[♪ INTRO]
Wasn’t that great, Squeaks?!
[Squeaks squeaks]
What was your favorite part?
[Squeaks squeaks]
Yeah, the roller coaster was great!
[Squeaks squeaks]
Oh, hey there! Squeaks and I just got back from the carnival!
We rode on lots of fun rides, played carnival games… it was great!
But do you know my favorite part of a carnival?
The food!
Hot dogs, ice cream, and… cotton candy!
I love cotton candy!
It’s super fluffy, and really sweet.
And it comes in so many different colors and flavors.
Like pink or blue, vanilla or bubblegum.
[Squeaks squeaks]
Oh, what’s your question, Squeaks?
[Squeaks squeaks]
What’s it made out of?
Well, even though we call it cotton candy, this stuff isn’t really made out of cotton.
Cotton candy is made out of sugar, but we call it “cotton” candy
because it reminds some people of cotton.
Do you see any similarities between the candy and the cotton plant?
[Squeaks squeaks]
Yeah, they both have a super fluffy texture, with lots of soft, wispy strands.
So some people call this food “cotton” candy because their texture
looks and feels so similar.
Other people call cotton candy “sugar floss” or “fairy floss”,
because of how teeny tiny the little sugar strings are.
[Squeaks squeaks]
Yes, a little like tooth floss for a fairy!
But even though it might look like cotton or little fairy strings,
this candy is just sugar, which is why it tastes so sweet.
[Squeaks squeaks]
Hm, you’re right that sugar doesn’t always look fluffy like in cotton candy.
Here, let’s take a look at some sugar like we’d find in our sugar jar really closely!
If we look really closely, this sugar is solid,
with tiny shapes that don’t change much.
This sugar is small and kind of round, almost like little rocks.
We call this special solid form of sugar crystals.
[Squeaks squeaks]
Well, solid crystals can’t really change their shape too much.
So to change the sugar’s shape into the fluffy wisps of cotton candy,
we need to use heat to help us.
When sugar crystals are put into a cotton candy machine,
they start as solid crystals.
These sugar crystals usually have food coloring and flavoring added to them,
so they’ll be extra colorful and tasty.
Next the cotton candy machine starts to heat up,
and that heat begins to melt the sugar, changing the sugar
from solid crystals into something new.
What state do you think the sugar will melt into, Squeaks?
[Squeaks squeaks]
That’s right! When solid sugar melts, it melts into liquid sugar.
While the sugar is a liquid, it can change shape much more easily.
That means the machine can stretch the liquid sugar into long, thin lines.
The cotton candy machine has a lot of teeny, tiny holes inside
for the liquid sugar to go through.
Little drips of liquid sugar go through as the machine spins,
and when they fling into the big empty space in the middle,
they cool down really quickly and change back into solid sugar.
The liquid sugar can turn back into a solid as it cools down,
just like it melted when it got hot.
But it looks a bit different now…
[Squeaks squeaks]
Yeah, just like threads of cotton candy!
When the liquid sugar cools back into a solid, it keeps the long, thin shape
that allowed it to go through the cotton candy machine holes,
instead of turning back into the larger, hard crystals of plain sugar.
Those little sugar threads are rolled up into a big, fluffy puff
that we recognize as cotton candy.
The sugar changes a lot when it’s heated up and cooled down.
It went from a solid crystal, to liquid, to a thin, fluffy solid.
Still, some things stayed the same, like its sweet flavor!
I have a great idea!
Do you want to go back to the carnival tomorrow to get more cotton candy
and take a closer look at how the machine works, Squeaks?
[Squeaks squeaks]
Alright!
Have you seen cotton candy being made?
What other ways do you think people can change sugar to make new sweet treats?
Thanks for exploring how to make cotton candy with us today.
Remember, if you want to keep learning new things with Squeaks and me,
and all of our friends, hit the subscribe button,
and we’ll see you next time, here at the Fort.
[Squeaks squeaks]
[♪ OUTRO]