Halloween Candy Corn history

Candy corn is a confection in the United States and Canada, popular primarily in autumn around Halloween (though available year-round in most places). Candy corn was created in the 1880s by George Renninger of the Wunderle Candy Company; the three colors of the candy mimic the appearance of kernels of corn. Each piece is approximately three times the size of a whole kernel from a ripe or dried ear. Candy corn is made primarily from sugar, corn syrup, artificial coloring and binders. A serving of Brach's Candy Corn is nineteen pieces, is 140 calories and has zero grams of fat. Candy corn pieces are traditionally cast in three colors: a broad yellow end, a tapered orange center, and a pointed white tip.

The National Confectioners Association estimates that 20 million pounds (over 9000 tons) of candy corn are sold annually. The top branded retailer of candy corn, Brach's, sells enough candy corn each year to circle the earth 4.25 times if the kernels were laid end to end.

Production

Originally the candy was made by hand.[5] Manufacturers first combined sugar, corn syrup, 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.

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.

Variants

A popular variation called "Indian corn" features a chocolate brown wide end, orange center and pointed white tip, often available around Thanksgiving. Confectioners have introduced additional color variations suited to other holidays. The Christmas variant (sometimes called "reindeer corn") typically has a red end and a green center; the Valentine's Day variant (sometimes called "cupid corn") typically has a red end and a pink center; the Easter variant (sometimes called "bunny corn") is typically only a two-color candy, and comes with a variety of pastel bases (pink, green, yellow, and purple) with white tips all in one package.