Multiple Prizes for the Victors of the Ancient Greek Olympics

Photo of the starting line at the first Olympic stadium courtesy 123rf.com

No mere medal was awarded to the winners of the Ancient Greek Olympics.  The prizes were as follows:

1.  500 drachmai, which was a fortune at the time.

2.  A wreath made of olive sprigs, which was the favored plant of the patron god of the games, and was highly prized by the victors as it was believed to carry mystical powers.

3.  A free meal in the City Hall every day for the rest of their lives.

4.  A statue of themselves erected at Olympia's holy sanctuary for the gods that included their name, the names of their family members, and the city where they lived, which would insure their fame and guarantee their heroic status for eternity.

5.  A poem written by a famous poet of the day, which would spread their fame and insure their eternal heroic status.

For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Anything and (Nearly) Everything About...CHEESECAKE!

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Today's topic, Cheesecake, was requested by Professional Zombie Killer, who lists his address as "earth", and is @dvindsgyz on Twitter.

The earliest references to cheesecake go back 4,000 years ago.  The Greek physician, Aegimus, wrote a book just prior to the 5th century B.C. on the art of making cheesecakes.  Cheesecake was given to athletes for energy in the first Olympic Games in 776 B.C.

Different types of cheeses are used in making cheesecakes in different countries around the world.  For instance, cream cheese is used in the U.S., and ricotta is used in Italy.  For more information click here.

National Cheesecake Day in the U.S. is just around the corner:  July 30.  On this date many restaurants and cheesecake chains, such as The Cheesecake Factory, offer specials on all types of cheesecake, including the dense & rich New York style, and the light & creamy Philadelphia style.  For more information click here.

There is a Cheesecake of the Month Club, that will send to you, or anyone of your choosing, a cheesecake once a month or in other timely installments.  Professional Zombie Killer lists his address as "earth", so I must assume he will have access to the Cheesecake of the Month Club if he so desires it.  While the club won't specify what kind of cheesecake you will receive each month, they list a picture of a Strawberry Cheesecake, PZK's  favorite, so I assume he would receive one sometime in the year, and probably in June or July or August, which is when strawberries are in season.  By the way, chocolate cheesecake is the number one favorite cheesecake in the U.S., followed by strawberry in second place, and pumpkin cheesecake (?!) in third place.   For more information click here.

Thanks to Professional Zombie Killer, @dvindsgyz on Twitter, for requesting today's topic!  What did you learn today?

Mouries' Margarine

Photo of margarine on a spoon, where it should stay, courtesy 123rf.com

On this day in 1869 French chemist Hippolyte Mege Mouries (1817-1880) was granted a patent for margarine.  He developed this substitute for butter for a contest sponsored by Napoleon III.  Mouries coined the word margarine from the Greek word marganon, which means pearl, because in his experiments he isolated a substance that looked like pearls.

During the Industrial Revolution people migrated from farms to cities to work, which produced a shortage of butter in France.  So Napolean III sponsored the contest for producing a butter substitute, which Mouries won.

Margarine is vegetable oil or meat fats mixed with milk and salt, and dye to give it the yellow color.  Some people say margarine is better for you than butter.  Some people say butter is better for you than margarine.  I just say, "Please pass the butter."

For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Lemon-Aide...

Photo of Meyer lemon courtesy 123rf.com

My favorite lemon is the Meyer lemon, almost edible right off the tree, more lemon flavor than pucker.  I was first introduced to the Meyer lemon when I lived in San Jose, California, where more houses have citrus trees in their back yards than don't.  Indeed, I had a Meyer lemon tree in my yard, frozen lemon juice in my freezer, and more lemon pies, cakes, bars, butters, sauces, and lemonade than I and my friends could keep in our iceboxes, so most of those spent a lot of time in our freezers, too.

Very often I enjoy what the French call lemon presse or citron presse (click here for the recipe; I make mine with delicious Kal Pure Stevia Extract, not that bad junk sold in grocery stores).  I drink it especially when I've had a heavy meal or my stomach just isn't feeling quite right.  Being in a small city in East Texas right now, I don't have regular access to Meyer lemons except when I travel, so I often substitute limes in this hot drink.

Some doctors have been touting the health benefits of lemons, and I remember reading somewhere a couple of years ago that some doctor said if everyone drank a lemon presse without the sugar every day we could virtually wipe out inflammation and illness.  Click here for more ideas about the curative powers of lemons.

So, what didn't I know about lemons:  the native home of lemons is unknown, but many suspect that it is India.  By 200 A.D. lemon trees were introduced in Italy, and by 1300 they were cultivated widely throughout the Mediterranean region and Asian countries.  The oldest city in the U.S., St. Augustine, Florida, had lemon trees producing fruit by its founding in 1565.

Click here for more information about lemons.  By the way, click here for the best recipes using Kal Pure Stevia Extract.  What did you learn today?

Quiche in Quebec

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Today's topic, Quiche Lorraine in Quebec, was requested by French-Canadian Lorraine Hetu Manifold, who lives in Park Ridge, Illinois, and is @ManifoldMusic on Twitter.

Click here for a discussion about where to find the best Quiche Lorraine in Quebec restaurants.  If you're in Quebec but prefer to eat in, you can bring home the award winning Plats du Chef mini quiches (click here) from your grocer.  If you're in Quebec City in May and want to enjoy the company of other foodies who enjoy quiche and other French Quebec delights, you may want to attend the Food Camp (click here).

Finally, If you can't get to Quebec but want to sample the fabulous Quiche by Chef Maurice, click here and you can place an order, which will be sent anywhere in the world.

Click here for recommendations of special Quebec foods, and click here for best Quebec restaurants recommendations.

Thanks to Lorraine Hetu Manifold, @ManifoldMusic on Twitter, for suggesting today's topic!  What did you learn today?

Holidays in the U.S.A.

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

My birthday is in August, and I grew up knowing that August is the only month that does not have a federal holiday in the U.S.  Also, no other month starts on the same day of the week as August 1, except in leap years when February 1 and August 1 will fall on the same day of the week.

Contemplating my birthday this year made me think about the above, which then made me wonder about the holidays that are in August and other months.  It turns out that there is a holiday on just about every day of the year in the U.S.!  It appears food is the primary reason for celebrating August, as it is National Catfish Month and every day celebrates some type of dessert.  For a listing of all holidays for the entire year in the U.S. click here; this site also has lists of the various symbols for every state and the nation.

What did you learn today?

Sun-Baked Food

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

About this time of year people start talking about how hot it is, such as "It's so hot you could fry and egg on a sidewalk."  People also start doing more cooking outdoors in order to keep the house cool, such as grilling on a barbeque, making sun tea, and wrapping uncooked dinner ingredients in foil and placing it in their car's rear window in the morning before they leave for work.

I thought I'd look to see if anyone had come up with anything new in this area, and although it looks like this isn't new, it's certainly new to me:  sun ovens!  It's basically a mirrored-lined or metal-lined box in which you place your food, and the food is cooked by the intensified heat of the sun.  There are also numerous blogs about sun oven recipes!  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

Insalata Caprese's SWISS Origins?

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Insalata Caprese is my favorite salad, and it's so pretty, too.  It's a composed salad like Salade Nicoise, which means it's assembled on a platter, not tossed in a bowl.  Many assume that because of its name the salad originated on the Isle of Capri, but some say it originated in Switzerland!  It was possibly named because a Capri native, who worked as a maitre d' at a hotel in Switzerland, had it so often that hotel patrons asked for the salad that the man from Capri made.

For more information click here and click here.  For the original recipe that also includes suggestions for wine pairings click here.  What did you learn today?

Sun King Dines Alone With 300 People

Photo of symbol of Louis XIV on the railing of the Louvre courtesy 123rf.com

Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King of France (reigned from 1643-1715), in theory dined alone.  However, it took about 100 people to get him ready for the day after he woke in the morning, and these people were in attendance when he had his beef broth for breakfast.  At 1:00 P.M. he would lunch, again alone in his chamber, but he would simultaneously receive men of the court.  At dinner, again he would dine alone if not entertaining, but it would take about 300 people to arrange, prepare, and serve this meal, so he was never really alone for any meal of his life.  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

Graham: Vegetarian Cracker?!

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

The graham cracker was invented in 1829 by Sylvester Graham (American, 1794-1851) for a high fiber addition to his vegetarian diet.  For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Seven-Minute Egg

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

I love a 7-minute egg:  put egg(s) in pan, cover with water, put lid on pan, put pan on burner, turn on burner to high setting, as soon as water boils turn off burner but do not remove pan from burner, leave pan on burner for seven minutes, remove pan from burner and drain hot water, add cold water to pan, remove and peel egg(s), and enjoy!  The white is completely cooked, and the yolk is orange and barely runny.  If you want a completely cooked yolk, leave pan on burner for ten to fifteen minutes.

The largest chicken egg ever recorded weighed one pound, and had two yolks and two shells!  For more information click here.

History of New Year's Good Luck Traditions

Photo of Dutch oliebol, which is only baked during the days between Christmas and New Year.
Photo courtesy 123rf.com

An old New Year's belief is that how you spend the first day of the new year will influence the rest of the year.  So, people will do things that they believe will give them good luck such as eating certain foods, and will spend the day with people whom they wish to be with during the coming year.

For some cultures, using something in the form of a ring on New Year's Day symbolizes completing the year uninterrupted by misfortune.  This is why the Dutch believe that eating doughnuts on New Year's Day will bring good luck all year.  For more information click here.

What New Year's traditions do you and your family observe?

Christmas in Puerto Rico

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Christmas celebrations in Puerto Rico are both religious and secular.  Religious celebrations last six weeks, ending January 6 with the Feast of the Three Kings who visited the Holy Family in Bethlehem.  On the eve of this feast children put grain and water under their beds to feed the camels of the kings.

The Christmas Eve celebration includes a big feast at midnight consisting of the favorite seasonal foods of roast pig, rice and peas, pasteles, and coconut pudding.  The favorite seasonal drink is coquito, which is made of coconut milk and white rum.  For more information click here.

Christmas in Guatemala

Photo of tamales courtesy 123rf.com

In the nine days leading up to Christmas in Guatemala, there are daily processions with religious statues, firecrackers, and people acting as the Holy Family.  At the end of the procession the Holy Family stops at a selected house, and asks for and is given shelter for the night.  Then everyone enjoys a feast, usually with the favorite food of the season, tamales.  At the end of the Christmas Eve procession a Christ-child figure is added to the manger, then everyone again celebrates then attends midnight mass.  Christmas morning is spent in worship, after which celebrating and feasting continues.  For more information click here.

How does your family spend the days prior to Christmas?

Christmas in Asia

Photo of fried chicken on Japanese dish courtesy 123rf.com

In the Philippines Christmas is a full-on religious holiday and an official holiday, with much celebration, feasting, and gift-giving.  In other East Asian countries there are public holidays during the Christmas season, but there are few who celebrate Christmas either secularly or religiously.  In Muslim countries, Christmas is neither an official nor unofficial holiday, but Christians who live there do celebrate Christmas with their churches. 

In Japan there is intense secular celebration with much gift-giving, and although many Christmas religious symbols are used in their secular celebrations, actual religious celebration is not wide-spread outside Christian communities. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony is one of their favorite pieces of music during this season, and fried chicken one of their favorite foods. A friend who is Japanese has told me that the Japanese are very name-brand conscious, and that this is reflected in their Christmas gift-giving.  For more information click here and click here.

If you celebrate during the month of December, what do you celebrate and how?

Christmas in South America

Photo courtesy FreeImagesLive.co.uk

South America is in the middle of summer during the Christmas season, so holidays can include fireworks, trips to the beaches for surfing and swimming, picnics, and barbecues.  While Christmas has been influenced by native traditions and U.S. and European customs, the majority of people celebrating Christmas in South America do so in a devoutly religious manner.  Nativity scenes are especially prevalent and important to South Americans.

There are separate celebrations that include feasts on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and since the Christmas season extends through Epiphany there are religious celebrations and feasting on New Year's Day as well.  Some of the special Christmas-season foods are Christmas pudding, a special dessert cake called Pan de Pascua, roast pig or peacock, steak, turkey, and pies.  Special Christmas-season drinks are cola de mono or "monkey's tail",  fruit juice, cider, beer, and champagne.

For more information click here, and click here, and click here.

What Christmas traditions does your family observe?

Christmas Websites & Baking

Photo courtesy Coolest Christmas Present Cake (click here for recipe)


Photo courtesy Pastry Passion (click here to purchase one of these cakes)

Even though we have a large collection of Christmas cookbooks that we love, we thought we'd see what the internet had to offer this year.  The number of websites devoted only to Christmas is staggering, and the number of sites dedicated to Christmas baking is no less so.  Here are a few of our newly discovered favorites:

Christmas Baking = The home page contains many links to other Christmas sites.

Why Christmas = Written by a Christmas fan in England

All Things Christmas

A Magical Christmas

Christmas Ideas

Christmas Stock Images = Free Christmas Photos!

We'll still bake the Christmas cookies we were taught to bake when growing up:  cookies cut into shapes using Christmas cookie-cutters, then decorated with colored powdered sugar frostings.  We wanted to bake a cake in the shape of some Christmas object or symbol, so we've also decided to bake the cakes pictured above to see if we would like to add them to our Christmas baking repertoire.  We'll use a bundt pan for the wreath cake.  The ideas may seem obvious to you, but we hadn't thought of them and can hardly wait to see them on the sideboard. 

By the way, if you have celiac disease you can do like we do and use a flourless chocolate cake recipe for cakes and cupcakes.  For cookies we put a thin layer of flourless chocolate batter into egg-poaching rings or metal cookie-cutters on a cookie sheet, then bake as usual.

What's coming out of your kitchen this holiday season?

Mayonnaise

Photo courtesy FreeImagesLive.co.uk

Many people in the U.S. think the best part of Thanksgiving Dinner is the leftover-turkey salad that is made and usually used in sandwiches (for a change, try adding a little ground cumin--yum).  To make the salad you have to first make the mayonnaise from scratch--yes, I'm from The South, that's the 15 southern states in the United States (actually I'm from The Deep South: Alabama, aka "The Heart of Dixie").  If I'm not able to make mayonnaise from scratch (which is Never--I always make my mayo from scratch--I'm from The South, remember), then I would, of course, buy Hellmann's (The South, etc...).  When I lived in California the mayonnaise to buy was Best Foods, which is Hellmann's west of the Rockies.  A lot of people would say just about anything savory can taste better with mayonnaise on it.  I've even added a cup of mayo to a chocolate cake recipe, which made it more moist & delicious.

I've always wondered who developed the mayonnaise recipe, and how did they know--or did they know--that the chemical reaction of slowly dribbling oil into beaten eggs would not produce a drippy, oily mess but a fluffy, white emulsion that makes the tongue happy.

The most widely accepted story begins with the British rule of Port Mahon in 1756.  The French sent the infamous Armand de Vignerot du Plessis, 3rd Duc de Richelieu (1696-1788) to take the port.  During the course of the siege, the French ran short of supplies, but the Duc still wanted to host a banquet.  The Duc's chef decided to try whipping eggs and oil together to serve in place of the seasonings that they did not have, and it was a big hit.  The French won the Battle of  Port Mahon and returned home with, among other things, the new recipe named after the battle and called mayonnaise.

Below is my basic mayonnaise recipe, which is made in a food-processor and can be doubled.  There are endless variations, just try an internet search if you don't believe me.  Try adding a little onion powder to the recipe:  I swear it tastes like fried onion rings, and of course anything savory OR sweet tastes better fried, doesn't matter where you're from.

1 egg
2 egg-yolks
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 & 1/3 cups Wesson vegetable oil

1.  Process eggs for one minute. 
2.  Add salt and juice and process for 30 seconds. 
3.  With processor running, add oil in a very tiny steady stream until all oil is used.

Getting Mushy About Mushrooms

Photo of matsutake mushrooms courtesy of JapanGuidebook.com

There are over 10,000 types of mushrooms.  The mushroom is a member of the Fungi Kingdom classification (separate from plants, animals, and bacteria).  Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi.  The most expensive mushroom in the world is Japan's matsuki mushroom, which can sell for $1,000 per pound.

Here is a cookbook, Wild About Mushrooms, published by the Mycological Society of San Francisco.

For more information about mushrooms, visit the websites for The Mushroom Council, The American Mushroom Institute, and Mushroom-Appreciation.com.

Pumpkin-Shaped Cake!

You can make a cake that looks like a pumpkin by baking two bundt cakes and placing one upside down on a plate, and placing the second one on top with the flat sides together--clever!

For recipe and assembly, click here for the chocolate version pictured below. It is number 4 in the slide show.

For a similar recipe and assembly, click here for a vanilla version with different icing.