National Cream-Filled Chocolates Day

National Cream-Filled Chocolates Day, observed February 14th alongside Valentine's Day, celebrates the boxed assortments of chocolates with soft, sweetened cream centers that have become one of the most iconic Valentine's Day gifts. Boxed chocolate as a romantic gift tradition owes much to Richard Cadbury, of the British chocolate-making Cadbury family, who in 1868 introduced one of the first heart-shaped candy boxes decorated with cupids and rosebuds, a marketing innovation that linked chocolate directly to romantic gift-giving and helped establish a tradition that continues largely unchanged in spirit today. Cream-filled chocolates specifically rely on a fondant-based filling, a smooth mixture of sugar, water, and flavoring that can be tinted and flavored in countless varieties, from vanilla and fruit creams to more elaborate liqueur-infused fillings, all enrobed in chocolate to create the assorted "sampler" boxes long associated with Valentine's Day. The format's appeal lies partly in its variety and mystery, since a mixed box of cream-filled chocolates traditionally required a bit of guesswork, or a printed guide, to know which piece held which filling. On National Cream-Filled Chocolates Day, people celebrate by gifting or enjoying a box of assorted cream-filled chocolates.