What most people know about saffron is that it is expensive. Saffron comes from the crocus flower, in once-a-year harvests, and needs to be picked carefully by hand. It takes 4,000 flowers to make up one ounce of saffron! Therefore, quality saffron can cost up to $10,000 a kilogram. The good news is that you don't need a kilogram -far from it. And not all saffron is that expensive.
People unfamiliar with saffron as a flavoring should try it in dishes that don't have a lot of other spices first. It can be sprinkled on ice cream or in drinks. Adding it to rice is a good way to familiarize yourself with saffron's unique flavor. Once you know it, you'll recognize it when it's present in Iranian dishes, no matter what other spices are there.
Eater has a guide to saffron that goes over its origins and harvest, how to most economically use it in your cooking, and how to avoid adulterated saffron. There are also links to nine recipes that use saffron.
(Image credit: Sophia Pappas)
Who doesn’t love eggs? We certainly do. Whether it's for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and regardless of how it’s prepared (poached, fried, boiled)-- it’s one of the best things you can eat.
In terms of nutrional value, eggs are packed with proteins, and vitamins, and can even help with brain development. The reason why it’s such a viable option as well as how easily it can be cooked. They can be fried, scrambled, boiled, and more.
You can add it to other dishes to make them more delicious, or you can eat them on your own. It’s an easy ingredient to reach out to at any time of the day. According to a naturopath and general family practitioner Dr. Yelena Deshko, eggs are a powerhouse food. “An average egg contains approximately seven grams of protein and a significant amount of [B vitamins], Vitamin D, and minerals such as phosphorus and selenium,\" she stated.
But of course, here’s the question: what’s the healthiest way to cook eggs? Dr. Deskhko shared that the healthiest cooking methods involve no extra oils or butter. “Cooking processes such as boiling, poaching or baking help you reap the nutritional benefits of eggs without increasing the fat and calorie content,\" she shared.
Image credit: Jakub Kapusnak
","hashtags":[],"id":17632,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"t/his/this-is-the-healthiest-way-to-cook-eggs-5e836cfe.jpeg","width":5472,"height":3648,"size":4099979}],"slug":"this-is-the-healthiest-way-to-cook-eggs","thumbnail":"t/his/this-is-the-healthiest-way-to-cook-eggs-5e836cfe.jpeg","thumbnailWidth":5472,"thumbnailHeight":3648,"thumbnailSize":4099979,"tagline":"","title":"This Is The Healthiest Way To Cook Eggs"},{"addDate":"2023-04-03T13:45:05.000Z","author":64,"authorName":"JohnFarrier","changeDate":"2023-04-05T15:36:52.000Z","id":4680,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"Rachel Ryle, an artist in Brooklyn, New York, works in a wide variety of media. She uses colored pencils to make illustrations of famous destination cities, creates stop motion animations, and does a lot of photography.
","hashtags":[],"id":17671,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"h/and/hand-painted-bread-by-rachel-ryle-04171c0a.jpeg","width":1080,"height":1349,"size":424250},{"description":"Ryle is self-taught and, perhaps as a result, always experimenting with something new. Recently, that included sourdough bread loaves that she painted with food coloring. So far, her work consists of flora motifs, but think of what other creative options are also available, such as landscapes, figure studies, and—let us hope—commissioned Dungeons & Dragons character art.
","hashtags":[],"id":17672,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"h/and/hand-painted-bread-by-rachel-ryle-7fcaaa9b.jpeg","width":1080,"height":1349,"size":329695},{"description":"That’s the apex of all truly great art.
-via Laughing Squid
","hashtags":[],"id":17673,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"h/and/hand-painted-bread-by-rachel-ryle-0c796e1a.jpeg","width":1080,"height":1350,"size":292621}],"slug":"hand-painted-bread-by-rachel-ryle","thumbnail":"h/and/hand-painted-bread-by-rachel-ryle-04171c0a.jpeg","thumbnailWidth":1080,"thumbnailHeight":1349,"thumbnailSize":424250,"tagline":"","title":"Hand Painted Bread by Rachel Ryle"},{"addDate":"2023-04-03T06:05:35.000Z","author":58,"authorName":"sodiumnami","changeDate":null,"id":4676,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"Let’s answer the question now: somewhat, but it’s not really relevant. In this economy, while there are many different kinds of butter for public consumption, one has to consider making a practical choice for baking– especially with how prices are rising.
According to Ashely Manila, blogger, and baker at Baker By Nature, fancy butter can be expensive and may not be a practical choice for baking, especially if you can just get a readily-available and affordable American-style butter.
However, if you’re really curious about how changing the kind of butter used in baking a cake will affect its taste or quality, All Recipes has you covered. Sara Haas decided to test different butter styles in making a Grandmother’s Pound Cake.
In her experiment to determine if one kind of butter best works with baked goods, she used American, cultured, Amish, and European kinds of butter.
After baking all of the cakes, she tested them to see how they stacked up in terms of structure, flavor, and tenderness. The results point out that the Amish, cultured, and European kinds of butter are the best for baking cakes. They provide the richness and creamy mouthfeel you’d want in a cake.
American butter is also good, but it wasn’t as interesting as the other three. However, Haas concluded that there were really no noticeable differences in the four if she wasn’t looking for them. So in short: use what you want!
Image credit: Sara Haas
","hashtags":[],"id":17618,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"w/ill/will-the-quality-of-the-butter-change-the-taste-of-your-cake-68199135.webp","width":750,"height":563,"size":77324}],"slug":"will-the-quality-of-the-butter-change-the-taste-of-your-cake","thumbnail":"w/ill/will-the-quality-of-the-butter-change-the-taste-of-your-cake-68199135.webp","thumbnailWidth":750,"thumbnailHeight":563,"thumbnailSize":77324,"tagline":"","title":"Will The Quality Of The Butter Change The Taste Of Your Cake? "},{"addDate":"2023-04-02T18:45:20.000Z","author":63,"authorName":"MissCellania","changeDate":null,"id":4669,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"Macaroni and cheese has been a popular dish from the moment of its invention. And why not? We don't realize how many of our simple meals and snacks consist of some form of bread and milk products: cold cereal, pizza, fettuccine Alfredo, milk and cookies, grilled cheese, ice cream sandwich, Cheetos, Doritos, yogurt and granola, and of course, macaroni and cheese, which has the extra taste of milk turned into cheese and is served hot. It's pretty cheap to make, too, at least today. There were a lot of innovations required to make it affordable for the masses. Eventually boxed macaroni and cheese became the go-to filler for family meals when you can't afford much meat, the kids won't eat the vegetables anyway, and no one has adequate time to cook after you get home from work.
Today, there's a constant divide between those who insist that proper macaroni and cheese must be made from scratch, with real cheese and béchamel sauce, and those who crave the boxes with processed cheese. Once I served my father macaroni and cheese, and he thought it was really good. Then he asked if I made it from scratch or from a box. I was embarrassed to admit it was neither- I just took it out of the freezer and put it in the oven. But however you make it (or depend on someone else to make it), you'll enjoy the extensive and joke-ridden history of macaroni and cheese.
If you weren't around when pizza rolls came on the scene in 1968, you might not know that they are a direct descendant of egg rolls. It's right there in the name. They were developed by the entrepreneur behind Chun King, the producer of pre-packaged Chinese-American foods. That was Minnesota-born Jeno Paulucci, son of Italian immigrants. That short introduction makes it clear that pizza rolls are an American food, and an early experiment in fusion cuisine. But that's not what Paulucci was going for. He wanted to produce foods that were convenient, fun, easily mass-produced, and that people wanted to eat.
The story of Jeno Paulucci's pizza rolls has some comical moments, like his Italian mother spicing up Chinese food her way, and the pizza roll luau shish kabob you see on the grill above. Read the whole story of how your freezer came have pizza rolls ready for anything at Snack Stack. -via Digg
Pasta alla carbonara is a delicious dish made with pasta, eggs, cheese, pork, and black pepper. The first published recipe for carbonara appeared in the US in 1952, and in Italy in 1954. BY then, it was being served in restaurants in both countries, yet it was always known as an Italian dish. But last week, a paywalled article in Financial Times stated that carbonara was invented in Italy by Americans who were living there. This set the Italian culinary world on fire. Wikipedia gives several possible origins for the dish, all involving World War II. Italian food author Eleonora Cozzella tries to settle arguments with her extensive research into carbonara.
Cozzella interviewed the grandchildren of innkeepers who, in the late 1940s right after World War Two, would feed American soldiers in the picturesque neighbourhood of Trastevere, just across the river Tiber in Rome. Soldiers were apparently asking for \"spaghetti breakfast\": eggs, bacon and pasta. And at the time, although the country was on its knees, Italians could buy military rations on the black market that included bacon from Americans and egg powder from the British.
But that was just the beginning. Even today, Italian chefs argue over the proper way to make carbonara. With cream or without? What kind of cheese? What kind of pork? How much should the eggs be cooked? And does the pasta shape matter? Read the passionate opinions on the origins of carbonara and what makes the recipe special at BBC. There's a simple carbonara recipe included.
(Image credit: Javier Somoza)
If there's a country where you won't get bored with the food served to you, it's Mexico. Why, your taste buds are always engaged thanks to the diversity of Mexican cuisine. And this is one of the reasons why the cuisine became popular and loved worldwide.\n
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And because Mexican cuisine is so popular, some of its dishes have already become available outside of Mexico. (There is an abundance of Mexican food stores in the US alone!) But this is an incomplete experience. Eating Mexican food in its homeland — Mexico — is an entirely different experience. It's engaging, diverse, and unforgettable.\n
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But what dishes should you try in the country when you find your feet finally stepping on Mexican soil? Fret not because Selena Maria Daniels has a list of 23 must-try dishes in Mexico, like the conchas, tecolota, menudo, mole, and many more!\n
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Check out Daniels's list over at CNN.\n
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(Image Credit: Grueslayer/ Wikimedia Commons)
(Image Credit: Ron habla hispana/ Wikimedia Commons)
(Image Credit: ProtoplasmaKid/ Wikimedia Commons)
(Image Credit: AlejandroLinaresGarcia/ Wikimedia Commons)
Various kinds of fried rice exist in Asia, like the Indonesian nasi goreng and the Thai khao phat. Some types of fried rice, like egg fried rice, are more commonly seen than others, as they are simpler to prepare (the ingredients are more accessible, too!)
But if you want THE fried rice, look no further than the Yangzhou Chao Fan (\"Chao Fan\" is \"fried rice\" in Chinese). It has premium ingredients, looks fantastic, and tastes excellent. For many, this is the ultimate fried rice, just for the number of ingredients alone.
In this video, Chef Wang Gang walks us through the many steps of making a top-quality Yangzhou Chao Fan.
As he clearly states in the video description, the Yangzhou Chao Fan holds itself to a high standard, which means that the chef who plans on making the dish better step up his game. From the preparation of the ingredients and the techniques shown as they are cooked, to the presentation, it is clear that the dish demands respect and excellence from the chef. But the final result will never disappoint.
Just look at that close-up!
There are a few variations to the Yangzhou Chao Fan, so this is just one of them. But if there are two things these variations have in common, it's the rice and the excellent taste.
(Image Credit: Chef Wang via YouTube)
Now that KFC's 11 secret herbs and spices have finally been revealed to the public, it was only a matter of time before someone cooked the signature chicken outside the restaurant. And Joshua Weissman was one of those \"someones.\" But in this video, Weissman takes a step further. Not only does he recreate the chicken; he recreates the whole KFC bucket meal — the mashed potatoes, the gravy, coleslaw, and the biscuits.
Of course, if you want to make the whole set, you'll need a bunch of kitchen stuff, like the food processor and oven for the cookies, as well as the potato ricer for the mashed potato (for a smoother and creamier mash). And lots of ingredients are required to make the bucket meal set, especially butter. Oh boy, you'll need LOTS of butter.
But it's all worth it in the end. Granted, you might spend some money and time attempting to replicate the KFC experience, but at least you know the food is safe for consumption and suited to your taste buds.
(Image Credit: Joshua Weissman via YouTube)
Mayo, ketchup, and gravy are the usual go-to french fry dips. At least, that's how it is advertised. And then there are the people who list a fourth option: milkshake. (I can hear the french fry dip purists yelling at the back as I write this sentence.) Surprisingly, this pairing is backed by science.\n
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Two factors surround the concept of dipping french fries into milkshakes. The first one is the salty-and-sweet dynamic which, according to a 2011 study, activates the tongue's sugar receptors. These receptors make the salt enhance the sweetness instead of clashing against the taste. This dynamic is present in many food pairings that we like to munch on today, like chicken and waffles, and chocolates and pretzels.\n
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The second factor of the milkshake-french fries pairing is the hot-and-cold dynamic, which is said to fire up different parts of the brain, which results in a fantastic eating experience.\n
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To put it simply, it is not an odd phenomenon. It just happens that our taste buds and brains work that way.\n
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How about you? Where do you dip your french fries?\n
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(Image: Pixabay)
Our tongues have several kinds of taste receptors, one of which detects bitterness in whatever it comes in contact with. In many species, this is an adaptive warning signal that something is not good to eat. That served our distant ancestors well, but modern humans are different. We actually seek out bitter foods like beer, coffee, chocolate, tea, and certain vegetables, and we even forget that these things are supposed to be bitter. How we got this way is combination of a number of factors, which MinuteFood explains. It's just one more reason why humans and their tastes are unique on the earth.
And in case you were wondering, yes, MinuteFood is related to MinutePhysics and MinuteEarth.
Atlas Obscura introduces us to Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, a hot dog stand in Reykjavík close to the sea and the Phallological Museum (yes, really). This family-owned business has operated since 1937 and is a popular landmark for citizens and tourists.
Although we Americans prefer hot dogs that are made from pork and sawdust, those two ingredients aren’t easily sourced in the cold and wind-swept north Atlantic. What Iceland does have a lot of is sheep, so the hot dogs are made of lamb meat. You can order yours with remoulade, mustard, onions, and ketchup.
Yes, that really is former US President Bill Clinton. When visiting Iceland in 2004, he stopped by the stand and ordered a hot dog with just mustard. Now you, too, can order a “Clinton” dog, which comes with only mustard.
Photo: Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur
","hashtags":[],"id":17585,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"t/heb/the-best-hot-dog-stand-in-iceland-sells-lamb-based-sausages-71eea3bf.jpeg","width":600,"height":400,"size":49679}],"slug":"the-best-hot-dog-stand-in-iceland-sells-lamb-based-sausages","thumbnail":"t/heb/the-best-hot-dog-stand-in-iceland-sells-lamb-based-sausages-71eea3bf.jpeg","thumbnailWidth":600,"thumbnailHeight":400,"thumbnailSize":49679,"tagline":"","title":"The Best Hot Dog Stand in Iceland Sells Lamb-Based Sausages"},{"addDate":"2023-03-28T23:54:19.000Z","author":63,"authorName":"MissCellania","changeDate":"2023-03-29T02:22:34.000Z","id":4639,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"I've never met a doughnut I didn't like. But not all doughnuts are equal. The difference between yeast doughnuts and cake doughnuts is pretty much the difference between bread and cake, in case you've ever wondered. Chef Adam Ragusea followed Joe Seiber of Status Dough in Knoxville, Tennessee, as he makes both yeast doughnuts and cake doughnuts and explains how they are different at every step of the way. The yeast doughnuts take much longer to make and require some pretty important steps to get them just right. But don't let that affect your respect for cake doughnuts. They are all delicious, because they are all doughnuts!
If you want someone to eat vegetables without them noticing it, this might be the dish you need to make for them. Let’s hope they like bread!
An island in Italy is home to a good snack that can be served for friends, family (or even just for yourself). Sardinia is home to the unique pastry dish called coccoi e corcoriga. It is an aperitivo-style dish with a flatbread texture but is actually made of mostly vegetables. These vegetables are grated and mixed in a batter that is then baked into the bread.
It’s an easy recipe to follow. You only need a few ingredients, such as different kinds of raw veggies of your choice, olive oil, tomato paste, all-purpose flour, and grated or shredded Parmigiano Reggiano. Check out the Tasting Table’s recipe here.
Image credit: Agriturismo Donnolù
","hashtags":[],"id":17565,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"t/his/this-flatbread-is-made-almost-entirely-of-vegetables-0f2bf6e7.webp","width":780,"height":438,"size":85842}],"slug":"this-flatbread-is-made-almost-entirely-of-vegetables","thumbnail":"t/his/this-flatbread-is-made-almost-entirely-of-vegetables-0f2bf6e7.webp","thumbnailWidth":780,"thumbnailHeight":438,"thumbnailSize":85842,"tagline":"","title":"This Flatbread Is Made Almost Entirely Of Vegetables "},{"addDate":"2023-03-27T02:35:32.000Z","author":63,"authorName":"MissCellania","changeDate":null,"id":4622,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"If you love a big platter of sizzling hot restaurant fajitas, you probably came about your feelings the same way everyone else did, with the presentation from the kitchen. A steaming hot cast-iron pan comes out with a sizzling sound, and the aroma fills the entire dining room. You wish you'd ordered that, and the next visit, you did. You might be surprised, or you might not, to find out that sizzle is added at the very last minute.
The magic is added at the very last minute. The \"sizzle sauce\" is what causes the steam, and the flavors, to make everyone else in the dining room crave fajitas. The process for this is explained at The Takeout. Don't let that put a fizzle on your sizzle, though. Those fajitas are still delicious!
(Image credit: Caracasapie)
","mediaId":"https://www.tiktok.com/@sallamibrahim24/video/720532763625023415","mediaService":"tiktok","url":""}],"slug":"the-secret-of-sizzling-restaurant-fajitas","thumbnail":"t/hes/the-secret-of-sizzling-restaurant-fajitas-afc1db30.jpeg","thumbnailWidth":1024,"thumbnailHeight":768,"thumbnailSize":999584,"tagline":"","title":"The Secret of Sizzling Restaurant Fajitas"},{"addDate":"2023-03-26T01:34:51.000Z","author":63,"authorName":"MissCellania","changeDate":null,"id":4609,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"@sallamibrahim24 ♬ original sound - Salamskiii
So you like snack, but you also know that packaged processed foods aren't good for you. There are plenty of ways to make your own and make them even better than what comes from a bag. The easiest homemade snack is popcorn, but have you tried it with brown butter, maple, and pecans? Or garlic and anchovies? If you prefer chips, you might be surprised at how easy it is to make good potato chips at home, and then add zing with flavors you already have around the house.
That's just the beginning. Try some honey-roasted nuts or chocolate pecans fresh from your own kitchen. And yes, you can make your own guacamole, beer cheese, pico de gallo, cheez-its, bagel bites and garlic nuts at home. Find tips and recipes for all these and more at Serious Eats.
(Image credit: Daniel Gritzer)
Pizza has been around for hundreds of years. First conceived in Naples, Italy, it was improved with tomato sauce and became an American staple food. The competition between pizza parlors and other providers has reached a fever pitch, leading to competition over the \"next big thing\" in pizza, whether it's a better recipe, faster delivery, reduced labor costs, or the most outrageous advertising gimmick. Weird History Food abandons trying to tell the complete history of pizza in order to bring us the most innovative and bizarre recent pizza schemes, all in the name of making us crave a hot and tasty slice of pizza. They weren't all successful, or even edible, but they do show some thinking outside the pizza box.
Paprika is an ingredient that we add to almost everything we eat, from main dishes such as paella and meat dishes to drinks like paprika tea (yes, apparently this exists). With how widely used it is, we would expect that people would know what it is made of.
Paprika is actually not made from a singular plant alone, like thyme or any other herbs used as ingredients in cooking. In a post by Australian food company nutraorganics, paprika is created from regular peppers that have been dried and crushed. Manufacturers tend to prefer sweet and mild peppers, which are longer and thinner compared to their US variety.
Image credit: Karolina Grabowska
","hashtags":[],"id":17483,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"w/hat/what-is-paprika-made-of-a32d6697.jpeg","width":6720,"height":4480,"size":5506864}],"slug":"what-is-paprika-made-of","thumbnail":"w/hat/what-is-paprika-made-of-a32d6697.jpeg","thumbnailWidth":6720,"thumbnailHeight":4480,"thumbnailSize":5506864,"tagline":"","title":"What Is Paprika Made Of?"},{"addDate":"2023-03-23T17:48:25.000Z","author":63,"authorName":"MissCellania","changeDate":null,"id":4594,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"Ice cream became a popular street food in the 19th century. Vendors in England, America, and elsewhere would take a cart out equipped with ice cream and small glass containers called \"penny licks.\" These were thick and heavy, and had a deceptively small bowl that held a penny's worth of ice cream. After a customer finished their ice cream, they were dunked in a bowl of water and wiped out with a towel -if they were cleaned at all. This was a perfect way to transmit tuberculosis, which led to the penny lick being banned in London in 1899. Over the next couple of decades, other places also banned the penny lick glass containers due to their unsanitary role in the spread of disease.
However, there was already a perfectly suitable replacement in the works. The French had been serving soft desserts in rolled-up crepes and waffles for hundred years by then, and the leap to serving ice cream in them was a matter of several manufacturing innovations. Not only were they single-use, but they were biodegradable even when not eaten. Penny licks are now collectible antiques.
-via Boing Boing
(Top image credit: Linda Spashett Storye_book)
Spoiler alert: it’s a series-based drink. With the recent release of the latest season of Outer Banks on Netflix, a secret drink has been making the rounds in TikTok based on the show. This combination can be ordered in Dunkin Donuts stores, provided that they are taking requests.
The video spread online initially in 2021, during the release of the show’s second season. The Outer Banks-inspired drink was a concoction of lemonade with four pumps of coconut and a shot of blue raspberry Coolata. However, the store is no longer selling lemonade, so TikTokers put their heads together to find a replacement. TikToker @travelingtastebuds discovered an alternative: a green tea drink that’s as refreshing as lemonade, but a bit more complicated.
They recommend that customers order iced green tea with both raspberry and blueberry shots and add the liquid cane sugar sweetener. To achieve the Outer Banks’ ocean blue shade, they recommend adding a shot of blue raspberry Coolata and some cold foam.
Image screenshot via travelingtastebuds/TikTok
","hashtags":[],"id":17451,"mediaHtml":null,"mediaId":null,"mediaService":null,"type":"image","url":"t/ryi/trying-out-the-secret-menu-in-dunkin-donuts-72b088ea.png","width":874,"height":1430,"size":1851340}],"slug":"trying-out-the-secret-menu-in-dunkin-donuts","thumbnail":"t/ryi/trying-out-the-secret-menu-in-dunkin-donuts-72b088ea.png","thumbnailWidth":874,"thumbnailHeight":1430,"thumbnailSize":1851340,"tagline":"","title":"Trying Out The Secret Menu In Dunkin Donuts"},{"addDate":"2023-03-20T18:29:45.000Z","author":63,"authorName":"MissCellania","changeDate":null,"id":4570,"mediaBlocks":[{"description":"We all know you can save money by buying food in bulk, but that's not always good for food that has a short shelf life, like fresh greens. The problem is exacerbated for people who live alone, because even a small package can start to wilt before you can eat it all. But if you happen to own a SodaStream, you've got it made. The device was designed to add carbon dioxide to drinks to make them carbonated. It can do the same to a bag of vegetables.
The foodies at America's Test Kitchen divided a package of assorted lettuces into two plastic bags. They stored one the way anyone would. Then they inflated the second bag with carbon dioxide from a SodaStream. The result was that the regular bag of lettuce began to wilt after five days, while the \"carbonated\"bag lasted nine days before it began to wilt!
In a regular kitchen we would expect that you would have to re-inflate the bag with carbon dioxide after getting lettuce out for your meals, but that's a small price to pay to make your greens last almost twice as long. And you can stop regretting giving shelf space to a SodaStream, since it is no longer a single-use kitchen gadget. -via Kottke
(Image credit: Accuruss)
America is a land of immigrants, people from all over who came here to start a new life. They brought cuisine from their native lands, and shared it with everyone. Once a new dish caught on outside an ethnic enclave, it became American. Often somewhere along the way, someone would change it a little to make it simple, faster, sweeter, or conform to the ingredients available. Recipes were shared, and even the names of dishes were changed from the original. There are also purely American food innovations that were labeled as being from some other place to made it more alluring. The result of all this is a bunch of American dishes with ethnic-sounding names and complicated backstories that have been lost to time. But not always- Weird Food History digs up those stories so we can know and enjoy our favorite dishes no matter whether they are \"authentic\" or not.
The Vernal Equinox is Monday, and will be the official beginning of spring. You will agree it's not a moment too soon. Spring means the beginning of gardening season and fresh local produce! But there are certain fruits and vegetables that are nearing their peak already: asparagus, broccoli, spinach, rhubarb, sugar snap peas, artichokes, strawberries, and more.
The equinox is not normally a holiday you would celebrate by singing songs or putting up decorations (although Easter decorations will do just fine), but since you are making dinner anyway, you can pay homage to the semiannual event by trying a new recipe or two that highlight those early fruits and vegetables you see at the local farmer's market. They'll taste super fresh and might even inspire you to plant a garden of your own this year! Find a collection of 25 recipes for early spring produce at Romper. You're sure to find something to tickle your palate.
(Image credit: Simply Scratch)
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