Draft:Lemon Pigs

Lemon Pigs, also known as Lemon Piglets, were originally created as a children's craft or toy, but have since been used to mark a New Year's Eve tradition. Lemon Pigs are made out of a fresh lemon and are carved and assembled to look like a pig. The Lemon Pig has toothpicks for legs, cloves for eyes, a mouth holding a coin, and a curly aluminum tail. The coin in the mouth, usually a penny, signifies good luck for the New Year.

Early Mentions
The earliest mentions of the Lemon Pig regard it as a simple table ornament, with no association to good luck or a New Year's tradition.


 * In 1865, the Lemon Pig is mentioned in "The Art of Amusing".
 * In 1913, the Lemon Pig is mentioned in "Patty's Social Season".
 * Displayed in the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum is a Lemon Pig that is 100+ years old. This Lemon Pig was given to President Rutherford B. Hayes during his time in office in the late 19th century.
 * Children's entertainment books mentioned Lemon Pigs up until the 1960s.

Alcoa
Alcoa, an aluminum foil company, adopted the idea of Lemon Pigs as a New Year's tradition in 1971. During 1971, the company published "401 Party and Holiday Ideas from Alcoa". They included a new element to the Lemon Pig, a curly cue tail made out of aluminum foil.

Recent Popularity
Jacques Pépin describes how to make a Lemon Pig in two recent cookbooks. He recommends parsley for the tail in his example.

In 2017, author Anna Pallai posted a screenshot of an old cookbook that included directions on how to make the Lemon Pig. From there, people replied with their own versions of the pig. Since then, it has been talked about online and social media as a "new-old" tradition.