With the arrival of spring and sunshine comes Easter, a holiday that’s accompanied by the appearance of chocolate, candy, cookies, and other baked goods on the shelves of grocery stores across the country. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Easter candy is so popular it surpasses Christmas and Halloween in terms of seasonal candy and chocolate sales. You can still enjoy Easter treats while sticking to your weight loss plan, all it requires is some planning ahead of time so that you can get the most out of your choice in treats. We’ve compiled a list of the most popular Easter items so that you can easily compare and contrast the Points values of the treats you love the most. For those who enjoy baking, you'll also find a collection of sweets and treats you can make at home (many of which are perfect for making with the kids.)
Easter chocolate. Bunnies, eggs, and chicks — if it’s Easter-themed, there’s a good chance you can find it in chocolate form. When it comes to chocolate, the key to staying within your PersonalPoints budget is portion control, especially since Easter chocolate tends to come in jumbo sizes. If you aren’t sure about sizes, a kitchen scale comes in handy for pre-portioning pieces of chocolate. Here’s how common forms of Easter chocolate measure up:
- Milk chocolate (various brands, ~1 ½ ounces/40-45 grams): 12-13 PersonalPoints
- Milk chocolate bunny with malt filling (1 package): 3 PersonalPoints
- Crispy solid milk chocolate bunny (½ bunny/50 grams): 14-15 PersonalPoints
- Dark chocolate bunny (½ bunny/50 grams): 12-13 PersonalPoints
- Hollow milk chocolate bunny (¼ bunny/40-43 grams): 12-13 PersonalPoints
- Hollow milk chocolate egg (¼ egg/38-40 grams): 13-14 PersonalPoints
- Mini chocolate eggs (5 eggs): 11 PersonalPoints
- Mini candy coated chocolate eggs (10 eggs): 7 PersonalPoints
Chocolate creme eggs. One of the richest types of chocolate eggs, creme eggs have a hollow chocolate shell filled with a creamy fondant-like filling in a range of flavours such as cookies n’ creme, peanut butter, and caramel (not to mention the original “faux yolk” filling.) The PersonalPoints values of creme eggs are typically on the higher side:
- Original creme filled egg: 9 PersonalPoints
- Cookies n’ creme filled chocolate egg: 11 PersonalPoints
- Peanut butter filled chocolate egg: 13 PersonalPoints
- Mini original creme filled eggs (4 eggs): 10 PersonalPoints
- Mini cookies n’ creme filled eggs (10 eggs): 14 PersonalPoints
- Mini caramel filled eggs (4 eggs): 10 PersonalPoints
- Mini oreo filled eggs (4 eggs): 11 PersonalPoints
Easter cookies. Whether you enjoy making “take and bake” cookies from the refrigerator aisle or prefer to buy them packaged and ready-to-go, there’s no shortage of options when it comes to Easter cookies and other baked goods. Depending on the type of cookie you prefer, the Points-values will vary:
- Chocolate sandwich-style cookies (3 cookies): 8 PersonalPoints
- Vanilla sandwich-style cookies (3 cookies): 8 PersonalPoints
- Roll-out Easter cookie dough cookies (1 package): 8 PersonalPoints
- Chick-shape sugar cookie dough (2 cookies): 5 PersonalPoints
Easter candy. From jujubes to jellybeans, the sheer variety of Easter-themed candy in stores can be overwhelming if you want to stay within your PersonalPoints budget. Here’s a breakdown of some of the most popular items you’ll find at the grocery store:
- Jujubes (8 pieces): 8 PersonalPoints
- Jellybeans (25 pieces): 6 PersonalPoints
- Marshmallow chicks (4 pieces): 7 PersonalPoints
- Smarties (30 pieces): 9 PersonalPoints
- Cotton candy (1 ounce/ 28 grams): 8 PersonalPoints