Your Guide to Allergen Free Chocolate & Candy
Halloween, Easter, and Valentine’s Day are three of the biggest holidays for chocolate! February 13th is the biggest day for chocolate sales during Valentine’s Day season – perhaps because many of us wait until the last minute to buy chocolate gifts, or because we perceive the chocolate to be freshest then. February 15th is the second biggest day for chocolate sales during Valentine’s week on account of the price reductions the day after Valentine’s Day.
I have a bit of a sweet tooth and LOVE chocolate! When I first went gluten free, I had to figure out which candies I could actually eat. You should always read the nutritional facts before diving into chocolate and candy (or any food for that matter) because ingredients and preparation may change especially during holidays, but below is a list that you can use for your reference. Americans eat about 2.8 billion pounds of candy annually, and I want you to feel comfortable enough to be a part of this massive audience!
Gluten Free Chocolate:
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (except Seasonal Shapes or Unwrapped Minis) • Reese’s Pieces • Reese’s Fast Break • Reese’s Nutrageous • M&Ms (except Pretzel M&Ms and Crispy M&Ms) • Hershey’s Milk Chocolate • Hershey’s Milk Duds • Hershey’s Nuggets • Hershey’s Kisses • Dove (except Cookies & Cream or Cinnamon Graham flavors) • Snickers • York Peppermint Patty (except Minis, Shapes, Pieces) • Rolo Caramels (except Minis) • Baby Ruth • Raisinets • Sno-Caps • Andes • Junior Mints • 3 Musketeers • Butterfinger Original & Regular Size (except Seasonal Shapes, Crisp, Giant, Snackerz, Medallions) • Heath Bar • Almond Joy (except Pieces) • Mounds • Milky Way Midnight Bar Minis (except Regular size, or Original)
Gluten Free Candy:
• Dum Dum Lollipops • Tootsie Pops • Tootsie Rolls • Fruit Roll-Ups • Jelly Belly • Hot Tamales • Jolly Ranchers • Laffy Taffy • Lemonhead • Life Savers • Now & Later • Skittles • Sour Patch Kids (not certified GF) • Starbursts • Smarties (in the US) • Surf Sweets • Swedish Fish (not certified GF) • Tootsie Rolls • Wonka Fun Dip • Bit-O-Honey • Goobers • Nips Allergen Free Chocolate & Candy: • Premium Chocolatiers (gluten free, dairy free, nut free, egg free) • No Cow Chocolate (gluten free, dairy free, soy free, nut free, tree nut free, whey free, casein free, lactose free, corn free, egg free, shellfish free, fish free) • Pascha Chocolate (gluten free, peanut free, nut free, dairy free, soy free, egg free, fish free) • Amanda’s Own Confections (gluten free, dairy free, tree nut free, peanut free, egg free) • Torie & Howard (gluten free, nut free, corn syrup free, casein free, soy free, dairy free) • Indie Candy (gluten free, dairy free, tree nut free, peanut free, soy free, dye free, • YumEarth Organic Lollipops (gummies are dairy free but not vegan) • Surf Sweets (gluten free, dairy free, casein free, egg free, peanut free, tree nut free, soy free, fish free, shellfish free, sesame free, sulfite free) • Glee Gum (gluten free, dairy free, peanut free, tree nut free, soybean free) • Air Heads (gluten free, peanut free)
Jackie Aanonsen is the Founder & CEO of Gluten Free Follow Me, the guide to dining gluten free in NYC, California and beyond! She details and ranks over 2,000 gluten free friendly eateries and products on her website - follow her journey!