National Cotton Candy Day

As we watch cotton candy come out of the machine, we wonder how it's made. However, once we take a bite, our next question becomes: who do I thank for this? The history of spun candies actually dates back centuries, all the way to Renaissance Italy. Chefs learned to melt and spin sugar, pulling it into thin strands using forks and draping it over broom handles. This process was time and labor-intensive, so it was very expensive. Hand-spun candies were made into elaborate sculptures and consumed by the wealthy. Cotton candy as we know it, however, has much more humble origins. It starts with William Morrison, a 19th century inventor, scientist, children's book author, and (of all things) dentist. Dr. Morrison had developed chemical processes to purify water, patented a way to extract oils from cotton seeds, and become the President of the Tennessee States Dental Association when he decided to invent a new, candy-making machine. Morrison teamed up with local confectioner John Wharton and together they developed a mechanical device that melted sugar into syrup and simultaneously spun it into delicious, airy fluff. They took out a patent for their new electronic machine in 1897, and called the candy that it produced ''fairy floss.''