Reese Cups
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Reese Cups are (loosely) pie-shaped pieces of milk chocolate with peanut butter in the middle. Or you could think of them as peanut butter disks covered with chocolate.  Either way, they have an outward-sloping crenelated (crinkly) rim, the result of being poured in a less tall version of the sort of pleated paper cups commonly used for baking cupcakes.

This would be a fairly non-messy chocolate to eat, except for one thing.  When you peel the paper cup off the candy, it usually results in a shower of small pieces of chocolate breaking off from the rim.  If you are sitting, they will mostly end up in your lap.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups were invented in 1928 by H.B. Reese, a former employee of Milton S. Hershey.  H.B. started the H.B. Reese Candy Company in the basement of his house.  And in 1963 the company was acquired by Hershey, who still make these candies today.

Despite some nutritionally dubious ingredients, I like Reese Cups.  Maybe just force of habit.  But I don't eat a lot of them.

The ingredients list of Reese Cups is similar to a lot of mass-market chocolate candies.  More ingredients that are more highly processed versions of natural foods, or outright chemical-industry contributions.  Polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR) and Tertiary Butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), for example.  Sound appetizing?  Yeah, me neither.  But you get what you pay for.

They do have at least one nutritional advantage though.  Because of the peanut butter, you get more protein per calorie than in most chocolate bars.  Still, given the amount of sugar and fats, you can’t really justify eating these just to get more protein.

Good:

• The sugar here is really sugar (and milk sugar, also known as lactose) rather than cheaper alternatives.
• You get more protein per calorie because of the peanut butter.
  

Doubtful:

• PGPR
• TBHQ
• Was there really some benefit to separating milk into nonfat milk plus milk fat plus lactose before adding it to the recipe?