Locally spun fun: Spokane’s Lush Cotton Candy brings flavor to iconic treat

Nothing conjures images of carnivals, Ferris wheels and hot summer days like cotton candy. A staple at theme parks and sporting events for years, this nostalgic snack has blossomed into a thriving industry since its debut over a century ago. Spokane’s Lush Cotton Candy is adding an artisan spin to this fair favorite with more than 40 fluffy flavors, including exotic blends such as lavender lemonade, dulces enchilado and mango milk tea.

Cotton candy in its current form dates back to the late 1800s, but its roots run back to 15th century Italy, when Venetian pastry chefs crafted masterpieces from large pots of sugar they melted to a state of caramelization. The talented artists drizzled that hot solution onto broom handles with forks to create pliable threads they laboriously molded into intricate scenes which later decorated plates of preserved fruits and desserts for the wealthy, according to the website howstuffworks.com. The first spun sugar machine was patented by Tennessee dentist William J. Morrison and candy maker John C. Wharton in the late 1897. The unlikely duo later sold their new product called “fairy floss” for 25 cents a box at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. The current name “cotton candy” gained popularity in the 1920s.

Originally from Spangle, Valerie Richey worked 13 years as a 911 dispatcher before opening Lush Cotton Candy out of her Airway Heights home three years ago. That dip into the world of cottony confections was influenced by her distaste for commercially flavored sugars and a sticky birthday party experience. “We did a carnival theme for my daughter. I think she was probably six or seven. We rented a cotton candy machine from A to Z. It was huge. It was loud and we had cotton candy hanging from everything in our house. It just went everywhere,” said Richey, who later purchased her own machine and began experimenting with sugar creations. “I just hate the typical sugars. They have no flavor. It tastes like just a mouthful of sugar. So I started doing research of how to make your own and my first flavor was POG,” Richey said. Her debut product, a Hawaiian mixture of passion fruit, orange and guava, paved the path for a myriad of other blends with imaginative names, including Cherry Mango Monster Pop and Saturday Morning Cartoons, a cereal and milk flavor inspired by her own childhood days spent sitting in front of the television set.

Richey’s attention to detail plays a vital role in the quality of her base flavored sugars, which she selects through a lengthy trial and error process.

“I make those sugars up into small samples and then I test them and I go with the one that tastes the best. And, if none of them taste up to my standards, then I don’t use them and I keep searching,” said Richey. “It took me probably about a year to find huckleberry. Watermelon, it took me about six different tries,” added Richey, who also sells her sugar blends online.

Those with a sweet tooth for cotton candy can find a rainbow of bagged options in local stores these days, thanks to the introduction of a fully automated machine in the early 1970s. Many of those products are chock-full of added preservatives, artificial flavorings and heavy food coloring – things you won’t find in Richey’s cotton candy, which is made fresh to order. Most blends are created with natural, organic flavorings.

“So that’s why my cotton candy isn’t bright colors, because I don’t use a lot of food coloring,” said Richey, who keeps a container of dye-free sugar product on hand at local events for customers with allergies. Her immense flavor inventory caters to the young, young at heart and pickiest of cotton candy connoisseurs.

“I just added a botanical line and I’m actually getting ready to add more floral flavors, because they are divine,” said Richey. “I have a tropical mimosa which is made with my POG and then a champagne flavor and it’s amazing,” added Richey. Her company also sells innovative party items including cotton candy cakes; Boujee Baby Gender Reveal Drink Bombs, which turn blue or pink when dropped into clear liquids; lighted glow cones; glittering Disco Drink Bombs and gift baskets with cotton candy scented perfumes, body sprays and candles.

The Lush operation is a full-on family affair, including Richey’s husband Kevin, 10-year-old daughter Morgan, who works the register, and 15-year-old Gavin, a spirited spinner who is saving for a car. The company recently relocated operations to Spokane due to increasing sales and an influx of drive-up customers at the family home in Airway Heights. Richey recalled one woman’s heartwarming plea for a late evening spin.

“It was probably close to ten o’clock at night and I answered my phone and she’s like, ‘Can you make me some cotton candy? It’s my birthday,’ ” laughed Richey, who happily obliged. A sweet spot for the local community makes her a regular donor to nonprofits, including the Spokane Angels and Spokane Fantasy Flight, which gives underprivileged children an opportunity to meet Santa at the North Pole each year. Richey’s white cotton candy created a magical blanket of “snow” for last winter’s event.

With summer now in full swing, Richey and an extra crew will spin nearly 1,000 cotton candy cones a week at area farmers markets. Those locations include Fairwood, Kendall Yards, South Perry Street, Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake. Her booth is also scheduled to appear at the North Idaho State Fair beginning Friday through Aug. 27.

The fun, mystical nature of cotton candy also makes it a popular choice for those looking to add a splash of pizzazz to social functions. Lucas Schwind, Gonzaga University assistant director of special events, recruited Richey’s company two years ago while searching for an unusual dessert vendor for a donor dinner and she didn’t disappoint.

“It was kind of like the first thing the kids ate before they even did dinner. So it was pretty much a hit,” said Schwind, who enjoyed learning about the creation of cotton candy and invited Richey back for an encore performance at a celebration for the John and Joan Bollier Family Center for Integrated Science and Engineering last spring, which attracted nearly 800 people.

“What’s a street fair without cotton candy?” asked Schwind. “We kind of put her right in the center of everything, because it’s such a cool thing,” he added.

The trend toward cotton candy tables at local weddings is also growing in recent years, due to the elegant nature of this dainty delicacy. “It’s been a big thing down in California for a long time, having cotton candy at weddings, but it’s relatively new here in Spokane,” Richey said. “So many people have never seen cotton candy being spun fresh before … young and old. So many people have never seen it. It just draws people in,” added Richey, who offers taste tastings for interested couples.

People are often surprised to learn that a single serving of cotton candy, a fat-free snack composed primarily of air, contains less sugar and calories than a can of soda. A colorful sign at the Lush booth with seven Skittles candies attached – “This is how much sugar is in a cone of cotton candy” – attempts to debunk the sugary myths of this cloudy confection. Richey recalled a busy day when one woman stopped cold to ponder it. “She looked me dead in the eye and she goes, ‘Is that sign true?’ ” said Richey, who confirmed the information. The shocked woman quickly attempted to correct a lengthy wrong. “She goes, ‘I have been lied to my whole life. Give me two cotton candies right now,’ ” said Richey, who promptly delivered the deprived woman two fluffy servings of sweet revenge.