Marshmallow Peeps: A Symbol of Spring and Easter

Just when it feels like winter will never end, it finally happens. One by one, grocery stores and drugstore chains begin putting out colorful packages of marshmallow Peeps and it signals that spring is near! It doesn't matter if your favorites are the yellow chicks or the pink bunnies (or a whole bunch of other seasonal shapes, colors and varieties), Peeps are one of the few things that we all have in common. Ask someone about them and they will either smile or talk about how much they love them or they will make a face and tell you that they hate marshmallows, but most will still admit that there is something about these fluffy little candies that symbolize all that is good about being a child.

A company called "Just Born" which is located in Bethlehem Pennsylvania makes Peeps. According to their website, they have been creating them since the 1950's and they credit a man named Bob Born with having the creative spark that was needed to design the first peep! They say, "Each was made by hand, squeezing marshmallow out of a pastry tube into a chick shape." Can you imagine how many people it would take if they still made them that way? Now, they use special machines that make them "assembly line" style. It's a good thing too. American Profile says that "Six Just Born cooks produce enough marshmallow to create 1.2 billion Peeps each year!" The sweet candies are shaped like Easter chicks, bunnies and eggs; Halloween pumpkins, bats and ghosts; Valentine hearts, Christmas trees and snowmen.

As Peeps have become a part of American pop culture, people have probably put more thought into them then they really had to, but the result is that we hear you can play "peeps jousting". After interviewing several locals about this, I got the scoop. First you take two peeps and you place them on a microwavable plate. Place two wooden toothpicks, one into each peep so that it points forward. Oddly enough, you then place the plate into the microwave and turn it on. As the peeps melt and fight you can see which one is the "winner". It's up to you whether the winner is eaten first or last.

The best thing about Peeps is that they are affordable. I spent several years volunteering in a charity that helped low-income youth, and we had an Easter egg hunt each year. Even the poorest kids knew what Peeps were and what they tasted like. So, at least on special holidays, in their own little way, I think that Peeps help bridge the economic divide in the United States. Or maybe that is just a lot of "fluff".

Sources:
Susan Stets, Peeps Are...Just Born, American Profile

Just Born, Peeps: Every Candy Isn't Made, It's Just Born, justborn.com