December 7 – National Cotton Candy Day

Posted on December 7, 2014

When I think of cotton candy, I think of summer evenings at an amusement park or carnival, or days at the circus in the sprint or at the county fair in early fall. I don't think dead-of-winter!

However, people who make cotton candy want to remind you that “Fairy Floss,” as it used to be called, can be enjoyed any time of the year!

I would've thought that this treat would've been an invention of the industrial revolution, but in actual fact, rich people in Europe of the 1700s could enjoy the airy treat. (Only the rich, since spinning sugar took a lot of time and effort!)

It took until the early 1900s for a machine to spin sugar was invented. Get this: it was invented by an American dentist working with a candy-maker! And another American dentist, apparently separately, invented another similar machine to spin sugar. I think these dentists knew what they were doing: make a sticky sweet treat that would cause tooth decay... Okay, I'm just kidding (I guess), but it's pretty funny that two different dentists would be responsible for the inventing of this particular sort of machine!

The first dentist, William Morrison, introduced Fairy Floss at the 1904 World's Fair, and he was able to sell 68,655 boxes of the stuff! His 25 cent charge per box would be equivalent to $6.00 now – so it wasn't exactly a bargain!

The second dentist, Joseph Lascaux, used the name “cotton candy” on his patent form, and for some reason the sweet name “Fairy Floss” faded away (except in Australia, where “Fairy Floss” is still commonly used).

Find out how cotton candy is made here

By the way, cotton candy is naturally white, although people often add coloring and flavoring to the sugar before spinning it:
Pashmak is a Persian version of spun sugar with sesame.





Maple-flavored cotton candy from Canada.



Also on this date:












Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day























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