Ghosts.
Goblins.
And… candy corn?
Think of candy corn as comic relief from Halloween.
It’s cute, it’s yummy, and it’s not the slightest bit scary.
That is, until you look at the ingredients. Gelatin, corn syrup, FDC Yellow 6 Lake, Red 40, Blue 1 Lake…
Are you scared yet?
I’ve always loved candy corn, more for its festiveness and adorableness than for the actual taste.
So when I made these candies I wasn’t going for an exact copycat, but more of a fun and healthier and vegan candy corn substitute.
You might like them even better than real candy corn!
Vegan Candy Corn
- 1/4 cup raw cashew butter (or peanut butter if you want pb-flavored candy corn. Who knows… it might be fun!) (58g)
- tiny dash salt
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar or Sugar-Free Powdered Sugar (28g)
- Either red and yellow food coloring (you can purchase natural food coloring at Whole Foods), or a tiny pinch turmeric and a few drops beet juice
Mix the first three ingredients together in a bowl until it becomes a crumbly dough. (Note: if your nut butter is from the fridge, let it sit awhile or heat it up so it’s easier to mix.) If dough is too gooey (mine wasn’t), you can add a little extra sugar/sf sugar. Taste the dough and add a little more salt if desired. Now transfer the crumbles to a plastic bag and smush very hard into a ball. Remove from the bag and form three little balls, then add a few drops yellow food coloring or the turmeric to one ball and knead until it’s all one color. Do the same with the red. (For my un-edited “in process” photos, see the nutrition link below.) Roll balls into skinny strips—the skinnier the strips, the smaller the resulting candy corns, and press strips together. Cut into triangles or other shapes. As stated above in the post, these aren’t supposed to taste exactly like store-bought candy corn; they’re yummy in their own right. You can store in the fridge, but my roommate—the candy nut—says they taste best straight from the freezer. Or you can even bake them: 350 F for 3-5 minutes, then allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from tray.
View Nutrition Facts + Step-By-Step Photos
What are you doing for Halloween this year?
Are you dressing up? Or staying home and handing out candy? Or trying to console a dog who goes berserk every time the doorbell rings? Guess I just gave away my Halloween plans…
Link Of The Day:
Linde Platy says
That is just sooo cute!
Im definately dressing up, we’re having the party of the year! Will be a girly outfit though, not scary or slutty!
Tiffany H says
I’m glad these don’t taste exactly like candy corn, I never thought they had much flavour besides the taste of sugar. Unfortunately this Halloween I’m gonna be home by myself so I’ll just be handing out candy.
Eating 4 Balance says
Love the idea! I am not dressing up for Halloween, no matter how much my friends try to convince me that a batman villain costume is a “good idea.” 😛
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
I think my dog needs a Batman villain costume. 🙂
Cosette says
Oh these almost look like Starburst candies! Can’t wait to try them 🙂
Brooke says
Ooh, I would love a recipe for vegan starburst!
Lisa C. says
These are just the cutest things ever, and I love the photos!
Sarah says
I love that you made hearts. We used to buy candy corn hearts every year for Halloween from a candy store near my house when I was growing up.
But in stores around here I only see regular shaped candy corn. It makes me miss the hearts, which I always thought were cuter.
We’d also buy them (pink candy corn!) in heart shapes from the same candy shop for Valentine’s Day. Can anyone else still find candy corn hearts, or did they discontinue them?
Mary Z says
This looks great!
I love candy corn, but I had to give it up even before going vegan (and, more recently, dye-free) due to my corn allergy, and all the recipes I’ve seen before for making your own are basically corn-syrup cooked solid! Ick!
I am so making these tomorrow while I wait out the storm! (You could make these by candlelight as they don’t require cooking, right?)
Emma says
Ick, the storm. I like your thinking. Stay at home and make candy corn. Now, to make sure I have all the ingredients so I don’t have to go out tomorrow!
Summer says
Pure brilliance Katie! You have an amazing talent and gift~ As a health coach, I am always referencing your site. Thank you, thank you for sharing through your blog posts!
Emma says
Heck yes, this is awesome!!! I always loved candy corn, like you, for the festiveness (is that a word?) more than the taste. I am so excited to try your vegan version! I’m not even a vegan, but I try to stay away from HFCS and artiticial dyes. I think I have turmeric in my cabinet from making mac and cheese once.
Thanks for a really adorable post!
melissa @ my whole food life says
Genius idea!
Tiffani says
Question for any and every vegan: What do you pass out to kids when they come by? Non-vegan candy or vegan candy (home-made store-bought?)?
I’m a new vegan (10 months and counting!) and I’m not sure how to particapte in this holiday.
Sunnie says
You could always hand out little party favors – spider rings, pencils, erasers, cheap plastic toys, etc. . . . like Dollar-Tree-type things.
Also, you could always buy things like bags of pretzels or chips – not exactly healthy, but vegan! 🙂 If you’re willing to spend a little more, you can actually buy boxes of vegan chocolate bars, such as Justin’s Dark Chocolate Peanut butter cups (here: http://www.amazon.com/Justins-Dark-Choc-Butter-Milk/dp/B007HD4TOG/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1351447858&sr=8-2-fkmr2&keywords=justins+peanut+butter+cups) or Oskri mini Chocolate-Coconut Bars, which are a lot like Mounds bars (here: http://www.amazon.com/Oskri-Coconut-Original-Chocolate-0-88-Ounce/dp/B003QWGG0M).
Good luck! 🙂
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
I would love to hand out something homemade, but in this day and age I just don’t think that would work :(. This year I’m going to a party, so I’m not handing out candy… but one year in the past, I handed out Swedish Fish, which are vegan.
You can find a list of vegan candy here: http://vegnews.com/articles/page.do?pageId=4487&catId=2
adorpheus says
I’m planning to hand out party favours like Sunnie said (rings, toys, etc) and I’m making “healthier” sugar cookies. I guess that is quite unorthodox, but aside from the vegan issue, I’m new to the neighborhood I live in and I don’t know if we’ll even get any trick or treaters. At my last apartment, my housemates bought two huge bags of candy and we didn’t get a SINGLE trick or treater and the sweets were still around months later. Ugh! At least if I get no kids coming to my house, I can eat the cookies myself. 😉 Like Katie said, though – Swedish fish are a great vegan-friendly candy to hand out, unfortunately we don’t have them here in the UK.
Katieluv4ever says
Hey Katie! Love these candy corn! My Halloween plans this year…it will probably be cancelled for the SECOND year in a row! First a freak October snowstorm, now Hurricane Sandy! What else could go wrong???? Anyways, thanks so much for this recipe(:
kim@hungryhealthygirl says
How adorable are these?!?! And much less scarier than the “real” candycorns
Erica { EricaDHouse.com } says
I was just thinking this morning that I needed to get some more candy corn in me before the Holidays are over!
Eric Jaffa says
CCK – Are you going to a costume party?
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Yes, actually.
Jennifer @ Peanut Butter and Peppers says
Ohhh they look yummy and way better tasting then candy corn!!
Olivia@ OmNom Love says
Yay! Candy corn! I love it so much but the ingredients are pretty scary.
I’m dressing up for Halloween & going to a costume party. I’m going as Effie Trinket from the Hunger Games. It’ll be so much fun to do the makeup. 😉
Kali says
I understand the con syrup and dyes and all that but could you explain your reasoning Katie for why beeswax is ‘scary’? Just curious, as I can imagine why but would like to hear it from you.
Laura says
It’s not technically vegan, I know that.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
As a vegan, I wouldn’t eat beeswax, but that wasn’t actually why I listed it. I was just listing the ingredients in order… I can see how that might have come out wrong (or sounding self-righteous), and I edited it out of the post.
Jessica says
I made these! I didn’t bother with the food coloring, or shaping it like candy corn. I just rolled it into little balls, and it is really delicious! It took like 5 minutes to make, which was really cool, but the real reason I made it was because I’ve had a jar of Artisana raw cashew butter in my fridge FOREVER and didn’t know what to do with it.
These balls are a great pre-workout snack. Thanks, Katie!
Jessica says
Oh, and I am going to try baking some as well. Will report back!
Tanya @ Playful and hungry says
So cute! =)
Alicia in Texas says
These are fabulous! I made them this afternoon with my 4 year old, including making our own homemade cashew butter. She kept saying “candies, candies!” It was so cute, and she loved them!
Ellen says
Oh cool! Every year I go on the hunt for candy corn without gelatin. And those little pumpkin shaped candies that come in the ‘autumn mix’. I was slightly devastated to find out that brach’s makes them with gelatin. A few grocery store brands don’t have gelatin but for true vegans they wouldn’t work because they have honey.
Your recipe looks like fun, i might just give it a go next time I have a craving:)
India says
jelly belly candy corn has no gelatin
Laura says
My mom has always hated Halloween, becaus of religious views, so unless my friends plan something, I usually sit at home with all the lights off and the blinds closed to discourage trick or treaters. Or we go out to eat.
This year, however, since it falls on a Wednesday, we have youth group. I’m not sure if I will go to that and make my mom sit at home in the dark, or go to dinner with her.
Laura says
Oh, and I really want to make this… If I knew where I could get cashew butter. Stupid small towns…
Liz dR says
This is the kind of thing you can easily order online, probably even from amazon (that’s where I buy a lot of ingredients!).
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Or, if you have a super-high-powered blender or food processor, you can make your own by just grinding cashews to oblivion until it makes a creamy butter.
Kara says
Whoops didn’t see your reply Katie! My page must not have been refreshed…
Kara says
You can make your own cashew butter by blending/food processing cashews with a little oil if needed! Super easy 🙂 Just blend until it turns creamy…takes awhile but so worth it!
Laura says
I need raw cashews though, right? I’m pretty sure we only have roasted around here, but I’ll check.
Kara says
I used roasted actually and it worked just fine. I’m not sure what Katies uses…maybe it changes the flavor, but I thought it was great!
Anna @ The Guiltless Life says
I’m probably one of the few people that didn’t grow up eating candy corn that much – I think it was more of a North American thing – but when I did try it I’m not nuts about it! However I majorly admire your ability to literally recreate anything, so I had to comment anyway!!
Andrea says
Ever since I hit the age where I stopped trick or treating, my Halloween plans have always been the exact same every year. I dress up in my awesome witch dress (since I can only wear it once a year!), have a horror movie marathon at home, and hand out candy when trick or treaters come. I live about 45 minutes outside of town so we usually only get the kids that live in the community here.
gemma says
beeswax is a traditionnal ingredient to coat the gummy candies. it’s also used in france for cannelles. check it out, it’s delicious.
Hannah says
Must try this! My kinders would love these treats!
Caralyn @ glutenfreehappytummy says
sounds super delish! and cute too!
Amber with Slim Pickin's Kitchen says
These are cute! I really need to get my hands on some cashew butter. You use it for so many of your recipes! I also wish we had Halloween plans, but we don’t 🙁 Tomorrow is our 1 yr wedding anniversary and we are both working and then studying for our real estate exam which we will be taking on Wed. Wish us luck!
Kara says
I made my own tonight! Super easy! Just blend up cashews like you would to make peanut butter. So good! I added a little honey to mine for more of a candy corn taste (I’m not vegan obviously..). Good luck on your exam! I know how it feels to have studying get in the way… good thing there are many more halloweens to come!
Amber with Slim Pickin's Kitchen says
Awesome! Thanks so much! I’ll totally try it out (with the honey 😉 )
Valerie says
I’m not certain there’s any way I could possibly explain the face I’m making right now but I assure you it’s a really really excited one. I was the one who requested this and /lfdkjg.klfjg oh my goodness! I know what I’m going to be making tomorrow! Mmmm! Thank you so much Katie 🙂 You’ve just made my whole week!
Karen says
Watch out if you make them, they are addictive! 😉
Karen says
You forgot to mention that these are addictive!
I made them last night with my friend, and we kept eating the dough before we even formed the candy corn ;). We also got rebellious and decided to make blue and green candy corn instead. It was awesome!
Laura says
Trick or treating? What trick or treating?!? All I see is a gigantic hybrid frankenstorm on the horizon! 🙁
Liz @ iheartvegetables says
I’ve never been a fan of candy corn but I think I’d like this way better!!!
Jane says
Those are super cute! Obviously, since you are vegan, you don’t eat gelatin, but I don’t think it’s bad for you. I think it’s just kind of a filler, sort of empty nutritionally. What do you think?
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
I can’t get over what it’s made out of :-?.
Kristyn says
gelatin can actually be very nutritional and it is full of vitamins if it comes from grass fed sources. Gelatin is great for your joints and skin
Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes says
I might be staying in this year thanks to hurricane Sandy! These look so good!
Justin says
I’ll be consoling our mini dauschund from going crazy. She goes nuts.
I like the fact that these have no corn in them seeing as though corn is the most genetically modified crop going.
And you can never go wrong with cashew butter. I can eat that stuff by the spoonful!
Erin | The Law Students Wife says
I totally want to try this with PB! I find candy corn + peanuts to be a completely addictive combo, so the nut factor in these is a total catching point for me.
And you said it — candy corn is completely cute and fun! I might even try to go as a piece of it for halloween at some point! Maybe I’ll had these out. hmmmm. You’ve got me thinking Katie! As usual 🙂
Lauren @ Oatmeal after Spinning says
Genius! I love candy corn but haven’t had any in a long time (I never buy it- that would be a bad idea!). And the link for the candy corn shake at the bottom… ooooh I have to try that out!
Lia says
Too cute. Love the in progress pics! These sound like energy bites, which is pretty awesome. You could even make a really big one…
lil deli says
Thank you for this! We don’t get candy corn here and I really want some for Halloween!
Bek @ Crave says
Do you give out candy or your baked goods for Halloween? Halloween isn’t big here in Aus so we won’t be doing much, but for those kiddies that do come round we’ll probably give out icy poles.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
I’d love to give out homemade baked goods. Unfortunately, in this day and age where some malls won’t even allow kids to sit on Santa’s lap anymore because of potential lawsuits, I just don’t think it would work. 🙁
NinaJ says
I have a nut allergy, I can eat coconut though. Can I use coconut butter?
Maya says
Yayyy you used the turmeric idea! I think I had posted that on your last year’s candy corn post (not saying you got it from me, just excited when turmeric gets the importance it deserves!)
Allison says
Not really the right place for this comment, but I’m wondering if you could expand your candy section to include chocolate-covered things (nuts, dried fruit, etc.). That would be a lot of fun.
Miss b says
Hi Katie , I loved this idea with making the candy corn, without all the food coloring and junk in it !! But I was wondering do you have any Ideas on how I could make vegan candy canes for your vegan peppermint bark? Just wondering.. thanks
Merrin says
Hi Katie, just a quick question, how hard do these go? Like in comparison to a boiled sweet? Oh, and do you know of any vegan or healthy boiled sweet type recipes? Thanks heaps! 🙂
Charlie says
It’s that time of the year again!
I wonder if there’s a way to make this recipe shelf stable? I’d like to make these and send them in the post to friends.
Katherines Corner says
I found your yumminess on pinterest and shared it at Katherines Corner. ♥
Elaina says
Thank you for the recipe. My teenage sons wants homemade butterfingers and found a recipe on Pinterest with chocolate and candy corn. I won’t make them because of the HFCS and dyes. Has anyone tried to use this recipe in place of candy corn in another recipe?
Unofficial CCK Helper says
Try this recipe. It tastes AMAZING! https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2012/10/18/healthy-butterfingers/
Sofia says
I love this site
Lauren says
I so often see recipes with cashew butter, but I am allergic to most nuts (including cashews and peanuts). Is there any good substitute like sun butter etc?
Also, there are three nuts I *can* eat: hazelnuts, almonds, and macadamia. For some reason, I think a homemade macadamia butter might be my solution. What do you think? Any advice would be much appreciated.
Chocolate Covered Katie says
You can always experiment, and if you do, be sure to report back! 🙂
Jen at www.sweetgreenkitchen.com says
So pretty! I just love the heart shapes. Who knew you could make healthy candy corn, amazing!
Tara Gonzalez says
Today I made the sugar-free version substituting xylitol and they are just terrible and make my stomach queasy. I know it’s the xylitol but I’m new to cutting refined sugar and most carbs out of my diet (about 6 weeks) and the only thing that’s killing me is I like desserts. I found some chocolate bars sweetened with stevia that are really great and actually don’t have a stevia aftertaste (for once the claim on the packaging is actually true!) which I usually snack on with a handful of macadamia nuts, but I’m actually not a huge chocolate person, I prefer cinnamony, buttery and sugary desserts ?. I’ve been following your blog for a while now and this is the first thing I’ve made off of it (I thought it would be a fun project to do with my 3 year old and it was that) because I haven’t traditionally kept a lot of the ingredients you use on hand and I’ve been a little skeptical that healthy desserts can be good, but I have a handful of other recipes I’m going to try and I hope I can find some that I love!
Lisa says
Hi Kate, the vegan candy corn’s were very tasty, but my colors didn’t come out looking like yours. Used the yellow food coloring and orange, but my dough was tan instead of white. ( I used sunbutter and powdered stevia sugar). Tasted good, but sure didn’t look yours?….any suggestions. Yours are so cute! Lisa in Arizona?
kaylie michelle lochard says
are they actually healthy?
Shoshonna says
I’m allergic to cashews and my family is not big on peanut butter. Is there any alternative to the raw cashew butter?