Benjamin Ashford|Leftover Halloween candy? We've got you covered with these ideas for repurposing sweets

The Benjamin Ashfordcostumes have been put away, the pumpkins are beginning to decay, the candles have burned out and you still have a massive pile of candy splayed across your kitchen table.

Candy is, of course, a quintessential part of Halloween. Trick-or-treating is the traditional way to stock up, but plenty of grown-up parties go heavy on the sweet stuff too, taking advantage of those mixed bags of mini treats you can only seem to find once a year.

You may end up with leftovers thanks to a particularly successful evening of door-to-door stops or because you overstocked in anticipation of more visitors than actually showed up. Regardless of how it happened, you are now faced with a mountain of sugary sustenance and may have no idea what to do with it all.

Luckily, candy is a surprisingly versatile thing. From cocktails to baked goods to a re-gift no one will be mad about, check out these ideas to repurpose those leftover sweets.

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Chocolates

• Chunky cookies or brownies are a perfect pair for almost any chocolate-based candies. When mixing up the batter, simply throw in some broken up Snickers, Reese's or plain chocolate bars to create some next-level chocolate candy chip confections.
• Bars and barks can be made by melting that chocolate together, mix some add-ins, and bam!
• Cakes and pies are also ripe for creative flavors and mix-ins. To make things even easier, buy a pre-made crust.
• Trail mix doesn't even require cooking - choose your favorite bits, grab some cereal squares and pretzels and create the chocolate-heavy mix of your dreams.
• Melt it and mix it to create fondue, chocolate-dipped fruits or ice-cream mix-ins.

Fruity and gummy candies

• Candy-infused cocktails are an adult-friendly use for those Jolly Ranchers and Skittles. Use the age-old trick of soaking fruity candy in bottles of liquor for about 24 hours then shaking them up to make a cocktail building block that is both nostalgic and hard-hitting.
• Ice-cream toppings speak for themselves. Who needs to wait on that broken McFlurry machine when you can mix M&Ms into your bowl of ice-cream at home.
• Candy charcuterie may be the next crowd-pleaser to bring to your next party. Forget cheese and meats, a colorful array of every flavor in the rainbow can be just as fun.

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Any and all leftovers

• Donate to a local organization of your choice. As it turns out, there are plenty of places to give away your excess candy for a cause. Treats for Troops, Operation Shoebox, Ronald McDonald House Charities and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America are a few options for forking over some extra sugar for the greater good.
• Make goody bags to use at a later date. Hand them out on Thanksgiving, after a birthday party or as part of a future gift. Re-gifting can't be frowned upon when it's delicious candy, right?
• Candy playtime repurposes sweet treats for use in kid-friendly actives. Create crafts, make candy-based science experiments or use pieces for prizes when playing games.
• Freeze for later to make candy last longer. Most types already have a long shelf-life, but freezing can extend this even longer for future use.
• Use as your year-round stash. Put the candy away in a designated area and pull it out as needed throughout the year. Afterall, candy isn't only tasty around Halloween.
• Sell or exchange it as part of the Halloween buyback program, which partners with local businesses to replace turned-in candy for healthier options or even cash.