Happy Friday! We’re only two weeks away from Christmas, can you believe it?! For some of us, as we get older, Christmas lacks the magic, excitement, and wonder it had during our childhoods. Even if we didn’t have a lot growing up, there was still a change in the air, an upbeat shift in energy.
All year-round, though, we made a lot of fond memories around food. Whether in school, watching Saturday morning cartoons, or jumping double-dutch outside with our friends, snacks were amid every occasion, embedding themselves in our culture more than we realized. Today, we’re going back to some of those goodies. Some are still with us, and others bit the dust-possibly because they tasted like dust.
Here are 16 Nostalgic Childhood Snacks:
Hostess Snacks: True sadness was growing up and realizing the “best childhood snack” had almost no real flavor.
Dr. Pepper Gum: At no point in life did I think this was a good idea. I wasn’t sad when they discontinued it. However, they didn’t. Apparently, this is STILL on Walmart shelves everywhere!
Kool-Aid: This company pointlessly developed flavor names. We only knew the colors.
Smurf-Berry Crunch: A great companion to an episode of The Smurfs. If we ate enough, we might’ve turned blue.
Poptarts: From our childhoods to our children’s, Kellog’s has done their do-diligence to keep this less-than-nutritious snack a household favorite.
Famous Amos: Amos is still famous! Before sharing his Aunt Della’s beloved homemade cookies in 1975, Wally Amos gifted us Simon & Garfunkel and 4 years of his life, serving in the U.S. Air Force. He sold Famous Amos to Keebler in 1992-kind of by force but remains the brand’s active spokesperson. The snack may not be the healthiest, but his story is somewhat wholesome—kind of.
Burger King French Toast Sticks: BK excitedly unveiled their French toast sticks in the mid-80s. I was excited because I got to eat something other than a sandwich for breakfast. The syrup was messy. There was nothing French about this stick, except when they gave them to you in smaller portions for a higher price. They’re still a top-selling breakfast item today.
Cool Ranch Doritos: From childhood, they changed my life and saved my children’s lives more times than they know. I’ve never been a drinker, but Cool Ranch Doritos and Hershey Nuggets were a staple in my stash snack box closet.
Dutch Tin Cookies: Nothing screamed excitement than to see my mother walk in with that round tin blue or red container with the happy neighborhood scene gracing the outside of the tin. I knew I was going straight for the round ridged cookies before anyone else could be me to them. I could easily eat a whole container of these things by myself.
Swanson TV Dinners: It was the best of times and definitely among the worst of times. A ready-made dinner wrapped in aluminum then plastic containers, and we called it food. It was among the first of its kind and, unfortunately, not the last of its kind.
Jell-O Pudding Pops: I would get so excited to see the Jell-O Pudding Pops commercial come on the TV. All of the kids and Bill Cosby looked so happy eating them. I admit I never had a Jell-O Pudding Pop, my mother said creme cycles were enough, but that never stopped my imagination from dreaming of how it may have delighted my tastebuds. These were discontinued, but you can always buy some pudding, a wide popsicle tray, and stick it in the freezer for a few hours to enjoy this sweet treat again! Make some organic memories! See what I did there?
One of Hershey’s many failed projects was this attempt to compete with Twix, but my husband would tell you few could compete with Twix.
Funyuns (Onion Rings): The corner store near my friend’s home was my hang out spot in the 80’s. It had a massive rack of 25 cent bags of chips. My personal favorite was Funyuns. That light, airy blast of fake oniony taste as you put the whole ring in your mouth and it cut up the roof of your mouth was priceless.
Original Marathon Snack Bar: They were the perfect snack for a marathon…of Saturday morning cartoons.
Nintendo Cereal: Yeahhh, the game was over pretty quickly here-barely one year to be exact.
Slice Soda: By 2000, it was almost completely phased out by Sierra Mist soda. One devil for the next. My kids thought this was gelatin soda you cut and eat. Is that a parenting win?
What were some of your childhood favorites? Comment below!
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