It's My Treat!
■ · By Darth · Published 2023-09-11T11:00:30.870Z
Meta Prompt
The answer to the meta is my favorite treat!
I'm always surprised to find Halloween candy on the store shelves in early August, right there next to back-to-school supplies. I don't know why we can't just enjoy summer a little longer before rushing into fall festivities.
That said, this puzzle has nothing to do with "trick or treat" candy, but about a special treat that I personally enjoy ALL year round!
I'm Darth, and this is my debut crossword puzzle. It's also a meta, so there is a "trick" to discover, but I'm confident you will solve it! May the Force be with you, and I hope you enjoy my treat! (Special thanks to Peter Abide for his editing advice, support and encouragement.)
Checking for previous play data...
Leaderboard (updated hourly)
- Ergcat solved at 11:34 on 9/11/2023
- Capn Rick solved at 11:49 on 9/11/2023
- Bird Lives solved at 12:16 on 9/11/2023
- Cindy Heisler solved at 12:24 on 9/11/2023
- boharr solved at 12:43 on 9/11/2023
- Hector solved at 13:01 on 9/11/2023
- Tyrpmom solved at 13:03 on 9/11/2023
- Meg solved at 13:15 on 9/11/2023
- rjy solved at 13:43 on 9/11/2023
- I K Snamhcok solved at 13:52 on 9/11/2023
- SamKat9 solved at 14:12 on 9/11/2023
- michaelm solved at 14:26 on 9/11/2023
- Dave C solved at 15:29 on 9/11/2023
- ajk solved at 15:41 on 9/11/2023
- lbray53 solved at 15:50 on 9/11/2023
- Gutman solved at 15:52 on 9/11/2023
- Carolyn solved at 15:55 on 9/11/2023
- JM solved at 16:03 on 9/11/2023
- heidi solved at 17:04 on 9/11/2023
- JHSeeman solved at 17:05 on 9/11/2023
- imontoo solved at 18:05 on 9/11/2023
- markhr solved at 18:25 on 9/11/2023
- whimsy solved at 18:25 on 9/11/2023
- Mwoychick solved at 18:28 on 9/11/2023
- DrTom solved at 18:34 on 9/11/2023
- Tom Wilson solved at 18:44 on 9/11/2023
- Cindy Weatherman solved at 18:51 on 9/11/2023
- Katiedid solved at 19:12 on 9/11/2023
- DrButtBeard solved at 20:06 on 9/11/2023
- BrennerTJ solved at 20:49 on 9/11/2023
- KayW solved at 23:01 on 9/11/2023
- HeadinHome solved at 23:09 on 9/11/2023
- CPJohnson solved at 0:10 on 9/12/2023
- Qmark solved at 0:59 on 9/12/2023
- Berto solved at 1:48 on 9/12/2023
- Sobekneferu solved at 2:07 on 9/12/2023
- Laura M solved at 4:25 on 9/12/2023
- hoover solved at 5:16 on 9/12/2023
- Alex Sisti solved at 12:13 on 9/12/2023
- Jaclyn solved at 16:53 on 9/12/2023
- DIS solved at 17:06 on 9/12/2023
- BarbaraK solved at 20:48 on 9/12/2023
- Anita and Steve solved at 21:37 on 9/12/2023
- jbird solved at 4:02 on 9/13/2023
- Dow Jones solved at 5:20 on 9/13/2023
- Eric Porter solved at 11:38 on 9/13/2023
- DCBilly solved at 12:54 on 9/13/2023
- MatthewL solved at 14:28 on 9/13/2023
- woozy solved at 15:01 on 9/13/2023
- kurtalert solved at 16:33 on 9/13/2023
- Schmeel solved at 17:27 on 9/13/2023
- Steve M solved at 6:23 on 9/14/2023
- bhamren solved at 13:33 on 9/14/2023
- Pair O Ducks solved at 17:46 on 9/14/2023
- Deb W solved at 2:10 on 9/15/2023
- BethA solved at 3:34 on 9/15/2023
- SJ solved at 11:23 on 9/15/2023
- Sanne solved at 21:47 on 9/15/2023
- Tane solved at 5:10 on 9/16/2023
- Mikey G solved at 5:04 on 9/17/2023
- Philip Chow solved at 5:08 on 9/17/2023
Comments
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- Ergcat 11:54 · 2023-09-11T11:35:39.258ZMy favorite treat too! Great debut, Darth! Go treat yourself!
- Bird Lives 3s · 2023-09-11T12:17:45.337ZSweet.
- Thanks, Jay. Glad you enjoyed it. Nice to see you on the Tuesday night Zoom call, too.
- boharr 2s · 2023-09-11T12:43:45.480ZCool debut. Thanks.
- Hector 🤓8:01 · 2023-09-11T13:02:08.164ZI know what I'm having for breakfast...
- Meg 4s · 2023-09-11T13:17:30.456ZSome nice distractions. Is this your first? Congratulations!!
- I didn't want it to be too easy for you, Meg. Thanks for solving. Yes, it's my first. A learning experience, but I was surprised at how it all came together.
- Tyrpmom 2s · 2023-09-11T13:05:07.165ZExcellent puzzle. Thanks.
- I K Snamhcok 1s · 2023-09-11T13:53:42.021ZProbably my fave too. Got all the fixing’s. I may have one for a late breakfast!
- SamKat9 🤓10:34 · 2023-09-11T14:14:54.412ZWell done on the puzzle! (And a delicious treat)
- Dave C 3s · 2023-09-11T15:29:45.573ZGood job!
- Very nice indeed. Congrats on the excellent debut! I spent some time chasing exclamation points, since there seemed to be an abundance. Then all the treats in the grid and clues. Finally came back to the title and thought it was kind of strange that it answered one of the clues. The a few beats later I was like 'it would be funny if the ON ME was literal...'
- I tend to overuse exclamation marks naturally! But the treats and sweet clues were supposed to create an illusion of something more to be found. You followed my intended path and so glad that ON ME wasn't too much of a giveaway!
- Carolyn 3s · 2023-09-11T15:55:46.961ZYum! Nice puzzle, nice treat!
- imontoo 2s · 2023-09-11T18:06:32.907ZPerfect debut for a Monday after a very challenging weekend meta! Good job!
- whimsy 11:25 · 2023-09-11T18:41:22.312ZGreat fun scampering through those clues, entries, and treats! Wonderful debut, and glad that you've become a member of the construction crew, Darth!
- Thanks for your kind words, whimsy! Nice to see you on the Tuesday night Zoom call, too.
- Tom Wilson 🤓5:12 · 2023-09-11T18:45:30.760ZVery nice! I wandered for a bit, then the lights came on. A sweet debut, for sure.
- Oh good, Tom. I didn't want the meta to be too obvious, so I had to put in a few distractions to make that happen. Thanks for playing along and glad you enjoyed the Aha moment.
- Super inaugural event! You’ve done it now, we are going to expect many more! Thanks for a great start to the week. I looked all over for the “hook” until I went back to look at the title which was NOT “Trick or Treat” as I was telling myself but “it’s my treat” and then I knew what must be done, particularly with your nudge. NICE job.
- Thanks, and good going, DrTom! I didn't want you to gobble it up too fast...brain freeze, you know. Thanks for solving, and for your inspiration.
- Great debut, Darth - thanks for the Boise reference, too!
- KayW 🤓5:07 · 2023-09-11T23:02:31.590ZCongratulations on a tasty debut!! Loved the cluing and the solve. And now it's time for dessert...
- HeadinHome 🤓1:39 · 2023-09-11T23:10:13.740ZThis is one of those that when you get it, you get it, and it’s really fun to find the pieces then. Great puzzle and fun cluing!
- Qmark 4s · 2023-09-12T01:00:05.118ZGreat debut puzzle! Thanks!
- Laura M 🤓5:28 · 2023-09-12T04:26:58.034ZVery nice debut!
- Excellent! Sorry I didn't solve it as a tester, but well worth jumping back in today. More please~
- Oh, ok. No worries. Peter had told me he was sending it to you because there were a couple "problem pieces" he thought you might comment on. So, I assumed they passed inspection. haha
- DIS 🤓5:16 · 2023-09-12T17:11:06.353ZI love how you used used ONME49D"I'll pick up the tab!"[----] to get from the title to the mechanism -- subtle but enough. Now to find some dessert.
- Thanks. I had pondered whether the ONME49D"I'll pick up the tab!"[----] was making the mechanism too obvious, but I think I agree with you. Plus, that corner was tricky to construct with the needed NM in the answer there.
- BarbaraK 2s · 2023-09-12T23:04:42.306ZGreat meta!And I especially loved the clue for 41A41ABanking aids?[--------]. Took me longer than I care to admit to see where that was going.
- Thanks for solving. Nice to see you on the Zoom call tonight, too.
- MatthewL 🤓5:58 · 2023-09-13T14:29:32.233ZGot it with the nudges. Was way, way overthinking this, as usual. Nice debut, Darth!
- Terrific! I got rabbit-holed on OREO1ATreat that's twisted (to savor the dark sides!)[----] for a while, and started looking for things to twist- then connected with the "Saw the opposite way?" clue... together, that had me thinking - OK, let's find answers that are still words when reversed. And there are a lot... enough to make me think this is a good path. ARE, SAID, PLUG, SAW, LONE, TROW, LIVED, RATER, USED, and PEEK. Furthermore, a number of these stand out as somewhat "weird" grid entries- DESU50Dwww.____.edu (HBCU in Dover)[----], RETAR43DRepair a road or a roof[-----], WORT12DSt. John's herbal remedy[----], DIAS50A"Buenos ____!" ("Good day!")[----], and ENOL11DHydroxyl compound[----] are all- at the very least- uncommonly used grid entries.Well, I'm sad to report... all of those grid entries and their clues do absolutely nothing together! LOL.
- Wow, what a twisted journey! Hope it was fun and not tortuous. Yeah, 1A1ATreat that's twisted (to savor the dark sides!)[----] was a big distraction. Thanks for hanging in there!
- BethA 7s · 2023-09-15T03:37:58.866ZEnjoyed it! Thx for the puzzle! !!
- loved it! thank you for sharing... and now i'm hungry
1A
Treat that's twisted (to savor the dark sides!)
1
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Across
- 1ATreat that's twisted (to savor the dark sides!)
- 5AFlat-bottomed boat
- 9APrepare a hot drink (or make beer)
- 13AHappy, rush, or the eleventh
- 14AHumerus neighbor (but nothing funny about it)
- 15AGrand or upright, say
- 16AConfections made of whipped egg whites and sugar
- 18AWhat is______? ("How do you use this object?")
- 19AZoom log in using company credentials (abbr.)
- 20ACandied tubers on a Thanksgiving table
- 21AThaw again
- 22AOld West lawman Wyatt
- 23ASegment of history
- 24AHuggable, like a teddy bear
- 27AEnter illegally, as private land
- 32ARolex rival
- 33ACrossword nerd
- 34A"Turn right!", in the Iditarod
- 35AYield to pressure
- 36ABlack cats and comets, to some
- 37ALatvia's capital
- 38AJamaican singer whose "Cheerleader" became a worldwide hit
- 39AAhsoka ___, Force-wielder in the Star Wars universe
- 40APetty officer on a ship
- 41ABanking aids?
- 44ADoyle's detective Sherlock
- 45AConcert merch
- 46AWedding wear
- 47AUses ALL CAPS in a post
- 50A"Buenos ____!" ("Good day!")
- 51ANoah's craft
- 54AResident of a Sichuan sanctuary
- 55ABackbones
- 57ABugs bugs this guy
- 58AJacob's hairy twin
- 59ALike my jokes, so I'm told (Hey, did I tell you the one about a duck with a limp?)
- 60AJohn and Jane, and their anonymous family
- 61ABig ____ (7-Eleven drink, or the response when Vader enters the room)
- 62ARecipe amt.
Down
- 1DResistance units
- 2DSushi bar selections
- 3DFrench bread (about $1.10 in the market today)
- 4D"Either you do it, ___ will!"
- 5DOverly sweet, like Krispy Kremes
- 6DCompact mass, as a piece of sod
- 7DTill fill (Can you make change for a five?)
- 8DSaw the opposite way?
- 9DPC image file format
- 10DActor Spall in Prometheus, Life of Pi, and The Big Short
- 11DHydroxyl compound
- 12DSt. John's herbal remedy
- 15DPlaces to fish or dock your boat
- 17DAfrican antelope with spiral horns
- 21DSmells like rotten eggs
- 22DThe crispy part of a brownie
- 24DHot drink topped with marshmallows
- 25DSavory quality (not sweet, sour, bitter, or salty)
- 26DWhose food is dark chocolate cake, apparently
- 27DNew drivers, often
- 28DCasino city
- 29DGrievance faced by seniors (Var.)
- 30DSmooth transition
- 31DPenn, Connery, and others
- 33DFBI agent
- 36DNative Nebraskans
- 37DToss of the dice
- 40DFrench-named state capital, called "The City of Trees" (per Mark Woychick)
- 42DItems on your Chopin list?
- 43DRepair a road or a roof
- 44DRaise the temperature
- 46DHow some YouTube videos go
- 47DHustled down the highway
- 48DXbox franchise turned TV series
- 49D"I'll pick up the tab!"
- 50Dwww.____.edu (HBCU in Dover)
- 51DThe A of the UAE (though most of its population is South Asian)
- 52DLos Angeles team that got its start in Cleveland, Ohio
- 53DFortified castle tower (used as a "safe room" should the castle fall to enemies)
- 55DLazily lie about (like a carrot or piece of broccoli?)
- 56DPopular three-layer sandwich, for short
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