Big Barf Candy

If you're bored with luscious chocolate spun into Easter eggs and birds nests, here's something to break up the monotony.
Big Barf Candy. It won't spoil anyone's appetite, despite round chunks rolling from a green mouth onto a red tongue.
Let's call it filler candy. It's of the pellet variety which usually comes in a tube, commonly found in toy doctor and makeup kits back in the sixties.
"10ccs of little colored balls, stat."
Big Barf is a fraternal twin of Big Burp, also from the twisted minds at the Kandy Kastle. Surely you're familiar with the Candy Hose Nose and the Mallow Burger with Fries.
Big Barf comes with barfing noises which seem to say, "If you care what I taste like, you've missed the point."
My cousin Vinnie, guest tester, demonstrates.

Lemon Duck With Carrot

These attractive Mark Avenue Chocolates stood out among a multitude of bright and fun candy at Debbies Sweets 'n Treats.
The new store had just been handed down to Deb's daughter, Erica, a few weeks before, and looked fuller and more energized than ever.
While my sister submerged herself in Easter candy, I stocked up on Space Food Sticks and gumballs. And I don't chew gum. Well now I do, having recently purchased a pound of blue raspberry and Dubble Bubble gumballs.
Back to Mark Avenue; they make a decent duck.
The lemon in the Lemon Flavored Yellow Duck was subtle and lingering, the chocolate thick and not too sweet. Weighing in at 1.5 oz., it was thick enough to provide a soft crunch. The light lemon flavor cut the sweetness.
The Orange Carrot had a heavier, artificial taste and smell. It scored high on looks, low on taste.
I'd spend the buck thirty on as many Yellow Ducks as I could stuff in an Easter Basket, but would rather grow, then harvest, my own Chocolate Bunny than eat another Orange Carrot.

Candy Grubbers

A few Now and Laters thrown out of a car decorated in shamrocks by a parade of strangers―Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Driving the Dempsey car in the Madison St. Patrick's Day Parade is all about Celts, candy, and not having to scrape small children out of your wheel well.
Most of the Parade photos are up now. And they're fun to view as a slideshow.
A special thanks to the Flynn's for that much needed Guinness.

Peeps Cocoa Bunnies

Peeps. You know 'em, you love 'em, you want some more of 'em.
I like the Peeps Cocoa Bunnies because their marshmallow innards contrast nicely with the chocolate coating.
Whether you eat one ear at a time or shove the whole thing in your mouth, how cute are those chocolate dotted faces. One of mine had an unsightly mole.
These might be too good for stoners, no offense, and best eaten fresh. That way they're light and airy the way a marshmallow should be. And sugar seeking pets have an easier time of it when one falls their way.
Is it because I rarely have Peeps fresh from the package, or does the dusting of cocoa powder make the Cocoa Bunnies so delectable? I could hardly pose them for a photo without:
A. Wondering what they'd taste like grilled between two graham crackers and a slab of Hershey's chocolate
B. Hoping it got cold enough to dunk them into steaming cups of Chocolate Malt Ovaltine
C. Tearing into the row of four like a wild dog
I've never had Peeps Cocoa Bats, or Peeps Cocao Cats (lovingly mutilated by William at Chocolate Obesession), but I can't imagine they're much different. Peeps Cocoa Bunnies aren't overwhemingly chocolate―can you be overwhelmingly Peep?
Enough of those silly lollipops, I want my Peeps room temp and ready to slide down my throat like a sugar coated oyster.
Mmmm, oyster Peeps.

Hot Tamales Ice

Boy, boy, crazy boy.
If you like jelly spearmint leaves, you'll like Hot Tamales Ice Chewy Mint Flavored Candies.
HTICMFC have been around since January, and just below the surface at least, taste like cinnamon Hot Tamales.
Run-ins with both Peppermint Schnapps and Crème de Menthe have put me off most things mint—with the exception of the US Mint and Mint Juleps on Derby Day (this year on Cinco de Mayo).

Hot Tamales Ice have the same crunchy outside, same jelly inside, same Hot Tamales syrupy finish as the originals. You can still bite one down to its nub and get a sugar crust with a bit of chew. HT Ice leaves you with a breezy mint aftertaste after sucking down the spotted coating.
Not as bad as I thought, kind of fun, but cinnamon still rules, especially for dumping into popcorn.

Peeps Pop Sliders

These weren't what I expected.
I expected Peeps dispensers twisting out marshmallow concentrate glazed in fine sugar. Maybe if I'd read the label.
These pop sliders measure smaller than a Pez dispenser, and harbor lipstick type hard candy.
The Peeps Marshmallow Lollipop initially smacked of toasted marshmallow, then quickly lost its taste, picking up a whiff of plastic from the container. It didn't help that invisible bits of plastic clung to the yellow sucker. Don't bite into it, because the Marshmallow Pop Slider is downright nasty.
TIP: Using the purple slider button lifts the wrapper up and off.
If you have the mind of a small child (as I do), watch out for rough surfaces when using them as a lipstick. Peeps sliders don't leave a color, but coat your lips with enough gloss to attract bees.
The two other flavors, Strawberry Cream and Blue Raspberry, fare better. The Strawberry also whiffed of plastic while retaining a slight berry flavor. The Blue Raspberry tasted like a Popsicle to the teeth cracking end. Too sweet for me though.
On the Peeps side, they're basket friendly and pass muster as a novelty candy.