The Old-School Candy Everyone Loves To Hate That Deserves More Credit

Few candies inspire as much hostility as the innocent-looking circus peanut. The bright orange, peanut-shaped marshmallow candies are treated like a punchline in the sweets world, routinely appearing on scathing lists of the worst candies to give out on Halloween. And yet, circus peanuts have survived for more than a century, and there are plenty of people who wouldn't dream of giving them up — and one of them is me.

From their oh-so-soft outside to the vague banana-y taste and powdery sweet smell, a circus peanut is an old-fashioned delight to me. They're light as air, yet pleasantly chewy. If I'm being perfectly honest, they taste exactly like what I want packing peanuts or fancy bathroom soaps to taste like. You know, household items that just look like they're begging for a little bite. (No, I don't have pica, just an active imagination and a desire for pastel objects.)

The history of circus peanuts goes back to the 1800s, when the sweet was among the unwrapped "penny candies" sold at five-and-dime stores. Exactly why they're shaped like peanuts? No one knows, although one theory is that they were associated with traveling circuses. Some folks believe this storied candy inspires so much disgust because of the visual disconnect. It seems folks can't reconcile the juxtapositions between its appearance, shape, and flavor. Though people are surprised to learn the taste of circus peanuts is banana, its very subtlety is what draws me in, along with the densely fluffy texture.

That unmistakable texture is achieved by combining sugar, corn syrup, gelatin, pectin, and artificial flavoring. The candy is considerably denser and chewier than ordinary marshmallows, which is one of the main attractions for me. And if you leave them out, they get stale and chewier, which some fans also enjoy. But apparently for others, it's downright unbearable. On Reddit, users eviscerate my favorite little candy, harshly commenting: "The taste is abhorrent and the texture reminiscent of a chalky marshmallow left out in a rainstorm." Another bemoaned: "The initial bite is fine, but when you start to chew it just is gross. I'm sorry I just can't."

Perhaps another reason why I have such a sweet spot for the old school candy is that it's the precursor to Lucky Charms, my favorite cereal growing up. Its very fake-ness makes it a novelty, something I can only liken to reading "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" for the first time, where I dreamed one day I'd grow up and get to try lickable wallpaper or the eatable marshmallow pillows.

Unlike interchangeable gummy bears and chocolate bars, circus peanuts have a distinct personality all their own. The candy of grandparents is never going to win over everyone, and frankly, I prefer it that way. My weird peanut puff may be universally mocked, but name another candy that's stuck around for generations, with no co-branded partnerships,fast food chain collabs, or Nerds Gummy Clusters to save it. That kind of staying power deserves some respect.