The candy cane is the Christmas equivalent of the Easter egg.
While candy canes are made year-round—to the tune of 1.76 billion produced annually—they are inextricably and, for many, inexplicably linked to Christmas. On the surface, a peppermint hook seems to have as much—or as little—to do with the birth of Jesus Christ as a chocolate egg has to with his death.
And yet, every year, the halls are decked with red and white spiraled sugar sticks intended to be sucked on until they become pointy, minty daggers.
But why the upside down "J" shape? Why the spiral lines? Why the peppermint flavoring? This food is such a basic part of Christmas imagery that we rarely question its existence or relevance.
We spoke to Ace Collins, an expert on all things Christmas and author of The Stories Behind The Great Traditions of Christmas and The Stories Behind The Best-Loved Songs of Christmas . He's also written more than 70 thriller and mystery novels (including The Fruitcake Murders) and won the Christy Award for "novels of excellence written from a Christian worldview."
Obviously, he was the man for the job. We caught up with him in between radio interviews, because, he says, December is a time where his writing takes a backseat to media appearances requesting his expertise.
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