It’s the most wonderful time of the year: leaves are changing, costumes are out, cider-Fireball cocktails are mixed, and candy is infesting our bodies. It’s understandably difficult to keep up with our goals and tendencies during this Halloween season, but as I’ve recently discovered, not all candy’s nutrition facts are, in fact, ~spooky.~ So, I recently raided Whole Foods and tried every allergy-friendly, healthy candy I could find in order to give you my definitive list and ratings of the candies that changed my perspective on sweets.
Smart Sweets - Fruity Gummy Bears
These yummy gummy snacks come in a variety of flavors, raspberry, apple, lemon, and peach, which honestly sound better to me than normal gummy bear flavors. Per pack, there are only 1g of sugar, 20 calories, and 6g of fiber. These treats are naturally flavored, plant-based, free from artificial sweeteners and even non-GMO. If you have a dietary restriction, don't stress at all, because these are free of dairy, gluten, nuts, and soy. The candies come in two different versions–sour and regular.
Rating: regular 8.3; sour 7.4
Coming from an avid gummy eater, I can without a doubt say I am obsessed with the regular gummy bears. They taste no different than actual gummy bears, if not better. The sour ones are yummy but not really comparable to normal sour gummies.
This set of fun size packages are exclusive for Halloween, but you can get the full-size packages year round.
Smart Sweets - Sweet Fish
These gummies have only 3g of sugar, 80 calories, and 28g fiber. Amazing. They are naturally flavored, plant-based, free from artificial colors and sweeteners, and non-GMO. They're also free from dairy, gluten, nuts, and soy, and produced on equipment that doesn’t process peanuts, tree nuts, milk, or wheat, making them perfect for those with food allergies.
Rating: 9.1
I am in love. They are similar to Swedish Fish (same look and size), but have a much better flavor. The only thing is that they have a chewier texture, but I don’t mind it. This rice milk candy is actually up there in my heart with Sour Watermelon Gummies.
Smart Sweets - Sour Blast Patch
These Sour Blast Buddies come in four flavors: berry, blue raspberry, lime, lemon, and orange. Like the sweet fish, they're only 80 calories and have 3g of sugar and 28g fiber. These gummies also naturally flavored, plant-based, free from artificial colors and sweeteners, non-GMO, free from dairy, gluten, nuts, soy, and produced on equipment that doesn’t process peanuts, tree nuts, milk, or wheat.
Rating: 5.3
It’s overall a decent enough candy. I don’t hate it, I don’t love it. Smart Sweets is an incredible company with great products, but I just don’t think they have the sour flavoring down.
Enjoy Life - Variety Pack
These chocolate bars come in three flavors: ricemilk, ricemilk crunch, and dark. They're a person with food restriction's dream, as all of Enjoy Life's products are free from wheat, diary, soy, sulfites, lupin, fish crustaceans, gluten, peanuts tree nuts, casein, egg, sesame, mustard, and shellfish
The ricemilk bars are only 50 calories and have 5g of sugar.
Rating: 6.4
They taste like semisweet chocolate. They are decently rich and enjoyable to eat, but they're nothing special except for the company’s allergy friendly practices.
The ricemilk crunch bars are only 50 calories and have 5g of sugar as well.
Rating: 7.2
They're the same chocolate as the ricemilk bars but with a crunch, similar to a Nestle Crunch Bar. I found it a bit sweeter than the regular ricemilk bar, in a good way. It has a great crunch and is an overall satisfying chocolate bar.
The dark chocolate bars have 50 calories, 4g of sugar, and 1g of fiber. Plus, they only have 3 ingredients (unsweetened chocolate, cane sugar, cocoa butter).
Rating: 8.6
If you’re a dark chocolate person, this is your chocolate. It's so rich and flavorful, even though it is dairy free. I think I'm in love, to be honest.
YumEarth - Organic Sour Twists (Watermelon Lemonade)
These sour twists come in small snack packs and are watermelon-lemonade flavored. Per pack, they are 70 calories and have 9g of sugar. They're vegan, non-GMO, and Certified Gluten Free, which I love to hear.
Rating: 4.0
I really did not like this candy. The twists are the size of Tic Tacs, they get stuck in your teeth, and they have a horrible aftertaste. I would rather just not eat candy than eat these.
YumEarth - Organic Candy Corn
'Tis the season! This candy comes in snack packs, with 70 calories and 14g of sugar per pack. It's vegan, non-GMO, and are, my favorite, Certified Gluten Free.
Rating: 8.4
This healthy candy corn has a really great taste. It tastes just like normal candy corn and has the same buttery candy corn flavor that we know and love. It is perfectly festive for Halloween. It’s relatively high in sugar compared to others but is still a healthier alternative to other options!
YumEarth - Organic Sour Bean
These sour beans come in snack packs, with a mix of pomegranate, peach, apple, and mango flavors per pack. Each serving is 70 calories and has 14g of sugar. They're vegan, non-GMO, nut free, as well as Certified Gluten Free.
Rating: 6.2
These sour beans are worse than jelly beans, with their mildly medicine-like flavor. Nevertheless, they definitely grew on me.
Overall, the Smart Sweets regular gummy bears and sweet fish, the Enjoy Life dark chocolate, and the YumEarth candy corn were my personal favorites healthy candies. Try a few on this list to fill your belly with healthier alternatives to your usual favorites. Eat up!