It is darkest just before the dawn.

There’ll be more marshmallows in the aisle for the rest of us, if a little less whimsy.

What’s small, made of marshmallow and firmly believes in promoting the interests of the 99 percent? OccuPeep D.C., of course, which took top honors in the Post’s annual Peep Diorama Contest.

Above is “Chilean CoPeepapo Mine Rescue,” awarded best-of in this year’s Washington Post Peep diorama contest. While we certainly give Mary Jo Ondrejka from Reston, Bryn Metzdorf from Fairfax and Margaret Hartka from Parkton, Md. credit for the ambitious scope of their effort — a nice touch there, with the rolling pin in the hand of Johnny Barrios Rojas‘ Peep wife — but we can’t help wishing that a more punny entry would have taken home this year’s top honors. I can’t be the only one who feels like “TSA Agents Get a Peep Show” totally got jobbed this year, can I?

Look, we all know that the Washington Post’s “Squirrel Week” is just a lengthy and incredibly odd diversion from the main reason we all flock to the Post’s website as spring crests: that is, to find out what won the paper’s annual Peep diorama contest.

Choire Sicha has this exactly right. The Washington Post chose an intricate Peep diorama based on the movie Up for the winning entry in its annual Easter contest, but the paper chose the wrong entry. “Snowpeepalype” is the one to beat. This diorama captures all the sound and fury of the event upon which it is based. An honorable mention goes to the Dupont Circle snowball fight diorama (“Peepocalypse”), but, tragically, no police officers…

Dish of the Week: Shaved ice dessert Where: Shilla Bakery (Rockville and Annandale), Malaysia Kopitiam, Penang (D.C. and Bethesda) Some of the biggest food trends have had their origins in Asian snack and street food. Stuff like tart frozen yogurt, banh mi, and pork buns have all gained cult-like popularity. Shaved ice may go by many names in Asia, such as patbingsoo, ice kachang or halo-halo, but the premise is always the same. Take…

A Peeps store at National Harbor sounded pretty absurd on its face. What does a Peeps store do once Easter is over and the Post’s uploaded its last Peeps Show image? DCist has the answer. At a media luncheon hosted by the National Confectioners Association today, this writer learned that Peeps isn’t just expanding into the National Harbor. Peeps is making a move on Christmas—and Halloween. The following images may shock more traditional readers. Be…