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Cotton Candy

 
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Cotton candy (American English
American English

PhonologyIn many ways, compared to English language in England, North American English is conservative in its phonology. Some distinctive accents can be found on the East Coast of the United States , partly because these areas were in contact with England, and imitated prestigious varieties of English English at a time when those varieties we...
), candy floss (British English
British English

British English or UK English is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere....
), or fairy floss (Australian English
Australian English

Australian English is the form of the English language spoken in Australia....
) is a form of spun sugar
Sugar

Sugar is a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose. Human taste buds interpret its flavor as sweet. Sugar as a basic food carbohydrate primarily comes from sugar cane and from sugar beet, but also appears in fruit, honey, sorghum, sugar maple , and in many other sources....
. Since it consists of mostly air, servings are large. Many people consider eating cotton candy part of the quintessential experience of a visit to a fairground
Fairground

Fairground most typically refers to a permanent space that hosts fairs, commonly a state fair or an agricultural show.Fairground may also refer to:...
 or circus
Circus

File:Faroe stamp 416 circus.jpgA circus is commonly a traveling company of performers that may include acrobatics, clowns, trained animals, trapeze acts, hoopers, tightrope walkers, juggling, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists....
. The most popular color of cotton candy is pink, though any color can be made. Eating cotton candy is often considered only one part of its allure; the second part is the act of watching it being produced in a machine.

as introduced in 1904 by William Morrison and John C.






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Cotton candy (American English
American English

PhonologyIn many ways, compared to English language in England, North American English is conservative in its phonology. Some distinctive accents can be found on the East Coast of the United States , partly because these areas were in contact with England, and imitated prestigious varieties of English English at a time when those varieties we...
), candy floss (British English
British English

British English or UK English is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere....
), or fairy floss (Australian English
Australian English

Australian English is the form of the English language spoken in Australia....
) is a form of spun sugar
Sugar

Sugar is a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose. Human taste buds interpret its flavor as sweet. Sugar as a basic food carbohydrate primarily comes from sugar cane and from sugar beet, but also appears in fruit, honey, sorghum, sugar maple , and in many other sources....
. Since it consists of mostly air, servings are large. Many people consider eating cotton candy part of the quintessential experience of a visit to a fairground
Fairground

Fairground most typically refers to a permanent space that hosts fairs, commonly a state fair or an agricultural show.Fairground may also refer to:...
 or circus
Circus

File:Faroe stamp 416 circus.jpgA circus is commonly a traveling company of performers that may include acrobatics, clowns, trained animals, trapeze acts, hoopers, tightrope walkers, juggling, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists....
. The most popular color of cotton candy is pink, though any color can be made. Eating cotton candy is often considered only one part of its allure; the second part is the act of watching it being produced in a machine.

History

It was introduced in 1904 by William Morrison and John C. Wharton, at the St. Louis World's Fair as "Candy Floss" with great success, selling 68,655 boxes at the then-high $0.25, half the cost of admission to the fair.

Tootsie Roll of Canada Ltd. has a bagged product called "Fluffy Stuff" that claims it was first introduced at the 1893 World's Fair.

The United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 celebrates National Cotton Candy Day on December 7.

Pashmak
Pashmak

Pashmak is a type of Persian culture candy floss / cotton candy made from sesame and sugar. The word Pashmak means "like wool" in Farsi/Persian, as the confectionery resembles sheep's wool....
 is an Iranian/Persian version of cotton candy and has been made for centuries- originating in the central Iranian city of Yazd
Yazd

Yazd , is the capital of Yazd province in Iran, "the second most ancient and historic city in the world" and a centre of Zoroastrian culture. The city is located some 175 miles southeast of Isfahan ....
.

Production

The first machine was made over 100 years ago. The machine used to make cotton candy consists of a small bowl, into which sugar is poured and food coloring
Food coloring

A food coloring is any substance that is added to food or drink to change its color. Food coloring is used both in commercial food production and in domestic cooking....
 is added. Heaters near the rim melt the sugar, which is spun out through tiny holes. The molten sugar solidifies in the air and is caught in a large metal bowl. The operator of the machine twirls a stick, a cone, or their hands around the rim of the large catching bowl, gathering the candy into portions. Modern cotton candy machines work in very much the same way as older ones.

Texture

Sticky and sweet, it dissolves quickly in the mouth (due to its amorphous nature) although it feels like wool to the touch. It does not have much of an aroma although the machine itself has a cooked sugar smell when in operation. Soft and fluffy when dry, when it comes in contact with moisture, it becomes sticky and damp. Because the sugar is hygroscopic, and has a very large surface area
Surface area

Surface area is how much exposed area an object has. It is expressed in square units. If an object has flat Face , its surface area can be calculated by adding together the areas of its faces....
, it will become coarser, harder and generally less "flossy" once exposed to the atmosphere.

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