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Tagged: food holidays
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Today’s Food History
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Each croissant rolls are made of 50 or more thin layers of pastry & butter.
According to legend, it was Marie Antoinette (Austrian Princess who married Louis XVI), introduced the croissant to France.
The French newspaper Le Figaro named the croissant from bakery Pierre Hermé the best in Paris in 2013. It also won in 2006.
Since Starbucks bought French baker Pascal Rigo’s San Francisco-based La Boulange, the chocolate croissant has become the coffee chain’s bestselling pastry.
In 2013, chef Dominque Ansel came up with the cronut — a deep-fried croissant/doughnut combination that became all the rage at his New York bakery.
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Tagged: Corn Chip History, national corn chip day
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Daily Quote: “The laziest man I ever met put popcorn in his pancakes so they would turn over by themselves.”~W. C. Fields
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Tagged: national chocolate cake day
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Tagged: national peanut brittle day
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Happy National Pie Day! Who's in?
In 1986 National Pie Day was first celebrated by the American Pie Council to commemorate Crisco’s 75th anniversary of “serving foods to families everywhere.”
The first pies appeared around 9500 BC.
Meat pies with fillings such as steak, cheese, steak and kidney, minced beef, or chicken and mushroom are popular in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.
Pot pies with a flaky crust and bottom are also a popular American dish, typically with a filling of meat (particularly beef, chicken or turkey), gravy, and mixed vegetables (potatoes, carrots and peas).
Fruit pies may be served with a scoop of ice cream, a style known in North America as pie à la mode.
Today’s Food History
Tagged: national pie day
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Tagged: National Southern Food Day, southern food
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1338 Charles V of France was born. He commissioned Taillevent to write what is considered the first professional “cookery” book in French, ‘Le Viandier’.
1937 BBC first aired the Cook’s Night Out with Marcel Boulestin, the first television cook
1908 New York City NY regulation makes it illegal for a woman to smoke or drink in public
1912 Konrad (Emil) Bloch was born. Nobel prize winner for his work on cholesterol & fatty acids. Discovering that high levels of cholesterol may lead to an increased risk of heart attacks.
1942 Bronx magistrate rules all pinball machines in bars and eating establishments illegal
1985 James Beard, American culinary expert & cookbook author, died at age 81.
Tagged: National Granola Bar Day
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Cheeses are more flavorful at room temperature. Let them stand for a half hour before serving.
Cheese is an ancient food whose origins predate recorded history.
Artisan cheese, made in small batches from local sources, is growing at a pace that exceeds even the growth rate of general cheese consumption in America.
Some studies claim that cheddar, mozzarella, Swiss and American cheeses can help to prevent tooth decay.
A study by the British Cheese Board in 2005 showed cheese has positive effects on sleep, not nightmares as Ebeneser Scrooge seemed to think.
On This Day in Food History…
1785 Samuel Ellis advertised to sell his Oyster Island with no takers. Later renamed Ellis Island
1920 The 50-50 Club opened, considered the 1st ‘speakeasy.’
1964 The world’s largest cheese was presented at the 1964 New York World’s Fair, weighing in at over 34,000 pounds. It was presented by the Wisconsin Cheese Foundation, using over 170,000 qts of milk from over 16,000 cows.
1988 Famed vineyard manager Philippe de Rothschild dies.
1998 Researchers in America announced they had cloned calves for use in producing medicinal milk.
Tagged: National cheese lover's day
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Tagged: national popcorn day
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Happy National Gourmet Coffee Day
Until the invention of vacuum packed coffee tins in 1900 by Hill Bros. Coffee, almost every city or large town in America had their own local coffee roasters.
In East Africa and Yemen, coffee was used in native religious ceremonies that were in competition with the Christian Church. As a result, the Ethiopian Church banned its secular consumption until the reign of Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia.
Coffee berries, which contain the coffee seeds, are produced by several species of small evergreen bush of the genus Coffea. The two most commonly grown are also the most highly regarded Coffea arabica, and the “robusta” form of the hardier Coffea canephora.
An important export commodity, coffee was the top agricultural export for twelve countries in 2004.
Preparing coffee in a French press leaves more oils in the drink compared with coffee prepared with a paper coffee filter.
Tagged: national gourmet coffee day
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Happy Hot Buttered Rum Day!
Perhaps the Perfect Winter drink.
Today’s Food History
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Happy Fig Newton Day!
1868 William Davis, received a patent for a refrigerated railway car. First used to ship fish. Later ushering in the age of portable cold produced & foods.
1920 Prohibition began in the U.S., banning the sale of all alcoholic beverages. Allowances were made to produce wine for “religious purposes.”
1965 Searchers’ “Love Potion #9” peaks at #3
1958 A grasshopper plague causes serious damage across the state of Colorado & neighboring states. This “plagued” farmer’s crops; costing millions of dollars in damage.
some content is courtesy of FoodReference.com, used with permission.
Tagged: National Fig Newton Day
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1338 Charles V of France was born. He commissioned Taillevent to write what is considered the first professional “cookery” book in French, ‘Le Viandier’.
1937 BBC first aired the Cook’s Night Out with Marcel Boulestin, the first television cook
1908 New York City NY regulation makes it illegal for a woman to smoke or drink in public
1912 Konrad (Emil) Bloch was born. Nobel prize winner for his work on cholesterol & fatty acids. Discovering that high levels of cholesterol may lead to an increased risk of heart attacks.
1942 Bronx magistrate rules all pinball machines in bars and eating establishments illegal
1985 James Beard, American culinary expert & cookbook author, died at age 81.
Tagged: National Granola Bar Day
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Happy National Strawberry Ice Cream Day
A ‘Day’ created in the 1950’s to celebrate a very popular flavor of the time.
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Tagged: National Pastrami Sandwich Day
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1808 Salmon Portland Chase was born. He was Secretary of the Treasury under Abraham Lincoln, and later Chief Justice.
1921 Pierre Franey was born. A French chef who became famous as the chef of ‘Le Pavillon’ restaurant in New York City from 1945 to 1960. He published several cookbooks and collaborated with Craig Claiborne on the New York Times food column, ‘The 60 Minute Gourmet’.
1957 The Frisbee was invented. The pie tins of the Frisbee Pie Company of Connecticut were the inspiration for the creation of the Frisbee. A Wham-O employee supposedly saw drivers for the pie company showing Yale students how to throw the pie tins.
1962 Ernie Kovacs, innovative comedian, died. One of Kovacs’ first TV appearances was in Philadelphia in 1950 with a chef, Albert Mathis from the Gulph Mills Country Club, in a live unrehearsed cooking show titled ‘Deadline for Dinner.’
1968 “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” by Gladys Knight & Pips is #1 on the charts.
2002 U.S. President George W. Bush fainted after choking on a pretzel while watching a football game on TV in the White House.
Tagged: National Gluten-Free Day
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1808 Salmon Portland Chase was born. He was Secretary of the Treasury under Abraham Lincoln, and later Chief Justice.
1921 Pierre Franey was born. A French chef who became famous as the chef of ‘Le Pavillon’ restaurant in New York City from 1945 to 1960. He published several cookbooks and collaborated with Craig Claiborne on the New York Times food column, ‘The 60 Minute Gourmet’.
1957 The Frisbee was invented. The pie tins of the Frisbee Pie Company of Connecticut were the inspiration for the creation of the Frisbee. A Wham-O employee supposedly saw drivers for the pie company showing Yale students how to throw the pie tins.
1962 Ernie Kovacs, innovative comedian, died. One of Kovacs’ first TV appearances was in Philadelphia in 1950 with a chef, Albert Mathis from the Gulph Mills Country Club, in a live unrehearsed cooking show titled ‘Deadline for Dinner.’
1968 “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” by Gladys Knight & Pips is #1 on the charts.
2002 U.S. President George W. Bush fainted after choking on a pretzel while watching a football game on TV in the White House.
Tagged: National Gluten-Free Day
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~Melba toast & Peach Melba are indeed related.
~The dessert was created to celebrate the famous and slender opera singer, Nellie Melba in 1892.
~Other versions of this dessert use pears, apricots, or strawberries instead of peaches and / or use raspberry sauce or melted red currant jelly instead of raspberry purée.
On This Day in Food History…
1808 Salmon Portland Chase was born. He was Secretary of the Treasury under Abraham Lincoln, and later Chief Justice.
1921 Pierre Franey was born. A French chef who became famous as the chef of ‘Le Pavillon’ restaurant in New York City from 1945 to 1960. He published several cookbooks and collaborated with Craig Claiborne on the New York Times food column, ‘The 60 Minute Gourmet’.
1957 The Frisbee was invented. The pie tins of the Frisbee Pie Company of Connecticut were the inspiration for the creation of the Frisbee. A Wham-O employee supposedly saw drivers for the pie company showing Yale students how to throw the pie tins.
1962 Ernie Kovacs, innovative comedian, died. One of Kovacs’ first TV appearances was in Philadelphia in 1950 with a chef, Albert Mathis from the Gulph Mills Country Club, in a live unrehearsed cooking show titled ‘Deadline for Dinner.’
1968 “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” by Gladys Knight & Pips is #1 on the charts.
2002 U.S. President George W. Bush fainted after choking on a pretzel
Tagged: national peach melba day
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It’s National Glazed Doughnut Day!
Internationally, Dunkin’ Donuts has over 1700 locations in 29 countries and over 6,000 stores in 30 countries world-wide! In the U.S. there are over 4,400 locations across 36 states.
Krispy Kreme is probably best known for their fresh, hot, glazed, yeast-raised doughnuts. The company’s “Hot Doughnuts Now” flashing sign is an integral part of the brands appeal and fame.
Jelly-filled and Chocolate frosted also rank as their top sellers.
Americans consume 10 billion doughnuts annually.
1833 Marie-Antoine Carême died in Paris at the young age of 48. Carême was known as “the cook of kings and the king of cooks”. He is the founder and architect of French haute cuisine.
1885 John Bloomfield Jarvis died. A civil engineer, he designed and built the Boston Aqueduct and the 41 mile long Croton Aqueduct (New York City’s water supply for over 50 years from 1842).
1899 Paul Hermann Muller was born. A Swiss chemist who discovered that DDT was a potent insecticide. It was the most widely used insecticide for more than 20 years, and helped to increase food production around the world. Due mainly to its accumulation in animals that eat insects, and its toxic effects on them and those further up the food chain, it has been banned in the U.S. since 1972. DDT residue is still found in some foods grown in the U.S. in 2002.
1916 Ruth Rogan Benerito was born. American chemist who was a pioneer in the development of wash and wear fabrics. She also helped develop cotton fabrics that are stain resistant.
1948 The opening of Britain’s first supermarket, at Manor Park, run by the London Co-Op.
2001 William Hewlett died. Founder with David Packard of Hewlett Packard Company. Before they became famous for computers and printers etc., one early invention; a weight loss shock machine.
Tagged: national glazed doughnut day
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National Hot Toddy Day? Call me in!!
Tagged: national hot toddy day
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“Apricots are Eaten for Good Luck For the New Year!”
2. The apricot, discovered about 4,000 years ago in China, was introduced to the United States in the 18th century.
3. Brought to California by Spanish explorers, the apricot quickly became a popular crop.
4. Today, apricot farmers in California produce more than 95 percent of the apricots grown in the United States.
5. Choose an apricot that’s plump and that responds to the slight pressure of your thumb. It should be slightly soft.
Tagged: Apricot trivia, national apricot day
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Tagged: national toffee day
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Tagged: national shortbread day
Tagged: national whipped cream day
Tagged: National Spaghetti Day
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Traditionally, the “Day to Feast” before the great diet begins
2. The buffet was popularized in 18th century France and quickly spread throughout Europe.
3. The all-you-can-eat buffet made its restaurant debut in 1946, when it was introduced by Vegas hotel manager Herb MacDonald.
4. By the mid-1960s, virtually every casino in Las Vegas sported its own variation.
5. Today the casino buffet costs a bit more than the average $1.50 price of the 1960s, but the buffets continue to be one of the best deals in Vegas as well as all over the United States.
Tagged: national buffet day
