The Americane, Lansing-based Fabiano's notes, is made the old-fashioned way. The traditional, step-by-step, two-hour process includes hand-pulled and twisted peppermint candy, with the cane-end dipped in blue-tinted white chocolate, and sprinkled with white star candies to complete the flag. The idea for the sweet salute originated during company discussions with Publicom about holiday greeting cards.
According to Jim Wardlaw, president of Publicom, “We wanted to incorporate a patriotic theme into this year's card, and someone said, 'What about a candy cane flag?' Within an hour, we had a prototype Americane created.”