Eat Like Buddy In Celebration Of Elf's 20th Anniversary

Very rarely does a modern holiday movie have what it takes to earn a spot in the December film canon. After all, new contenders have to live up to classics like Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Carol, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. But Elf, the 2003 film starring Will Ferrell, has held its own for 20 years, and has led to phrases like "Cotton-headed ninnymuggins" and "Son of nutcracker" living rent-free in our heads. In celebration of of the film's 20th anniversary, here are the food brands Elf”ing up their offerings with Buddy-themed products.

Brach's has released three new limited-edition candies in conjunction with Elf's 20th anniversary. Elf Candy Canes come in three flavors: Maple Syrup, World's Best Cup of Peppermint Hot Cocoa, and Cotton Candy Headed Ninny Muggins. The new Swirly Twirly Gum Drops feature Icy Blue Raspberry, Merry Cherry and Sweet Sugarplum flavors and are ideal for eating as a snack or decorating a gingerbread house. Finally, Candy Cane Forest Mellowcreme Candies come in various holiday flavors and feature Elf-specific shapes: Mr. Narwhal, Leon the Snowman, an elf hat, and a Candy Cane.

Keebler is yet another brand partnering with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products to celebrate 20 years of Elf with a limited-time release. The new Elf Gingerbread Fudge Stripes cookies feature white fudge stripes rather than the classic chocolate, and the package includes "four unique designs based on fan-favorite scenes from the film."

Inspired by Buddy the elf's four favorite food groups, Goldfish has released Goldfish Elf Maple Syrup Flavored Grahams. These graham crackers sell for $7.38 for a two-pack of 6.1-ounce bags and are available for a limited time. The Elf'd-up crackers come in the traditional Goldfish shape, as well as shapes inspired by the Elf movie, like Buddy's hat.

On November 24, Krispy Kreme released an Elf Doughnut Collection for a limited time. The lineup includes the Buddy Snow Globe Doughnut, the Buddy Makes Breakfast Doughnut, and the Christmas Lights Doughnut. (Krispy Kreme is bringing back its Santa Belly Doughnut for the collection as well, which features Cookies & Kreme filling.) The doughnuts will also come in a special Elf-printed box.

In Elf, Buddy famously lists the major elf food groups ("candy, candy canes, candy corn, and syrup"), and his spaghetti breakfast with syrup is the entree no one can forget. In honor of that, Mrs. Butterworth's is launching an "Elf"-themed Sugar Cookie Pancake Kit and a specially wrapped bottle of Mrs. Butterworth's Original breakfast syrup.

The kit includes fluffy, sugar cookie-flavored pancake mix (just add water), holiday sprinkles, and creamy frosting. The kit and the syrup sell for $6.99 and $4.19 each, and can be found at most retailers and grocery stores for a limited time.

To experience a restaurant-quality take on Buddy's breakfast spaghetti, you'll have to journey over to The Takeout's hometown of Chicago. Here in the Windy City, Miss Ricky's, an Italian restaurant in Virgin Hotels Chicago, is launching Elf Spaghetti, which includes crispy sweet spaghetti, vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, raspberry coulis, marshmallows, M&M's, crunchy wafers, and, of course, maple syrup. The dish first debuted in 2018 for Elf's 15th anniversary and is available this year from November 20 to December 31 for $16.

Here's a totally inedible but worthy mention: MGA's Miniverse, a line of miniature toys, has inked a partnership with Warner Bros. to release a DIY collectible series of Elf-themed food capsules. One of the four capsules contains the highly sought-after Buddy the Elf Spaghetti dish. The other capsules contain a mini roast turkey, hot cocoa, or gingerbread house, and the collection can be found at Target, Amazon, or Walmart. Though this "food" is purely decorative, we have to give this lineup credit for its attention to detail.

There are so many ways to elf up your holiday season, they could light up the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. Just be careful to avoid a sugar rush while celebrating.