So today’s tip spans the wonderful world of tomato juice, and what you can do with it.

First point: While it seems as if tomato juice should be “generic,” like milk, our taste test in search of the best tomato juice was eye-opening.

Some brands were so bland, they needed vast amounts of seasoning—lemon juice, sea salt—to be palatable. Others were delicious right out of the can or jar.

It’s not surprising, since different companies pay more (or less) for the best (or average) tomatoes.

So buying a better brand isn’t mission-critical if you’ll be adding vodka, hot sauce and horseradish; but for other uses, treat yourself to the best (our favorite is Knudsen’s).

TOMATO JUICE COCKTAIL (VIRGIN MARY)

A plain glass of tomato juice turns into a flavorful refreshment with the addition of seasonings.

 
Add yogurt and blend a tomato smoothie!

On a cold day, heat a cup of tomato juice in the microwave, with some of the seasonings above. It’s “tomato soup lite.”

COCKTAILS

The Bloody Mary (and its numerous variations) is just one drink that uses tomato juice. Look up others, including the Cubanita (rum), Last Not Least (Scotch and cream), Prairie Oyster (Cognac, egg yolk), Red Devil (Irish Whiskey) and Sangrita.

The Red Eye mixes tomato juice with beer (don’t knock it until you’ve tried it).

GENERAL COOKING

Use tomato juice as all or part of your cooking liquid. We make a deconstructed stuffed cabbage by cooking cabbage and meat balls in tomato juice.

Cook beans, lentils and other legumes, or spinach, collards, kale and other greens, in tomato juice for a snappy flavor.
SAVORY SORBET/GRANITA

Tomato sorbet or granita, with basil or other herbs, is a delicious palate cleanser. You can serve it year-round between courses, or as a summmer desert (we serve ours with a cheese straw).
SOUP BASE

Make soup with a base of tomato juice instead of vegetable or chicken broth. Toss in vegetables and seasonings, and add optional beans, lentils or other legumes. Serve it plain or over rice or pasta.
SPANISH RICE

A childhood favorite, we loved the reddish-rice Mom made with cilantro, garlic and sometimes, black beans.

[1] Fudge in an homage to candy corn. The recipe is below (photos #1 and #6 and recipe © The Pampered Chef).

[2] The fudge tastes better than actual candy corn (photo by Melanie Love | © Taste Of Home).

[3] S’mores flavor candy corn (photo © Blair Candy Store | Amazon).

[4] Caramel flavor candy corn (photo © Brach’s | Amazon).

[5] Candy corn fudge. You can make it with the recipe below, or purchase it from Z. Cioccolato (photo © Z. Cioccolato).

[6] You can also make candy corn bark (photo © Brown Eyed Baker).

[7] Calorie-free: candy corn-painted stones (photo © G. LoRusso | Pexels).

October 30th, National Candy Corn Day, is the day before Halloween. According to the National Confectioners Association, more than 20 million pounds of candy corn are sold during the Halloween season.

And some of it is made into recipes, like the Candy Corn Fudge recipe, below.

> Also below: 10 more candy corn recipes, from cocktails to cake to ice cream.

Also check out:

> How candy corn is made.

> The history of Halloween.

> The history of fudge.

> The year’s 60+ candy holidays.
 
The recipe follows, but first:
 
 
THE HISTORY OF CANDY CORN

The iconic confection was created in the late 1880s by George Roniger of the Wunderlee Candy Company in Philadelphia. The first three-layer candy, it was laboriously made by hand.

It was originally called chicken feed, after the dry corn kernels that were fed to the flocks. It was originally sold year-round. When it became a seasonal treat for Halloween has not yet been identified for certain, but research suggests it was around the middle of the 20th century [source].

Roniger failed to trademark his concept, enabling other companies to produce their own versions, following right on his tail. The Goelitz Confectionery Company (now the Jelly Belly Candy Co.), has been making candy corn since 1898.

Another top competitor these days is Brach’s, which claims to be the number-one producer, making up to 88% of the candy corn sold in the U.S. [ibid.].

Even with today’s machinery, it takes 4 to 5 days to create each piece of candy corn (here’s a video of candy corn being made).

Each kernel has 3.57 calories, and it’s all sugar (the ingredients are corn syrup, honey, sugar, and food coloring, coated with carnauba wax, which is is made from the leaves of a palm tree).

Trivia: In 2021, nine billion kernels of candy corn were produced in the U.S. That equates to 35 million pounds of candy corn!

The orange, yellow and white colors of the candy corn can actually be found in fresh corn kernels—though the colors are intensified by the candy makers.

Flavor & Color Varieties

Some companies create an “Indian corn” version, substituting brown for the yellow base color. And that’s not all.

 
So now…

Why not “fudge the rules” by turning fudge into candy corn?

This recipe is vanilla fudge, made in three layers that are the color of candy corn.

And unlike candy corn itself, this recipe (courtesy of The Pampered Chef) is not all sugar: It’s made from chocolate and sweetened condensed milk.

Don’t like fudge? Try this candy corn cocktail, or simply mix candy corn into some popcorn (almonds are optional).
 
 
RECIPE: “CANDY CORN” FUDGE

Ingredients For 72 Pieces

 
Preparation

1. MICROWAVE the chocolate and condensed milk in a 3-cup bowl, uncovered, on HIGH for 1-2 minutes. Stir every 30 seconds until melted.

2. LINE a loaf pan with waxed paper and pour in one-third of the fudge mixture, spreading evenly.

3. PLACE the pan in the freezer for 5 minutes to cool. If the fudge mixture in the prep bowl has begun to set, microwave for an additional 15 seconds.

4. DIVIDE the remaining fudge mixture into two bowls. Add yellow food coloring to one bowl and mix well. Add red food coloring to the other bowl and mix well.

5. REMOVE fudge from the freezer. Pour the orange fudge mixture over the first layer; return to the freezer for 5 minutes. Then pour the yellow fudge mixture over the first two layers and place in the freezer for about 45 minutes or until set.

6. REMOVE fudge from the pan. Cut into 4 lengthwise rows with a pizza cutter or other implement.

7. TURN rows on their sides and cut them into triangles.

8. STORE in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
 
 
MORE CANDY CORN RECIPES

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

The original oatmeal enthusiasts were the Scots, who were eating them many centuries ago when their English neighbors were only growing oats as livestock feed.

The groats—the hulled kernels of the cereal—required soaking overnight and cooking for perhaps 30 minutes, so oatmeal was not exactly a convenience breakfast. But modern processing has made it very easy for us to enjoy oatmeal in a minute—and good oatmeal in five to ten minutes.

ROLLED OATS

Rolled oats are what most Americans think of as oatmeal. Quaker Oats’ Old Fashioned Oats have been breakfast fare for generations.

To make rolled oats, the groats are flattened under giant rollers, which makes them easier to cook but removes much of the fiber-filled bran in the process.

There are different types of rolled oats:

The most familiar form of oats are rolled oats, where the groats are rolled flat. Photo by Kelly Cline | IST.

Steel-cut oats, also called cut oats, Irish oats or Scottish oats, and coarse-cut oats, are groats (the whole oat kernel) that have been cut into very small pieces using steel discs. This produces a different result from rolled into flakes.

They are a far better source of fiber than rolled oats, and delightfully chewy (note: baked goods should be made with rolled oats, unless you want a chewy oat bread or muffin).

Cooking time is considerably longer than for rolled oats—30 minutes—but the cooked oatmeal has a nice texture to it—it’s more al dente than rolled oats (and our favorite).

The luxurious texture and longer cooking time imparts more flavor as well. Oatmeal imported from Ireland and Scotland, like McCann’s and Flahavan’s, tends to be steel-cut oats.

Our trick to speedier steel-cut oats: Make a double or triple batch; refrigerate the extra portions and microwave them for “one-minute steel-cut oats.”

 
The Health Benefits Of Oatmeal
 
Oatmeal Serving Suggestions