"national cotton candy day" news and stories

Happy National Cotton Candy Day!

Long a staple at circuses, amusement parks and county fairs across the country, cotton candy is beloved as a whimsical and edible piece of childhood nostalgia. Though the concept of spun sugar dates back to the 1700s, cotton candy as we know it dates back to the early 1900s, when it first came to be known as "fairy floss."

Although its debut is debated -- some argue the Ringling Brothers take credit for it, while others claim the sugary treat was first showcased at St. Louis' 1904 World's Fair -- one thing is certain: Tennesseans John Wharton and William Morrison patented an early cotton-candy machine in 1899, "in which a revolvable or rotating pan or vessel containing candy or melted sugar causes the said candy or melted sugar to form into masses of thread-like or silk-like filaments by the centrifugal force due to the rotation of the vessel." The devices haven't changed much -- and cotton candy is still a delightful confection to modern audiences of all ages, currently being served at popular restaurants like Landmarc and BLT Fish today.

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OK, I just don't associate cotton candy with December. Sure, it has a certain winter/snowy look to it, all fluffy, but I associate it with carnivals and amusement parks and maybe parades. In other words, to me, cotton candy = summer.

But today is National Cotton Candy Day. You can learn about the history of the classic treat at Wikipedia, and then after that you can make some Cotton Candy Sugar Cookies. You can even use red and green sugar if you want to make them Christmas cookies.

Here it is -- July 31, and it looks like they tried to squeeze in three food holidays before the month was over.

Today is National Jump For Jelly Beans Day, National Cotton Candy Day, and National Raspberry Cake Day. Why Raspberry Cake is so popular it gets its own holiday I have no idea, but there you go. Here's a recipe for Raspberry Cake from Annie's Recipe Kitchen, and did you know you can make cotton candy at home?

As for jelly beans, you can get some recipes from Jelly Belly. They aren't "recipes" in the classic sense, they are actually combos of jelly beans you pop in your mouth that create a dessert. For example, 2 chocolate pudding jelly beans + 1 cappuccino jelly bean + 1 peanut butter jelly bean = Mud Pie!