National Peppermint Patty Day!

Today is Peppermint Patty Day.  This day is observed annually on February 11th.

Peppermint Patty is a tasty confection made with rich and creamy peppermint filling and covered with semisweet chocolate.  The York Cone Company in Pennsylvania originally produced ice cream cones and invented the York Peppermint Pattie in 1940.

The way I remember Peppermint Patty is by watching Charles M. Schulz’s comic character in Peanuts.  Patricia Reichardt aka Peppermint Patty is a fictional character who lives across town from Charlie Brown.  In an interview with Schulz, he stated that he coined Peppermint Patty’s name after noticing a dish of peppermint patties in his house and deciding the name was so good that he should use it before another artist thought of it.

Even York Peppermint Pattie is the most popular, other chocolate-covered peppermint candies existed, such as Pearson’s, and Curtiss—the maker of the Baby Ruth bar. Similar candies that were made before the York Peppermint Pattie were called “cream wafers” and “cream patties,” and they were sometimes filled with other flavors besides peppermints, such as wintergreen, lemon, orange, maple, chocolate, and pistachio.

There’s something about the taste of rich dark chocolate blended with refreshing peppermint that just can’t be beaten.  So, today, celebrate this day by enjoying a fresh minty dark chocolate Peppermint Patty to share with friends.  Share on social media using #PeppermintPattyDay.

2012 Pop superstar Whitney Houston dies at the age of 48

Whitney Houston, one of the world’s top-selling singers from the mid-1980s to late 1990s, is found dead in the bathtub of her suite at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California on February 11, 2012. Houston’s death was the result of accidental drowning; heart disease and cocaine, which was found in her system, were determined to be contributing factors. The 48-year-old pop diva, known for her soaring voice and beauty, won a total of six Grammy Awards and 22 American Music Awards (more than any other female) and was credited with influencing several generations of singers, from Mariah Carey to Jennifer Hudson.

Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born on August 9, 1963, in Newark, New Jersey, to John Houston, a theatrical manager, and Cissy Houston, a singer who backed up a variety of artists, including Aretha Franklin and Elvis Presley. Growing up, the younger Houston sang in her church’s gospel choir. In high school, she performed background vocals on songs for Chaka Khan and others, and modeled, becoming one of the first African-American women to appear on the cover of Seventeen magazine.

(excerpted from https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pop-superstar-whitney-houston-dies-at-age-48)