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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that milkshakes were originally an alcoholic beverage? In 1885, a milkshake was a whiskey-based, eggnog-type drink served in bars. But by 1900, the whiskey had been swapped out for the more wholesome (and more popular) flavorings of chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla syrups. These new milkshake beverages would be hand-shaken mixtures of milk, crushed ice, sugar, and flavorings.

The later addition of ice cream and then malted milk powder to the mix brought about the modern milkshake and thicker frosted malt, and their popularity spurred the boom of "malt shoppes" throughout the 40s and 50s.

These days, milkshakes and malts have retained their popularity as fast food menu staples, most notably at McDonald's and Wendy's: Despite only being available for one month a year, McDonald's has dispensed over 60 million servings of their seasonal hit, the Shamrock Shake—while Wendy's signature Frosty has been served over 300 million times worldwide!

I'd also like to call out a notable individual achievement in milkshaking. For singer Kelis, whose rendition of "Milkshake" brought everyone to her yard for a little taste. Now, obviously this wasn't a traditional milkshake (or even about a traditional milkshake), but with certified sales of over 1.35 million units, her single not only shot to #3 on the Billboard charts in 2003—but most likely to #3 on the "milkshake" sales chart for that year as well...right behind McDonald's and Wendy's. 😉

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that modern lollipops can be traced back to the 17th century? During this period, sugar became more affordable and readily available, so treats like boiled sugar confections became popular. These confections would be placed on sticks so people could eat them without getting their hands all messy and sticky.

Fast-forward to 1908 and we have the first "lollipop" branding (apparently named after Lolly Pop, a race horse) and the first lollipop machine, which automated the process of placing the hard candy on sticks at a rate of almost 2,000 an hour. Today, Tootsie Pop is the largest manufacturer of lollipops, and with their automated process, they churn out 16 million sweet suckers A DAY.

Over the years, lollipops have also evolved from simple, sweet little treats to much more. For example, lollipops can act as a very efficient delivery system for children's medicine, especially for children who have problems swallowing pills.

Beyond sugary-sweet and medicinal, there are also alcohol-based lollipops available, including ones made from beer, merlot, and chardonnay...which, I guess, shows that lollipops can be also used as an efficient delivery system for "adult" medicine as well.

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that the key lime is native to Southeast Asia? Smaller and tarter than the more common Persian variety, this lime was eventually introduced around the world via a path that included such locales as North Africa, the West Indies, and Mexico. But it was its introduction to Florida that would eventually provide the key lime with its name (based on the region where the fruit was naturalized, the Florida Keys).

In Florida, the limes took off in popularity after farmers planted them as a replacement crop for lemons that were destroyed during the "Great Freeze" of 1894-95. Soon branded "Florida key limes" and touted as a beloved regional crop, the popularity of the key lime increased even more with the introduction of the now-classic U.S. dessert, key lime pie (which, by the 1950s, was being promoted as "Florida's most famous treat").

But for a generation of pop culture devotees, key lime pie is probably more known as the pie Ross thinks he's eating on the episode of Friends where he samples Monica’s kiwi-lime pie and has an allergic reaction:

Ross: Kiwi? Kiwi?! I thought you said this was key lime pie?
Monica: No, I said it was kiwi-lime pie. That's what makes it special.
Ross: And that's what's going to kill me. I'm allergic to kiwi.

Monica claimed she forgot about his allergy, but we all know she totally on purpose made a pie she knew Ross was allergic to. Why? Because like everyone else, she found Ross to be the most annoying person EVER and would do anything to make him just shut up already (...um, okay—not only have I gone way off track here, but I may also be projecting just a little bit).

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that back in the mid-1700s, the common gelatin “jelly” dessert was originally made by purifying the extracted gelatin from the foot of a calf?

It was called calf's foot jelly (because in the 18th century, there was no such thing as being "too transparent") and it would usually be seasoned with sugar, lemon juice and mixed spices. Enterprising chefs would even use items such as violet juice, saffron, and spinach to color gelatin while it set and then would layer different hues together. It was this unique preparation that came to simply be called jelly, and it started the path that would eventually lead to the commercial gelatin products of today, such as the offerings from the iconic Jell-O brand.

And it's a good thing gelatin finally got some corporate branding in there, if only for the benefit of college parties everywhere. Because "lime Jello shots" sounds way more appealing than "spinach-infused calf's foot jelly shots" ever could.

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that despite how many people use them interchangeably, icing and frosting do not refer to the same thing? While both are sweet spreads used in cake decorating, there are some key differences between the two.

Icing is a thin glaze that’s usually spread or poured over cakes and cookies, that eventually hardens into a slightly brittle, solid shell. Icing is commonly used for gingerbread house decorations or as a topping for bundt cakes.

Frosting is thicker and fluffier than icing, which makes it the go-to spread for birthday cakes, wedding cakes, and other popular-event layer cakes. So common are they, that when people talk about something being "the icing on the cake" it's most likely these types of cakes that are subconsciously conjured up in everyone’s minds, further driving the assumption that frosting = icing.

And as for which is actually the better topping? Well, that's debatable. But personally? Let's just say that whenever someone throws me a birthday party, I truly appreciate it if they bring out a big ol' birthday cake, too. Because for me, the icing on the cake is that there never is icing on those cakes...just frosting.

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that honeycomb creation starts off with bees building a staggered stack of waxy, circular cells which then form into their well-known hexagonal shape when the heat generated by the busy bees causes them to slightly melt?

And when raw honey stored by the bees is captured in the cells, the end result is tasty honeycomb.  Wholly edible on it's own, honeycomb is also a very versatile ingredient, as it's texture opens it up to be used in foods in ways that normal honey cannot. Some common methods include: crumbled over salads, sliced thin for sandwich layering, spread over warm bread or pancakes, slowly melted into hot chocolate, or blended into softened vanilla ice cream for a sweet, smooth treat.

I've even been inspired to create a honeycomb recipe tip of my own! Take a piece of warmed honeycomb and use it to brush honey overtop Honeycombs cereal. Or, in other words: Use a honeycomb honey comb for honey-combed Honeycombs.

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that the craft of making gelato, the iconic Italian frozen dessert, is held with such high regard that each year there's an official ranking of the best gelato artisans in the world? And that these and other gelato artisans compete in dozens of competitions all year round in the hopes of qualifying as one of 36 finalists for the Gelato Festival World Masters, a competition event that's only held once every four years?

So, yeah—they basically have an Olympics for making gelato. But what I want to know is, do they have an Olympics for eating gelato and if so, where do I sign up? I'm not saying that I think my gelato-eating skills are Olympic-level, but I think I owe it to myself, and my country, to at least go through the training and find out, right?

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that only in North America is “flapjack” synonymous with “pancake”? In the UK, for instance, a flapjack is a baked bar made with rolled oats, brown sugar, syrup, and tasty extras like chocolate, caramel, or dried fruit. A veritable sweet treat!

So, for those few who felt we flopped by featuring “flapjack” as the latest "sweet treat" release name...how about you flip that flop talk, forget the flapjack flak, and follow the flock with the flapjack facts?

First up, a flapjack fast tip: flip the flap on your backpack and fill it with stacks of flapjack packs. Facing a fierce snack attack? Just fetch a flapjack pack from your backpack stacks! For a flavor-forward finish, favor this fit, flexible, flapjack fix: fortify your feast with a frenzy of flicks from a flask filled full of fresh, flaky, fantastic, flax!

Fin!

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that eclairs are made with a pastry dough that is steam-puffed, rather than yeast-risen or batter-derived? It's this choux dough that gives the eclair its signature oblong, hollow shape, which can then be filled with custard or cream before being topped with icing.

The name comes from the French word eclair, meaning "flash of lightning", although there is some debate as to whether that's a nod to how quickly one is eaten ("in a flash") or to the shimmer of the icing on the finished product.

One thing for certain though, is that eclairs are not to be confused with "Long Johns", which are oblong doughnuts usually filled with custard (...not to be confused with "long johns", which are oblong undergarments usually filled with legs).

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Release cycle theme: Sweet treats

Did you know that dango are sweet Japanese dumplings, commonly served three-to-five to a skewer? Dango is eaten year-round, but there are some varieties that are traditionally eaten only in given seasons. 

Dango is like the ultimate mash-up food because there are so many unique combinations, like: Anko dango! (dango + red bean paste), Cha dango! (dango + green tea), Goma dango! (dango + seasame seed paste), Tofu dango! (dango + um...tofu).

And now all this dango mash-up talk is giving me some mash-up inspiration...of the high-concept, sure-fire, blockbuster movie kind! Here's the pitch: Once upon a time in the Old West, an animated chameleon and a former slave forge an unlikely alliance when their shared love of exotic fruits, ballroom dancing, and Japanese sweets inspires them to create ultimate dango! This summer, get your skewers ready for:

Rango & Django's Mango-Tango Dango! 

(Worldwide smash, right there)