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The '''Twinkie''' is an American [[snack cake]] that is made and distributed by [[Hostess Brands]]. They are marketed as a "Golden Sponge Cake with Creamy Filling".
The '''Twinkie''' was an American [[snack cake]] that was made and distributed by [[Hostess Brands]]. They were marketed as a "Golden Sponge Cake with Creamy Filling".


==Current Status of Chapter 11 Filing==
==Current Status of Chapter 11 Filing==

Revision as of 12:54, 17 November 2012

Twinkie
Whole and split Twinkies
TypeSnack cake
Place of originUnited States
Region or stateSchiller Park, Illinois
Created byJames Alexander Dewar
Main ingredientsWheat flour, sugar, corn syrup, niacin, water, high fructose corn syrup, shortening, and others
For other uses, see Twinkie (disambiguation).

The Twinkie was an American snack cake that was made and distributed by Hostess Brands. They were marketed as a "Golden Sponge Cake with Creamy Filling".

Current Status of Chapter 11 Filing

On November 16, 2012

Hostess Brands Inc. announced that it is winding down operations and has filed a motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court seeking permission to close its business and sell its assets, including its iconic brands and facilities. Bakery operations have been suspended at all plants. Delivery of products will continue and Hostess Brands retail stores will remain open for several days in order to sell already-baked products.[1]

History

Box of Twinkies
Box of Twinkies

Twinkies were invented in Schiller Park, Illinois in 1930 by James Alexander Dewar, a baker for the Continental Baking Company.[2] Realizing that several machines used to make cream-filled strawberry shortcake sat idle when strawberries were out of season, Dewar conceived a snack cake filled with banana cream, which he dubbed the Twinkie.[3] He said he came up with the name when he saw a billboard in St. Louis for "Twinkle Toe Shoes".[4] During World War II, bananas were rationed and the company was forced to switch to vanilla cream. This change proved popular, and banana-cream Twinkies were not widely re-introduced. The original flavor was occasionally found in limited-time promotions, but the company used vanilla cream for most Twinkies.[5] In 1988, Fruit and Cream Twinkies were introduced with a strawberry filling swirled into the cream. However, the product was soon dropped.[6] Vanilla's dominance over banana flavoring would be challenged in 2005, following a month-long promotion of the movie King Kong. Hostess saw its Twinkie sales rise 20 percent during the promotion, and in 2007 permanently restored the banana-cream Twinkie to its snack lineup.[7]

In January 2012, Twinkie manufacturer Hostess filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[4] Twinkie sales for the year ended December 25, 2011 were 36 million packages, down almost 2% from a year earlier.[4] Hostess said customers have migrated to healthier foods.[4] In November 2012, Hostess announced that is was ceasing production of all its products and liquidating all assets, but it hopes to be able to sell its more popular brands to other manufacturers.[8]

Twinkies are still produced in Canada by Saputo Incorporated's Vachon Inc., which owns the Canadian rights for the product from Hostess and not effected by the actions state side.[9]

Ingredients

Enriched wheat flour, sugar, corn syrup, niacin, water, high fructose corn syrup, vegetable and/or animal shortening – containing one or more of partially hydrogenated soybean, cottonseed and canola oil, and beef fat, dextrose, whole eggs, modified corn starch, cellulose gum, whey, leavenings (sodium acid pyrophosphate, baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), salt, cornstarch, corn flour, corn syrup, solids, mono and diglycerides, soy lecithin, polysorbate 60, dextrin, calcium caseinate, sodium stearoyl lactylate, wheat gluten, calcium sulphate, natural and artificial flavors, caramel color, yellow No. 5, red #40.[10]

Health aspects

A single Twinkie contains 2.5 grams of saturated fat, representing 13% of the recommended daily intake of saturated fat based on a 2,000 calorie diet.[11]

Deep-fried Twinkie

A deep-fried Twinkie

A deep-fried Twinkie involves freezing the cake, dipping it into batter, and deep-frying it to create a variation on the traditional snack cake. It was described by a story in The New York Times in this way: "Something magical occurs when the pastry hits the hot oil. The creamy white vegetable shortening filling liquefies, impregnating the sponge cake with its luscious vanilla flavor... The cake itself softens and warms, nearly melting, contrasting with the crisp, deep-fried crust in a buttery and suave way. The pièce de résistance, however, is a ruby-hued berry sauce, adding a tart sophistication to all that airy sugary goodness".[12] The Texas State Fair had introduced the fried Twinkie to great popular acclaim, and the notion spread to other state fairs across the U.S., as well as some establishments that specialize in fried foods.[13] Fried Twinkies are sold throughout the U.S. in fairs as well as ball games, and in various restaurants.

Cultural references

Twinkie defense

Main article: Twinkie defense

The Twinkie defense is a derogatory term for a criminal defendant's claim that some unusual factor (such as allergies, coffee, nicotine, or sugar) diminished the defendant's responsibility for the alleged crime. The term arose from Herb Caen's description of the trial of Dan White, who was convicted in the fatal shootings of San Francisco mayor George Moscone and city supervisor Harvey Milk. During the trial, psychiatrist Martin Blinder testified that White had suffered from depression, causing diminished capacity. As an example of this, he mentioned that White, formerly a health food advocate, had begun eating junk food. Twinkies, specifically, were never actually mentioned in the case.

Experimentation

A website entitled the T.W.I.N.K.I.E.S. Project[14] was launched in 2000 by Christopher Scott Gouge and Todd William Stadler.[15] This site chronicles a series of regimented scientific experiments testing, amongst others, the insulative, electrically resistive, radioactive, and gravitational properties of the "Standard Twinkie".

Shelf life

A common urban legend claims that Twinkies have an infinite shelf life or can last unspoiled for a relatively long time of ten, fifty, or one hundred years due to chemicals used in production.[16] This urban legend is false, although Twinkies can last a relatively long time (25 days or more) because they are made without unstabilized dairy products and thus spoil more slowly than most bakery items.[17] In reality, Twinkies are on the shelf for a short time; a company executive told the New York Times in 2000 that the "Twinkie is on the shelf no more than 7 to 10 days."[18]

In the 2012 film Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, the character Blackout has the power to decay anything he touches. When going through a lunch he causes a sandwich and apple to decay in seconds, then is impressed when he is unable to cause a Twinkie inside the lunch to decay.

In the 2008 film WALL-E, a Twinkie is sighted completely undecayed in its wrapper on WALL-E's truck 700 years after the Earth was rendered largely uninhabitable for organic life forms.

Conversely, the 2009 film, Zombieland depicts one of the main characters on quest to locate Twinkies, asserting that they do have an expiration date. The 1988 film, Die Hard has John McClane almost becoming sick after eating a "thousand year old Twinkie" found in an under-construction floor of the Nakatomi Plaza building.

Twinkie diet

In 2010 a college professor named Mark Haub went on a "convenience store" diet consisting mainly of Twinkies, Oreos, and Doritos in an attempt to demonstrate to his students "that in weight loss, pure calorie counting is what matters most—not the nutritional value of the food". He lost 27 pounds over a 2-month period, returning his body mass index (BMI) to within normal range.[19]

See also

Literature

  • Ettlinger, Steve (2008). Twinkie, Deconstructed. Plume. ISBN 978-0-452-28928-4. – Twinkie Deconstructed site

References

  1. ^ http://www.hostessbrands.info
  2. ^ Biemer, John (April 30, 2006). "Homeowner Discovers That Mr. Twinkie Slept There". U-T San Diego. Retrieved June 5, 2011.
  3. ^ Belcher, Jerry (June 3, 1985). "Man Who Concocted the Twinkie Dies : James A. Dewar's Treat Is Part of America's Diet and Folklore". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 3, 2011. It was Dewar's inspiration to fill the cakes with a sugar-cream mixture, the formula for which is still a tightly held secret.
  4. ^ a b c d Ovide, Shira (September 2, 2011). "Great Moments in Twinkies History". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 10, 2011.
  5. ^ "The History of the Hostess Twinkie". Kitchenproject.com. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  6. ^ Continental Baking Company (1988). "Fruit and Cream Twinkies commercial". Continental Baking Company. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
  7. ^ Shepherd, Lauren (June 13, 2007). "Hostess selling banana-creme Twinkies". USA Today. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  8. ^ Gillam, Carey. "Twinkies maker Hostess plans to go out of business". Thompson Reuters. Reuters. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  9. ^ http://www.geekosystem.com/canadian-twinkies/
  10. ^ Twinkies. h2g2.[unreliable source?]
  11. ^ Calories in Twinkies. About.com.
  12. ^ "Fry That Twinkie, But Hold the Chips". The New York Times. May 15, 2002. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  13. ^ "New junk food fad: Deep-fried Twinkies". CNN. September 18, 2002. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  14. ^ "The T.W.I.N.K.I.E.S. Project". The T.W.I.N.K.I.E.S. Project. August 12, 2000. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  15. ^ "Todd Stadler is Cockahoop". Toddstadler.com. August 15, 2006. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  16. ^ "Forever Twinkies". Snopes – Urban Legends Reference Pages. May 19, 2011. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  17. ^ Sagon, Candy (April 13, 2005). "Twinkies, 75 Years And Counting". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  18. ^ Kelley, Tina (March 23, 2000). "Twinkie Strike Afflicts Fans With Snack Famine". The New York Times. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
  19. ^ Park, Madison (November 8, 2010). "Twinkie diet helps nutrition professor lose 27 pounds". CNN. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
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