Nestle Tollhouse Halloween Creatures

You might have noticed by now that you simply can't have enough cookies during the Holidays.  Whether it be Halloween, Christmas or Easter, cookies are the perfect late-night treat.  For me personally, this has been a very cookieful Halloween and, believe me, it's far from over.

When deciding between Pillsbury Spooky Cat Cookies and these new Nestle Tollhouse Halloween Creatures Cookies, there was no question as to which one we were going with.  We simply had to try these!  There were two selling points that really caught my eye.  The first?  These 24 sugar cookies are pre-cut!  Now, I have no problem cutting my own cookies, but having it already done for you doesn't hurt, especially when they're in the shapes of pumpkins, ghosts and witches!  The second selling point were the colors.  I love cookies that have colorfully printed images on them and, in that regard, nobody does it better than Nestle Tollhouse!

Take a look at these beauties!  I feel like I've written that exact line a hundred times, but that means we're having a great Halloween season.  These cookies are to be admired.  They're literally works of art and add a lot to the Halloween season.  Sure, you could decorate your own, and that's so fun that I probably will sometime this week, but what if you don't have the time?  What if you want a decorative Halloween cookie without the hassle of doing it yourself?  Well, don't fret my pet, you can have it that way with these Halloween Creatures.  By the way, is a witch really a "creature?"

Disregard my crispy cookie sheet, she's been through a lot over the years.  Focus your attention on the cookie dough about to be baked.  They're now cut out from their borders and ready to go.  What's so cool about the cookies is that you can cut two out at a time.  Like I said, if you're looking for ease and speed, this is the way to go!

Here they are!  All baked and ready to go!  I don't know how you guys like your cookies, but I'm picky.  I like them crunchy, but only around the edges.  I like the middle chewy, but not gooey.  Luckily, these Halloween Creatures came out perfect. 

Let's take a look at my top three..

#3 - The Boo Ghost

He reminds me of something we'd find hanging out with Casper or a ghoul from Disney's The Haunted Mansion.  He looks happy, but not so much that he couldn't scare you.  He knows he can and, if he has to, he will.  But the reason why he's in my top three is because of the brown bubble that says "Booooo."  From afar, it looks like a football.  I can't get it out of my head that it's not a football and have convinced myself that it is.  He is a football playing ghost. 

#2 - The Candy Corn Ghost

This cute little guy comes in second because of his bag of candy.  For whatever reason, I really like his bag of candy and the fact that it's so orange.  It's bright and obvious that he loves candy corn.  He has personality and finds joy in Halloween treats.  Chances are, he's a big Holidaze reader.  Unfortunately, he can't be number one because he wasn't printed properly.  He's not straight enough for me to call my favorite... not that there's anything wrong with that!

#1 - The Batty Witch

Here's my number one woman -- The broom-flying, batty witch!  Not only is she the biggest cookie, she's the most colorful.  She has black, orange, green, purple, and a little bit of blue and red.  She also has a big-eyed bat flying behind her.  That means this cookie features TWO "creatures."  Unless I've answered my own question and proved that witches aren't really creatures at all and, in this cookie, the bat is our only creature.  Hm, something to think about when you don't have thumbs to twiddle

Now you're ready to place your cookies on a plate and pour yourself a glass of milk.  My glass makes up for the 4th of July plate.  Trust me, I'm not in that much of a Holidaze...yet.

When you've finished your Nestle Tollhouse Halloween Creatures Cookies, don't get sad.  I know it's easy to do, but they'll be back again for Christmas, Valentines Day and Easter!

I just found three new Holidaze blog posts for December, February and April!

Monster Cereal Shirts

If you've been reading The Holidaze, then you know how important the Monster Cereals are to my Halloween.  Without Frankenberry, Count Chocula, and Boo Berry, Halloween just seems so incomplete.  They've been a crucial part of the season for years because they've always reminded me of Halloween as a child.  For that reason, I know this won't be the last post featuring the big three.

In today's post, which is the second on this fine Tuesday, we have Monster Cereal T-Shirts.  I found these at Wal-Mart and couldn't resist the purchase.  I had previously seen Lucky Charms and Cheerios shirts, but this was unexpected.

First, we have Frank, Count and Boo pictured together on this shirt.  The print is distressed and I like that because it makes the shirt look just as classic as the characters themselves.  These aren't the monsters pictured on 2011 boxes, these are fresh from the early days of Monster Cereals which is awesome. 

In case you can't read, the shirt clearly says "Nightmare on Your Street."  Of course, that does our illiterate friends no good because they still can't read what I just wrote.  But they can see how bright that yellow is and how much it adds to the shirt.  I can't say I'm a fan of the slogan, because these guys don't give me nightmares and should never be associated with Freddy Krueger, but I get the idea.

Here's the good news:  Count Chocula has his very own T-Shirt!!  The bad news??  Frank and Boo didn't get the same star treatment.  I would have liked to have pink and blue shirts matching the more flavorful characters, but everybody knows Count is the true leader.  Like it or not, he's the man and this shirt is awesome.  I'm loving the colors and design.  Yet, again, I'm not digging the slogan.  "Count Chocula Will Rockula??"  Really?  Believe me, I know the cereal is good, and I'll even admit that it "rocks," but the word "rockula?"  I'm not feeling that at all.  Again, I get the point, but whoever wrote that could have come up with something a little better.

Regardless, it doesn't matter what these shirts say.  They could have said "I Love Boys" and I still would have bought them simply because I love the characters.  Okay, I'm lying.  I wouldn't buy it if it said that, but I would have come close!  If you happen to see these shirts, I say buy 'em.  If you happen to see additional shirts, you better be the first person to comment on the Holidaze blog because CK needs to know!

Are You Afraid of the Dark Returns!

If you grew up in the 90s, then you should already be well aware of Nickelodeon's "The 90s Are All That" block on TeenNick.  If you're not, then you're surely missing out on classic entertainment.  Since the return of the 90s, we've already seen All That, Kenan and Kel, Clarissa Explains it All, Doug, Hey Arnold, and Rocko's Modern Life come back to life.  But, what I've been waiting for most is about to strike and, as expected, Nick chose the most fitting time of year.  This Friday, we once again join the Midnight Society for the return of Are You Afraid of the Dark?

Who can forget Zeebo the Clown?  I know I can't, no matter how hard I try.  He, along with the countless characters like him, are etched into my memory forever.  When I was a kid, my cousins and I used to throw Snick Parties every Saturday night.  We'd lay a blanket out on the floor, surround ourselves with as much candy as chips as people would buy for us, and get ready for the scariest half-hour of the week!  My family and I still talk about those times to this day because they were just way too much fun.  My oldest cousin is now married with a baby boy, but I'd be willing to bet she'd be interested in bringing him to an Are You Afraid of the Dark party.  The torch must now be passed on to the next generation!

If you're as excited as I am for this monumental occasion, then you're most likely smiling like the Ghastly Grinner.  Remember him?  His evil powers had you giggling like a maniac.  I'm sure, like those powers, Are You Afraid of the Dark will come off pretty cheesy this weekend.  The acting was horrible and the lines were corny, but who can say that those stories weren't scary?  The 13th Floor? The Nightly Neighbors who kept blood on ice?  The Fire Ghost?  I could go on and on!  These are classic episodes from, what I consider, a legendary series!

According to TeenNick, the Are You Afraid of the Dark marathon begins 10/28 at Midnight and will last through Halloween.  In addition, you can also vote for your favorite Halloween episodes from other classic 90s series' at http://www.the90sareallthat.com/.  Doug and Salute Your Shorts already have my votes.  I mean, Are You Afraid of the Dark and Zeke the Plumber all in one weekend?  Especially after I just mentioned good ol' Zeke last night?  It's all just shaping up to be an epic Halloweekend.

If you're not already pumped up enough, then go back in time by listening to the opening and closing themes.  I still get chills

Halloween Soda?

Ya know, I was thinking about all the various products that brand themselves differently for the Halloween season and I realized that Pepsi and Coca-Cola don't bother.  Can you believe that?  It just doesn't make any sense.  If you've read The Holidaze at all, you'd know how much of a stickler I am when it comes to seasonal packaging.  It adds so much to the Holidays and increases my interest in the product.  So why do the top cola companies, who have both created amazing art in the past, no longer take part in Halloween?  I don't know the answer, but it disappoints me that I don't see orange Coke cans everywhere I go.

Pictured above is proof that Halloween Edition Soda did in fact exist.  At one point in time, Sunkist, A&W, Canada Dry and 7-UP all put on a costume for Halloween.  Personally, I don't remember ever seeing these mini cans, but according to this site http://www.drinkwhat.com/halloween-chill-for-color-changing-thrills-soda-drinks/ they were for real!

They look awesome!  If these cans were available now, especially this week, I would have picked up as many as I found.  But, unfortunately, nothing like this exists.  At best, I found a pack of orange soda with a Haunted House on the box and cans.  It was something, but not enough to make me go bananas.  Orange you glad I didn't say Orange?

All candy corny jokes aside, we're stuck with Jones Soda, which I've seen, but have yet to try.  I planned on doing so this year, but Target didn't have any in stock.  In recent years, they had shelves and shelves filled with Jones Soda, but not this Halloween.  At least I have Google Images..

Those cans would have been so friggin cool to have in my 'fridge!  I love the cartoon monsters, especially Frankenstein.  I know, he's really "Frankenstein's Monster," but I like calling him Franky better.  Those flavors just sound dreadfully amazing as well.  Lemon Drop Dead, Spookiwi, Candy Corn, and Buried Pomegranate?  That screams Halloween and is nothing but creative.  Sadly, unless I find some Jones' in the next week, I won't know if the flavor matches the can. 

Since I can't find any Jones Soda and the bigger companies won't do their part to make my Halloween even better, I decided to imagine what those cans or bottles would look like if they did.  These designs are not to scale, but for doing them in an hour, they're pretty good.  If Pepsi or Coke released anything even close to these next year, I'd be more than pleased.  Check 'em out!

Halloween Diet Coke

This is simple.  Take a classic Diet Coke design and add a spider web.  It isn't much, but it provides just enough spookiness to remind you of Halloween.

Haunted Diet Pepsi

This Haunted Diet Pepsi design would only work if Pepsi decided to change the color of it's classic red, white, and blue logo.  In my opinion, their logo is so iconic that they can afford to do so for a short period of time.  In celebration of Halloween, making the legendary logo look like the moon would be perfect for this broom-riding witch.  If I saw this in stores, I'd most definitely buy it.

Wild Halloween Cherry

This is design heavy, but it's worth it.  This time, we're not changing the logo, but we're adding purple and green which, in my opinion, are two of only four true Halloween colors.  The red cherries now have faces and the font is just as much evil as it is wild.  This would instantly catch my eye.

Halloween Edition Pepsi

What says "Halloween" more than the colors black and orange?  By changing the logo, we're once again messing with what people are used to.  However, I refuse to believe that Pepsi would drop in sales due to a color change.  No way.  In fact, I'd be willing to bet that sales would rise if Pepsi ever released a can designed this way.  Who wouldn't want to throw a Halloween party with this beauty in the cooler?

Blood Red Mountain Dew

I've always been a fan of Mountain Dew: Code Red, especially around Halloween because it looks like blood.  For that reason, coming up with this idea was easy.  I suggest that, for the month of October, Code Red should become Blood Red, complete with Dracula and all.  This is very design heavy, but Mountain Dew usually is.  They're also big on special editions, such as Pitch Black, so I don't see why this couldn't happen.  Read this and take my idea, MTN Dew!!

Halloween Coca-Cola

Finally, we have the most classic of all pops -- Coca-Cola.  As you know, Coca-Cola is known for their signature text and color scheme.  Pepsi is blue, and Coke is red, we all know not to differentiate the gangs.  But, for Halloween, this design is a must.  It maintains the classic appearance that Coca-Cola is known for while only changing the colors.  The addition of a Jack-O-Lantern smile provides customers with just enough Halloween spice.  But, really, the black and orange is what sells this soda.

As you can see, I have too much time on my hands.  But that's not the point.  The point is that these companies need to do whatever they can to enhance the Holidays.  This isn't hard and it would only benefit the producer and, most importantly, the consumer.  I'm sure Pepsi and Coke will never read this or even care, but if they do, I'd hope they take this post and use it to make their product better next Halloween.  Maybe we'll even get a Holidaze Edition.  A man can dream!

Candy Corn Dots

When I saw these at Stop-n-Shop, I thought about holding off and waiting until Thanksgiving before I bought them.  They just look like they'd be better suited for Turkey Day than Halloween.  But, after staring at the box for a good two minutes, embarrassing myself in front of the employees who had to think I was crazy, I grabbed the box and threw it in the cart.  After all, I've only ever eaten Candy Corn in October.  Perhaps that's "Halloweeny" enough.

Here's the Box-O-Dots.  That sounds cool, right?  Ya have to spice things up when you're talking about a box of gumdrops.  But seriously, I give the box a somewhat decent rating.  I prefer the Bat Dots, but this is great for Fall.  Although, I'm not feeling the poorly drawn scarecrow.  He's cute, and obviously happy, but I think a toddler might have illustrated the poor guy.  Actually, as I think about it, he looks more like Zeke the Plumber than a scarecrow which, oddly enough, makes him scarier than he's supposed to be.

Unlike some people, I actually like Candy Corn.  When I was younger, I used to eat it all the time.  I used to buy the Autumn Mix and go one hell of a sugar rush after ten pieces.  Throw in one of those sugary pumpkins and I'd be up for days.  I fondly remember finishing off a complete bag while playing video games in 2004.  Good times.

But the Candy Corn Dots taste nothing like Candy Corn.  They taste like rubber.  Ya know what it smells like when you put on a Halloween mask?  Well that smell is what these taste like.  They're gross.  I ate one, hated it, then had another to give them a second chance and that was it.  I'm done with them.  Just in case somebody else wants to try them, the box is still in my kitchen, but I doubt they'll make it past this weekend.  Besides, they don't even look like Candy Corn.  There's no white in the mix and that second one photographed is missing half it's body. 

Oh well, at least they're fun to look at..

They're bright, they're colorful, they're horrible.  Two outta three aint bad.

Now, before I conclude, I just have to point out that Halloween is one..week..away!  I know you're well aware and, like me, must be pumped, but where did the time go?  This October flew right by and, unfortunately, I didn't do half of what I planned on.  However, with one week left to celebrate the spooky season, it's time to indulge as much as possible.  So keep checking the Holidaze for more Halloween posts!  7 days to go!

Halloween Crunch Cereal

For years, I have looked for Cap'n Crunch's Halloween Crunch cereal.  No matter how hard I looked, Halloween Crunch has always found a way to hide from me.  Until last year, the same could have been said for Christmas Crunch.  See, in 2010, my girlfriend found two boxes of Christmas Crunch at Wal-Mart in Woodbridge, NJ.  What an amazing surprise that was!  I assumed they'd have this year's special editions as well, but when we called, they said they never heard of it.  Obviously their customer service representative isn't a big fan of Halloween.  But I am, so what's a man to do?  Order two boxes on Ebay and wait patiently by the door for them to arrive.

Here it is!  Halloween Crunch is finally mine!  In my opinion, the Halloween Crunch box art is the single greatest piece of Halloween art you can buy.  I'm serious.  Every year, they come up with the coolest designs.  They've dressed the Cap'n as a Mummy, a Werewolf, and now, he's carved into a pumpkin.  They go all out each and every year and prove to every other company out there just how important it is to put the time and effort into their products.  I just love this box.  This is the type of art that makes me love illustration and graphic design.  This is the type of art that makes me want to work in package design.  It's just perfect. This will definitely be saved in a safe place.  Then, one day, it will be framed and hung in my kitchen for Halloween.  It's that awesome.

After I received my two boxes of Halloween Crunch in the mail, my girlfriend found two boxes in the same Wal-Mart that told us they never heard of the most amazing cereal ever made!  So, in a matter of one year, I went from not being able to find one box to now having four boxes in my kitchen.  Believe me, I'm not complaining one bit.  As I type this, I have Halloween Crunch, Count Chocula, Frankenberry and Boo Berry all waiting to be devoured in the next 12 days.  You know I'll make it happen!

Why do I love this cereal so much?  Well, besides the box art, it isn't all that different from your everyday Cap'n Crunch Berries cereal.  You're still going to get amazing flavor and, of course, the roof of your mouth torn up.  But in addition, you're going to get something that is very Halloweeny:  The milk is going to turn green!!  This is the coolest part!  The ghost berries work like magic and turn milk green whenever they're drowned in dairy.  Just like Boo Berry turns milk blue, and Frankenberry turns milk pink, Halloween Crunch adds a little color to Halloween.  But, in my opinion, the Cap'n takes first prize because he turns things green!  Green baby!!

If you're as impatient as I am and are constantly looking for immediate gratification, then you need to start mixing your Halloween Crunch as soon as the milk is poured into the bowl.  Sure, you can go about things slowly and wait for things to change color on their own, but I'm not.  I've waited at least 4 years to find this cereal and I want my green milk.

Ahhh yess!!  Look at the green milk!  That is Halloween!  That's just so awesome.  Not only are you getting quality flavor, but you're getting a bowl of green milk.  If you're creative, you can pretend that it's not really milk and actually some type of poison.  You can pretend that a witch has casted a spell and turned your Halloween Crunch into an evil love potion.  You can even pretend that you're not really a nerd and completely unphazed by the fact that you're milk just turned green.  I'd like to go with the latter, but we all know I'm pretending that this green milk is actually zombie throw-up.  It really doesn't matter what you imagine, as long as you know just how awesome it is that you're having Halloween Crunch cereal.

Here's another view to give you a better perspective.  If you were expecting a really bright green, then you'd probably be disappointed to see that there is only a slight change in appearance.  In my opinion, this is the perfect amount of change.  This green looks cold and ghostly.  It reminds me of a cemetery.  It's eerie and better than I expected.  I wouldn't want it to be neon green.  That would remind me too much of Nickelodeon slime or The Ghostbusters.  No way, I was looking for something to stand alone and Halloween Crunch cereal most certainly does just that.  If you haven't been able to find this yet, or just haven't picked it up, then you need to do whatever you can to do so now!  You have 11 days left!  Go Green this Halloween!

If the cereal alone doesn't get your motor running, then maybe the back of the box will interest the Pumpkin Carver inside of you.

The Cap'n wants you to bring him to life this Halloween by carving his face into a pumpkin!  Now you can make your very own Cap-O-Lantern and re-create the amazing box art in real-life!  I'm thinking about doing this.  We have one pumpkin right now but he's just so perfectly round that we've yet to tarnish his appearance with holes.  We want to make sure that our baby pump is done just right so we're not really sure what to do yet.  However, the back of this box is quite interesting and I feel like I owe it to the front of the box to carve the Cap'n.

For anybody who reads this and wants to do the same, here's an image that may make things easier for you.  Not everybody can find this limited edition Halloween Crunch, but they should still be allowed to take part in the pumpkin carving process.  So here's the Cap'n in black and white.  Save it, print it, carve it, light it.

Now, even though the roof of my mouth is destroyed, I'm going to go make a bowl of Halloween Crunch!!

Halloween Donuts

I first went to Salem, MA with my Family in 1999.  It was an amazing trip that led the way for many more, but one of the most significant memories I have are just how many Dunkin' Donuts franchises there were in Massachusetts.  Sure, there are more than enough in NJ, but it felt as though you couldn't walk a single block without finding multiple Dunkin' Donuts stores.  I think we really started to realize just how many there were when we forgot where we parked.  We all said "we were definitely next to a Dunkin' Donuts."  Yeah, that little bit of information did us no good.

However, since that time, I can't go a Halloween season without their Halloween Donuts.  I've seen variations of style over the years, but there is only one that matters to me.  There is only one Dunkin' Donut I need to make the Halloween season a success..

This 1/2 dozen box of beauty is all I need.  You can have your spider-webbed-cream-filled, you can have your chocolate frosted with orange sprinkles, and you can have your little munchkins, but I'm taking the orange frosted donuts!  Just look at them!

The orange color is perfect for Halloween, but this year, they seem to be better fit for Fall than Halloween.  In the past, I remember seeing purple sprinkles and more defined pumpkins.  This year, there are far too many red, yellow, and brown sprinkles.  But I can live with them.  The most important aspect is the icing and that is, as always, awesome.  No, it doesn't taste any different than the vanilla frosted, but white donuts don't represent Halloween in any way whatsoever.  If you want celebrate the spooky season, you need a spooky donut and it needs to be orange.  Until I see green, purple, gray or black frosted, this is the best you can find at Dunkin' Donuts.  But of course, now I'm imaging what those other colors would look like and I'm mad they don't make 'em.  These need to be done!

Imagine walking into Dunkin' Donuts on October 31st and finding that assortment?? Whoa, Make it happen, DD!

As Jay-Z would say, on to the next one..

Of course, you don't have to depend on Dunkin' Donuts alone for your Halloween Donuts.  Oh no, Entenmann's has also dressed their classic assortment of rich frosted donuts in their Halloween attire!  The box claims that they're new, but I'm not so sure so I won't argue with them.  I know I've seen Entenmann's Halloween Donuts before, but I can't remember what they looked like.  Actually, come to think of it, I may be thinking of their orange candy corn cupcakes.  Whatever, either way, here are horrifically delicious Halloween donuts!

I don't go out of my way to eat Entenmann's donuts, but I enjoy them enough to grab a few when they're present at family parties.  However, these donuts seem to be different than the usual release.  The awesome colors are one thing, but the flavor is something else.  It may just be me, but I swear these chocolate donuts actually taste orangey.  That's not a word, but who cares?  I'm excited over the fact that these things have the perfect hint of Halloween orange that I made up my own word to better suit my description.  Did Entenmann's artificially flavor their sprinkles to make their classic assortment even better?  I'm gonna have to say they did, because my taste buds rarely lie to me.  That takes these donuts to an all new level.  I can't get enough of them.  They're amazing.

Most would probably say it's pretty pathetic how happy a grown man gets over Halloween donuts, and they'd be right, but I just can't help myself.  For so many countless reasons, I absolutely love this season and Entenmann's has just given me another to add to my list.  I named my blog the Holidaze in appreciation for everything that puts me in a "daze" during the Holidays and these donuts are perfect example of what I'm talking about.  Immerse yourself in the Halloween season and enjoy the little things offered to you only once every year.  With only 12 days before this season comes to an end, you owe it to yourself to embrace Halloween and get as much out of it as you can!