Valentine’s Day is enjoyed by many people, especially those with sweet tooths.
Although some people celebrate this day for love, others partake in it for the confectioneries that are being sold and account for the $1.5 to $2 billion of candies are sold every Valentine’s Day nationwide, according to the financial newsletter Finchannel.com.
The most popular Valentine’s Day sweets in the U.S. are conversation hearts, chocolate hearts, M&M’s, assorted boxes of chocolates, and even cupid corn, according to Candystore.com, a website that sells candy.
So this begs the question, with this much candy is being sold every Valentine’s Day which sweets are truly worthy of this holiday? Here are my non-expert rankings from best to worst with 10 hearts being the worthiest choice.
First up, we have chocolate hearts. These hearts are bigger than the other candies, but they still are bite-sized. These chocolates are usually in bags, and priced from $10 to $30, with some of the more popular brands in the $10 to $15 range.
The flavor of the chocolates depends on which bag you get, as there are white chocolate, dark chocolate and other varieties. Since these candies are cheap and pretty tasty, chocolate hearts get seven hearts.
For anyone who’s been living under a rock and doesn’t already know this, M&M’s are small, circle-shaped chocolates covered in a candy shell, which allows people to eat them even if the milk-chocolate center is frozen or melted.
There are many different varieties of these candies, including peanut and caramel M&M’s. There’s even Neapolitan flavored M&Ms. The pricing of each container varies from $3 all the way to $20, as if anyone would spend that much money on one box of M&M’s.
Personally, I’m not a huge fan of M&M’s, as they taste more like what I made in my chemistry lab rather than chocolates. These odd candies deserve nothing more than six hearts.
The classic box of assorted chocolates is the one tasty treat most people think of when they imagine valentine’s candies.
There are many different types of boxes to buy. Some are really cheap, but others can cost hundreds of dollars. Seriously.
Boxes of chocolates aren’t normally purchased for oneself, but rather for friends, family or that special someone.
Understand that the sheer variety of chocolates makes me stressed, as I don’t really want to pick out a chocolate that could be worse than another. And the prices on some of these boxes can get crazy. Because of this, the classic box of chocolates gets six hearts.
Next on our list are conversation hearts. These candies are small, heart-shaped, and have small lovey-dovey text on the front of each piece. They come in a small sized bag/box, and are priced about $5 to $10.
Really, the candies are only worth the price if you find containers that lean more toward the $5 price as the lack of flavor isn’t really something to spend more money for.
Conversation hearts are also a great way to make street art, as they have the consistency of chalk. Due to the lack of flavor and the chalk-like texture, these candies earn three hearts.
The last candy on the chopping block is Cupid corn, which is the exact same as candy corn, but it is colored differently for Valentine’s Day.
I absolutely despise candy corn, and cupid corn is no different. These candies are disgustingly sweet as they are made with marshmallows, vanilla, and flavor notes of caramel. Whoever thought that these candies were a good idea clearly didn’t know what they were doing. They are also priced high, ranging from $15 to $25. Because of their gut-wrenching sweetness, these candies deserve a measly two hearts.
Out of all of these popular candies, I would say that chocolate hearts are the best choice for your valentine. These chocolates come at a pretty cheap price, and come in different varieties, like dark or white chocolate.
But the assorted box of chocolates are a better choice for those willing to spend more money and go all out for Valentine’s Day.