1.) Candy Corn was created in the 1880s by George Renninger, who was employed by the Philadelphia Wunderle Candy Company, now named Jelly Belly Candy Company.
2.) Candy Corn was originally called “Chicken Feed.”
3.) “Chicken Feed” initially had no association with Halloween
4.) Candy Corn, once was more associated with chickens than with Halloween. See this ad for Goelitz’s Candy Corn from the late 1800s that has the tagline, “Something worth crowing over.”
5.) Because of the tedious nature of preparing the candy it use to be only available during March and November
6.) Originally the candy was made by hand
7.) Manufacturers first combined sugar, corn syrup, carnauba wax, and water and cooked them to form a slurry. Fondant was added for texture and marshmallows were added to provide a soft bite. The final mixture was then heated and poured into shaped molds. Three passes, one for each colored section, were required during the pouring process.
8.) The recipe remains basically the same today. The production method, called “corn starch modeling,” likewise remains the same, though tasks initially performed by hand were soon taken over by machines invented for the purpose
9.) Candy corn was such a success it “carried the company through two World Wars and the Depression” –Jelly Belly
10.) After WWII, candy corn was advertised as a Halloween candy and since then there hasn’t been a Halloween without candy corn.
11.) In 1950, the price of candy corn was just 25 cents per pound.
12.) The National Confectioners Association estimates that 90 billion pounds (just over 9,000 metric tons) of candy corn are sold annually.
13.) Jonathan Shenkin, a pediatric dentist and an American Dental Association spokesperson, told HuffPost that candy corn is one of the worst Halloween candies for you because it’s essentially “all sugar.” He also says unlike chocolate bars that contain other ingredients and “clear quickly from the mouth,” there’s no way to “buffer the sugar” from candy corn, allowing the sugar to stay on the teeth longer. “It’s like putting a cavity-inducing injection into your teeth,” Quote
14.) The Bagel Store, with two locations in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, sells a seasonal “Candy Corn Bagel“ every year.
15.) The Chew has its own candy corn martini recipe.
16.) Comedian Lewis Black has dedicated an entire sketch to hating candy corn, saying it’s “the only candy in the history of America that’s never been advertised” because companies keep recycling all the old candy corn we never eat year after year. Hater!
17.) Other existing variations- Manufacturers now produce “Indian corn” (with a brown end instead of yellow) for Thanksgiving, “Reindeer corn” (red and green) for Christmas, “Cupid corn” (red and pink) for Valentine’s Day, “Bunny corn” (white and various bright colors) for Easter and “Freedom corn” (red, white and blue) for July 4.
18.) Celebrate National Candy Corn Day on October 30.
19.) It is believed that this day was chosen due to the fact that sales of the candy are typically the highest on the 30th.
20.) Once opened, store candy corn covered and away from heat and light at room temperature; it should last approximately three to six months. If unopened, the packaged candy corn will last about nine months.
21.) Amy Erickson posted a recipe on her food blog, Oh Bite It!, where you roll three or four candy corn kernels in a ball of dough and deep fry it. Wonder how that taste!
22.) Have you ever heard this weird, brainwashing Nick Jr song by Moose .A. Moose & Zee called “I Don’t Like Candy Corn” (sorry this is the best video I could find).
GET CREATIVE WITH CANDY CORN!
23.)Try this Halloween Candy Corn Popcorn Hand Food Fun recipe:
24.) Try this Homemade Candy Corn Recipe:
25.) Try Candy Corn Donuts:
26.) Can you sew a Candy Corn pillow? Check out this tutorial.
27.) A Candy Corn Math printable for your First Grader.
28.) Check out these Candy Corn themed craft ideas
29.) Check out these Candy Corn themed decoration ideas
30.) Check out these cute Candy Corn poems
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candy_corn
http://www.candyfavorites.com/blog/candy-corn-history/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/17/candy-corn-facts_n_5961586.html
http://www.bhg.com/halloween/recipes/the-history-of-candy-corn/
http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/28/living/candy-corn-facts/
Good afternoon, Latisha. What a cute post. I guess I’m on the fence about Candy Corn – I can take it or leave it. But I do think it speaks to us of fall. I’ve seen it used to fill a vase with a candle and decorated with fall leaves. I really didn’t know any of those interesting facts about Candy Corn either. Thanks for sharing and I pray you have a blessed rest of the weekend.
Rebecca,
Thanks for reading. I hope you have an awesome Fall.
Definitely didn’t know that it started out called “Chicken Feed”. I’m a candy corn fan for sure–liked learning a little more about a favorite candy!
Hi Rachel,
Thanks for checking out this post. I found these little tidbits of info on Candy Corn to be very fascinating. It is really cool to learn the history behind the snacks and products we love. Blessing to you.
I made my girls candy corn dresses last year! :) One of my daughters wore hers yesterday at church and got compliments on it. It’s a cute seasonal thing, but I can’t stand the taste, lol. http://grtlyblesd.blogspot.com/2014/09/sew-along-make-candy-corn-dress.html
Hi Shecki,
Wow, that dress is so beautiful. I wish I could make a dress like that. I can’t even sew. I hope to maybe learn someday. It would be great to be able to make clothes for myself and my family.Blessing to you and I wish you lots of joy for this season and beyond.
You missed our favorite way to enjoy candy corn! (Or I somehow missed it, correct me if I’m wrong here!) We love to mix candy corn with peanuts and eat them together. It tastes like a Baby Ruth. Yum!
Wow. I’ve never tried that. I’ll give it a try. Thanks for sharing. Blessings to you.
Such a fun post! Love the links to crafting and decorating ideas too! Thanks!!
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wonderful candy corn inspirations thank you for sharing at teh Thursday Favorite Things blog hop. xo
Hi Katherine,
Thanks for the comment and I’m really glad you enjoyed my post. Blessings to you.
This made me smile! I am a huge candy corn addict and look forward to it every fall. I’ll giggle when I eat it now thinking of it as Chicken Feed.
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I haven’t eaten candy corn in many years, but I used to love it when I was a child because growing up, my Grandfather would always give it to me and not just on Halloween, but all throughout the year. Oh, such sweet memories. :-) Anyways, great post! Thanks for sharing, Love! GOD bless you! :-)
My boys love candy corn and while I can’t seem to stop myself from popping one into my mouth here and there I really don’t like it! I can’t wait to share some of these facts with them.