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"  Peeps, those iconic spongy-sweet marshmallow treats that pop up every spring, are a true part of Easter. Fans not only stuff their holiday baskets with the tiny candy chicks and bunnies, but Peeps enthusiasts have created whole dioramas around these confections. More From Delish: Peeps Dioramas and Artwork In 1953, Peeps candies were purchased from the Rodda Candy Company by Sam Born, a Russian immigrant who made a name for himself in 1916, when he developed the first machine to mechanically insert sticks into lollipops. A confectionary genius, Born would, years later, turn those brightly colored, sugary marshmallow chicks into a must-have for Easter.  In 1954, Peeps had become so popular that the Just Born candy company had to develop specially designed machines to keep up with the production. The speed of the assembly line helped Just Born become the biggest marshmallow candy company worldwide. In 1958, the marshmallows were no longer produced just for Easter. The company introduced the first pumpkin-shaped marshmallow treats for Halloween, followed by Christmas snowmen and trees, and now of course, the myriad of other shapes and varieties. In 1999, a group of Emory University scientists decided to test the indestructibility of these favored marshmallow candies. They used cigarettes, boiling hot water, and even liquid nitrogen to see how the treats would stand up. Their findings? Peeps are made from a truly indissoluble substance that they claim would not even be destroyed by other powerful chemicals such as acetone, diluted sulfuric acid, or sodium hydroxide. More From Delish: What to Do with Your Leftover Easter Bunny Bounty Scientists are not the only Peeps-obsessed party. In 2004, the St. Paul Pioneer Press started the first Marshmallow Peeps Diorama Contest, calling for creatives to showcase their craftiness. It has since grown to receive hundreds of entries every year and has been emulated at the Seattle Times, the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the Denver Post and the San Jose Mercury News. Even museums are sponsoring contests. Ellie Deardorff, a spokeswoman for the Just Born company, told the St. Paul Pioneer she is aware of more than 40 Peeps diorama contests being held around the country. The popularity of Peeps has grown so much that, &amp;quot;We are out of inventory as a company. Everything is gone,&amp;quot; said Deardorff. While the call for entries at the St. Paul Pioneer has passed, there is still time to put those Peeps in your baskets. What will you be doing with your Peeps? Eating them or designing a diorama? "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.delish.com/food/news/a39038/marshmallow-peeps-history/>