Now that the Christmas decorations are finally back in storage, it’s getting to be that time of year where we’re bombarded with the next Big Holiday theme: roses, lips, hearts, and an overabundance of EVERYTHING pink and red. And while some people find pink and red to be inspiration to get amorous, there are also those of us who’ll be inspired to get, well, nauseous. Let’s be honest, here. Love is a pretty complicated emotion, right? So, why is it so difficult to find a way to celebrate love in a way that’s more inspiring than that same old, tired heart-shaped box of candy?

The people at M&M’s obviously feel the same way, because they have a refreshingly new take on Valentine’s Day. As we previewed back in October, M&M’s is proclaiming green to be the new color of romance. This Valentine’s season, we’ll be seeing all-green packs of M&M’s. This probably also means we can expect Ms. Green to appear in her sassy white boots all over billboards and on TV.

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I can just hear some people out there saying “Why would I spend five bucks on this tiny candy bar when I could get a big bag of Whoppers for half the price?” This is a valid feeling, and we here at Candy Addict do try to eschew snobbery whenever possible. But if you’re the kind of person who turns up their nose at expensive candy, just go ahead and stop reading, because this review isn’t for you.

Still there? Good, because I have a marvelous discovery for all the die-hard Candy Addicts out there who simply need to know the best of what’s out there. BonBonBar Confections is a name you need to remember! This Los Angeles-based company specializes in luxury chocolate bars and hand-made marshmallows. They use a lot of locally-sourced, organic ingredients; corn syrup and artificial yucky stuff are not allowed. The packaging is humble, simple lettering on white labels, but trust me, the packaging isn’t the star of the show.

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Total Chocolaholics, such as myself, know that there is no shortage of books about chocolate. I’m pretty much an expert on the history of chocolate, and I’ve pored through dozens of cookbooks detailing how to temper chocolate, cover anything in chocolate, bake with chocolate, and so on. So, it’s a little exciting to come across a book about chocolate that doesn’t explore the same old tired subject matter.

The Chocolate Guide: To Local Chocolatiers, Chocolate Makers, Boutiques, Patisseries & Shops – Western Edition is an eclectic sort of tour through the western part of North America. There are luscious color photos on every page, chronicling the sumptuous sweets to be had from Mexico City to Vancouver. There are a few recipes, sprinkled here and there, and lots of engaging personal essays about peoples’ passions for chocolate, but mostly this is a guide to the varied chocolate shops in the West. (There are plans for Eastern and Midwestern editions in 2008, so nobody gets left out!)

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Quick, what are you doing right now? Working? Babysitting? Getting a jump on the ol’ tax return? Well, drop whatever you’ve got going on, because we’ve come across an awesome new project that needs your immediate attention: edible googly eyes!

That’s right. Everybody knows that candy is just more fun to eat when it has eyes, and eyes that are simply painted on are a major drag. No sir, there absolutely has to be a plastic bubble with movable “pupils” inside. Now, it’s no longer necessary to pick the googly eyes off your sweet treat. The geniuses over at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories have come up with a recipe for googly eyes that is 100% edible!

It’s all pretty simple, really. Just use some empty gelatin capsules (like the kind they put medicine or vitamin supplements in), some nonpareils, and perhaps half a Whopper, and voila! Googly eyes you can pop in your mouth. Of course we make no guarantees about how delicious they actually are… sometimes a Candy Addict just has to sacrifice flavor for sheer novelty.

Cruise on over to Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories for simple, step-by-step instructions, as well as an awesome recipe for these Flying Spaghetti Monster Treats – yummy!

• Edible googly eyes at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories

Whoppers, nonpareils, crafts, recipe, DIY

Question: what do I have in common with Saddam Hussein? Give up? We’re both big ol’ fans Bounty, a delicious coconut candy bar from Mars. That’s right, as we reported a while ago, when they caught Saddam a few years back, they found his secret stash of Bounty bars, and it turns out I’ve got an identical stash in my fridge. My fellow Candy Addicts, it’s a good thing there’s no such thing as guilt by candy association!

In theory, Bounty is quite similar to a Mounds. It’s a pretty simple construction – just a sweetened coconut center, enrobed in chocolate. But the similarities end there.

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