Is corned beef and cabbage really Irish? Well, the short answer is that corned beef and cabbage is about as Irish as spaghetti and meatballs. The dish was actually invented in the United States in the mid 1800’s, though it was developed by Irish immigrants. Since cattle were used for milk rather than meat in poor times in [more...]
The Ancient Romans were known for their highly evolved civilization, and for their inventions like the aqueduct. They were also known to love food and eating, and they often threw elaborate banquets to impress their friends with their knowledge of food and wine and to show off their wealth. That wasn’t how they ate all [more...]
Bilberries grow wild in Europe. Blueberries look similar but bigger, and are native to North America. That’s the short answer, but the longer truth is that there are quite a few different varieties – all cousins related to one another. It’s usual to call dark blue members of the European branch of the family bilberries, [more...]
The first flower salad I ever saw was covered with bright nasturtiums like the visual treat in the photo. It impressed me with the idea that some garden flowers are not only edible, but look wonderful on food. You can grow them as well as the better-known herbs to add interesting colours and flavours to [more...]
Drinking Greek coffee made in special little pots, brikia, has become quite popular in English-speaking countries in the last few years. If you have an old briki – from a relative’s attic, perhaps, or a souvenir from years ago – you may wonder if you can put it back on the kitchen stove and start [more...]
Strawberries are an ideal fruit for the home garden. They are easy to grow, fairly pest free, require little space and are fun. Twenty-five plants should provide enough berries for a family of four. There are many varieties available. Be sure to purchase certified, virus-free plants. They may cost a little more but will produce healthier [more...]
A smushi is a re-invented smørrebrød, a Danish open sandwich given a Japanese sushi twist. The Copenhagen chef who created smushi says he wanted a more “artistic” version of a big, chunky smørrebrød: something to compare with sushi for style, and for size too. The bread is cut into little squares instead of the usual hearty [more...]
January 25th is Burns Night, an evening for honouring Scottish poet Robert Burns. All over Scotland, and anywhere in the world where people celebrate their Scottish heritage, there will be Burns Suppers with haggis, poetry and whisky on the menu. If you’ve heard haggis is made with a sheep’s lungs, heart and liver chopped and stuffed [more...]
For beautiful and nutritious spinach soup, hold back half the spinach until after cooking. When you’re ready to puree it, blend the raw leaves with the rest. You get a tempting green that’s not too sludgy-looking, and you haven’t destroyed as many vitamins in the heat. For green pea soup, preserve the colour by not over-cooking. [more...]
Do you have a garden? Then you can grow tomatoes. Do you not have a garden? Well, you can grow tomatoes too. A few plants in pots in a sunny location can supply you with a summer of good eating. There many varieties of tomatoes, each of which differs from the others in taste, size, and ripening time, [more...]
Why would anybody want to grow sweetcorn? Well, because it is sweetcorn, of course. Can anything from the summer garden be better? First, we need plenty of space that gets full sun along with adequate soil moisture and nutrients, and be sure to pick the ears at optimum maturity. Our crop will need rich soil with enough [more...]
Well, there are many foods which are considered all American, such as apple pie and chop suey. However, it turns out they are not. But just what foods really are ‘all American?’ By all American, I mean those which came from the New World and are now part of the entire world’s diet. You may be surprised [more...]
While it is true, the pancake is more common in the Western World, and considered an art form by many in the United States, pancakes can be found on griddles in Indonesia, Syria, Egypt, France and China. Actually, just name a country and some version will be there. Pancakes are one of the original convenience foods [more...]
“Buffalo wings” are named not for the massive mammal of the American Plains but for the city in which they were first made, Buffalo, N.Y., according to the Online Etymology Dictionary. Buffalo wings were first made at the Anchor Bar in that city. According to the bar, the first ones were made on a Friday night [more...]
A pie floater is an unusual fast food meal, whose sale is almost entirely limited to two pie carts in Adelaide, South Australia, each selling a hundred or so pies per night. According to The Independent, they are sold to shift-workers, taxi-drivers and late-night drunks. The pie floater is made by tipping an upside-down meat pie [more...]
In 1912, the U.S.Department of Agriculture banned absinthe in the United States. The reason given is that it was thought to have caused insanity and hallucinations, drove drinkers to commit criminal acts and more. In other words, it was pretty much like any other alcoholic drink. Absinthe is an anise-flavored liquor that is made by steeping [more...]
Most of us have heard the old line, “As American as apple pie.” But, just how American is it? Actually, known recipes for this favorite stuffed pastry date back to the European Middle Ages, long before there was an America. And since the ancient Romans and Greeks were noted growers of apples, it would be a surprise [more...]
Doctors now know that taking certain medications with grapefruit juice can markedly increase their absorption. A number of drugs are broken down in your intestines by an enzyme called cytochrome P450 that is normally there, so these drugs have to be given in higher concentrations to reach needed blood levels. Grapefruit and grapefruit juice contain bergamottin that [more...]
Briefly, eating to satisfaction healthy and filling foods. Weight Watchers has evolved over the years and to those of you who remember the good ‘ole days of measuring and weighing, I have good news. The Simply Filling option (a technique within the new Momemtum Plan which may be used as a stand-alone plan for those who [more...]
Chop suey is made of small pieces of meat, chicken or shrimp which is stir-fried with celery, onions, bean sprouts, water chestnuts, mushrooms and/or other vegetables, and served over rice, frequently with soy sauce. It can also be prepared as a vegetarian dish, minus the meat. Many informative resources confirm that chop suey is actually an [more...]