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M&Ms for Everyone

Over the weekend, we went to our first graduation party of the season. The graduate has been a friend of No. 2's for years, and we have gotten to know the parents pretty well. They're a nice family all around. Staggered along the long tables were candy dishes filled with pink and white M&Ms, and No. 2 suggested we have red, purple, and gold at her party. So, being the obedient mother that I am, I ordered four pounds of M&Ms in red, purple, and gold. The website is amazingly thorough with games and ads and ways to get you to buy candy. You can order nearly any color you'd like, and you can have the pieces printed with your school mascot or with messages for any occasion. Ours will just say the traditional "M." You can also get them delivered in little trinkets—candy boxes in plastic or glass or just cute little bags.

I love M&Ms. I especially love the peanut variety with dark chocolate. And when I eat them, I sort the colors first and try to make sure I have an equal amount of each color as I make my way through the bag. That usually means I have to eat the odd pieces first so that I don't have an imbalance, but I don't mind. If I had to choose a least favorite, it would be the peanut butter variety. That's what Reeses Pieces are for.

Some people like to eat them cold or even straight out of the freezer. I used to know someone who liked to keep a bag in the car on a warm day because she liked them gooey. I hated sharing her M&Ms. I prefer them to be at room temperature—not too soft and not so hard you could break a tooth.

I remember when M&Ms stopped making red ones because the dye was considered a carcinogen. What I didn't know was that the candy never contained the dye, but the M&M company discontinued the color anyway to appease the public. Years later when people had forgotten all about it, they brought the color back, although the dye they use for that color has been banned in some European countries because it's thought to be unsafe for children. I suppose if you picked out all the red ones and ate them by the hundreds, it would cause a problem, but I'm willing to believe a few now and then won't cause me harm. I'll have to make sure I mix the assortment well in each candy dish so that none of my guests will get just red.

I am excited to take delivery of my four pounds of M&Ms. I'll have to exercise a little self discipline so that I don't eat them all before the guests arrive. In honor of these little treats, I have turned myself into an M&M. You can, too—here. I'm not sure why she's blond since I specifically asked for darker hair, but at least she has coffee.

Comments

savannah said…
i've seen those ads, sugar! i think i'll order some for the MITM's return! (nothing like coffee and M&Ms) xox
dive said…
Sheesh! These people really do go to town to try to get you to ingest sugar and E-numbers, don't they?
As you know I've never tried an M, or indeed and M and I'm content to let them live their peaceful lives without being chomped on.
The fact that there's even some kind of etiquette to eating the things astonishes me, Robyn. And a variety of "ideal" temperatures! Do people discuss which ones go with which wines?
And that red dye that makes two-year-olds hyperactive? No wonder you guys run around the planet firing off guns at everyone if you've been raised eating that stuff!
As for Robyn The M&M? I'm suddenly glad there's the Atlantic Ocean between us.
Hee hee hee.
Scout said…
Savannah, coffee and M&Ms do make a nice combination.

Dive, that's it. We're at war because we eat too much candy. You've figure it out. hee hee
Shan said…
You would look delicious to me but I've never cared for hairy chocolate. Coffee and choco are the better combo for sure. I put a pin on your map! What fun :)
MmeBenaut said…
i love M & Ms too but I'm too scared to buy them very often because I simply can't resist them. I like them at room temperature too. I haven't tried the peanut ones yet.
Shazza said…
Ohhhh...dark chocolate peanut M&M are friggin' awesome! (I sort them by color to. - what is up with that?)

Good luch with having them in your house and not eating them - resistance is futile!
why red,purple and gold?

M&M's are so addicting but delicious.
Scout said…
Shan, thanks for pinning the map!

Mme Benaut, the peanut ones are wonderful, as are the almonds ones. yum.

Shazza, it's important to find order even in the candy dish, I guess.

Rich, she chose those colors because she likes show they look together. Her school colors are red and gray—very boring.
Katie said…
I don't eat M&Ms all that often, but I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who sorts her M&Ms by color, etc. I like making pyramids by color too.

I recently bought some of the limited edition cherry and mint crispy M&Ms. The cherry ones were good in a fake cherry way, the mint crispies were so so. And wow, Dive, eating them makes me want to run around the planet and fire guns! Bar the door!
Lulubelle B said…
Love that M&M site. I posted my M&M counterpart on 04/27/07. Probably needs to be updated. The dark chocolate M&Ms are the best!
Anonymous said…
Great post, Robyn, as always :)
You absolutely must resist because I will be looking for the purple ones at #2's shindig!!
PF

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