My Momma’s Christmas Pie
Of all the pies my momma baked during the holiday season, there was one very special pie she made just for herself . . . her Christmas mincemeat pie.
articles
Tomato Ketchup: The American invention that became worldwide condiment
It was 1812 America when Philadelphia scientist and horticulturist James Mease created the first tomato ketchup, but it was H. L. Heinz that turned it into a global condiment.
Desperation Pies
The Great Depression brought with it a number of major changes in the American food scene — how to acquire food, how to make it last, and how to turn the available limited ingredients into tasty, nutritious meals.
Bread: The Staff of Life
Bread is one of the oldest, most important, yet perhaps the most presumed foods in the world. In its simplest form, bread is wheat flour and water formed into a shaped dough and baked.
Only half of these 26 America born sodas survived
Over the past two centuries, the worldwide marketplace has seen the development of hundreds of soft drink brands. While many have enjoyed lasting success, many more have fallen to the wayside.
Canning, How It Started and Where It’s Come
1795 Nicholas Appert discovered how to preserve foodstuffs for long period of time, although it took 14 years of trial and error. Yet it took another 50 years before anyone knew why the Appert’s method worked.
The Wondrous World of Waffles
Waffles are the second most popular breakfast food after pancakes, with 45% of American’s breakfast eaters claiming waffles are their go-to dish.
Brunch, America’s Favorite Weekend Meal
The term “Brunch” may have been created by British author Guy Beringer, it was on this side of the pond that its popularity grew.
Meatloaf, the quintessential comfort food
The versatility of meatloaf has been a key to its longevity. A classic comfort food, once just a way for housewives to stretch their food budgets, that has found its way to the menus of diners and restaurants everywhere.
Chow-Chow, a favorite Southern condiment
Chow-chow is a popular pickled vegetable relish with roots in the American South, from Virginia and the Carolinas, across Kentucky and Tennessee, to Arkansas, Louisiana, and even parts of Texas and Oklahoma.
Velveeta, After 100 Years Sales Still Remain Strong
Velveeta was invented in 1918 by a Swiss immigrant and employee of New York’s Monroe Cheese Company, probably the most successful North American cheese maker at the time.
Hot Dogs, Another Iconic American Food
The hot dog consists of a boiled, steamed, or grilled sausage, known as a wiener or frankfurter, tucked into a specially designed bun, usually dressed with condiments or toppings that can vary depending on your country, state, or locale.
How Misunderstood Expiration Dates Contribute to America’s Food Waste Problem
Forty percent of all food produced in the U.S. is wasted and ends up in the landfill, although much of it is perfectly fine to eat.
Potatoes: America’s Leading Vegetable Crop
Grown commercially in thirty states, potatoes are the leading vegetable crop in the United States, with Idaho producing the most by far.
The American Diner
Diners can be traced back to Walter Scott, a newspaper pressman at the Providence Journal who, in 1872, left the presses to sell late night coffee and sandwiches from a horse-drawn wagon.
Take me out to the ball game . . .
If all of the Cracker Jack sold during that time were laid end-to-end they would circle the earth more than seventy-one times.
Pumpkin Pie: America’s Favorite Holiday Pie
The first pumpkin pies were likely made by hollowing out the shell, filling it with milk, honey, and spices, then baking it in hot ashes.
Okra: Ladies’ Fingers of the South
Okra, or ladies’ fingers as the pods are sometimes referred to because of their long, tapered, finger-like shape, is thought by many historians to have originated in east Africa.
Figs
The fig was believed to be one of the earliest plants cultivated by the human race.
Persimmons
Persimmon fruit, when ripe, is delicious eaten fresh. But they make wonderful pies, cakes, cookies, and breads.
Yam or Sweet Potato?
Almost all reddish-orange fleshed tubers eaten in the good ole’ US of A are sweet potatoes—not yams.
TV Dinners
Although it was the Swanson Company of Omaha who coined the name “TV dinner,” they were not the inventor of the frozen meal.
Chimichangas
The chimichanga is said to have been created not in Mexico but in Phoenix, Arizona.
Shepherd’s Pie: Winter’s Quintessential Comfort Food
Shepherd’s pie came about in the late 1700s as a way for frugal peasant housewives to use their leftover lamb, mutton, and other meats.
Why Turkey?
Exactly when and how turkey came to be the centerpiece of our Thanksgiving table remains a time-lost food mystery.
The Cheesecake Story
The first cheesecakes, known as “plakous,” were simply made using only flour, wheat, honey, and cheese.
Bread Pudding, the frugal dish turned trendy dessert
Bread pudding can be traced back to the early 11th century as a way for frugal cooks to utilize leftover bread.
The Gingerbread House, a Christmas Tradition
Well-decorated gingerbread houses became popular following the 1812 publication of the Brothers Grimm fairytale “Hansel and Gretel.”
America’s Favorite Condiment
One of my all-time favorites is a tuna salad sandwich–canned Albacore tuna packed in water with minced celery and onion, hard-boiled egg, a touch of garlic, and lots of America’s favorite condiment, mayonnaise. And though some of you may dislike, even hate mayo, I’m among the majority who wouldn’t think of having a ham and […]
The Club
My first exposure to a club sandwich was at the Rexall drug store next to the supermarket, where I worked after school and weekends. One Saturday the lunch counter waitress (yes, back then drug stores had lunch counters), a young hottie with whom I was totally infatuated suggested I buy the "daily special" to help […]
Icons of Summer: Kool-Aid and Popsicles
While my childhood was one of humble existence, we were not without some of the middle-class niceties of the times, thanks to a an extremely hard working father and a mother with the uncanny ability to stretch a dollar further than anyone I’ve ever known. Growing up, I loved just about everything that summer had […]
Cake Mix: Redefining Baking in America
Growing up in the mid-twentieth century, I observed first-hand a number of food innovations and convenience products that directly affected how the American housewife prepared the family meal. Arguably, the one product that brought about the biggest change was the invention of boxed cake mixes. I can remember when every pie and cake my mom […]
My Favorite Breakfast Food – Pancakes
A lady recently asked me, “Chef, what’s your favorite food?” My reply was, “Breakfast foods. Bacon, eggs, omelets, biscuits and gravy–you name it.” Then, after a brief pause, “And pancakes. I love pancakes!” I’m not sure when my affinity for pancakes began. You’d think it would have been as a young child, but I don’t […]
Jell-O! The Jiggly, Wiggly American Icon.
Growing up, I was exposed to Jell-O in just about any way and every way one can imagine–molded, sliced, cubed up, chopped up, plain or mixed with fruit, cottage cheese, and all sorts of vegetables. It seems that every grandmother, mother, and daughter had their favorite Jell-O dish and an extreme compulsion to bring it […]
The Reuben: New York or Omaha Born?
I’m not exactly sure when I had my first Reuben sandwich, although I believe it was at the lunch counter of a Skillern’s Drug Store when I was about 17 years old. What I do know is that it was love at first bite–the nuttiness of toasted rye, the sweet and sour sauerkraut mixed with […]
Sloppy Joe: America’s Quintessential Loose Meat Sandwich
The sloppy joe began making its appearance in food columns, advertisements, and cookbooks in the early 1940s.
Dairy Queen: A Small-Town Texas Icon
Dairy Queen got its start in 1938 in an ice cream store in Kankakee, Illinois owned by Sherb Noble.
An American Favorite – Carrot Cake
Several years ago, I did a stint as executive chef at a busy Texas hotel. Once or twice a month, usually after a busy Friday night, the kitchen staff and I would meet at Evelyn’s Café for a late-night breakfast before going home. Evelyn was known miles around for was her delicious three- layer carrot […]
Ranch Dressing: America’s Favorite
Although it first began showing up on supermarket shelves in the early 60s where I grew up, I really don’t recall its popularity soaring until some twenty years later while I was cooking in New York City. It was there in the “big city” that I started to think, “Folks are so crazy about this […]
A St. Louis Original: Ooey-Gooey Butter Cake
A few weeks back, I was watching Martha Stewart Bakes during which she made something I had never heard of in my forty-plus years as a chef–a Gooey Butter Cake. It seems this cake was invented during the Great Depression in the 1930s by a German-style bakery located on the St. Louis South Side. And […]
Eggnog: The Yuletide Drink
A couple of weeks ago while putting away the grocery order, my wife discovered the market had included two bottles of eggnog without her knowledge. When contacted about the error, the store manager explained they were given as apology for the unusually large number of out of stock items in our order. So later that […]
Deviled Eggs: A Heavenly Dish
Some of my fondest childhood memories are centered around helping my mom in the kitchen. She was a terrific cook whose dishes, although simple country fare, were always flavorful and extremely well prepared. Among some of my favorite foods were those she made for holidays and other special occasions such as birthdays and church potluck […]
The Spear or The Chip?
I was out with some friends at a popular fast casual chain restaurant that had just opened in Dallas when I first saw them on the appetizer menu–fried pickles. "FRIED PICKLES! Who the hell ever heard of fried pickles?" "You gotta try them," one member of the group said. "They’re great!" So being a curious […]
Chess Pie: Just Custard Pie by Another Name
The major difference in a chess pie from other custard pies is most chess pie recipes call for a small amount of cornmeal or flour.
Grits: Cuisine of the South
My wife, Maria, just loooves grits. Normally this wouldn’t be such a revolution, but she’s a born and bred Italian New Yorker. And, New Yorker’s do not eat grits. They eat farina, that creamy, smooth, rather bland breakfast portage known by many of us as cream of wheat. My wife Maria was certainly no exception. […]
Coffee Snob
Okay I admit it, the “best part of waking up” is not Folgers in my cup. It is not that I don’t like coffee, nor do I have anything against Folgers. Quite the contrary. Not only do I love coffee, but I am an official Starbuck’s Gold Card carrying coffee snob. And I rarely, if […]
Mayhaws: The Revival of a Once Forgotten Fruit
A few months ago, while visiting with some ladies at a local retirement community, the discussion turned to homemade jellies and the fruits from which they’re made. One of the women, born and raised in Louisiana, mentioned that her all-time favorite jelly was mayhaw, a fruit that until then I had never heard of. By […]
Cheeses of the South
I’ve always been a lover of cheese. Any kind of cheese–hard cheese, soft cheese, and numerous in-between varieties. While I certainly have my favorites, I can’t remember a cheese I’ve ever tasted that I wouldn’t eat. And I’ve tasted a lot of cheese. But last evening, my wife, who was reading a new cookbook, asked […]
And Then There Were S’Mores
As a youth of about eleven or twelve, I was somewhat coerced by my best friend Billy to join the Boy Scouts. Although this experience was extremely short lived by both of us, we did manage to stay in the troop long enough to go on our first (and Billy’s last) camping trip. As I […]
Dublin: 120 Years of Bottling America’s First Major Soft Drink
Some months ago while passing through Waco, Texas on a business related road trip, I couldn’t help but think about some of the historic events surrounding this small city named after Native Americans who once lived in the area. One of the most significant of these events is that Waco is the birth place of […]
