RING THE NEW SERIES ALARM!
You read that right, I'm launching a new recipe series that I'm super super excited about. I've been crazy inspired by junk food and my childhood lately. Growing up in the late 90s and early 2000s was the shit. I know that a lot of my peers whine about being born in the "wrong era," but I wouldn't trade my birth year for anything. (Seriously, how pretentious is that? #eyeroll)
I could go on and on about my weird obsession with B*Witched or tell you every single HitClips single I had, but let's talk about the food real quick. I was quite the poster child for childhood obesity, so after school snacks were my life. I'd do anything to go back to a time where I could come home from my totally strenuous day of elementary school, grab a s'mores Chewy bar and a Pepsi Blue, and turn on TRL without feeling overwhelmed with guilt. You know, if TRL and Pepsi Blue were still around. I guess some things just have to change.
Graham's Lunchbox is a new series that will explore, remake, and re-imagine all of my favorite childhood foods. The processed junk of my childhood far outweighs the snacks inhabiting the lunchboxes of schoolchildren nationwide today. Sure, Pumpkin Spice Oreos are hella delicious, but they don't have anything on Dunkaroos. Those fancy eighty-million-percent dark chocolate bars that I indulge in from time to time pale in comparison to the pure joy that was cracking open a Wonderball at age 8. And don't even get me started on Crispy M&M's.
Speaking of candy, did you guys know that you can make Butterfingers at home with only THREE ingredients? Don't ask me how it all works (although my personal theory is that it's some kind of sorcery via the candy gods), but equal parts melted candy corn and creamy peanut butter yields a glorious substance that is freakishly similar to an actual Butterfinger candy bar. I've seen the recipe on Pinterest for years, but never really thought much of it until it dawned on me that I could make my own version of my favorite childhood candy at home. So I did it.
Yes, Graham Blackall just singlehandedly revived America's most-amazing-but-too-often-forgotten candy of yesteryear: the Butterfinger BB. Please hold your applause.
It's recently come to my attention that some very unfortunate souls do not remember that sugary flawlessness that was the Butterfinger BB. Let me educate you. First introduced in 1996, Butterfinger BB's were essentially just little circular bits of your typical Butterfinger. They were delicious. (Much better than a regular Butterfinger even though they were the same thing.) I ate a lot of them. They had awesome commercials starring Bart Simpson. My life lost all purpose and became completely devoid of joy when they were discontinued in 2006. Nestle sort of revived them in 2009 in the form of Butterfinger Bites, but they're totally not the same thing. In 2014, I made them a thing again and it was glorious.
The result? Instant throwback. It's actually kind of scary how good these are. I've been keeping them in the freezer and it's definitely been one of those situations where every single time I walk past my kitchen I have to restrain myself from getting one. and I'm failing. Miserably. (quelle surprise!)
Homemade Butterfinger BB's
- 16 oz. creamy peanut butter
- 16 oz. candy corn
- melted semisweet chocolate for dipping
In a medium bowl, microwave the peanut butter and candy corn for 1 minute. Stir the mixture to combine. Continue microwaving in 30 second bursts until the mixture is fully combined. Using a teaspoon, scoop the mixture and roll into balls. Place the bb's on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze. Once hardened, remove from freezer and dip into melted chocolate. Return the balls to the freezer to set the chocolate.