Old Fashioned Hard Christmas Candy: The origin is not known

Hard Candy Christmas

During the 1960s, everyone's grandma or aunt had a glass dish bowl or a metal tin with Old Fashioned Hard Christmas Candy. My great-grandmother and great-aunt both had these mixed-flavor candies every holiday season. The image above proves a picture is worth a thousand words and elicits fond memories.

Dolly Parton had a holiday tune in the 1980s called Hard Candy Christmas, where she sings of things being fine and dandy in the midst of trials like "a hard Candy Christmas." The song is about resilience and bouncing back, which is what this holiday staple has done for many years.

Where did the candy originate?

These candies had a distinctive scent that I did not find pleasant, especially when they remained long after the holiday. I enjoyed picking through the glass bowl to find the best flavors.

I recall peppermint, orange and lemon, but cannot recall the others. I do know some of them smelled and tasted hideous. There is no specific answer to how these Christmas treats came into being. They probably evolved over the decades with different people trying varied candies. Still, what preceded is a pretty fascinating story.

From the UK to the US

Rock candy's origins are said to date back to the 9th century, when Islamic writers made it by cooling supersaturated sugar solutions to create crystals. I can only imagine how magical that must have been initially. In the 19th century, "Fair Rock" hard candy was sold at UK fairgrounds, but it did not have the bright colors that some hard candy has today.

Amazon sells a version of the old-fashioned hard Christmas candy, but it's not the same as the original. Within the mix of hard candy is peppermint, which can be traced back to the 1600s to the German boys' Cathedral Choir.

The choirmaster was looking for a way to keep the boys calm and developed sugar canes, which later became candy canes, and peppermint was added. What was done in the UK eventually made it's way across the pond, and Americans put their own spin on the candy.

Christmas Rock Candy

Unfortunately, I have not found one article online that gives the name, date, or location of a person or company in the UK or US that originated this beloved holiday tradition we cherish today.

Rock and Rye Whiskey is made from hard rock candy. Other than peppermint, there are no specifics about how the other flavors were made. What is known is that Rock and Rye Whiskey is said to be beneficial for respiratory ailments. I know people who do nto drink alcohol but will keep Rock adn Rye on hand during the Winter months.

Baby Boomers and their parents grew up with the hard rock candy at Christmas. My grandmother, born in 1918, said she grew up when you found an orange and a few hard candies in a stocking during the holiday season.

Make your own Christmas Hard Candy

The origin of Old Fashioned Hard Christmas Candy is fascinating because it cannot be specifically traced. Ribbon candy, found in the midst of the Christmas candy flavors, also has no origin.

All that is known is that it came from Europe in the 1800s. Somehow, somewhere out there, someone combined the various candies to create what we know and love today. For anyone who wants to try to make old-fashioned Christmas hard candy at home, All Recipes has a recipe you can try.

2 cups white sugar

1 cup water

¾ cup light corn syrup

½ teaspoon peppermint extract

1 drop red food coloring (Optional)

⅛ cup confectioners' sugar.