PEppermint was the signature flavor of winter even before pumpkin spice conquered the fall season. Candy canes, peppermint bark, Starbucks peppermint mochas: these are all telltale signs that your holiday shopping is getting off to a slow start.
However, the relationship between peppermint and winter holidays is still a mystery. After all, peppermint is an herb that is commonly harvested in the spring and summer. Since pumpkins and apples are both fall harvests, their historical connection is clear. So why did the mint herb become a symbol of the coldest time of the year?
The peppermint phenomenon probably began with candy canes, which have been around for centuries.
“Candy canes are one of the most popular sweets during the winter holiday season, with 75 percent of Americans preferring the classic peppermint flavor over other types,” said Carly Schildhouse, director of communications for the National Confectioners Association. I prefer candy canes.”
Historians say the candy cane story most likely began in 17th century Europe. According to popular legend, the choir director of Cologne Cathedral in Germany asked a local baker to make a “white sugar stick” shaped like a shepherd’s crook.
The purpose of the candy cane was to quiet restless children during Christmas services while teaching them about the Nativity at the same time. The sinuous shape, reminiscent of the shepherds who visited baby Jesus, gave this treat a symbolic meaning.
By the early 20th century, these treats had made their way to America.
Some say the iconic red and white stripes were invented by a candy store in Albany, Georgia, but no one knows for sure.
Candy canes have now become a staple of the holiday season, and consumers are debating the best way to eat them.
“When asked about the correct way to eat a candy cane, 54% of people said they would start with the straight end, and 30% said they would start with the curved end,” Schildhaus said. “An additional 16% of respondents shred their candy canes.”
Still, the legend of peppermint runs much deeper than candy canes. This herb has a long history of medicinal use, as its cooling sensation derived from menthol makes it an effective treatment for digestive problems such as stomach pain and respiratory congestion (a common cold-season illness). There is.
Peppermint’s “cooling effect” on the taste buds is the key to its appeal, and perhaps the key to peppermint lasting well into the winter. Menthol, which is responsible for the cold sensation that hits your mouth when you taste mint, is a natural compound found in peppermint and other mint plants.
“Menthol interacts with our body’s internal thermoregulation, meaning our own internal compass that tells us whether something is cold or hot,” says Rasheed Perry, a scientist at New York University’s School of Food and Nutrition. “It tricks your body into thinking it’s experiencing something cold, even though the temperature hasn’t changed.”
Peppermint calms the body by cooling it, but why would you want to cool yourself down in the already cold winter? The cold of fall calls for the warmth of cinnamon and spice, while the cold of winter makes us crave cold menthol.
Well, the love affair with peppermint may actually come from its association with cold weather and the winter season. When I think of holidays, I think of winter. And when we think of winter, we think of cold.
“We don’t really know why it evolved this way,” said Helen Hopfer, an associate professor of food science at Pennsylvania State University. “It’s cold in the winter, so maybe you can enjoy the cold without actually going outside.”
Regardless of where the association between winter and peppermint comes from, it doesn’t seem like candy canes and peppermint will be disappearing from the holiday season anytime soon and will continue to fill us with holiday cheer.
“It all has to do with how we enjoy these holiday-specific foods with those closest to us, before and after the holidays, and those are usually times when we don’t seem to be as stressed. It’s consumed by the belt,” Hopfer said.
“It’s not very common to eat something like peppermint bark outside of the holiday season. All of this leads to this association that our brain creates by eating certain foods. It’s like, ‘Oh. It’s about feeling relaxed, happy, and having fun.”
