Trick or treat time is right around the corner. Everything season brings fun treats like lunch box desserts, teacher's rewards, team snacks, stocking stuffers, Valentine's exchange goodies - did you know your 'go-to' gluten free treat might not really be gluten free? Maybe you've heard size doesn't matter, whelppp, it might! Here is an example: Hershey milk chocolate.
Hershey's brand offers many candies that meet the U.S. FDA criteria for gluten free and are marked with their own little gluten free tag. As a brand they are actually quite GF and allergy friendly. However item size, shape and season can make a difference and require a bit of vigilance. I did a quick check recently and found the king size milk chocolate bar does NOT have the GF tag, the regular size milk chocolate bar 1.55 oz. IS tagged GF. Milk chocolate 'monster' kisses or Christmas kisses in red, green and silver foils clearly marked gluten free, while similar items like snack sized bars and holiday bells are not marked as gluten free... Valentine's conversation kisses= GF, mini Valentine bars = nope. So, Celiac friends, be aware and vigilant, as you well know many doctors recommend only ingesting commercial products with the gluten free label as approved by the FDA
Now as far as I can tell these items all have the same ingredients: sugar, milk chocolate, cocoa butter, milk fat, soy lecithin, PGRP, and natural flavor with minor variations in order the ingredients are listed or specifying skim milk, so some gluten free eaters might choose to chance it. Some of the labels state something like "processed on shared equipment " meaning the facility has potential for cross contamination. I really appreciate that Hershey clearly marks it's gluten free items but it is necessary to check each label to be sure if you are celiac or strictly gluten free as similar products may have different nutritional profiles.
Tracking down the information online or standing in the grocery isle checking every package can be time consuming so I will happily share a couple places that post an annual update of gluten free seasonal candies below. My favorites are Ferrara Laffy Taffy (banana) and anything from Tootsie Roll Industries who proudly share on their website they are completely gluten free and peanut/ tree nut free. They produce all the Tootsie rolls and fruit chews you remember from childhood but did you know they also make Andes' mints, Cella's chocolate covered cherries and Caramel Apple Pops? All GF, peanut free and tree nut free.
I hope these resources let you skip the tricks and make your treats less scary 😉
Celiac Disease Foundation https://celiac.org/ (tons of good general info) lists treats by manufacturer.
Celiac.com site offers forums to connect with others and conveniently publishes an alphabetical list by candy name.
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