Halloween Candy Tips from Chef and Dad Andrew Gruel: “Make it Worthwhile”

Andrew Gruel is not only a chef and founder of the American Gravy brand. He is also the father of four children.

“So I always struggle with the prospect of a crazy sugar rush on Halloween,” Gruel told Fox News Digital in a Zoom interview from the kitchen of his Southern California home. (See the video at the top of this article.)

Gruel said he has long preferred chocolate over hard candies — and he encourages his kids to be picky when trick-or-treating, too.

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“You have to get the right candy and make it worth it,” he said. “Because you know for sure that when you get home, mom is like the federal government — they go in and tax 45 to 50 percent of that candy, guaranteed.”

Here are three tips he shared with Fox News Digital ahead of Halloween.

Children pick candy from a bowl while trick-or-treating on Halloween. (iStock)

3 cute tips for the Halloween season

1. Buy candy at a better price

One thing Gruel wants all families to know is how to save on Halloween candy. He said one way to do this is to shop at grocery stores.

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“Typically, Restaurant Depot is one of the names of a large restaurant supply store,” Gruel said.

“A few years before the pandemic, they wouldn’t let you in unless you had a restaurant business license. But after the pandemic, you can go in there yourself and actually buy the full-size candy bars for the price of the little ones lead to Halloween.”

Large-format candy bars can be purchased at restaurant supply stores for the price of smaller candy bars, chef Andrew Gruel told Fox News Digital. (iStock)

Other catering stores open to the public include California-based Smart & Final.

BJ's, Costco, and Sam's Warehouse are popular wholesale clubs where shoppers can also purchase candy in bulk. However, shopping at these stores requires an annual membership.

2. Distribute your children's candy

Halloween presents a difficult balancing act when it comes to regulating your children's candy consumption, Gruel admitted.

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“But we tell our kids before they go out, 'Look, you're basically going to be able to pick out 10 or 20 of the best candies in your bag,'” he said, acknowledging that the kids probably have more than will do this on the side while they go trick-or-treating.

A girl and a boy in costumes look at their Halloween candy collection. (iStock)

The rest of the candy, he said, will be distributed or shared with other employees of his restaurant over the next few weeks.

“They're taking it one piece at a time, so it's not the night where – when they're on this sugar rush – you have to go through this tough negotiation process with them,” Gruel said of his children.

3. Melt this candy for a healthier alternative

Although Gruel prefers chocolate to hard candies, he doesn't mind running into a sugar daddy in his kids' Halloween stash.

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One of the reasons the milk caramel lollipop is one of Gruel's favorite candies is because of what you can do with it at home.

California chef Andrew Gruel talks to Fox News Digital about a quick, clever tip for Sugar Daddy candy this Halloween. (Fox News Digital)

He shared a quick and easy trick parents can use to combine the sweets with a healthy fruit.

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“You can actually put these in the microwave and melt them and then dip apple chunks into the sugar daddy and put some candy on top,” Gruel said.

“And you get the perfect candied apple.”