Childhood Snacks Grandma Always Kept Stocked

My family lived across the country from my grandparents when I was growing up, but most summers we would spend at least a few weeks visiting my grandparents. I’m a nostalgic person at heart, but those summer days at my grandparents’ homes still feel like incredibly magical days. For many years my grandparents lived down the road from one another, on the side of a mountain. The hammock under the tree, their gardens, and the dress-ups in the basements are snippets from another time that I feel lucky to hold onto. One of the most nostalgic parts of visiting grandparents is the food. At my grandmas’ homes, Sunday dinners were beautiful and delicious. Some kind of treat was always around. I don’t know what sort of Grandmother Fairy there is, but I swear there must be one who, the day a woman becomes a grandma, leaves a bowl of strawberry bon bons in a crystal bowl or a bulk-sized jar of animal crackers. Because nostalgia gives us a little boost, let’s revisit some of the quintessential snacks that must be on a list the Grandmother Fairy drops off at her preliminary visit to all new grandmothers. Because how else do you explain the universality of these treats?

Werther’s Originals

There is a whole genre of delicious, hard candies that feel undeniably grandma-ish. Werther’s Originals is one of those candies. I love those things, but I suspect that all of us have nearly died choking on one of them. Especially in little mouths, they’re not easy to move around—that is, until you crunch them.

Fruits and Vegetables from Her Own Garden

My maternal grandma is a world-class gardener. Her yards are always beautifully landscaped and kept, with plenty of flowers for cutting and bringing in for an arrangement around the house. But besides that, she and my grandpa have kept extensive plots for growing all sorts of vegetables. Anytime we sat down to eat, especially on a Sunday dinner, you knew that the green beans were from the yard. You probably helped snap them anyway. You’d snacked on the peas while playing in the yard. The pumpkin they would carve in the fall came straight from the vine in her garden plot. The jam was from the raspberry bush and peach tree, and there is nothing (NOTHING!) better than this jam. And luckily, these garden-fresh foods were available all year, because often most of them were canned and stored to last through the winter and into the next year.

Shasta

The soda on hand at grandma and grandpa’s house probably varies by region, but what I always remember at my grandparents’ homes was Shasta. The black cherry flavor was always my favorite, and I’m sure I ruined an outfit or two over the years when the inevitable spill would happen.

…Or Root Beer

Root beer feels old-timey, and with good reason. It’s been around commercially since 1876 but has much earlier indigenous roots, since Native Americans were making something similar medicinally long before. I love a cold root beer, but they’re absolutely at their best in root beer floats. I remember big family gatherings with cousins running all over the place, and root beer floats were often the dessert of choice.

Creamies

I can’t seem to find Creamies at my grocery stores these days, and it’s pretty sad. I loved nothing more than running to the freezer and grabbing one of these chocolate Creamies bars after burning myself to a crisp playing outside all day. Just don’t give me a banana-flavored one.

Mixed Nuts

My husband says that the mixed nuts were a staple at his grandparents’ house, and it turns out that there is a good reason why nuts are so common at grandma’s. In earlier generations, fresh nuts still in their shells were an expensive, rare treat that became a ritual for welcoming home, especially during the winter. Since these nuts still had to have their shells removed, it took time to enjoy the snack, which led to natural conversation and easy activities. Besides that, nuts are often recommended to older individuals by medical professionals since they are great for heart health and brain function.

Strawberry Bon Bons

I think strawberry bon bons are the quintessential grandma treat. Without fail, there was a bowl of them on my paternal grandma’s kitchen counter in a little crystal bowl. They were also often stored in her purse as pick-me-ups during errands, but it always came with a risk of a side eye from strangers. Those wrappers are loud!

Home-Baked Treats

Whether your grandma had a cookie jar or not, I bet you she made some delicious home-baked treats. From the classic chocolate chip cookies to trial-and-error cakes, there was probably something delicious to eat or to help mix up.

Circus Animal Cookies

There are soooooo many renditions of the animal cracker, and somehow they all seem to find a place in my memory of my grandmas. We never had a cookie jar, but grandma did have a ginormous glass jar that was always full of animal crackers. Those babies fueled many an afternoon. The slightly yummier version is the Barnum’s shortbread animal crackers, and it was just a smidgen more fun if you got the pack that came in the box. Both these and the standard animal crackers were great for a snack but also for imaginative play, as long as you didn’t mind the crumbs at every bite. The ultimate animal cracker is the circus animal cookies. The pink-and-white frosting and dashing of nonpareils put them on the top of the animal cracker podium. If your grandma didn’t have these often, I bet she snuck them into a Christmas gift or the stocking at least once.

Gum

I don’t remember my grandmas keeping their purses stocked with gum, but my mother-in-law, who is a top-tier grandma, keeps gum on the ready for any restless grandchild or for the start of a long drive. And can anyone else agree with me that cinnamon gum just gets the certified grandma stamp of approval?

Instant Mashed Potatoes

Don’t judge me for this, but did anyone else try the dried mix straight from the box? I can remember at least once catching a cousin in the pantry pouring themselves a handful and me asking for a bit. Can you blame us? A little flaky, buttery goodness is what most people want for a snack anyway. The prepped mashed potatoes are delicious too though! Stick them beside a pork chop and some steamed broccoli and you’ve got one of grandma’s dinners!

Hard Fruit Candies

We’re back to the genre of hard candies, and it may be time for a face-off: Cream Savers vs. fruit candies. I know it’s not totally fair to pit one against a whole subcategory, but I’d still call it an even match. Those strawberries and cream Life Savers are to die for. The fruit candies varied throughout the years, but it was part of the fun when grandma passed you the tin during church. Would it be the pineapple Retro Sours or Cavendish and Harvey wild berry drops?

Ice Cream

Some grandmas are known for specific flavors of ice cream, while other families recount there was always a box of waffle cones in the kitchen shelves, ready for the next scoop, no matter the flavor.

Rice Krispies Treats

I loved a Rice Krispies Treat as much as the next person, but one of my favorite things about these treats was getting to make them with grandma. If you haven’t tried making these before, they’re so simple and perfect for whipping up as a family activity! All you need is butter, marshmallows, Rice Krispies cereal, and some vanilla extract. Add-ins like sprinkles or other types of cereal are optional but fun. After greasing a 9×13 pan, melt about six tablespoons of butter in a large saucepan. Add one 10-ounce bag of marshmallows to the butter and stir until melted. Add in about one teaspoon of vanilla extract and the Rice Krispies. We always eyeballed the cereal amount until it just looked right. Immediately move the mixture to your 9×13 pan and flatten it with a spatula. Let the treat cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting.

Popcorn

As delicious as buttery move theater popcorn is, the popcorn that is more likely stacking the shelves at grandma’s is the sticky kind. Popcorn balls, Cracker Jack popcorn, or even the kind that comes in a tin. I don’t make the rules. I just know if it’s coated in something sweet, it’s probably at grandma’s.

A Stash of Tea

When I lived in Tennessee, sweet tea was a staple of every grandma’s home, especially in summer. I remember grannies even bringing their homemade sweet tea for the players after soccer games. My grandma, on the other hand, had her own stash of caffeine-free tea bags in the kitchen. Peppermint tea was always allowed in the mornings, complete with a little sugar and a dash of milk. It’s still a favorite drink of mine now.

Jell-O

Fruit and Pudding Cups

Along with the Jell-O, many grandmas like to keep those individual cups of pudding and fruit on hand. They’re a delicious snack, and the juice that’s left over to slurp up is every kid’s syrupy dream.

Pretzels

I think it’s a good call that pretzels are still popular today. Sure, we may not see the tubs of thick sourdough pretzel rods as often anymore, but grandma started a good trend! These days, the Dots pretzels are giving me (and my mom, who is the perfect grandma!) life. If you haven’t tried the cinnamon sugar flavor yet, I’m telling you to just buy an extra bag now. One for the grandkids. One for you.

Little Debbie Snacks

I remember being so excited whenever there was a Little Debbie box at grandma’s. The Oatmeal Creme Pies were my favorite. I haven’t had one in years, but thinking about those chewy cookies with their fluffy marshmallow-like filling makes me want to get some next time we head to the store. What were your favorites?

Your Favorite Treats

Looking through this list, it’s a miracle any of us grew up to still have teeth! Maybe my favorite snack that grandma kept stashed isn’t one specific thing; it was just your favorite snack. It was a running joke in my family while I was a teenager that I loved bacon. I really did, but I don’t remember how I got the reputation. Somehow it just stuck, which was fine by me. One Christmas morning we were opening Christmas presents at my grandparents’ house when my grandma popped out of the chair and came back a minute later with a wrapped gift for me. When she handed it to me, I was surprised because it was cold. I opened it up and burst out laughing. What was it? A package of bacon. It was a funny gift, but it was also something I was genuinely excited about. Whenever we come into town to visit our family now, my mother-in-law still buys a box of the Cheezit Snack Mix since she remembers my husband loved it as a teen, and my mom has a little bowl of dark chocolates on the nightstand since I have some pretty much daily. Even though we remember the treats and snacks that filled the pantry and sat on the counter at grandma’s, it’s not just because they were delicious. I think it’s because we knew these were little representations of her personality and her love.