Worst
Individuals often have strong personal preferences and rankings for various holiday-specific junk foods, debating the merits of candy corn versus chocolate Santas, or pumpkin pie versus peppermint bark, based on taste and nostalgic associations.
Sarah made her annual “Holiday Junk Food Power Rankings.” Peppermint bark was #1, fruitcake dead last. “Candy corn is surprisingly high this year,” she mused. This personal, often humorous, ranking was a fun way to engage with the season’s many treats.