all we are saying is give peeps a chance

~ jama
“Peeps” by Leigh-Anne Eagerton (oil on panel).
PEEPS 
by Judy Fort Brenneman

If Peeps are in the store, can Spring be far behind?
My hand, reverent, traces the crackle of cellophane
That shelters conjoined confections.
Soft shapes in bright colors—
Yellow, pink, and this year, blue—
(Yellow is the best, anyone could tell you.)
Colors of spring more true than the purple crocus
Frozen in its bulb under the snowbank at the end of the drive.

My hand plucks them like seed packets.
One, two, three four five.
Odd numbers are best—no one notices
If you eat the odd one before you get home.

The register beeps the red total.
The clerk says leave them out overnight
In the open, without cellophane;
That's the best way, she smiles.
I smile back; who am I to tell her she's wrong?
Naked Peeps are soon as hard and dry as sun-baked dirt
At the end of August.

My five small packs nestle in the sack
Like boxes of tulips minus the stems.
My thumb punches through the cellophane of the one on top—
Better than any groundhog's shadow,
More pure than the first robin's song,
A promise of pollen shakes loose with sugar spilled on my lap.
I pull the yellow blossoms apart,
And eat Spring.

~ Copyright © 2023 Judy Fort Brenneman as posted at Your Daily Poem.

*

“The Scream” by Lisa Johnson.

The thing about Peeps is that you either love ’em or hate ’em. Kind of like candy corn at Halloween, Peeps are undoubtedly divisive.

Made of sugar, corn syrup, gelatin, food coloring, carnauba wax and a preservative, Peeps aren’t exactly the healthiest treat. Yet for many of us, it’s all about the nostalgia — memories of childhood Easter baskets, debating over which color or shape is best, whether to eat them fresh or stale.

What can I say? I’ve always liked marshmallow: chocolate covered marshmallow bunnies, mini mallows in cocoa, s’mores. ‘Nuff (or should I say ‘fluff’) said. 😀

“L.L. Peep” by the Vogt Family.

Yes, eating straight sugar is bad, but once a year, I don’t mind throwing caution to the wind. Note I said “once a year,” because those orange Halloween pumpkin Peeps or green Christmas tree ones are just wrong. Everyone knows Halloween = chocolate, and Christmas = cookies. Right? Some things, after all, are sacred.

Besides, like the poem says, Peeps are a harbinger of spring. I like the mention of frozen bulbs, seed packets, tulips without stems, robin’s first song, sugar being a promise of pollen. What better way to celebrate new beginnings than with an edible baby chick?

“Candy Warhol” by Darcie Muckler (photo by Jeff Truesdell).

Peeps Deets:

  • Back in 1953, it took 27 hours to make a single Peep marshmallow chick (marshmallow was laboriously hand-squeezed through a pastry tube). A year later, the Just Born company developed a way to mechanize the process so that now it takes just six minutes.
  • Yellow is America’s bestselling color of Peeps chicks and bunnies, followed by pink and blue (yellow chicks and white bunnies were the originals).
  • Four out of five Peeps purchased are chicks.
  • About 5.5 million Peeps are produced each day — that’s 509 Peeps hatching every 8 seconds.
  • Just Born produces enough Peeps marshmallow candies every year to circle the earth two and a half times — that’s approximately 2 billion Peeps.
  • Peeps brand candies celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2023.
“Peep of the Union” by Ellen Foster, Chloe Brown, and Emily Gunn.

Time to break through the cellophane and “pull the yellow blossoms apart.” Revel in the sugary stickiness! But who can eat just one? Two, three, four, five . . . oops! How did they disappear so quickly?

The other five will sit out overnight to be enjoyed in their golden crusty chewiness the next day. I like them both ways and they like me right back.

What say you? Peeps yay or nay? Chicks or bunnies? Favorite color? Fresh or stale?

There’s so much to consider when you “eat Spring.”

Peeps Flower Bouquet via Honey & Lime

*

Lovely, talented and prolific Laura Purdie Salas is hosting the Roundup and celebrating the release of her new picture book, Oskar’s Voyage (illustrated by Kayla Harren). Zip on over to check out all the fun and the full menu of poetic goodness being shared around the blogosphere this week. Happy Weekend and don’t forget Daylight Savings Time starts on Sunday!

*Copyright © 2024 Jama Rattigan of Jama’s Alphabet Soup. All rights reserved.

40 thoughts on “all we are saying is give peeps a chance”

  1. I can take or leave Peeps, but I do usually buy them at Eastertime. For Italian Americans it’s grain pie and Pizza Rustica that are harbingers of spring! Also, Italians buy these huge Perugina chocolate eggs and Easter bread with colored eggs in it! Just thought I would share, and maybe readers can share their traditions. Happy International Women’s Day!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Have never heard of grain bread. Love hearing about your interesting Easter traditions! Maybe the EB will bring me a giant chocolate egg. 🙂

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  2. Jama, you always entertain! I love this post (much more than I love eating peeps). The artwork is so fun. It makes me happy — except, I am bothered that there is not a chick peep floating on the lake in the LL Peep diorama. I will admit that I have experimented on a few peeps in my day: toaster ovens, microwaves, all forms of peeps torture.

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  3. Not a fan from a food perspective- Not sure if it’s the marshmallow or the corn syrup? – but love the send-ups of an icon! Mostly, I’m really glad they’re decomposable -5.5 MILLION per DAY??? Now if we could eliminate that cellophane!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. I haven’t tasted a Peep in years and am not tempted to do so now, but love love love this darling post! In Peeps We Trust! Happy spring, Jama! Happy spring, chickies!

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  7. I don’t eat peeps but love seeing them in the stores–Spring is coming! The poem expresses the whole dilemma. No peeps until Spring, please!. Thank you, Jama for bringing up the light and lyrical side of life!

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    1. The Washington Post used to sponsor an annual Peeps diorama contest — don’t know why they discontinued it. Always amazing to see what people came up with. Thanks for the link — fun to see all those creations, esp. the Paddington! 🙂

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  9. Hahaha–those Peeps art pieces are fabulous! I know Peeps are polarizing, but I’m middle of the road. I don’t mind them but don’t love them. Thanks for sharing the fun Peeps poem, though. I’m glad they like you back!

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    1. You’re not alone in being middle of the road when it comes to Peeps. As much as they like me back, I’m not tempted at all to eat them more than once a year. 😀

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  10. Jama– this is a delight, and I will for sure be sharing your post with Peeps-obessed folks in my life. Thank you so much for the joy, and happy Poetry Friday!

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  11. Jama: Hilarious… I would scream also. Not a fan of Peeps, though they have taken front and center at my local grocery. Peeps on a skewer with tulips? Some child will be horrified, but that would be my best use. Nonetheless, I enjoyed your ride into peepdom, and send along my best regards!

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    1. It’s possible kids wouldn’t like to see Peeps on a skewer, but they probably enjoy roasting marshmallows. Still, plain marshmallows don’t have a face and body. . .

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  13. I say yay to peeps…’Candy Warhol’ just makes me giggle a bit too loud for this early in the morning. But, I like peeps best as decoration. I think I may have gotten sick on them as a child because I look at them now and my tastebuds say, no way! They do make the flowers shine with Easter vibes.

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  14. I agree, peeps are divisive, Jama. Unfortunately I fall on the side of ‘nay’ for eating them (just not a marshmallow fan). But to this post with Judy Fort Brenneman’s poem and all those works of peep-art, I say YAY! “Peep of the Union” is hilarious. 🙂

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  15. Jama, thank you for hatching such a delightful post. While I am not a peep fan, I do like seeing the yellow chicks out as a sign that Easter is on its way. Your peep artwork is fun to admire. The Scream arrangement is amazing. I hope Mr. Cornelius and his group of friends enjoy your peeps display. Eat Spring and be merry!

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  20. Oh, my goodness, I love all that artwork, and that poem! I get the appeal of marshmallow-y, sugary goodness, but I’ve never been tempted by Peeps. Chocolate? That’s a different story of temptation.

    I just saw that Ashley mentioned circus peanuts. Atticus loves circus peanuts but I think they’re vile. 😀

    Happy spring, and happy peep-eating, Jama!

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