John-Bryan Hopkins's Blog, page 70

July 30th is National Cheesecake Day

Five Food Finds about Cheesecake:

Pennsylvania Dutch-style cheesecake uses a slightly tangy type of cheese with larger curds and less water content, called pot or farmer’s cheese.
Philadelphia-style cheesecake is lighter in texture, yet richer in flavor than New York style cheesecake.
Farmer’s cheese cheesecake is the contemporary implementation for the traditional use of baking to preserve fresh cheese and is often baked in a cake form along with fresh fruit like a tart.
Country-style cheesecake uses buttermilk to produce a firm texture while decreasing the pH (increasing acidity) to extend shelf life.
Lactose free cheesecake may be made either with lactose-free cream cheese or as an imitation using Vegan recipes combining non-dairy cream cheese alternatives with other lactose-free ingredients.

Today’s Food History

on this day in…

1739 Caspar Wistar founded the first successful large scale glass factory in the U.S. in Allowaystown, New Jersey.

1838 It supposedly rained frogs in London.

1849 Jacob Perkins died. Perkins was issued the first U.S. patent for a refrigerating machine. It used sulfuric ether compression.

1963 Lisa Marie Diane Kudrow was born. American actress, her first major TV role was as the strange waitress on ‘Mad About You.’

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July 29th is National Lasagna Day

Five Food Finds about Lasagna: 

Lasagna is made with either flat noodles or rippled noodles. Rippled noodles are common in southern Italy but rarely used in Northern Italy. Rippled noodles are also popular in the United States.

The word lasagna originally referred to the pot in which the dish was cooked rather than the food itself as it does today. In fact, it is believed by some that the word is derived from the Greek word for “chamber pot” (lasanon).
The plural of lasagna is lasagne. In Italy, the plural form, lasagne, is always used when referring to lasagna.
The word lasagna originally referred to the pot in which the dish was cooked rather than the food itself as it does today. In fact, it is believed by some that the word is derived from the Greek word for “chamber pot” (lasanon).
The Forme of Cury, a 14th century cookbook that was the first to be published in England, featured lasagna.
Lasagna is often called “losyns” in Middle English.

Today’s Food History

on this day in…

1796 Walter Hunt was born. He invented the first safety pin in 1849, which he called a ‘dress pin.’

1878 Don Marquis, American journalist and poet was born. He wrote ‘archy and mehitabel,’ a book of poems written by a cockroach who couldn’t use the shift key.

1914 Baron Marcel Bich was born. French inventor of the Bic Pen in 1949.

1974 Mama Cass Elliot (The Mamas and the Papas) died today in London. The rumor that she choked to death on a ham sandwich is not true. She actually died of a heart attack.

1977 Buffalo, New York declared this day ‘Chicken Wing Day’ in honor of the famous Buffalo Chicken Wings, created by Teressa Bellissimo in October, 1964. Buffalo Wings were created by Teressa Bellissimo at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, for her son and some friends for a midnight snack.

1984 Fred Waring, musician, died. Frederick Osius worked on improving the electric blender, and went to Waring for financial backing. Waring backed its development, in part, so he could puree raw vegetables for the ulcer diet his doctors prescribed. The Waring Blender (originally called the Miracle Mixer) debuted in 1937 and sold for $29.75.  By 1954 one million Waring Blendors had been sold.

 

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July 28th is National Milk Chocolate Day

Five Facts about Chocolate:

More than 50 percent of adults in the US prefer chocolate to any other flavor.
 Americans eat 2.8 billion pounds of candy annually. About half of it is chocolate.
The word chocolate comes from “Xocolatl,” the Aztec word that means “bitter water.”
Eating chocolate can help prevent tooth decay and works as an anti-bacterial agent.
The Ivory Coast produces more cocoa than any country in the world which makes for 37 percent of it.

Today’s Food History

on this day in…

1586 The potato was introduced to England. It is claimed that Sir Thomas Harriot introduced potatoes to England on this day. (Some sources give December 3 as the date).

1852 Andrew Jackson Downing died. An American horticulturist, he was the author of ‘The Fruits and Fruit Trees of America’ (1845) and editor of the ‘Horticulturist’ periodical.

1866 The metric system was authorized to standardize weights and measures in the U.S. (Authorized, yes, but we still don’t use it very much).

1900 One of the many claims to the origin of the hamburger, is that Louis Lassing (or Lassen) first served hamburgers on a bun in his diner in New Haven, Connecticut.

1907 Earl S. Tupper was Born. The inventor of Tupperware. (Tupperware makes the containers used to conduct mold and bacterial experiments in the back of refrigerator shelves).

1977 At 11:02 p.m. the first oil from Prudhoe Bay arrived at Valdez in the trans-Alaskan pipeline. It took 38 days to travel the 800 miles.

1989 The largest halibut (Atlantic) caught with rod and reel weighed over 255 pounds. It was caught in Gloucester, Massachusetts by Sonny Manley

Filed under: Food Holidays, July food holidays Tagged: facts, five food finds, food, foodimentary, fun, life, milk chocolate day, national milk chocolate day, today's food history, todays food history