Nine exotic treats

Nine exotic treats: Halloween candy alternatives" rel="storyimage1" title="Nine-exotic-treats.jpg"/>
<img src=http://www.toledoblade.com/assets/jpg/TO66067417.JPG> <b><font color=red>VIEW: </b></font color=red> <a href="/assets/pdf/TO692961028.PDF" target="_blank "><b>Nine exotic treats: </b></a>Halloween candy alternatives

This Halloween season, you could take the easy way out and load up on giant bags of traditional, fun-sized candy bars to hand out to trick-or-treaters. Or you could get a little adventurous. For those craving a more exotic sweet - for themselves or kids in strange costumes who come calling in the night - the results can be frighteningly good. Here are a few from the shelves of area stores.

•Mango Bites. They may look like cough drops, but these treats from India really are mango-flavored hard candies. Think Jolly Rancher with a subtle taste. Cost: 10 cents at Reddy Food N' Spices on West Central Avenue.

•Unica. The wrapper puts it best: "Wafers Coated with Milky Chocolate Sensation." The layer of chocolate is thin on this Lebanese candy bar and the delicate wafers are lighter and airier than a Kit Kat. Cost: 50 cents at Middle East Market on Dorr Street.

•Hi-Chew. Proof to candy lovers that there is more to the melon world than watermelon. These soft, Japanese fruit chews faithfully reproduce the taste of cantaloupe. Cost: 99 cents per pack at Tee Oriental Food & Gifts on North McCord Road.

•Paleton Corona. Everything is more fun when you're eating it on a stick. It was only a matter of time before someone thought to make chocolate-covered marshmallow lollipops. Cost: $1 at La Paloma on Broadway.

•Botan Rice Candy. It's made from rice so it must be healthy, right? These Japanese candies with a hint of fruity flavor start out hard but quickly soften. Bonus: there's a children's sticker inside. Cost: $1.29 at Lee's Oriental Food Mart on Laskey Road.

•Curly Wurly. You could chew this long strip of braided caramel covered in milk chocolate by Cadbury forever. For those old enough to remember, it's like the Marathon bars of yore. Cost: $1.49 at Boyd's Retro Candy Store on Phillips Avenue.

•Kinder Joy. The perfect treat for a generation of multi-taskers. One half of the plastic, egg-shaped container holds a toy while the other has a creamy, chocolatey spread and two crunchy cookie balls. Cost: $1.59 at Toledo Market on Dorr Street.

•Yorkie. This chocolate bar by Nestle has adopted the slogan, "It's not for girls." Interesting, then, that you can get it packed not with testosterone but raisins and biscuit (cookie to you and me). Cost: $1.99 at the British Tea Garden and Rooftop Cafe in Tecumseh, Mich.

•Mini-cup jellies. These slimy treats are like kiddie Jello-shots. They don't pack the flavorful punch you might expect, but the experience of squeezing one straight into your mouth is unforgettable. Cost: $2.49 for per bag at Asian Grocery on McCord Road.