Halloween Hot, Getting Even Hotter

The weather may have turned chilly, but Halloween is hot.

Tombstone Pizza, which humbly declares itself the “Official Pizza of Halloween,” calls it “the fastest-growing holiday in America.” The company cites National Retail Federation figures showing three in four adults plan to participate in a Halloween activity this year, and two out of three will wear costumes.

And the Wilton cake decorating company goes so far as to suggest Halloween could be “the holiday of the next millennium.”

Close to 80 percent of adults aged 18 to 34 celebrate Halloween, putting it ahead of Valentine’s Day and Easter for that age group and just behind Mother’s Day, according to a Wilton survey. And the figure for folks 55 and older remains respectable, at almost 50 percent.

Halloween, by the way, was rated the fifth most-important food holiday, following Thanksgiving, Labor Day, Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. Topping the menu: candy, of course, followed by pie.

Wilton says Halloween’s appeal “lies in its celebration of creativity and youth, as well as the license it gives to behave slightly out of the ordinary for one night.” (Funny, we thought that was New Year’s Eve.)

Choc talk

So what’s the hot Halloween candy among kids?

Chocolate remains most popular, favored by 50 percent of children aged 6 to 11, followed by other candy at 26 percent and gum at 7 percent, according to a survey for the National Confectioners Association/Chocolate Manufacturers Association. Cookies and other baked goods and salty snacks managed a mere 1 percent each.

Kids aged 9 to 11 are more likely to choose chocolate, while more than twice as many girls as boys go for gum.

Y2Cookie

Speaking of the millennium (and who isn’t these days?), this year’s Quaker Oatmeal “Bake it Better With Oats” contest is asking entrants to “Create the Oatmeal Cookie of the New Millennium.”

There are three categories: regular, low-fat and by kids (with an adult’s help). Grand prize is $10,000, with $1,000 for the winner in each category.

Entry deadline is Nov. 30. For complete rules, call (800) 367-6287, visit www.quakeroatmeal.com or e-mail to OatContest@aol.com.

Computer chips

Cookie lovers can check out the winners of the Land O’Lakes Great American Family Cookie Swap contest at www.landolakes.com.

There’s everything from Frosted Banana Cookies to Maple Butter Pecan Shortbread to Raspberry White Chocolate Bars. (Just don’t try handing them out for Halloween.)