The History of Candy Canes
It is long believed that Candy Canes originated centuries ago as a reward for well behaved children in Church. Legend states that Cologne Cathedral in Germany handed out what was then known as sugar sticks to the children to keep the young singers quiet in hopes of keeping them well behaved as well. In honor of the occasions, the candies were bent at the top to look more like a Sheppard hook.
Another legend states that the Candy Cane was first introduced in the 1880 by a candy maker in India. He wanted to make a candy that could be a witness to everyone during the holiday season. The candy maker began with a stick of pure white to represent the virgin birth and the sinless nature of Jesus Christ.
The hardness of the candy was meant to represent Jesus as the Solid Rock and the foundation of the church, as well as the firm promise's of God. The white stripes on the Candy Cane represent the purity of Christ, while the small red stripes symbolize the scourging of Jesus before he was hung on the cross. The large red stripes show the blood Jesus shed for each of us on the cross, the ultimate and final sacrifice.
He then fashioned the candy cane into the shape of a shepherd's staff because Jesus is the shepherd of all. Whether it was intended or not, if you flip the Candy Cane around, it will become the letter "J" which of course is first letter of Jesus' name.
What is known for certain is that in 1920, Bob McCormack started to make Candy Canes as special Christmas treats. By the 1950's, Gregory Keller invented a machine to automate the candy cane production (Greg was Bob's Brother-In-Law).
Merry Christmas! And remember, Jesus is the reason for the season!
How are Candy Canes Made?
Candy Canes are made using sugar and corn syrup, which is heated up in large vats and then autumn cooked. Once the cooking process finishes, they hot, gooey liquid is poured onto large cooling tables where starch and peppermint are added.
That mixture is then poured into a huge mixer that stirs until the candy become golden brown. At that time is placed onto a puller that will pull and stretch until the candy is pure white. From there the candy heads on down the line where it is formed into a log shaped piece of candy. Then long thin strips of red candy are placed and patted onto the outer log and melted gently onto the log. The log is then replaced on the puller where it is made into a twisted rope and then run over to a cutter the snips the candy into strips and placed into their candy wrappers. The canes then move to a cooker where they are given the crooked handle.
Christmas With Love Hosted and Written by (unless otherwise specified) Jaci Rae.
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