National Candy Cane Day is celebrated on the day after Christmas every year. A candy cane is a cane-shaped boiled sweet stick candy. It is mostly associated with the Christmas holidays. It is a common white with stripes of red color and flavored with peppermint.
Not only peppermint, it is also made with a variety of characters in different colors. The cinnamon-flavored candies are quite popular. It is otherwise known as Santa’s cane.
History of Candy Cane Day:
The exact origin and the founder of National Candy Cane Day are still unknown. There is an Interesting story about how the candy canes came into existence during the Christmas holidays.
According to Folklore in Cologne, Germany in the 17th century, candy canes were first introduced when a choirmaster needed to find a way to keep the children quiet during the Christmas Eve holidays.
He ordered peppermint Candy Canes from a local confectioner. But the choirmaster had a few twists of his own by steeping them into religious symbolism.
Initially, he requested the candy canes should be in the shape that they could be the visual presentation of sorts of the candy canes that the shepherds were coming to visit the baby Jesus might have had.
Some people say that when sticks are turned upside down they become the letter J, which stands for Jesus. Further, he asked that the sticks be in red and white color. The white color symbolizes the sinless and pure life Jesus lived.
The red color symbolizes blood lost by Jesus when he was crucified for the sins of humanity. However, there is no evidence for this story and historians of candy cane have disputed these ideas.
But you can enjoy candy cane day with or without knowledge of the origin of Candy Canes. The largest candy cane was fifty-one feet long and it was made by Geneva pastry chef Alain Roby in 2012.
How to Celebrate National Candy Cane Day:
Nearly Two billion Candy Canes were made every year for Christmas Holidays. Candy Canes can be served as an additive to hot chocolates and other drinks. They can be used to decorate Christmas Trees.
How to observe National Candy Cane Day:
Do you have candy cane traditions? Enjoy one from your stocking or pluck one from the tree. Share a candy cane with your sweetheart, neighbor or child in your life. However you celebrate, be sure to use hashtags when posting on social media.
Fun Candy Cane Facts:
- The average candy cane is 5 inches tall.
- While most candy canes are not sugar or calorie-free, they do not have any fat or cholesterol.
- Striped red and white candy canes were first introduced in 1900.
- The first machine to make candy canes was invented in 1921 by Brasher O. Westerfield. Until then, they were made by hand.
- Bob McCormack and his brother-in-law & priest Gregory Keller brought the candy cane to the masses.
- What started out as candy-making for McCormack’s friends and family turned into mass production when Keller invented the machine that enabled Bob’s Candies to go big time.
- Traditionally the flavor for candy canes is peppermint, but there are a variety of flavors.
- Alain Roby, Geneva pastry chef, holds the Guinness World Record for the longest candy cane, measuring 51 feet long.
