Food history

Food History Food History

Researched by Nazzareno Casha 0

COOKING HAS CHANGED US It’s a long way, of course, from that primitive repast to preparing a multi-course meal on your kitchen stove, or sticking a quick snack into the microwave. But without our early ancestors’ innovation, you might not be here now to enjoy that grilled chicken breast and side of potato fries. Cooking, some scientists believe, played a crucial role in the evolution, survival and ascent of early humans, helping to transform them from a ragged, miniscule fringe of struggling hunter-gatherers into the animal that dominates the planet. Moreover, since then cooking has continued to exert a powerful influence upon human civilization in numerous ways not just by filling our bellies, but by helping to nourish the culture and rituals that form humanity’s social nature.

Early humans may have been motivated by a simple benefit. When food was cooked, it probably tasted better to them. By using heat to chemically alter their food, human cooks softened the cell walls of plants to enable them to release their stores of starch and fat, and broke down the connective tissue in meat, making its nutrients more accessible as well. As a result, they got a greater caloric payoff from their food; a cooked portion of oats, wheat or potatoes provided 30 percent more energy than the raw stuff.

All our food comes with a story to tell, and usually it is the story we want to hear. In the supermarket the story is about the price of the food, in a restaurant it is about the taste and the origin. Very often stories about food focus on authenticity. That is the way food would like to be – authentic and natural – like in the old days when people harvested their own crops. And this is exactly what we want to believe. The jam in my fridge has ‘a natural taste’ and the milk is ‘pure and honest.’ Eat colour, it says on the posters in the street, displaying juicy red peppers. And these shiny vegetables almost jump from the page in the cookbooks. But at the same time we are buying more and more ready-made meals.

How recipes and cooking has changed over the ages Food, glorious food! We all love to eat and it’s a biological necessity, but at its very core, food and eating contains a strong cultural component. Experiences of tastes, either good or bad, are sensory impressions, but preferences of taste, again good or bad, are also something that is learnt, from others and through experience, and more often than not, through cook books and adaptations to them.

This means, that throughout the ages, what we consider food is a huge list. In fact, humans display a remarkable capacity to be able to live on a vast range of very different diets and it is through this capacity of dietary diversity that humans, as the only mammal in our size-range, has managed to chisel out a living from almost every environment on the planet. Nevertheless, humans typically do not eat everything edible in their environment at any specific time or place, not even in the face of famine. This human aptitude for cultural diversity in diet makes food and eating suitable topics for the study of cultural evolution.

There exist several earlier studies on changes in food culture, from different and sometimes opposing perspectives, but most of the more recent food culture studies are focused on particular aspects, such as gender, emotions or ethnic identity, though there are also examples of studies concerned with general patterns of change.

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The History of Soup Evidence of the existence of soup can be found as far back as about 20,000 BC Boiling was not a common cooking technique until the invention of waterproof containers (which probably came in the form of clay vessels). Animal hides and watertight baskets of bark or reeds were used before this. To boil the water hot rocks were used. This method was also used to cook acorns and other plants.

Soup is considered to be as old as the history of cooking. In times when food was scarce, dumping various ingredients into a pot to boil was not only cheap, it was filling. Its simple constitution made it accessible to rich and poor alike, and simple ingredients made it easy to digest for the both the healthy and sick. Each culture adopted its own variation with the ingredients on hand—Spanish gazpacho, Russian borscht, Italian minestrone—but the basics remain the same.

Cooking Soup Cooking soup held certain appeals and advantages to our culinary ancestors. Unlike the hot air rising from a roasting fire, boiling water comes into full contact of submerged foods. This allows for a quicker cooking time and more complete cooking.

It also opens up foods to new flavours. For instance, cereal grains release starch into the liquid and cause it to thicken. Combing several ingredients and allowing them to mix together creates a new flavour. Soup allowed certain animal parts, particularly bones, not to go to waste because boiling them extracts a natural flavour. Some inedible plants, such as acorns, become consumable after boiling away poisons or undesirable flavours.

Historians believe soup served as the foundation for the first public restaurants in 18th century Paris. Soups such as broth, bouillon and consommé made their debut in these “restoratifs,” the word from which we derive “restaurant.”

Modern Soup Soup became portable as science advanced. “Pocket soup” was popular with colonial travellers because it could easily be mixed up with a little water. Canned and dehydrated soups came along in the 19th century and kept cowboys and soldiers fed on the trail. Later, soups could be tailored to meet diet restrictions, such as low salt and high fibre.

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The Appetizers History The dishes we serve prior to the main course are designed to what the appetite and set the tone for the meal. They occupy the mind and belly while dining guests wait for the centrepiece that will satisfy their hunger to the fullest.

You might be familiar for the French name for appetizers: Hors d’oeuvre. While “appetizer” refers specifically to building the appetite, Hors d’oeuvre literally means, “outside of the masterpiece.” Don’t you love this? It is as though we are on the threshold, waiting for a revelation that can only be experienced once we come inside.

The Ancient Romans and Greeks are depicted lounging with trays of fresh fruit, wine, olives and cheese. Their feasting style surely inspired our modern-day appetizers.

Their meals are said to have been an orgy of Hors D’oeuvre. These included fish and seasoned vegetables also. The main course featured some of the same foods, in ever larger quantities.

All through history, those who had the means to secure large quantities of food, and to entertain, have enjoyed stretching the meal time and conversation experience by serving a variety of successive courses, beginning with finger foods, many of which were often on the salty side, to stimulate the appetite. There is a sense of leisure and abandonment to it all; and certainly of abundance.

During the Renaissance (14th to 17th century), physicians recommended eating small morsels of salty meats prior to a meal in order to prepare the digestive system for the main course and to ensure proper digestion. Appetizers have been served in nearly all cultures. Historians believe this practice evolved quite naturally after we set aside our hunter-gatherer lifestyle and became sedentary; perhaps an instinctive evolution of our grazing days, when small bites of fruit and nuts indeed set the tone for the longawaited real meal.

Prior to the nineteenth century, appetizers were typically available throughout a meal.

Then, the succession of courses we know today became common practice. At this time, appetizers change radically, becoming an ever more refined aspect of the meal and becoming a separate course altogether. This, too, is the time when the term “appetizer” enters common usage.

The term “appetizers” seems to have appeared nearly simultaneously in England and America in the 1860s simply to provide an Anglophone equivalent for the French hors d’oeuvre. By the 1890s, both appetizers and hors d’oeuvres could appear within the same elegant menu. One writer in 1896 describes appetizers as an optional first course preceding soup that is set on the table prior to a party’s entering the dining room.

These appetizers were most often raw oysters or clams, but they might be small canapés, such as caviar on toast.

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History of Pasta Many are the theories that have been presented concerning the origin of the pasta product. Some researchers place its discovery in the XIII Century by Marco Polo, who introduced the pasta in Italy upon returning from one of his trips to China in 1271. Marco Polo makes a reference to the pasta in China. The pasta dates much further back, back to ancient Etruscan civilizations, which made pasta by grinding several cereals and grains and then mixed them with water, a blend that was later on cooked producing tasty and nutritious food product.

When the Greeks founded Naples, they adopted a dish made by the natives, made up by barley-flour pasta and water dried to the sun, which they “macaria”. It was also find references to pasta dishes in the ancient Rome, which date back to the III century before Christ. In fact, the Roman Cicero himself speaks about his passion for the "Laganum" which are strips of long pasta (wheat-flour pasta shaped as wide and flat sheets). During that time, the Romans developed instruments, tools, procedures (machines) to manufacture the pasta for lasagne. Ever since, cereals have exhibited great facilities for both its transportation as well as its storage. It was the Roman expansion and dominion which fostered the harvest of cereals in the whole Mediterranean basin.

On the other hand, it very likely that pasta reached Naples from Greece; Naples was once a colony of the Greek empire. In modern history pasta was already widely accepted in Spain, most of all starting from the XVI century, the era of the Spanish viceroyalty in Naples.

Hence, fresh pasta was used and appreciated in Italy since the time of the Etruscan and the Romans. As the centuries went by, pasta continued to appear in the tables of Italy with different names. For example, in the 1400 pasta was called "lasagne" and pasta manufacturers were referred to as "lasagnare". In the 1800 the name was changed and they were referred to as "vermicellai". But between the 1400 and the 1800 between the "lasagne" and the "vermicelli" the "fidelli" were born; these were pasta thread with a cylindrical shape. In this way, the pasta manufacturers also became the "fidellai".

For 1914, the artificial drying process allowed the pasta to be available in all the regions of Italy. The great development of the Italian pasta at the turn of the century was tightly linked to the export, which reached a record level of 70,000 tons, many of which were sent to the United States of America. Later on, importing countries started to produce machines to manufacture their own pasta products, and these managed to conquer the world. From then on, people started to refer to this phenomenon as “The Industry of Pasta”.

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Cooking how it began Cooking cannot happen without fire, so the answer might be found by looking for evidence of the control of flames. This is an incendiary topic, as fire is a tricky thing to identify in the archaeological record. The evidence has literally gone up in smoke, and the remains of a deliberately lit fire are hard to distinguish from those of a natural one caused by lightning. This is why archaeologists look for signs of fire in caves.

Traces of ash found in the Wonderwork cave in South Africa suggest that hominins were controlling fire at least 1 million years ago, the time of our direct ancestor Homo erectus. Burnt bone fragments also found at this site suggest that Homo erectus was cooking meat. However, the oldest remains of obvious hearths are just 400,000 years old. Cooking food with fire may date back two million years, far earlier than originally thought.

Cooking is something we all take for granted but a new theory suggests that if we had not learned to cook food, not only would we still look like chimps but, like them, we would also be compelled to spend most of the day chewing.

Without cooking, an average person would have to eat around five kilos of raw food to get enough calories to survive.

The daily mountain of fruit and vegetables would mean a six-hour chewing marathon.

It is already accepted that the introduction of meat into our ancestors' diet caused their brains to grow and their intelligence to increase. Early humans may have been motivated by a simple benefit. When food was cooked, it probably tasted better to them.

The origins of cooking are obscure. Primitive humans may first have savoured roast meat by chance, when the flesh of a beast killed in a forest fire was found to be more palatable and easier to chew and digest than the customary raw meat. They probably did not deliberately cook food, though, until long after they had learned to use fire for light and warmth. It has been speculated that Peking man roasted meats, but no clear evidence supports the theory. From whenever it began, however, roasting spitted meats over fires remained virtually the sole culinary technique until the Palaeolithic Period, when the Aurignacian people of southern France began to steam their food over hot embers by wrapping it in wet leaves. Aside from such crude procedures as toasting wild grains on flat rocks and using shells, skulls, or hollowed stones to heat liquids, no further culinary advances were made until the introduction of pottery during the Neolithic Period.

ADVANCES IN COOKING TECHNIQUES Culinary techniques improved with the introduction of earthenware. A more dependable supply of foodstuffs, including milk and its derivatives, was now assured. The roasting spit was augmented by a variety of fired-clay vessels, and the cooking techniques of boiling, stewing, braising, and perhaps even incipient forms of pickling, frying, and oven baking were added. Early cooks probably had already learned to preserve meats and fish by smoking, salting, air-drying, or chilling. New utensils made it possible to prepare these foods in new ways, and such dishes as dried cod and smoked haddock are still eaten.

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Famous Food Dish Invented Chicken Marengo

Today in 1800 was indisputably the day that Napoleon defeated the Austrians at the battle of Marengo. The story that Napoleon’s chef, Dunan scrounged the makings of this dish from the local area after the battle, and created it on the spot, is simply that – a good story. It can be denied on a number of counts: Dunan was not in Napoleon’s service until after the event and the dish was not mentioned in contemporary cookbooks until nearly 2 decades later.

There is no need for an indisputable truth to get in the way of celebrating the classic dish however, for it was indisputably named for the famous event, in the grand tradition of nineteenth century chefs, who also named “Chicken Austerlitz” in honour of Napoleon’s victory over the Russians in that battle in 1805.

What is the true story? Does it matter?

For several reasons, I have always found the James Beard version of the Chicken Marengo recipe to be the one probably closest to what was actually made, if it was created after the battle of Marengo.

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Ice cream History Variations of ice cream, or flavoured ice, have been present in Britain for centuries legend has it that Charles I was so impressed by one particular ice cream maker that he offered him a lifetime pension in exchange for keeping the formula a royal secret.

But it wasn't until the 1800s that ice cream, then known as "hockey pokey", became a cheap and popular treat. A Swiss-Italian businessman, Carlo Gatti, is sometimes said to have opened the first ice cream stall outside Charing Cross station in 1851.

Ice cream's

origins are known to reach back as far as the second century B.C., although no specific date of origin or inventor has been indisputably credited with its discovery. We know that Alexander the Great enjoyed snow and ice flavoured with honey and nectar. Biblical references also show that King Solomon was fond of iced drinks during harvesting. During the Roman Empire, Nero Claudius Caesar (A.D. 5486) frequently sent runners into the mountains for snow, which was then flavoured with fruits and juices.

Over a thousand years later, Marco Polo returned to Italy from the Far East with a recipe that closely resembled what is now called sherbet. Historians estimate that this recipe evolved into ice cream sometime in the 16th century. England seems to have discovered ice cream at the same time, or perhaps even earlier than the Italians.

"Cream Ice," as it was called, appeared regularly at the table of Charles I during the 17th century. France was introduced to similar frozen desserts in 1553 by the Italian Catherine de Medici when she became the wife of Henry II of France. It wasn't until 1660 that ice cream was made available to the general public. The Sicilian Procopio introduced a recipe blending milk, cream, butter and eggs at Café Procope, the first café in Paris.

The emperors of the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 AD) are believed to have been the first to eat “a frozen milk-like confection.” This version was made with cow, goat or buffalo milk that was heated with flour. Camphor, an aromatic substance harvested from evergreen trees, was added to enhance the texture and flavour. The mixture was then placed into metal tubes and lowered into an ice pool until frozen. In medieval times, Arabs drank icy refreshment called sherbet, or sharabt in Arabic. These chilled drinks were often flavoured with cherry, pomegranate. Over time, the drinks became popular with the European aristocracy.

Italians are said to have mastered this drink-making technique, with the French following suit shortly after.

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The Cheese Fondue History The first recipe for cheese fondue dates to 1699, when it was referred to as ‘Käss mit Wein zu kochen’, which translated to ‘to cook cheese with wine’. Some say that the practice began with Alpine farmers in Switzerland who would cook up wine, garlic and herbs with cheese as a way to use up their leftovers during when fresh food was unavailable during winter.

Farming families would gather up hardened cheese, plop it in a pot, called acaquelon, that had been rubbed down with garlic and then splash in some wine and melt it over a fire. While its roots may have been in the mountains, the practice migrated down the slopes and it was also eaten by those in the towns, where Gruyère cheese was a favourite ingredient.

Cheese fondue as we know it didn’t always look the same either. One variation from 1735 was a blend of eggs and cheese. Unfortunately, it wasn’t universally popular; Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, the renowned French politician and gastronome, disparagingly described it as ‘nothing other than scrambled eggs with cheese.’ It was around 1875 that the modern recipe that we are familiar with was first written down in the French Rhône-Alpes, near the Swiss border.

While the exact roots of modern cheese fondue are a bit hazy, blurred somewhere along the French-Swiss border, and between Alpine farmers and the wealthy classes, the association with Switzerland was cemented by the Schweizer Käseunion, or the more palatable Swiss Cheese Union, in the 1930s. As an attempt to bolster cheese consumption, and as a way to bind the Swiss together, the Union trumpeted cheese fondue, and the lesser known, but just as cheesy, raclette, as a national dish. ‘La fondue crée la bonne humeur’, or ‘fondue creates a good mood’, was just one slogan used in the Cheese Union’s overt and aggressive marketing campaign, which also saw fondue sets sent out to the military and to popular events, ensuring that Swiss cheese was being eaten. The Union, which has also been referred to as a ‘cheese mafia’, successfully ensured that cheese fondue entered into the Swiss way of life and never left.

The history of cheese fondue somewhat resembles the dish itself. While wading around the top layers, it’s a bit difficult to take at first and quite easy to lose your bread, but then the oh-so-convincing wine keeps flowing and that ‘good mood’ eventually arrives, making the cheese and bread keep going all by itself.

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Maltese Food History Maltese cuisine reflects Maltese history; it shows strong Sicilian and English influences as well as Spanish, French, Maghrebin, Provencal, and other Mediterranean cuisines. Having to import most of its foodstuffs, being positioned along important trade routes, and having to cater for the resident foreign powers who ruled the islands, opened Maltese cuisine to outside influences. The traditional Maltese stewed rabbit is often identified as the national dish.

Foreign dishes and tastes were absorbed, transformed and adapted. Italian (specifically Sicilian), Middle Eastern and Arabic foods exerted a strong influence, but the presence in Malta of the Knights and, more recently, the British brought elements from further afield.

The Knights hailed from many European countries; particularly, France, Italy and Spain. They brought influences from these countries. Aljotta, for example, a fish broth with plenty of garlic, herbs, and tomatoes, is the Maltese adaptation of bouillabaisse [fish soup] The Knights' contacts and wealth brought also food from the New World; it has been suggested that Malta may have been one of the first countries in Europe (after Spain) where chocolate was first tasted.

The British military presence meant a market of a garrison and their families and, later, mass tourism from the UK. British food products, condiments and sauces like English, Bovril, HP Sauce and Worcestershire sauce are still a subtle but pervasive presence in Maltese cooking. Other imports were only nominal. While the Maltese word "aljoli" is likely to be a loan word, the Maltese version of the sauce does not include any egg as in aioli; instead it is based on herbs, olives, anchovies and olive oil. Similarly, while the Maltese word "taġen" is related to "tajine" in Maltese the word refers exclusively to a metal frying pan.

Despite Malta's small size there are some regional variations. This is especially the case with Gozo. This is evidenced in some names such as the Gozitan cheeselet (ġbejna t'Għawdex) and ftira Għawdxija, flatbread topped or filled with potatoes or ġbejniet with eggs, grated cheese, tomatoes, anchovies, olives, ricotta and Maltese sausage as other possible ingredients.

Rabbit fried with wine and garlic

Selection of fresh and cured cheese [Ġbejniet]

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Italian Food History From the early Middle Ages (beginning around A.D. 500) to the late 1800s, Italy consisted of separate republics, each with different culinary (cooking) customs. These varying cooking practices, which were passed down from generation to generation, contributed to the diversity of Italian cuisine. Italy's neighbouring countries, including France, Austria, and Yugoslavia.

Although Italians are known throughout the world for pizza, pasta, and tomato sauce, the national diet of Italy has traditionally differed greatly by region. Prior to the blending of cooking practices among different regions, it was possible to distinguish Italian cooking simply by the type of cooking fat used: butter was used in the north, pork fat in the centre of the country, and olive oil in the south. Staple dishes in the north were rice and polenta, and pasta was most popular throughout the south. During the last decades of the twentieth century (1980s and 1990s), however, pasta and pizza (another traditional southern food) became popular in the north of Italy. Pasta is more likely to be served with a white cheese sauce in the north and a tomato-based sauce in the south.

Italians are known for their use of herbs in cooking, especially oregano, basil, thyme, parsley, rosemary, and sage. Cheese also plays an important role in Italian cuisine.

There are more than 400 types of cheese made in Italy, with Parmesan, mozzarella, and asiago among the best known worldwide. Prosciutto ham, the most popular ingredient of the Italian antipasto (first course) was first made in Parma, a city that also gave its name to Parmesan cheese.

Every Italian village celebrates its own saint's day with a festival featuring fireworks, feasting, and dancing. The traditional main dish for these festivals is roasting suckling pig. A popular Easter dish throughout Italy is Agnellino (roast baby lamb), often served with roasted artichokes.

Although the holiday bread called panet-tone is the best known of Italy's many holiday desserts, regions throughout the country have their own traditional holiday sweets featuring local ingredients. In the north, butter is a major ingredient of these desserts. Zelten cakes, similar to fruitcake, are filled with raisins, dates, figs, almonds, pine nuts, orange peel, rum, and cinnamon, are baked two or three weeks before Christmas because they improve with time. Strudel is popular in the Tyrol region in northern Italy. In the south, dessert recipes are more elaborate and use olive oil (instead of butter), lots of eggs, candied fruit, and honey. Among the best known arestruffoli, fried cubes of egg pastry covered with honey and sprinkled with coloured sugar, a specialty from Naples.

Italian cuisine is based on peasant traditions and thus relies on inexpensive, locally available foods to a great extent. The Italian has historically been quite poor and had to rely on locally available foods to create their recipes. This is why many Italian dishes are based on simple ingredients like cheese, pasta, eggplant, olives and olive oil, as well as other items that Italians could make themselves or procure inexpensively. Generally speaking, Italian cuisine is all about using quality ingredients well, rather than cooking technique.

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Saltimbocca alla Romana History Saltimbocca (also saltinboccca) (pronounced [saltimˈbokka]; Italian for jumps in the mouth) is an Italian dish (also popular in southern Switzerland, Spain and Greece) made of veal lined or wrapped with Prosciutto and sage; marinated in wine, oil or saltwater depending on the region or one's own taste.

The original version of this dish is saltimbocca alla Romana (saltimbocca, Romanstyle which consists of veal, Prosciutto and sage, rolled-up and cooked in dry white wine and butter. Marsala is sometimes used. Also, sometimes the veal and Prosciutto are not rolled-up but left flat.

Saltimbocca alla Romana is a very particular dish. Saltimbocca literally translates to jump in the mouth.

Today, “saltimbocca alla Romana” can be found in most restaurants, and I most warmly recommend that you give it a try: When prepared expertly, this dish will literally melt in your mouth, and you will feel satisfied by even a relatively small portion.

The ancient recipe for “saltimbocca” is said to originate in Brescia. While it is much older than a century, the first written trace of this recipe can be found in an influential book published towards the end of the 19th century, by Pellegrino Artusi, a celebrated Italian chef: “Saltimbocca alla Romana and Artusi claims to have enjoyed the dish in Rome, at the trattoria “Le Venete”.

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China Food History Historians agree that two thousand two hundred to three thousand eight hundred years ago, China had a fully developed cuisine. They do not agree nor do they even mention what the cuisine was or what specific foods were in use.

In the 11th century, The Middle Kingdom, as China is and was known, was no more than one-sixth the size it is today. In small separated communities, Beijing and the Yellow River delta were where people lived. By the fifth to third centuries, the population had both concentrated and expanded. More food was grown in central areas, more animal husbandry practiced in the west and north, and more fisheries developed in the east. The country was one-quarter the size it is today, the west was near the midpoint of the country or just above where Xian is today. Sichuan and Hunan were not part of China and the piquancy of foods associated with those provinces had no part in the country's early food history.

In these centuries, many grains were used, the literature inconsistent as to what they were. Historians simply call this 'the period of five grains' and in all probability mean two kinds of millet, soybeans, wheat, and rice.

We think of rice as a quintessential Chinese food, yet early in their food history little was known and very little consumed. It did not come into common use until the first century, perhaps because the area around the Yellow River produced very little of it.

About two hundred years later, rice moved south and gained popularity; climate and geography enhanced availability and use. Climate and concentration of people affects foods grown and consumed. People eat what is locally grown along with foods they can hunt, fish, or forage for.

Until 500 BC, there were no reports of organized system of how the Chinese cooked their foods. The sage Confucius, who lived between 551 - 479 BC, gets credit for developing protocols of cutting, cooking, and eating. His rules remain intact because there was limited contact to impact them.

Foods and related food ways changed when communities make choices among possible foods and cooking techniques in a given geographic environment. Increased population and need for additional land expands communities and contribute to food migrations. As travellers move from place to place, they talk about foods seen; they even serve them when they return home. Thus foods of different areas slip into and become localized fare.

In China, from the time of the building of the Grand Canal, ingredients and preparation variations moved. Emperor, Chin Shih Huang Ti, build this first contour canal, called the 'Grand' or 'Magic Canal,' to connect waterways of nearly eleven hundred miles (the equivalent of New York to Florida) to supply his troops on the move. On the canal's connected pair of rivers, each flowing in the opposite direction, he ordered the shipping of grain supplies and other foods for the troops. This movement of foods brought rice to the north, and wheat, millet, and sorghum to the south. This interchange was regional food co-mingling of the grandest proportion.

China's early trade with the Philippines and Indonesia, and in year 260 Syria and beyond, brought items from outside the country to the countryside infiltrating areas around seacoasts first. Broken Chinese porcelain on the beaches of Tanzania and Mozambique attest to things moving in the other direction in exchange for fruits and 12

other foods. Tea is a good illustration of a food on the move. Before the time of the Three Kingdoms and during the reign of Sun Hao in year 264, tea was reasonably unknown. By the 4th century, some say it became China's universal drink. Others believe that in the late Tang period, 618 - 970, tea was still new and exotic, probably brought by Buddhist monks from the Burma-India border-country. In either case, tea was originally imported and it became the national drink. Today, it is common throughout China though not always considered the number one beverage.

Mongolian influences, circa 1125, moved northern ideas, northern foods, and northern food preparation techniques southward. Specific illustrations include grilling and hot pot cookery. Hot Pot is now considered both a northern and southern delicacy. This period of Mongol influence was unidirectional, north to south.

From 1386 to 1398, Tai Tsu also known as Ming Emperor Hung Mu, moved thousands upon thousands of people westward to resettle unpopulated areas. His reign and that of others in the Ming dynasty, 1368 - 1644, limited movement of foods westward. Some years later, Manchu rulers and their subjects adopt, adapt, and incorporate foreign foods and cooking techniques moved northward. These new foods and preparation techniques, acquired from trade with the Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, English, and French. One example is a food not indigenous to China, the sweet potato; it migrated all over the country. This tuber entered southern ports, became popular near the end of the 15th century, and made its way to every region of China as a common winter food. It can be found in Beijing, Xian, Chengdu, and Shanghai roasted and sold as a street food.

Cuisine, culture, and people are not static. The movement of people and food make for continual culinary melting pots. The one billion Chinese, just over one-quarter of the world's population, still use grain as the basis and majority component of their diet and they supplement it with old or new foods that look, smell, and taste like Chinese food. Their changing food ways are expressions of cultural continuity over time.

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History of Japanese Cuisine We think of Japan as a single island, but it actually is four large islands and thousands of smaller ones. The volcanic and mountainous terrain boasts lush forests and heavy rainfall, much of it from monsoons, and the scarce farm land is used predominantly for rice. As one would expect, fish plays a major dietary role, both fresh and preserved.

In the third century BC, Korea’s already developed rice growing techniques were passed to the Japanese by the Yayoi, a migrating tribe that settled in Japan. Rice came to be used for more than eating, including paper, fuel, wine, building materials and animal feed.

During the development of Japan, the Chinese contributed soy sauce, tea, chopsticks and imperial rule. Other influences arrived in Japan via Korea, including Buddhism, which, despite the pre-existing Shinto and Confucian religions, became the official religion in the sixth century. For the next 1200 years, meat was officially forbidden to the Japanese people, Then in the sixteenth century the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch, came looking to corner the trade market with Japan. The westerners introduced fried foods, which is why the breaded, fried tempura seem so very un-Japanese; while the Japanese enjoyed this type of cooking, it was not something that evolved naturally. Tobacco, sugar and corn were also brought by the traders.

Around 1600 (and lasting until 1868), Japan’s shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu , “Shogun” feared the Europeans would spark great wars; so he closed the ports and expunged the foreigners. During this period of isolationism, Japan’s culture became even more deeply rooted. The main religions of Buddhism and Shinto emphasize the seasons and this came to be reflected in the foods served. In fact, it is because of Buddhism that meals feature five flavours and colours, respectively being: sweet, spicy, salty, bitter and sour; and yellow, black, white, green, and red.

US Commodore Perry forced the Japanese to renew trade with the West in 1854, and soon a new Japanese ruling order took power. Interestingly, the new Emperor Meiji staged a New Year’s feast in 1872 designed to embrace the Western world; it was completely European in detail and for the first time in over a thousand years, the people publicly ate meat.

From the snow-capped mountains of northern Hokkaido to the sandy shores of Okinawa, there lie some distinctive differences in diet and cooking styles between the regions of Japan. On top of all the high mountains and oceans which divided up the country, the difference of abundant product within each region helped to develop the contrast as well.

Despite the differences, though, there lies a common ground. As you may already know, Japan is an island country. Where ever you might be, you’ll find that there are plenty of fishes and other marine products. With the climate perfect for growing good crops of rice, the Japanese diet consists of rice as the staple food, with fish and veggies forming the nucleus of the side dishes. The main seasoning here is “shoyu” (show-you)or also known as soy sauce (heard of Kikkoman’s?) and “miso”(mee-so), both of them made from fermented soybeans and with rice and salt. The meals are carried out 3 times a day, with the basic style including rice, a bowl of soup(suimono) and two or three side dishes, and the sipping of green tea at the end of the meal.

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All in all, when it comes to describing the Japanese diet in a few words, “natural” & “harmony” best fits the description. Whatever dish you make, never kill the natural flavour of the ingredients. The ingredients must be in harmony together to make one dish; the dish in harmony with other dishes to make a meal. Food must be in harmony with nature and the surroundings, including the person who is dining.

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German Food History Food has always been a major part of German culture. Even the well-known German fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel, makes reference to food. Hansel and Gretel, brother and sister, discover a house in the forest made of gingerbread and candies.

King Frederick II (King Frederick the Great, 1712–1786) introduced the potato, a staple in the German diet. He gave away seed potatoes and taught the people how to grow them. But wars caused food shortages and hardship twice during the twentieth century. After the Germans lost World War I (1914–18), food was scarce and soldiers trying to get home were starving. After World War II (1939–1945), the country had even less food available, but this time nations that had defeated Germany, including the United States, helped to feed the Germans and rebuild the country. In 1949 after World War II, Germany was divided into East Germany and West Germany. This division caused the country's two halves to develop different styles of cooking. East Germany, closely associated with its neighbour, Russia, took on a more Russian style of cooking. West Germans continued the traditional German cuisine.

In the north, restaurants in Hamburg and Berlin might feature aalsuppe (eel soup) or eintopf (seafood stew). Soups of dried beans, such as weisse bohnensuppe (white bean soup) are also popular. In the centre of the country, menus include breads and cereals made with buckwheat and rye flour. A favourite dish is birnen, bohnen und speck (pears, green beans, and bacon). In the middle of the country, a region near the Netherlands known as Wesphalia is famous for spargel (asparagus), especially white asparagus, and rich, heavy pumpernickel bread. Westphalian ham, served with pungent mustard, is popular with Germans worldwide.

Frankfurt, located in the south, is the home of a sausage known as Wüstchen. This sausage is similar to the U.S. hot dog, sometimes called a "frankfurter" after the German city. In the south, a dish mysteriously called Himmel und erde (Heaven and Earth) combines potatoes and apples with onions and bacon. The southern region of Bavaria features rugged mountains and the famous Black Forest. Black Forest cherry cake and tortes, as well as Kirschwasser, a clear cherry brandy, are two contributions from this area. Spätzle (tiny dumplings) are the southern version of knödel (potato dumplings) of the north. Lebkuchen is a spicy cookie prepared especially during the Christmas season. East and West Germany were reunited in the early 1990s, but Germans continue to cook according to their region.

Germans tend to eat heavy and hearty meals that include ample portions of meat and bread. Potatoes are the staple food, and each region has its own favourite ways of preparing them. Some Germans eat potatoes with pears, bacon, and beans. Others prepare a special stew called the Pichelsteiner, made with three kinds of meat and potatoes. Germans from the capital city of Berlin eat potatoes with bacon and spicy sausage. Sauerbraten is a large roast made of pork, beef, or veal that is popular throughout Germany, and is flavoured in different ways depending on the region. In the Rhine River area, it is flavoured with raisins, but is usually cooked with a variety of savoury spices and vinegar. Fruit (instead of vegetables) is often combined with meat dishes to add a sweet and sour taste to the meal. Throughout Germany desserts made with apples are very popular.

Knödel, or dumplings, accompany many meals, especially in the north. In the south, a tiny version called spätzle is more common. Knödel may be made either of mashed potatoes or bread (or a mixture of both), and are either boiled or fried. Germans enjoy bread with every meal, with rye, pumpernickel, and sourdough breads more common 16

than white bread. Soft pretzels can be found almost anywhere. Spargel (asparagus) served with a sauce or in soup is popular in the spring.

Oktoberfest is the German festival of October. It is held, not in October but during the last week of September in Munich. In late summer or early fall in the United States, many cities stage Oktoberfest to celebrate German culture, especially German beer. At German Oktoberfest, beer is traditionally drunk from a large, decorated stone mug called a Bier Stein (beer stein). Germany has more than 1,200 breweries, making over 5,000 different kinds of beer.

Later when Rome came and took much of Europe, Germany was introduced to new cultivation techniques as well as how to grow fruit trees. Agricultural methods became more sophisticated as well, and France and Italy started influencing German fare more and more. Soon the food around Cologne became especially diverse thanks to its status as a prominent trading city. This gave it easy access to a multitude of exotic spices, dishes, and other things to enhance the cuisine.

For Christmas, cut-out honey cakes called Lebkuchen are baked in squares, hearts, semicircles, or little bear shapes, iced, and decorated with tiny cut-outs of cherubs (angels) and bells. One large or five to seven small cakes are then tied together with a bright ribbon and presented by a young lady to a young man of her choice on Christmas Day. Springerle (cookies), marzipan candies, and Stollen (a type of coffeecake with candied and dried fruit) are also popular Christmas desserts. To accompany the cookies, Germans drink GlĂźhwein, a type of mulled wine. A favourite drink with teenagers is ApfelschĂśrle, a sparkling fruit juice. A traditional Christmas dinner is roast goose with vegetables and KartoffelknĂśdeln (potato dumplings).

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History of French cuisine During the middle Ages, French food was already an important part of life for many people, but a French meal looked very different then than it does nowadays. Perhaps the largest difference is that during this time, a large amount of different dishes were all prepared for a meal, but they were served in unison. This way of presenting food was aptly named service en confusion, where all food items were placed on the table at once, and much of the food was eaten with one’s hands. The practice of serving various dishes as separate courses would not be introduced until centuries later, as would the practice of serving each person at the table instead of putting the dishes on the table family style.

Despite these differences in how people served and ate food, many features of 21st century French food were already in place. Food during this period already had rich sauces filled with spices. Though the techniques were different then, many dishes have their roots during this period, such as sweet pastries and large pieces of meat served with sauces or mustards. The culture of drinking alcoholic beverages also existed, but beer was more common than wine.

When Catherine de Medici came to France in the 1540s, Italian influences came with her. Although food had always been visually appealing in France, the idea of food as theater was new. Under her reign as Queen and then Queen Mother of France (three of her sons became King of France), the dinners she hosted helped move French cuisine forward in history. Fine tableware and glassware became important during this period, and the use of colour also took centre stage. New foods were also introduced during this time, both from the Mediterranean, such as tomatoes, as well as from distant regions, such as green beans coming to France for the first time from the New World.

One of the defining characteristics of a modern French meal is that there are several courses, served slowly and in succession. This concept was introduced at Versailles by King Louis XIV. Instead of allowing the food served ‘in confusion’ as before, the Sun King encouraged the servants to bring one dish at a time. It was also during this period that silverware became commonplace.

Escoffier is responsible for the modern way of preparing food in restaurants, meaning that different people prepare each part of a dish. While one chef is grilling the meat to perfection, another is preparing the sauce. This manner of cooking allowed all elements of the meal to be prepared by a person specialized in that area, as well as ensuring that all components are still hot when they arrive on the table. Many consider Escoffier to be the most prominent figure in establishing French haute cuisine. These traditional dishes have now been fused with the nouvelle cuisine to form what is common in the 21st century.

Montagné is another great French chef, who wrote what is still considered to be the Bible of French Cuisine: the Larousse Gastronomique. A comprehensive book, it provides every detail needed for a flawless French meal. This booked helped bring the standards he wrote about to every corner of France, decreasing the influence of regional cuisines, and increasing the influence of a national, French, culinary art.

Since the 1950s, French food has been refined and pared down. While the basic principles of artistry and the refinement of taste remained central, this period reduced

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the serving size of the meal and increased the size of the plate to serve it on as well as the number of decorations around the food. The number of courses decreased, and varied according to the meal and the occasion. For example, while a midweek lunch may consist of only three courses, a seven course meal is common on weekends.

While many traditional, both national and regional, dishes abound in modern French restaurants, French chefs are famous for innovation and using ingredients during the season when they are most abundant or tastiest. French food is not only delicious and beautiful, but eating a meal in a French restaurant is a leisurely delight for all of the senses. Mastering the French cuisine can take decades, but French restaurants bring this artistic gastronomy to patrons all over the world. The elements that make up modern food in France each date from different periods in the history of French cuisine, but they all come together to create one

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History of breakfast What we DO know is that 10,000 years ago something amazing happened.

In the fertile crescent of the Middle East, agriculture was developed, growing wheat, barley, and spelt. Agriculture changed the human lifestyle forever. Farming was a sacred role in the community. It was the farmers who understood calendars and seasons. They knew how to plant seeds and harvest in harmony with the elements, Sun, and Moon. This was like a verbal version of our old-fashioned Farmer’s Almanac, passed down from generation to generation, except it was very sacred. (In modern times, this tradition has been lost.) For breakfast the people ate grains that had been soaked to soften, ground with stone grinders, and boiled into a thick porridge. In the early Christian era, a common breakfast might have been a dense bread of sprouted grain, like Essence bread, with olives on the side.

What was for breakfast in other parts of the world? Well, if you lived in ancient China, you might have had a breakfast of “jook”, a thick porridge of brown rice boiled for hours, with vegetables or meat, and a cup of tea. And it is fascinating to read in the Bible that John the Baptist was a wild, holy man who lived on a simple diet of locusts and honey! In ancient Greece, a classic breakfast was bread made from stone-ground barley, with eggs, berries, sun-dried grapes, and figs.

Romans often ate a breakfast of whole grain bread with cheese, olives, salad, nuts, raisins, and for the wealthy – meat. Of course all your meals were washed down with wine.

After the Roman Empire fell in 476 AD, Europe fell into isolation. The medieval church took a dim view of breakfast, considering it a type of gluttony, so most people ate just two meals a day. Only a few folks that did heavy manual labour ate a morning meal. If you were one of those, you might have porridge on a “trencher” with a cup of ale. Since there were no plates, your trencher was a flat round piece of hard bread.

When you finished breakfast, you could eat the plate!

Early breakfasts were not sweet. However in the most recent 500 years, an entire civilization has become impassioned and addicted to the sweet taste of sugar. Sugar originated in Southeast Asia in New Guinea about 8,000 BC. From there it spread through Asia. In ancient India, sugar was considered a sacred food, and was burned during ceremonial offerings to the Gods, along with incense, milk, and honey. Indians discovered how to crystallize sugar around 1,100 BC, calling it khanda in Sanskrit.

The name caught on, spreading through Persia and Turkey to Europe where it became candy. Hard candy crystallization processes also travelled east to China, carried by Buddhist Monks. By 600 AD Muslims had established major sugar cane cultivation throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Sugar was a totally new addition to the human diet! Sugar consumption has increased steadily from medieval days. Especially in the past 100 years our sugar consumption has soared dramatically to huge levels.

During the 12th century, European crusaders brought home an exotic new spice from the Holy Land. They called it “sweet salt”, and it was frightfully expensive. Only the wealthiest people could afford it, and they sprinkled it on their food in tiny amounts.

In 1226, King Henry III of England paid 450 modern dollars for three pounds of sugar!

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By 1525 sugar was available to wealthy Europeans. Some of them ate so much their teeth turned black. Black teeth became a symbol of wealth, and soon many women blackened their teeth as a fashion and status symbol.

A New-World tradition of sweet breakfasts is born.

Before sugar was available, a traditional breakfast was hot porridge of soaked grain and fresh cream. As more sugar was imported, by 1790, breakfast customs changed.

Instead of porridge, wealthy people could have an assortment of jams, scones, pastries, tea, coffee, and chocolate, all from the new colonies. One could honestly say that the exploration of the New World, and the founding of the 13 colonies that became the United States, was almost exclusively fuelled by Europeans’ desire for wealth and their demand for sugar!

British Doctor pronounces: “Sugar is Worse than Eating Nothing” In 1793 a ship full of sugar from the colonies was wrecked in the Atlantic. Most of the crew died, and the five surviving sailors were finally rescued after being marooned for nine days. They were in a wasted condition due to starvation, having consumed nothing but sugar and rum. None of them made it; they all expired of kidney failure.

The attending doctor was inspired to conduct further experiments feeding sugar to dogs. The dogs wasted and died as well. His conclusions published in 1816 stated that for humans and animals: “Sugar is worse than eating nothing”. In fact, sugar actually leeches’ precious nutrients out of the body, and excretes them in the urine.

In 1908 another not-so-healthy discovery was made. The Japanese learned how to extract glutamic acid from seaweed, mimicking the “umami” flavour of real seaweed.

By 1960 American food producers found a way to synthesize the flavour using GMO bacteria to ferment glutamic acid. Monosodium Glutamate, MSG, or “processed free glutamic acid” was born and approved by the FDA as a “natural flavour”. Even disgusting, stale foods tasted fantastic with MSG as a flavour enhancer! New breakfast products enriched with MSG appeared, like “Accent” flavoured salt, sausages, cured meats, fast-food chicken patties, ramen noodles, and protein powders.

Called an “excito-toxin” because it excites the brain centres related to taste, MSG produces brain lesions, migraines, nerve degeneration, endocrine disorders, retinal damage, and obesity. Unfortunately MSG is difficult to detect, as it can be listed under 100 other names like Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Soy Protein Isolate, or Yeast Extract. It’s hard to know, since “natural flavours” on an ingredient label might very well be MSG. The best defence is to eat whole, unprocessed foods.

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History of Chinese Sweet Food Incredible variety of foods and drinks that were invented by Chinese cooks and molded by more than 3 thousand years of fashion changes, access to trading routes and accessibility of local food ingredients have made Chinese cuisine into one of the most diverse in the entire world. In addition to thousands of distinctive dishes and wide variety of liquid beverages (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic), China managed to build large assortment of desserts that can be made both from raw ingredients such as fruits and more complicated recipes that sometimes entail cooking that can last several days or even weeks.

Chinese desserts are of course sweet, but usually with less sugar content than deserts from the west. They also have larger percentage of natural fruit ingredients, and can be served not only after meals and with tea, but also during meals as essential part of Chinese Ying and Yang tradition of eating “balanced� meals. Traditionally, Chinese desserts are separated in several main categories, such as bakery products, confectionary foods (that include baked wheat products such as Moon Cakes), candies, sweets, rice-based snacks, dessert syrups, desert custards, jellies, and ice creams that can be eaten in several forms.

Traditional Chinese desserts have played not only important role in defying Chinese diet, but also diets of many Asian countries who maintained cultural and trading connection with China, making Chinese desserts even more influential and varied.

Mango Pudding is creamy, smooth, and full of sweet mango flavour.

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Colourful Mixed Fruit Pudding

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Sacher Torte Cake

History

Sachertorte Cake, also know as Sacher Cake and Edward Sacher Torte is a famous classic Viennese cake. Probably is the most famous chocolate cake of all-time. It consists of chocolate sponge cake cut into three layers, between which apricot jam are thickly spread between the layers and on the top and sides of the cake. The whole Sachertorte Cake is then iced with a velvet-like chocolate and served with a side dish of whipped cream.

1832 – The Sachertorte was created by pastry chef Franz Sacher (1816-1907) in 1832 for Prince Clemens Lothar Wensel Metternich (1773-1859) of Austria, the Austrian State Chancellor.

The prince enjoyed trying new dishes and ordered the chef to create a new cake.

Orders were sent to the kitchens where it was instant pandemonium. The head chef was sick and the team of cooks in the kitchen had no idea what to prepare. Franz Sacher, a 16-year old apprentice cook, rolled up his sleeves and created this famous chocolate cake with the ingredients that were available. The Sacher Torte and other recipes made him prosperous, and he operated several cafes and restaurants.

1876 – In 1876, Franz’s son, Edward Sacher, opened a grand hotel called the Hotel Sacher, but it was Edward’s dynamic, cigar-smoking wife, Anna, who turned it into one of Europe’s greatest hostelries where the aristocracy and diplomats would meet.

After Edward’s death his widow, Anna Sacher, became manager. Under her rule, the hotel became one of the finest hotels in the world, where the aristocracy and diplomats would meet, and by the time of her death in 1930 it was a national institution.

1965 – For some unknown reason (date unknown), Franz Sacher Jr., a son of Edward and his wife Anna, later sold his original recipe to Demel’s, a fancy coffee cafon the Kohlmarkt, allowing them to produce a rival torte. Both the Hotel Sacher and the Demel Patisserie claimed to produce the “original” Sachertorte. These two worldfamous institutions engaged in a lawsuit which lasted for years. The judgement in 1965 went in favour of Sacher, giving them the right to the “Original Sacher Torte” while Dehmel had to be satisfied with the “Original Edward Sacher Torte”. The main difference between the two recipes is that in Sacher’s case, the layer of jam is between two layers of the chocolate sponge, while in Demel’s version the jam is on top of the sponge but under the chocolate covering.

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Peach Melba History and Melba toast There are a number of foods and desserts that are named after famous individuals.

Just as the meringue dessert Pavlova has been named for Anna Pavlova the famous ballerina, another distinctive individual has 4 foods named in her honour.

Dame Nellie Melba of the Victorian Era was undoubtedly one of the most renowned opera singers of her time. She was born Helen Porter Mitchell in Victoria, Australia (into a musical family). She lived in Melbourne for most of her teen years, and took on her stage name Nellie Melba as a tribute to this beautiful city. A shrewd businesswoman, this soprano led an extraordinary life, had an astounding voice and sang at some of the most highly acclaimed opera houses including Covent Garden in London, the Metropolitan and La Scala.

How the Melba toast came into Creation She had a portly figure and loved to eat; and right through her career Nellie fought a losing battle with her weight. In fact, it was this that resulted in the story about the origins of the Melba toast. While she was a guest at the famous Savoy Hotel in London (and on one of her now famous weight-loss diets), she asked for dry toast.

However, the kitchens slipped-up and sent crunchy and thin, over-toasted bread.

Surprisingly and uncharacteristically, she ate the substandard toast, instead of admonishing the waiter for serving it to her, story has it that the establishment’s maître d’ then christened the toast in her honour. The other story doing the rounds (which seems a little more plausible), is that the Savoy’s legendary cook Auguste Escoffier deliberately created the toast for Melba because she had been suffering from a minor illness at the time, and her digestive system wasn’t strong enough to tolerate standard foods.

The Peach Melba Makes an Appearance Aside from this, the celebrated chef also created the classic Peach Melba, a delectable dessert made with ice cream, poached peaches and raspberry sauce, in the singer’s honour. Legend has it that Melba was concerned about the fact that too much of ice cream would negatively affect her vocal cords; this prompted the chef to create a dessert that was delicious; but the ice cream was only one of the ingredients of the dessert, rather than the whole of the dish.

The chef also created two other desserts that weren’t as famous as the ones we just mentioned. These were the Melba Sauce (a delicious redcurrant and raspberries puree) and The Melba Garniture (these were tomatoes that had been stuffed with truffles, a 24

rich white sauce, mushrooms and chicken. While Melba Toast and Peach Melba were created in London, these desserts soon made their way to other lands. Since Nellie Melba was an Australian, it was no surprise that these desserts became a favourite here. Melba toast and Peach Melba are found in many restaurants across Australia.

Chefs also get creative with these preparations and there are a number of variations of the original dishes. Since the toast is quite compact in size, it becomes a great base for various toppings.

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Italian Desserts History Professional bakeries began appearing in Italy around the 2nd century BC. Schools were put in place to teach technique to aspiring bakers. While Italian desserts today feature many unique ingredients, desserts in earlier times were very plain. Sugar wasn’t introduced until the Middle Ages and chocolate came to Italy in the 16th century.

Different desserts were born for different reasons in Italy. Some dry cookie-like desserts were thought to be made for sailors who needed long lasting food items to take on their voyages. Other more elaborate desserts were created to commemorate important historic events or holidays in Italy. Many of these recipes have been passed down through families for generations. Great care is taken to preserve their traditional characteristics.

Across Italy, regional variations to desserts can be found. From biscotti and amaretti, to the elaborate creations such as tiramisù, pandoro, and panettone, the Italians are in no shortage for confectionary creativity. Italian desserts, candy, and chocolate are in a class of their own.

Types of Desserts Amaretti – These small cookies made from sugar, flour, eggs, and Amaretto (replacing the original almond ingredient) has a unique history. Legend has it; a baker and his fiancée gathered all of the ingredients and developed a special gift for the visiting Cardinal of Milan in the 1700s. It was a tradition to provide sweets for the Cardinal and this time was no exception. The amaretti cookies pleased the Cardinal and he soon became a regular to their bakery. The tops of amaretti are sprinkled with crystalline sugar.

Aranci in Salsa di Marsala – This is a light and colourful Italian dessert combining fresh oranges, crushed Amaretti cookies, honey, mint sprigs, and Marsala wine. The oranges are peeled and separated at the top but left joined on the bottom so they can be opened up like flowers. A warm blend of honey and Marsala wine is poured over the orange flower. Finally, crushed Amaretti cookies and mint sprigs are used to garnish the finished creation.

Bigné di San Giuseppe – Light, puffy pastries from Rome that are typically baked in the weeks prior to St. Joseph’s day, March 19. These pastries are deep fried and stuffed with cream. A final topping of powdered sugar is applied before the pastry is complete.

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Biscotti – Small, dry, crumbly sweet pastries that are twice-baked in the oven to remove moisture are known to Italians as biscotti. These cookie-like pastries were particularly popular among sailors due to their long shelf-lives. Biscotti often make use of fruits and nuts as aids to their flavour. Italians love to dip their biscotti in wine; flavourings and softening the cookie at the same time.

Biscotti dei Fantasmi – A relatively recent Italian creation revolving around the American holiday of Halloween. Biscotti dei Fantasmi are known for their ginger flavor and ghost-like shape.

Brutti ma Buoni – A traditional Tuscan cookie, roughly translating to “ugly but good”. The cookies aren’t pretty but are highly regarded for their delicious flavor.

Almonds, hazelnuts, pine nuts, amaretto, oranges, and more can be found in a Brutti ma Buoni recipe.

Canestrelli – These are doughnut-like desserts originally from the Monferrato area.

The desserts have a decorated edge, in shortbread or almond paste. Canestrelli are covered in powdered sugar upon coming out of the oven.

Cannoli – Powdered sugar and ricotta cheese or mascarpone fill these fried pastrydough tubes from Sicily. The filling is usually blended with chocolate, vanilla, rosewater, pistachio, or Marsala wine for flavourings. Cannoli can also be served completely dipped in chocolate.

Cantuccini – Oil, anise and almonds fill these sweet, twice-baked Italian biscuits from the town of Prato, near Florence. Slices are cut from the loaf and then baked once again to harden them. Cantuccini are often dipped in wine, coffee or any other after dinner beverage for softening.

Cassata – This Sicilian dessert makes use of fruit juices or liqueur which are soaked into a moist sponge cake. Next, cassata is layered with candied peel, ricotta cheese, and a cannoli-like filling of chocolate or vanilla. Traditionally, cassata is then covered in marzipan and pastel-green icing. Candied fruits are placed on top of the finished cassata. Cassata can have a summertime variation, substituting refreshing gelato for the ricotta filling.

Cavallucci – These rich Christmas pastries are flavoured with anise, and known for their chewy texture. Tuscan honey, coriander, candied fruits, almonds and flour make up the list of ingredients for Cavallucci. The name most likely originated in 16th century Siena, where the pastries were served to stable-workers by rich aristocrats.

Cavallucci literally means “little horses”.

Cenci alla Fiorentina – A fried Tuscan pastry known for a delicious lemon flavor.

The recipe is traditionally very basic and uses no nuts or chocolate. Oranges may be substituted for the lemon flavourings. The dough is tied into “love knots” before frying. Upon finish, Cenci alla Fiorentina are sprinkled lightly with confectioner’s sugar.

Cioccolatini – Italian assorted chocolate are in a class of-their-own. Baci, Italy’s most popular chocolate candy is a mixture of crushed hazelnuts and chocolate. Boeri is another popular chocolate candy in Italy; it consists of a brandied cherry inside rich, dark chocolate. Cioccolatini range in size shape and texture and colour filling. Italians are free to use their culinary creativity in the world of cioccolatini.

Colomba – Flour, sugar, egg yolk, milk, butter, almonds and orange peel combine to create this Italian dove-shaped cake. Legend tells that the Milanesi witnessed three doves fly from a church during their struggle against the Barbarossa at the Battle of Legnano. They believed it was this event that sparked their victory over the Barbarossa. The Milanesi celebrated throughout the years by eating the Colomba cake, with its delicate texture and golden crust.

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Confetti – The traditional candy of Italian family celebrations. Confetti are candycoated almonds; the shell comes from a sugar-syrup. The colour of the confetti is very significant. Families will give white confetti for weddings, red for graduations, pink and blue for births, and many other variations. Abruzzo and Campania produce the majority of Italy’s confetti.

Crostata – A pie-like Italian dessert traditionally filled with items like cherry, apricot, berry, and peach jams, crema pasticciera, fresh fruit, or a blended ricotta and cocoa or sugar filling. Crostata typically has a rough appearance, and is not perfectly circular.

Frappe – This Carnevale tradition uses the same dough as cannoli. The difference is, the dough is cut into strips and tied into knots much like Cenci alla Fiorentina. The strips are fried and lightly topped with confectioner’s sugar.

Génoise – Named after Genoa, this sponge cake is known for its dry texture. Because of this, the cake is commonly soaked in liqueurs. Butter-cream frosting is a very common addition. Although being fairly lean, Génoise is made with whole eggs.

Gianduiotti – This is Italian chocolate of truly elite status. Gianduiotti, a mixture of milk, sugar, cocoa and Piedmontese hazelnuts, was hailed as the world’s finest chocolate at the 1865 Carnival of Turin. In fact, the chocolate was held in such high regard that it was given the honour of being named after the Masque of Turin; Gianduja.

Krumiri – Piedmontese cookie sticks made from flour, butter and honey. Krumiri are striped and somewhat curved.

Liquirizia – Italian licorice is produced in strands, drops, confetti, and many other varieties. This candy is known to have some fantastic health benefits including soothing sore throats, reducing coughing, hoarseness, and helping to cure ulcers.

Marron Glacé – Cook Italian chestnuts in sugar syrup and reap the rewards. Marron Glacé are soft, candied chestnuts used primarily for gift giving due to their low production.

Nociata – This is a walnut and honey dessert from the Lazio region of Italy. Around Christmastime each year, one will most likely find this sticky, cinnamon-flavoured dessert throughout Rome. The finished product is served in tiny loaves.

Ossa dei Morti Biscotti – These “bones of dead men” are traditionally served on All Souls Day. Italians are known to have picnics near the graves of loved ones on this day in a celebration of life, not death. Ossa dei Morti Biscotti are small, bone shaped cookies making use of cinnamon, clove, lemon, vanilla, almond, and many other flavours.

Pan di Spagna – An Italian sponge cake known for its vast array of uses. Pan di Spagna is the basis for many Italian desserts including layer cakes, roll cakes, and more. Many enjoy Pan di Spagna alone for its simple, delicious flavor and spongy texture.

Pandoro – One of the two Italian sweet yeast breads served mainly on Christmas day.

This frustum-shaped bread with an 8-pointed star is usually coated in vanilla icing to represent snow. In ancient times, breads like Pandoro would be reserved for royalty, but everyone may enjoy them today. Domenico Melegatti, resident of Verona, attained a patent for producing Pandoro in 1894.

Panettone – Native to Milan, Panettone is one of the two Italian sweet yeast breads served mainly on Christmas day. Acidic dough used to make Panettone is cured before being shaped into a cupola which extends from a cylindrical base. Raisins, candied orange, citron, and lemon zest are added to the bread for flavouring. Regional variations for Panettone include serving with Crema di Mascarpone, or chocolate.

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Panforte – A Tuscan fruit cake-like dessert making use of various fruits and nuts.

Historical evidence refers to Crusaders carrying this hearty dessert for nourishment, and perhaps to satisfy their sweet tooth. The literal translation of panforte is “strong bread”, which refers to the spicy flavor of the dessert. Siena is thought to be the home of panforte.

Panna Cotta – A dessert of Piedmontese origins, Panna cotta is made by dissolving unflavoured gelatine in milk, then whisking the milk into sweetened heavy cream (sweetened with confectioner’s sugar and vanilla extract). Panna cotta is refrigerated and served with a caramel or strawberry topping.

Pan Pepato – Pan Pepato is often referred to as an Italian chocolate gingerbread.

Raisins, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, candied fruit, chocolate, cinnamon, amaretto, honey, nutmeg, and the characteristic black pepper combine to give this dessert its spicy flavor. This cake from Ferrara is typically served around Christmastime and New Year’s.

Pastiera – This traditional Neapolitan cake is made by mixing ricotta cheese with eggs. Flower scented water is typically added, giving pastiera its characteristic floral aroma. A version of pastiera includes an addition of thick cream, which softens the cake. This fragile cake is traditionally baked for Easter.

Pignolata – This soft, Sicilian pastry is presented in small pieces and can serve many people. One half of pignolata is covered in lemon-flavoured icing while the other half is covered in chocolate.

Pitta M’Pigliata – Also known is Pita Piata, Pitta M’Pigliata are very similar to cinnamon rolls. This Calabrian dessert is traditionally served during the Christmas season. Some ingredients include walnuts, raisins, brandy, orange juice, and of course, cinnamon.

Pizzella – Native to Abruzzo, this waffle-like cookie that varies between crisp and crunchy or soft and chewy depending on ingredients. Traditional flavourings include anise, vanilla, and lemon zest. A pizzelle iron is used in cooking the dessert, giving it a characteristic snowflake pattern. Pizzella are commonly used to create a dessert sandwich with cannoli cream or hazelnut spread as a filling. Pizzella in Lazio are known as ferratelle and as cancelle in Molise.

Ricciarelli – Crushed almonds, sugar and honey comprise these crunchy, diamondshaped cookies from Italy. Ricciarelli are a favourite around celebrations and gatherings. Variations to the original recipe leave Ricciarelli coated in powdered sugar or frosted with chocolate.

Savoiardi – Flour, sugar, eggs, and butter are the simple ingredients of this Italian sponge cake native to Valle d’Aosta. Savoiardi is cut into slivers, leaving a crisp and golden crust around moist cake. Savoiardi is used to prepare tiramisu, and is also commonly eaten with Italian creams and sorbetti.

Sfogliatelle – These Italian pastries from the province of Salerno come in the form of a cone or shell with a layered texture. Typically, an orange-flavoured ricotta filling is used. Variations include almond paste or candied peel fillings.

Sfogliatine – This cream-filled cookie from Venice comes in disc, rectangular, and fan shapes.

Spumoni – Fruits and nuts can usually be found in this molded Italian ice cream of varying layers of colour and flavor. Chocolate and pistachio are the two most common flavours used in spumoni. A layer of whipped cream, fruit and nuts usually separates the varying flavours of ice cream. Cherry bits are a traditional addition. Spumoni is originally from Naples, and spawned the popular Neapolitan ice cream.

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Struffoli – Originated in Naples, struffoli consists of marble-sized deep-fried dough balls. Struffoli are served warm with honey containing chopped nuts and orange peel.

Tiramisù – Espresso-dipped savoiardi is layered with egg yolk, sugar, and mascarpone or zabaglione to make this ultra-popular Italian dessert. Cocoa is sprinkled on top of the finished product. Sugar and liquor are optional in the dipping process. Tiramisù is a fairly recent creation; first produced in 1971.

Torrone – Ancient Romans regarded Torrone as a Godly offering. The honey, almond and albumen creation has many regional variations including the Campania version flavoured with Strega liqueur. Hazelnuts, pistachios, and chocolate are common modern-day additions to Torrone. Note: Torrone gets its name from the Torione tower in the city of Cremona, which was given as a gift to Francesco Sforza from the father of Bianca Maria Visconti on their wedding day.

Zabaglione – This dessert sauce consists of egg yolk, sugar, and Marsala wine. The custard-like sauce is whipped; the result is a higher air content. Honey was an original ingredient but was replaced with sugar. Cream, mascarpone, or whole eggs are acceptable additions to the ingredient list. Italians serve figs with Zabaglione.

Zeppole – Custard, jelly, butter and honey, or cannoli cream typically fill these deep fried, sugar-coated dough balls served on St. Joseph’s Day. Zeppole are characteristically light and airy, but are sometimes created in a more dense version.

Savoury varieties of Zeppole are often stuffed with anchovy.

Zuccotto – This Italian sponge cake dessert from Florence is typically flavoured with brandy and layered with chilled cream. Zuccotto is traditionally made in a pumpkinshaped mold.

Zuppa Inglese – A custard-based Italian dessert. Zuppa Inglese consists of Pan di Spagna dipped in Alchermes liquor, and covered in crema pasticciera. Crema alla cioccolata is also a common ingredient, layered between the cakes. To finalize Zuppa Inglese, whipped cream and crushed almonds are typically applied as a topping.

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HISTORY OF BREAD Bread, in all its various forms, is the most widely consumed food in the world. Not only is it an important source of carbohydrates, it’s also portable and compact, which helps to explain why it has been an integral part of our diet for thousands of years. In fact, recent scholarship suggests humans started baking bread at least 30,000 years ago.

Prehistoric man had already been making gruel from water and grains, so it was a small jump to starting cooking this mixture into a solid by frying it on stones. A 2010 study by the National Academy of Sciences discovered traces of starch (likely from the roots of cattails and ferns) in prehistoric mortar and pestle-like rocks. The roots would have been peeled and dried before they were ground into flour and mixed with water. Finally, the paste would be cooked on heated rocks.

But how did humanity get from this prehistoric flatbread to a fluffy, grocery store loaf? There were three primary innovations that created “modern” bread.

When ancient man discovered a food which would keep through the winter months, and could be multiplied in the summer, it could be said that civilization began. He might have a reasonably safe store of food to carry him over, which would give him time to develop other useful skills besides hunting, fishing and cattle-herding.

In Old Testament times, all the evidence points to the fact that bread-making, preparing the grain, making the bread and baking it, was the women's work, but in the palaces of kings and princes and in large households, the bakers' duties would be specialised. Bread was leavened, that is, an agent in the form of a 'barm' was added to 30

the dough which caused the mixture to rise in the shape of our familiar loaf. The hurried departure of the Israelites from Egypt, described in the Book of Exodus in the Bible, prevented their bread being leavened as usual; the Jews today commemorate this event by eating unleavened bread on special occasions. The ruins of Pompeii and other buried cities have revealed the kind of bakeries existing in those historic times.

There were public bakeries where the poorer people brought their bread to be baked, or from which they could buy ready-baked bread.

Recent evidence indicates that humans processed and consumed wild cereal grains as far back as 23,000 years ago in the Upper Palaeolithic period. From the Neolithic period 9500 BC simple stone mechanisms were used for smashing and grinding various cereals to remove the inedible outer husks and to make the resulting grain into palatable and versatile food.

As humans evolved we mixed the resulting cracked and ground grains with water to create a variety of foods from thin gruel, to a stiffer porridge. By simply leaving the paste to dry out in the sun, a bread-like crust would be formed.

This early bread was particularly successful when wild yeast from the air combined with the flour and water; this started a fermentation process which slightly raised the crust. These ancient breads would however be unpredictable depending on the type of grain, the flour texture, the liquid, the availability of wild yeast and especially the weather.

Both simple, yet elusive, the art of controlling the various ingredients and developing the skills, required to turn grain and water into palatable bread, gave status to individuals and societies for thousands of years. The use of barley and wheat lead man to live in communities and made the trade of baker one of the oldest craft in the world. Successful bread making was considered an important life skill for ancient Egyptians who left graphic inscriptions on tomb chamber walls. The Egyptians were curious why the effect of the bread ‘rose’ and attempted to isolate the yeast, to introduce directly into their bread. They also found that they could take a piece of dough from one batch and save it for the next day’s batch of dough, this was how the origin of sourdough came about and is a process still used today. Records also show that the Egyptians were baking bread as far back as 2500 years ago and sometimes paid their officials with good bread.

The Romans enjoyed several kinds of bread, with interesting names. Lentaculum, made originally flat, round loaves made of emmer, (a cereal grain closely related to wheat flour) with a bit of salt were eaten. There was also oyster bread (to be eaten with oysters); 'artolaganus' or cake bread; 'speusticus' or 'hurry bread', tin bread, Parthian bread and the Roman Style Slipper Loaf Breads were made richer by adding milk, eggs and butter, but only the wealthy and privileged could afford these. The Egyptian grammarian and philosopher Athenaeus, who lived in the 3rd century A.D., has handed down to us considerable knowledge about bread and baking in those days.

As mentioned above, bread and the art of baking were exported from Egypt and across the Roman Empire. During the early Middle Ages (5th Century) the Roman Empire started to break down but baking had already been embedded in Europe and even spread to Asia. The Vikings made bread mainly from Rye grains, which produce dense, hard bread. Circular loaves were often made with a hole in the middle allowing bread to be hung from a pole or rope.

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Commonly, Kings, Princes and large households would have their own staff whose only duty would be baking. There were public bakeries, normally owned by the local land lord, where the poorer people brought their bread to be baked communally, and later where they could buy ready-baked bread. It was the job of the housewives to bring their dough to the baker, who would then bake it into bread.

Medieval bread was very similar to the loaf we know today. According to historic sources, the taste was comparable to modern wholemeal bread made from stoneground flour. Unfortunately, very few original bread recipes have survived the passing of time. It can be presumed that as bread was such a staple part of the medieval diet, it was not considered necessary to include it in recipe books.

Some bakers used their positions to take advantage of their customers and had trap doors that would allow a small boy to pinch off a bit of the dough to later sell off his own. In England in the 13th Century practices like these led to a regulation known as the Assize of Bread and Ale. The Industrial Revolution really moved the process of bread making forwards. The first commercially successful engine did not appear until 1712 but it wasn’t until the invention of the Boulton & Watt steam engine in 1786 which drove the Albion Flour mill in Battersea that the process was advanced and refined.

The Albion Mill was far ahead of its time.

It was rumoured to be so large and efficient that in one year it could produce more flour than the rest of the mills in London, put together.

Unfortunately, the mill mysteriously burnt down after 5 years, at the time it was alleged that the other flour millers had formed a gang and burnt the mill down but it was never proved.

In London at this time, pastry chefs sold their goods from handcarts. This developed into a system of delivery of baked goods to households, and demand increased greatly as a result. In Paris, the first open-air cafĂŠ of baked goods was developed, and baking became an established art throughout the entire world.

For most of the 19th century, millers continued using Windmills and Watermills, depending on their locations, to turn the machinery. It wasn’t until 1874 that a Swiss engineer invented a new type of mill; abandoning the use of the stone mill-wheels, he designed rollers made of steel which operated one above the other. It was called the reduction roller-milling system, and these machines soon became accepted all over Europe and in Britain.

At the time of the Industrial Revolution, the North American prairies which were ideally suited to grow wheat provided ample grain for the fast-growing population of Great Britain. This, together with the invention of the roller-milling system, meant that for the first time in history, whiter flour (and therefore bread) could be produced at a price which brought it within the reach of everyone - not just the rich.

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Somebody very long ago discovered that cooked food is healthier and lasts longer, and so began culinary history. Archaeology of prehistoric sites shows that fires were used for cooking as well as warmth. Before pots and pans were developed, stone-lined or earthen fire-pits were used. In some methods, stones were heated in a fire and then dropped into water in the fire-pit, and food was cooked in the heated water.

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