Feb 12 2009
BE MINE
Pre-Ramble: Valentine’s Day is one of those second tier holidays that seem to be gaining in popularity, like Halloween and Groundhog Day. Who doesn’t remember the perennial grade school exercise where standard issue red, white and pink construction paper and a gallon of paste would transform an ordinary shoe box into a resplendent mailbox. Everyone had to bring in a ”Valentine” for every kid in the class – even the ones you didn’t like. A cut-out heart with their name written on it (in cursive) would fill the bill,… or one of those cards with perforated edges and odd cartoon characters… We’d march around the room slipping the tiny envelopes into crudely carved slits in the box tops, and that was the extent of the festivities.
This was before the days of the over-the-top classroom celebrations where uber-educated, stay-at-home-moms with too much time on their hands would choreograph a full day’s worth of organized games, crafts, and clever home-made treats. Frosting and sprinkles were always involved. Who knew that the main ingredients there were lard and the notorious “red dye #5″?
EZ 2 LOVE: No discussion of Valentine’s Day is complete without mention of the beloved NECCO Sweethearts Conversation Hearts candies — tiny colored hearts with short ‘n’ sweet messages printed on them. According to the official Sweethearts website, this “top-selling iconic treat” has been “a Valentine tradition for over 100 years.” More than eight billion of the candy hearts are sold in the six week period leading up to Valentine’s Day.
Daniel and Oliver Chase, founders of the NECCO company, invented the process of printing sayings directly on the candy, and every year the company comes up with a batch of new sayings to add to the lot. In honor of the Valentine tradition of dining out, NECCO’s 2009 theme, Menu of Love, features ten new delectable sayings – My Treat, Recipe 4 Love, Spice It Up, Honey Bun, Sugar Pie, Top Chef, Sweet Love, Table for 2, Stir My Heart, and Yum Yum. (Wasn’t Sugar Pie the name of Anna Nicole Smith’s over-sexed dog?) Some of the classic original phrases that are still on the roster are, Be Mine, Be Good, Be True, and my personal favorite, Kiss Me.
The Take-Away: Apparently, as they are fat-free and sodium-free (and I would venture, flavor-free), Sweethearts are promoted as guilt-free holiday fare. More good news – you can have Sweethearts custom-made with your own sweet sayings. The only issue here might be that the minimum order is a full production run, or 1.7 million pieces. No worries though — the candies reportedly “stay fresh” for at least five years… (just like chalk).
Post Note: A story released by the Associated Press today announces NECCO’s plans to unveil a new line of Sweethearts next month featuring themes from the young-adult vampire romance series, Twilight – sayings include Live 4 Ever, Bedazzle, and Bite Me. I KID U NOT.
ok, usually I prefer chocolate but I will bypass all of it in favor of a sweetheart candy. Moreover, I am a closet fan of NECCOs and I have been since I was a wee lass. I never ate the black one though. It was licorice flavor, I think. I am comforted to know they last 5 years.