[duckstruck]

During my childhood we had a lady down the street who always handed out candied apples. Some years she gave us our choice of candied or caramel apples. All the local kids would sprint to her house first to get an apple before she ran out.

As years went on the news would give reports from the cities 30 miles away of pins, needles and razor blades being put in treats. So parents were warned to not let their kids have apples or candy that may have been opened or tampered with.

So the nice lady cut back on the amount she made and would always do a few for those of us who were close to her.

Since all the local kids loved them so much and this lady had a reputation for giving good treats, I thought I would start doing the same thing.

My question is, what are your thoughts on handing out candied and caramel apples as Halloween treats in todays society?

 

[dbruner]

It should be fine for the people you know. Maybe you could hand out apple slices with caramel on them so the parents could see they are ok. I was talking to another Halloween fan at work today and we both commented on how the streets were crawling with kids when we were that age, but now parents take the kids to the mall or other events deemed safer.

 

[GobbyGruesome]

Awww. That's pretty awesome. For me it was popcorn balls. Love those! And when I was really young there were a couple people who would still hand those out.

I remember one year when all the panic set in though, and my mom not only went with nothing but store-bought candy, but also put everything in a little bag with her contact information on the side. Seems so weird now.

All the cases of tampered treats have come from family members, so I think the real risk to kids is almost non-existent. But the perception is still there, so if you were going to do it, I'd probably restrict it to neighbours you knew, otherwise all your hard work might wind up in the garbage.

The thing that surprises me is that even with all the scare-mongering about candy, you still see kids digging into their bags and eating stuff on the way home. That was a definite no-no when I was young. If my mother found out I'd been eating candy before she checked it out, SHE would have been the scariest part of Halloween.

 

[mariposa0283]

I think starting with people you know is a great place to start, they can get the word out about it and in years to come you can start doing more and more as you start getting regular ToT's at your door. If I were a mother, I would have no qualms about a neighbor I was familiar with giving my kids candied apples. You just have to build a reputation and then the people will have no reason not to trust that your treats are perfectly safe.

 

[HalloweenieChallenge]

Duckstruck -

I LOVE the idea of handmade treats! I had a similar experience to you - there was a lady who would always make candy apples and wrap them up to look like pumpkins. I think I still might have some of the leaves and stuff from them packed away somewhere. It really was the best! A favorite Halloween memory of mine.

I have an idea for you! Maybe you could make an effort to try to meet all of your neighbors this month so they will let their kids have a homemade treat from you? ; )

On the other hand - these days I am becoming more and more aware of the ingredients used in mass-produced candy. I'm a bit weary of eating that stuff now - but homemade is probably better for you!

If you wrap them up really nice people might not be able to tell that they are homemade - they might think you bought them from a store.