Hostess Candy Corn Cupcakes

Remember when Hostess temporarily went out of business and brought Twinkies with them in their untimely demise?  In their wake, Hostess left behind a slew of products that would seemingly become nothing more than memories.  Along with their most popular items, we saw the end of their seasonal collection.  Gone were the days of Munster Packs, Scary Cakes, and Glo Balls.  Resting in pieces, Halloween cake would never be the same.  Remember that?  It was only a few years ago, but it's hard to believe it ever happened at all.  When Hostess returned, they bounced back stronger than ever.  Not only were their classics back on shelves, but so were new Halloween editions like Orange S'Creme Twinkies!  With a reignited flame, Hostess resurrected and took back Halloween with a vengeance.  This year, they're doing it again with not one, but two brand new varieties of CupCakes!

Hostess Scary Cakes

Two days ago, I talked about the return of Orange S'Cream Twinkies and the return of Hostess Halloween products.  Well, with those beautifully filled sponge cakes comes another spooky legend - Scary Cakes!!  Now, we've talked about these Halloween-themed cupcakes in the past, but long before we ever thought they'd disappear.  In 2012, I reviewed Scary Cakes and compared them to what they used to be.  Sure, the cupcake itself has stayed relatively the same, but the box art and package design has changed almost every single year.  Then, I talked about the old-school Munster Pack and change to Monster Cakes.  Those were monumental times in my life because I was literally drawn in by these works of art and inspired to illustrate, animate, color and design myself.  There were something about those pieces that infatuated me and filled my heart with Halloween spirit.  To this day, I can remember where I was and who I was with whenever those boxes were bought, put on the table, or opened.  It was a happy time, now a nostalgic period, and I payed homage to that in 2012.  Then, as I mentioned two-days ago, Hostess closed up shop and Scary Cakes were gone... forever?  So it seemed, but in 2014, Scary Cakes are back!!  This time, I'm not comparing them to the past.  I'm just happy they're once again a part of the present.

Halloween Twinkies - Orange S'Cream

Okay okay, I wanted Halloween season to start earlier than ever, but I'd like Halloween itself to slow itself down!  I cannot believe we are only 5 days away from October 31st!  Time seriously flew by and, like I said previously, work has limited my interaction with all of you via The Holidaze and Social Media.  For me, that's the sucky part about this time of year.  For whatever reason, I always seem to find myself busier in October than any other month.  But I wanted to take advantage of this weekend, both personally and on The Holidaze, to at least get this ball rolling through the week and into the big day.  I've been sitting on this post, along with the others coming at ya before Friday, because they're special and all represent Halloween perfectly in one way or another.  I'll throw in a few extra's here and there, but today we're talking about a product that I had only hoped for when we first covered the X-Men Twinkies with the Blue Creme center.  Once we saw them hit shelves, I found a glimmer of hope and depended on Hostess to do the rest.  This year, they didn't disappoint!

X-Men: Days of Future Past Blue Raspberry Twinkies

All it takes is one or two new products to kick the season off right and get me back in that Holidaze spirit.  While I haven't been updating the site as regularly as I'd like, I have been behind-the-scenes, scouring stores and online shops, in an attempt to find as many new and intriguing products as possible.  I've been relatively successful and have a few things ready to go, but this one just couldn't wait.  There was no way I was going to sit on this until it had come and gone without any fanfare.  I did that with a good 6-7 Easter products and now they've been trashed in the "unreleased material" folder.  When I call it unreleased material, I feel more important.  I'm like the Michael Jackson of holidays.

Ahhh behold the beauty!!  If you're familiar with The Holidaze, you may be aware of my history (or lack thereof) with Hostess Twinkies.  For as much as I'd like you to click that link, the short story is I never tried one before they temporarily went extinct.  Then, upon their return last Summer, I couldn't get enough of the spongy goodness.  They weren't easy to find, but I bought a box whenever I did.  Now, they're everywhere and I still do my part to keep them in business.  However, since I overlooked Twinkies for so many years, I missed out on the promotional tie-ins or, more specifically, the Ogre Green Shrek Twinkies.  Oh man do they look and sound delicious!  Tasty sponge cakes filled with green goo.  As a fan of TMNT and Slimer, that screams cool on so many different levels.

That time has come and gone.  Thankfully, I have Google to search and pretend as though I took part in that craze.  But this time?  Oh no, buddy!  I wasn't going to miss out again... This time, Hostess and their Twinkies have joined forces with Marvel and the release of X-Men: Days of Future Past! Now, I didn't see the film, but simply because we received this box of delicious glory, I give it 5 stars and an Academy Award.  Blue creme wins every time.

These Twinkies are all business on top but there's one hell of an ecstasy laced party going on below.  This blue creme is seeping through the cake, just asking for you to devour it and ultimately mutate into a new super hero.  Nobody knows who or what you'll become, but that type of colored ooze can only mean you're destined to save the world.  Move over, Wolverine.. 

Cue the Daniel Bryan "YES" chants because I absolutely love this color!!  Look at this closely because it's obviously more than just "blue."  Calling it "blue" is insulting it's beauty.  There's a hint of turquoise, cerulean, cornflower, denim, purple, indigo, and navy.  Sure, I did look up the list of Crayola Crayon colors in order to name these colors, but that's just a small portion of my time worth spending in order to properly describe such an important Summer product!  It's the type of cake that lets kids and kids-at-heart pretend they're eating something forbidden that will enhance their powers beyond human capability.  I mean, I can't be the only 27-year-old expecting to fly after eating a Twinkie, right?  Um..

In all seriousness, the coolest part about these new Twinkies are exactly what separates them from those Ogre Green Shrek Twinkies from years ago... they're flavored!!  Now, I'm no Twinkie historian, but I'm pretty sure this is the first time Twinkie creme has been flavored Blue Raspberry!  I didn't know what to expect from this flavor because, now that I've had and love the traditional Twinkie, it's a tough recipe to alter without affecting its taste.  But the verdict?  Absolutely awesome!  It tastes sooo good and couldn't be a bigger hit in my eyes.  More than anything, this is a great sign that Hostess is back and better than ever.  Since their demise, they've come a long way in less than a year and I couldn't be happier for all my fellow junk-food-eaters of the world!  This one is for us!

In even better news, Blue Raspberry isn't the only promotional flavor released to coincide with X-Men: Days of Future Past.  While I was unable to find it just yet, there are now Strawberry Twinkies out there on shelves.  I can't comment on what type of super powers they may bring you, but rumor has it you may become a villain.  Choose your path wisely ;)

If or when I find the other box, you can bet your X that they'll be on The Holidaze!  In the meantime, I'll be over here praying that they do something similar for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie this August! Oh please please please, Hostess! hashtag nerd..

Hostess Twinkies are Back

Unless you've been living under a rock, or you're just a super healthy eater, you're well aware that Hostess went out of business in 2012.  With it's demise, we saw the end of Twinkies.  For thousands of people, this seemed like the end of the world.  Personally, I had never had a Twinkie so, to be honest, it really didn't matter to me.  Until I saw boxes selling for $600 on Ebay, I never went out of my way for Twinkies.  Of course, by that point, all Hostess products were completely sold out, believed to never be seen again.  At that point, I started to see all the photos of Twinkies and thought, man, I never had one and missed out on such a large part of Americana.  I figured they were gone and I had missed my opportunity.

But, the people have spoken and Hostess is back in what they're calling "The Sweetest Comeback in the History of Ever."

The official comeback didn't take place until today, but I read and heard that there were plenty of grocery stores releasing them a day early.  So, last night, we went to Wal-Mart in hopes that I may finally be able to purchase a box of Twinkies and redeem my years of taking them for granted.  But, unfortunately, Twinkies were already sold out by 6pm!!  Donettes were available, but I had no interest in them.  All I wanted was a damn Twinkie!  On to Stop & Shop, we go..

Yes! Stop & Shop comes up clutch, again!  First the TMNT fruit snacks, now Twinkies!  I found a few other Holidaze topics, as well!  It's safe to say that Stop & Shop is my new go-to spot for limited-edition items.  They were stacked with boxes of Hostess Twinkies and I was ready to snatch 'em up and make history.

When I was in Seaside, I supposedly had a fried Twinkie but, looking back, I don't believe the guy.  On these boxes, the expiration date is August 22nd.  That gives them about a month's worth of shelf life.  The guy in Seaside told me he bought and saved boxes before they went out of business in 2012.  Well, he either fried up a Dreamie and lied to me or I ate an expired Twinkie from a box that was 8 months passed it's shelf life.  Either way, I didn't get the real deal.  Now it was time!

Even though I've never actually eaten one before, I knew they were smaller than I remember.  I used to see the two-packs in vending machines all the time and they were much larger than these Twinkies.  I looked it up, and just saw it on the news, and it's true!  Apparently, the company that previously distributed Twinkies made them smaller before they went bankrupt so, to you, this may be nothing new.  Maybe you've seen these tiny Twinkies before.  I think the larger Twinkie is more iconic, but the smaller ones don't affect my reaction.  It's all about flavor and, at 26-years-old, I was about to try my first Twinkie.. ever!

Whoa.. Why did I ignore Twinkies for so long?  These are soo good!  You might be laughing at me because, to you, Twinkies are nothing new.  They've been around forever and have long been a staple in the world of desserts.  I get it, but I'm not a big fan of cake.  I never have been.  I usually only buy cake when it makes for a good Holidaze post.  Besides that, I don't like how dry cake is.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not disgusted by it, I just choose ice cream cake and donuts if given the option.  But Twinkies aren't really cake, they're sponge cake!  That's completely different and I wish I had realized that sooner.  That changes everything and now I can't stop eating them.  I had four last night and already had two today.  This could be deliciously bad news for my young heart!

One of my awesome readers, @PerkyJewels on Twitter, recommended that I try a Twinkie that is chilled or frozen.  Sounds pretty good to me!  So last night, before bed, I threw one of them into the freezer so it would be ready to go by morning.  You could see how cold it was in the photo above.  It was cool and, on a 96 degree Summer day, this was sure to be a great move.

My only regret by putting one of my Twinkies in the freezer?  I didn't put more than one in the freezer!  This was a great idea.  It didn't affect the flavor or texture, it simply made it cold and refreshing.  It also eliminated any of the "cakiness" that was there.  That works for me and I'll definitely be freezing more Twinkies.  You've probably already tried this technique, but I'm new to the world of Twinkies.  I know, I can't believe it, either.

Two boxes of Twinkies are now mine and my entire outlook on the spongy snacks have changed.  I can't believe it took me 26 years to figure out the hype, but it's better late than never.  There's a reason why Twinkies have been featured in so many TV shows and movies throughout the years.  They're amazing.  For as hard as it is to understand why I've taken so long to try one, it's just as hard to figure out why Hostess originally went out of business.  Twinkie fans, who were surely addicted, should have bought more over the years!  But I'm to blame, as well.  I didn't buy any!  That'll change now, though.  The Holidaze, alone, may very well keep Hostess in business.  Granted, they'll have to release Halloween products this October to keep me happy. 

Hostess Scary Cakes

No matter how old I get, I'll never be able to get enough of Halloween cupcakes.  There's just something about a black and orange combo that gets my Halloween juices flowing.  I love walking through the grocery store aisles, looking at all of the Halloween/Fall themed products, and trying to decide which one was coming home with me this time.  Usually, I'll go with whatever is new.  If I've never seen or tried it before, then that's the way to go.  But, at the same time, I can never neglect the classics and, there's no denying, Hostess Scary Cakes are certainly classic!

Last year, I was unable to enjoy the Hostess Scary Cakes because they weren't released.  Well, that's not entirely true.  As Hostess tweeted me last year, Scary Cakes were under the disguise of Transformers.  Basically, that was just a nice way of saying "We sold out this year and decided to partner up with a big blockbuster movie instead."  So, for that reason, Hostess missed out on my few dollars.  I couldn't give in to the media giant and help aid the removal of these traditional treats.  As far as I was concerned, Transformer Cupcakes needed to fail so Scary Cakes could once again rise.  Maybe my plan worked.  Or maybe there wasn't any movie worth partnering up with.  Of course, ParaNorman, Hotel Transylvania, or Frankenweenie promotions would have been amazing.

Luckily for all of us, Hostess Scary Cakes are back this year and, I guess, they're much more Fall themed than Halloween related.  This bums me out.  What's so "scary" about this box?  There's a scarecrow, with a pumpkin head, surrounded by bats.  It also appears to be dusk or dawn.  Ohhhh spooky!!  Not in the least!  I absolutely love Hostess Scary Cakes for everything they represent and for my own nostalgic reasons, but what are they thinking with this box?  What happened to those amazing graphics?  Where did the "Scary" in "Scary Cakes" go exactly?  Just take a look at previous designs.

 

Regardless of what you think about the 2011 Scary Cakes, the "Chocwave Shockwave" edition was designed much better than the 2012 edition.  It's not amazing and is, overall, pretty plain.  But the change in cupcake makes up for everything else.  They went with a red frosting and silver sprinkles.  Not great for Halloween, but awesome for Summer months.  Either way, this was a nice box.

Now, in 2011, Hostess didn't leave us Halloween Fiends hanging completely.  Sure, we may not have gotten our Scary Cakes, but we did get "Orange CupCakes."  I covered this last year, and they were really good.  I like this box because it actually represented Halloween well.  I know, you're thinking that there isn't much of a difference.  Pumpkin head and bats again at dusk.  True, but that change in expression alters everything!  This pumpkin is angry!  He's evil!  He's mad and he wants you to know it.  That subtle change is the difference between Halloween and Fall.

Obviously Ding Dongs aren't Scary Cakes, but it goes to show how much Hostess has changed their designs over the years.  I don't own this photo and credit goes to whoever scanned it, but I remember seeing this box around 1994.  I was really young, but you don't forget things like this.  Those bats are pretty much the only things that haven't changed.  We have ghosts, we have a change in font, and the logo is colored to better represent the season.  Orange, green, and purple!  I love it!

I believe these Scary Cakes came out the same year as the Ding Dongs and you can tell that the background is similar.  It's a gloomy night and the bats are out in full force.  But, really, just look at this box and tell me it isn't awesome.  I will take 2-D animation/drawings over 3-D any day of the week and I guess it's because of boxes like this.  We have 4 characters pictured.  Top right, we have Frankenstein (who looks very much like Boris Karloff.)  With him, we have a female Vampire.  I'll name her Mrs. Dracula.  Then on the left, we have the Grim Reaper and the Wolf Man.  If that wasn't enough, the Scary Cakes logo is absolutely classic!  It's what reels you in more than anything else.  The contrast between colors mesh so well together and, in all seriousness, it's a masterful work of art.

Finally, I know we just talked about this Munster Pack recently, but it deserves to go here and be seen again.  I highly doubt this was the first Scary Cakes edition released by Hostess, but I could be wrong.  There's only so much I can learn about 20+ year old Cup Cakes from Google.  But, I know these were released in 1992 and, while you may be able to argue that this was also a "sell-out," at least it was Halloween related.  That I can understand and, in fact, actually appreciate.  It's also very simple, but in this case simple is effective.  It's all you need.  As I've said before, the "Munster Pack" logo is unbelievable and I love the way The Munsters are drawn.  Personally, it holds a very special place in my heart for nostalgic reasons.  But in terms of design and comparing it to this year's Scary Cakes box, it crushes the competition.  There's no doubt that the Hostess design team has fallen off the wagon.  They need to up their game!  After you look at the designs of yesteryear, it's actually sad to see how poorly the 2012 box was put together.

Fortunately, the cupcakes themselves are still awesome and, for most people, that's the biggest selling point.  Since I'm such a huge Hallowgeek, I would have liked to see a more orange frosting with traditional brown sprinkles, but that's not this year's theme.  Hostess is obviously going the Fall route and, like it or not, they hit the nail right on the head.  Orange, yellow, brown, and one red sprinkle resemble Fall foliage and the change in season.  The chocolate cake returns along with the the one thing that'll never change -- that cream frosting filling.

I do love the look of these cupcakes and I'm definitely happy to see them return.  While I'm sure many of you enjoyed the Transformers edition, I just don't want to see any of that during the Halloween Holidaze!  I'm all for it during the Spring and Summer.  But at this moment, I'm looking for the spooky feeling, not spooky dressed as transforming robots.  Thankfully, Hostess brought Scary Cakes back and they're just as good as ever.

It's a toss up as to which brand I enjoy more -- Hostess or Tasykake.  They're both really good and very similar in flavor.  Luckily, we don't have to choose!  We can go out and buy both!  We can go out any buy as many as we want and really soak in The Holidaze! 

I know I sounded like a big whiny complainer in this post, and I don't mean to sound like Andy Rooney, but I realllly miss those old boxes.  Those were the best!  I guess I'm a sucker for nostalgia, but I'll roll with the punches and accept whatever we get.  Hey, as long as we're getting something, you know I'm happy!

Hostess Orange Cupcakes

Every year, Hostess comes out with some type of Halloween-themed treat.  I remember being a kid and absolutely loving their package art and green/orange cupcakes.  Honestly, I've never liked their cupcakes, and only buy them around the Halloween season because they enhance the Holidaze, but the time they put into their products is worth it anyway.

Check out this year's Halloween edition!  Yeah, I know, it's the same as last year.. but hey, the Holidaze didn't exist a year ago so, as far as I'm concerned, this is brand new baby.  I like the box a lot.  I love that menacing pumpkin who's just daring you to take a bite out of one of his Orange Cupcakes.  Of course, you'd have to get past the hovering bats first.  If you ever want to reach that "Scream" filling, you're going to have to go through a little bit of terror.  Well, that's what this box tells me, anyway..

The cupcakes are cool.  I like that Hostess attempted to make them orange, but they really look yellow.  I guess we could call them gold, but it doesn't matter. I know what they were going for and it blends nicely with the Halloween theme and color scheme so I'm happy with it. 

I didn't take this bite, Dr. Acula did.  Ya turn your back for one second and a wanna-be vampire sneaks up behind you and steals your Orange Cupcake.  Seriously, these cupcakes are what you'd expect to find in a Hostess box and that's a good thing if you like their cupcakes.  Like I said, I don't and I'm probably in the minority.  That's fine with me as long as they keep releasing holiday edition treats.  However, I'm a bit disappointed in their overall effort.  How do you not update your package art?  I didn't have this blog last year, so this was an easy purchase, but if they were to re-release this edition again next year, you can consider it a missed opportunity.

Just take a look at what they did in 2004..  Bring back the old graphic designers, Hostess.  This was when you went all out and really put me in a daze!!

That's the Hostess I remember!