There is a candy cane decoration on the front lawn of a house I walk by. The red and white stripes gleam in the sunlight and are accented with two bows — a large red one with white polka dots and a smaller one with red and white stripes. There is even a red “Happy Holidays” gift tag with white writing. All in all — a perfect Christmas decoration. I do like the pure sugar confection called a candy cane. It is not only attractive to look at, but also tastes delicious and gives you fresh, minty breath! Peppermint is usually a flavor I sample only around the holidays. One time I did plan a rush party for my college sorority where peppermint floats — Sprite or 7-Up with peppermint ice cream — were served. Scrumptious! I have seen candy cane decorations line sidewalks leading up to front doors or encircling various landscaping designs. There is something striking about the red contrasting with the white that is really appealing. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the colors mimic those of Santa’s suit. So, let’s find out some more about the ubiquitous candy cane.
According to Wikipedia, a candy cane is a cane-shaped stick candy often associated with Christmastide, as well as Saint Nicholas Day.
For most Christian denominations, such as the Roman Catholic Church and the United Methodist Church, Christmastide begins on December 24 at sunset or vespers, which is liturgically the beginning of Christmas Eve. Most of December 24 is thus not part of Christmastide, but of Advent, the season in the church year that precedes Christmastide. In many liturgical calendars, Christmastide is followed at sunset on January 5 — known as Twelfth Night — by the closely related season of Epiphanytide.
Saint Nicholas Day — also called the Feast of Saint Nicholas — is observed on December 6 or on December 5 in Western Christian countries, and on December 19 in Eastern Christian countries using the old church calendar. It is the feast day of Nicholas of Myra with particular regard to his reputation as a bringer of gifts. Saint Nicholas of Myra — also known as Nicholas of Bari — was an early Christian bishop of Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor during the time of the Roman Empire.
In the European countries of Germany and Poland, boys have traditionally dressed as bishops and begged alms for the poor. In Ukraine and Poland, children wait for St. Nicholas to come and to put a present under their pillows provided that the children were good during the year. Children who behaved badly may expect to find a twig or a piece of coal under their pillows. In the Netherlands, Dutch children put out a clog filled with hay and a carrot for Saint Nicholas' horse. On Saint Nicholas Day, gifts are tagged with personal humorous rhymes written by the sender.
On Saint Nicholas Day celebrations, candy canes are given to children as they are also said to represent the crosier of the Christian bishop, Saint Nicholas; crosiers allude to the Good Shepherd, an epithet associated with Jesus.
Candy canes are traditionally white with red stripes and flavored with peppermint, but they also come in a variety of other flavors and colors.
History
A record of the 1837 Exhibition of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association, where confections were judged competitively, mentions "stick candy". A recipe for straight peppermint candy sticks — white with colored stripes — was published in 1844. The "candy cane" is found in literature in 1866, though no description of color or flavor was provided. “The Nursery” monthly magazine noted them in association with Christmas in 1874, and the “Babyland” magazine mentioned canes being hung on Christmas trees in 1882.
Folklore
A common folkloric story of the origin of candy canes says that in 1670, in Cologne, Germany, the choirmaster at Cologne Cathedral — wishing to remedy the noise caused by children in his church during the living crèche tradition of Christmas Eve — asked a local candy maker for some "sugar sticks" for them. To justify the practice of giving candy to children during worship services, he asked the candy maker to add a crook to the top of each stick, which would help children remember the shepherds who visited the infant Jesus. In addition, he used the white color of the converted sticks to teach children about the Christian belief in the sinless life of Jesus. From Germany, candy canes spread to other parts of Europe, where they were handed out during plays reenacting the Nativity. The candy cane became associated with Christmastide.
Production
As with other forms of stick candy, the earliest canes were manufactured by hand. Chicago confectioners the Bunte Brothers filed one of the earliest patents for candy cane-making machines in the early 1920s. In 1919 in Albany, Georgia, Robert McCormack began making candy canes for local children and by the middle of the century, his company — originally the Famous Candy Co., then the Mills-McCormack Candy Co., and later Bobs Candies — had become one of the world's leading candy cane producers. Candy cane manufacturing initially required a fair bit of labor that limited production quantities; the canes had to be bent manually as they came off the assembly line to create their curved shape, and breakage often ran over 20 percent. McCormack's brother-in-law, Gregory Harding Keller, was a seminary student in Rome who spent his summers working in the candy factory back home. In 1957, Keller — as an ordained Roman Catholic priest of the diocese of Little Rock — patented his invention, the Keller Machine, which automated the process of twisting soft candy into spiral striping and cutting it into precise lengths as candy canes.
Peppermint medicine and candy
According to the Dec. 22, 2019 article “The history of candy canes and why they taste so cool” in The Conversation, even the iconic flavor of candy canes is full of mystery, as no one knows who first created peppermint confections.
Peppermint is a strong-smelling hybrid plant, a cross between a watermint and spearmint. Peppermint is one of the world’s oldest medicinal herbs used to treat stomach-related illnesses such as indigestion and nausea, in both eastern and western medicine.
During the 18th century, candies were medicinal, meaning that your local apothecary was also your candy maker. That’s because the medicinal ingredients that were prescribed were usually unpalatable concoctions of herbs.
To help get the patient to consume the unpleasant medicine, chemists would suspend the herbs in sugar. Peppermint was often added to these sugar mixtures because its cooling taste helped to mask the flavor of awful-tasting drugs. The peppermint Altoids was invented in 1781 by the London confectioner Smith & Company, which also made medicinal lozenges.
It wasn’t until the 19th century that the apothecary and candy maker started to become separate professions. After the U.S. Civil War, the price of sugar fell, opening the door to the rise of candy. By the mid-19th century, peppermints had become a popular European candy. However, it is still unclear as to the exact person who first developed the idea.
The first mention — at least in the United States — of peppermint-flavored sugar sticks also appeared in the 19th century. A cookbook written in 1844 and titled “The Complete Confectioner, Pastry-cook and Baker” included instructions on how to make peppermint candy sticks.
One thing that is certain is that the red and white stripes on a candy cane are a modern invention.
Candy canes were originally solid white, but during the turn of the 20th century stripes started to appear. Prior to the late 19th century, Christmas cards of that period show nothing but plain white candy.
Candy Cane Lane in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Candy Cane Lane — also known as YEG Candy Cane Lane — is the informal name of a residential street in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, which hosts an annual holiday tradition every Christmas. Residents and volunteers decorate the exterior of houses and yards on the street, creating a festive, brightly lit atmosphere, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the city and beyond. YEG Candy Cane Lane is currently situated on 148 Street between 100
Avenue and 92 Avenue. It officially opens on December 7 and runs until January 1. The attraction also offers bonfires, warming shelters and sleigh rides.
Candy Cane Lane began in 1968, when a few families decorated their homes with holiday ornaments. These mainly consisted of hand-painted wooden decorations, which were popular at the time. They repeated this the following year, and as of 2018, the event has been held annually for 50 years.
In 2017, YEG CCL donated 12 trucks of food to the Edmonton Food Bank, making it the second largest contributor to the food bank after the Heritage Days Festival.
In 2019, for the first time, CCL will only be accessible to non-motorized traffic.
In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only drive-thru visits are allowed at Candy Cane Lane.
Candy Cane Lane in Duboistown, Pennsylvania
Candy Cane Lane is the name given to the 200 block of Summer Street in Duboistown in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania when it is decorated for Christmas from Thanksgiving to the Epiphany each year. In 2007 Candy Cane Lane celebrated its 50th anniversary and was honored with a parade and a proclamation by the mayor of the borough proclaiming the month of "December as Candy Cane Lane month forever more in Duboistown."
Duboistown is a borough in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, which is about
130 miles northwest of Philadelphia and
165 miles east-northeast of Pittsburgh. Duboistown is between the West Branch Susquehanna River to the north and Bald Eagle Mountain to the south. The city of Williamsport lies to the north of Duboistown across the river; the borough of South Williamsport is east, and Armstrong Township is to the west and south.
Summer Street runs north–south in Duboistown, with Winter Street to the west and Spring Street to the east. Summer Street is only two blocks long and the 200 block is between Euclid Avenue — which is also Pennsylvania Route 654 — to the north and Highland Avenue to the south. The 200 block of Summer Street is the part of the street known as Candy Cane Lane.
“Candy Cane Children” song
"Candy Cane Children" is a single by American garage rock band The White Stripes. Released in late November 2002, this Christmas song is featured on the independent holiday-themed compilation Surprise Package Volume 2, released in 1998. The album title is a reference to die-hard fans of The White Stripes, who are called "Candy Cane Children."
On the 7" vinyl record there are inscriptions on Side A and Side B. Side A reads: "Whammy=Santa Voice." Side B reads: "Ghosts in the background."
"Candy Cane Lane" song
Sia Kate Isobelle Furler was born on December 18, 1975. She is an Australian singer, songwriter, voice actress and director. She started her career as a singer in the acid jazz band Crisp in the mid-1990s in Adelaide. “Everyday Is Christmas” is the eighth studio album and first Christmas album by Australian singer-songwriter Sia, released by Atlantic Records and Monkey Puzzle on November 17, 2017. The album is her debut album with Atlantic. The album features original songs co-written and produced with Greg Kurstin. The lead single, “Santa’s Coming for Us,” was released on October 30, 2017 and "Snowman" was released as a promotional single on November 9. “Candy Cane Lane” is the second track on the album.
“A Kiss on Candy Cane Lane” movie
“A Kiss on Candy Cane Lane” is a Hallmark movie made in 2019. It is a romantic drama in the backdrop of Christmas time in Wisconsin, revolving around two college sweethearts who rekindle their love during the holiday season.
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