A.

The French baguette, invented in 1839, was recently put on the United Nations Cultural List. The list celebrates beloved intangible aspects of culture that should be preserved. The move by the U.N. was seen as a sort of rescue. About 400 of France’s traditional baguette-baking bakeries disappear each year. Still, the devoted French manage to consume about 10 billion of the long, thin, crusty loaves yearly. Baguettes generally have a diameter of 5 to 6 centimeters (2-2.4 inches) and a length of 65 centimeters (25.6 inches). The baguette was added to the U.N. list in November 2022 along with another cultural food artifact: Ukrainian Borscht.

B.

In the early 19^th and 20^th centuries, Tutti Frutti was a popular recipe among many American homemakers. Beginning in summer, often with strawberries, fruits would be layered into a jar and drenched with brandy and sugar. As summer progressed to fall, more layers of differing fruits would be added. The mixture was used as a topping for everything from ice cream to meat.

A.

Speaking personally, I have always assumed that vegetables are healthier when they are eaten raw. Wrong, says Consumer Reports in their Oct 2022 issue. Among the vegetables that are healthier cooked: tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, spinach, bell peppers, and asparagus. When tomatoes are baked, fried, or pureed and cooked as a sauce, the heat increases the phytochemical lycopene which has been linked to lower rates of cancer and heart disease. The magazine cites one study where absorbable lycopene was boosted 35% after tomatoes were heated for 30 minutes at 190 degrees F. Cooking tomatoes also concentrates their flavor. CR suggests quartering tomatoes, drizzling them with olive oil, sprinkling garlic and a little salt and pepper on them, then roasting them in the oven for half an hour at 200 degrees F.

C.

As reported in Travel & Leisure magazine, according to the CDC, it’s best to avoid “raw or undercooked fish, shellfish, or food containing raw or undercooked seafood, such as sashimi, some sushi, and ceviche,” any of which could contain harmful pathogens. Also on the CDC’s “no-at-the-airport” list: salads containing raw lettuces, deli meats, and hot dogs. Low-sugar protein bars are fine (even though many taste like sawdust).

C.

In the early 1900s, several cycles of massive over-production of oranges in both Florida and California lead to a nationwide orange glut. At the time, oranges were mostly eaten whole. Juicing provided a logical solution for orange growers. But what to do with all that juice? Canning it was an option, but the flavor of canned orange juice (which often tuned viscous and brown) was a far cry from the flavor of actual oranges. The next innovation—canned frozen concentrate that could be mixed with water—was better. Growers launched enormous advertising campaigns extolling the virtues of orange juice. But if orange juice was to become a staple (capable of using up a lion’s share of all the oranges produced), more demand for it had to be created. Advertisers decided it needed a “place” in everyday eating behavior. The answer was breakfast. As everyone in America now knows, no breakfast is really “complete” without orange juice.

D.

As of 2019, most of the mustard seed produced in the world—including for France’s most famous moutarde—“Dijon”—is grown in either Canada (specifically in the province of Saskatchewan), Nepal, or Russia. There are companies in Burgundy (near the city of Dijon) that process seeds to make mustard, but the seeds themselves are almost assuredly grown in Canada. (Importing from Nepal has a number of logistical challenges, and today, importing from Russia has political ones.) According to the US-based Agricultural Marketing Policy Center, Canada, Nepal, and Russia combined have historically produced about 70 percent of the world’s mustard seeds.

B.

I admit I would have said D—salmon (when did that fish last see water?), but according to Travel & Leisure magazine, flight experts say to forget the pasta. The reasons they cite: 1) At 30,000 feet, the perception of flavor is reduced by as much as 30% and so, up in the air, pasta tastes about as bland as air—we’d add: ditto for most everything else. 2) On a flight, pasta is assured to be a “mushy mess” since it’s (often) reheated. Yup. And 3) You’ll be “lethargic and cranky” when you arrive, because carbohydrates (the nutritional group that pasta belongs to) cause your blood sugar to soar then plummet. Not sure where all of this leaves us…wine and protein bars?

D.

Black Corinth grapes from Greece are the source of dried Zante currants, sometimes known as “black Corinth raisins.” According to the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources department, the word “currant” evolved from “Corinth,” the name of the Greek port from which the fruit was exported to western Europe. By the 1700s, however, the currant trade shifted slightly westward toward Greece’s Ionian Islands, notably the island of Zante (also known as Zakynthos). Hence, the name Zante currants.

C.

One of the defining ingredients of the Hungarian kitchen—paprika—is based on red peppers, the best of which are said to come from the region of Szeged in Hungary. Curiously, these peppers have the highest vitamin C content of any vegetable. Indeed, paprika was used in numerous experiments by Hungarian physiologist Albert Szent-Györgyi who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1937 for his discovery of Vitamin C. By the way, Hungarians classify paprika into eight types, starting with the mildest, sweetest, and brightest red—Különleges–and proceeding to Erős, the spiciest and most brown in color.

C.

Peanut Butter and Mayonnaise, now largely forgotten, was once as popular a pairing as PB & J. During the Great Depression, people were looking for high-calorie combinations of protein and fat. Meat and dairy were expensive and consuming enough energy could prove difficult. Thus, the combination of peanut butter and mayonnaise on white bread was born and became a staple in Southern households in the United States. For the next 30 years or so, the PB & M was a favorite in many American kitchens, perhaps because adding mayonnaise to the era’s rustic, coarse nut butter may have been key for spreadability.

A.

Bamboo is not only the fastest-growing edible plant but also the fastest-growing plant on Earth. Period. Chinese Moso bamboo can grow over 3 feet in a single day! Bamboo shoots are low in fat and calories and contain loads of fiber and potassium. They have a very mild taste but take on flavors of other foods easily and can blend into almost any cuisine.

B.

An elaborate four-tiered wedding cake has remained uncut since it was made in 1898. The confection was made by Charles H. Philpott soon after he and his wife opened their family bakery—C.H. Philpott, Baker and Confectioner—in Basingstoke, England. For 66 years after the bakery’s opening, the Philpotts displayed the cake in the shop window, before moving it to their home in 1964 when the bakery closed. In 1995, almost a century after it was first baked and displayed, the Philpotts’ daughter donated the antique cake to the local Willis Museum. The cake is now displayed in the museum, under constant monitoring to ensure it stays intact.

C.

The practice of dyeing eggs for Easter originated in Greece where the custom is a deeply felt religious ritual. The eggs are dyed on Holy Thursday (the Thursday preceding Easter Sunday) and are eaten after midnight mass on Holy Saturday as a way of breaking the Lenten fast. In Greece, Easter eggs are always dyed red, symbolizing the blood of Jesus Christ, while the egg itself represents life and regeneration. In some parts of northern Greece, the eggs are also hand painted with figures, often of birds—a symbol of resurrection.

A.

The spaghetti-tree hoax was a three-minute prank report which aired on April Fools’ Day in 1957 on the BBC current-affairs program Panorama. The broadcast showed a family in southern Switzerland harvesting spaghetti from the family “spaghetti tree”. At the time spaghetti was relatively unknown in the U.K. The BBC told viewers they could grow their own spaghetti trees by “placing a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hoping for the best”. An estimated 8 million people watched the program and hundreds phoned in to question the authenticity of the story or to ask for more information about how they could grow their own.

C.

The tequila fish, prevalent in a single river near the Tequila volcano in Jalisco, Mexico, went extinct from the wild in 2003. Scientists at Michoacán University’s Aquatic Biology Unit knew the tequila fish played an important role in the river’s delicate ecosystem—eating dengue-spreading mosquitoes and serving as a food source for larger fish and birds. Only five pairs of tequila fish remained in captivity at England’s Chester Zoo. After the Mexican fish disappeared from its natural habitat, the team attempted reintroducing the species back into the wild. Now, almost two decades later, a thriving population of tequila fish, are once again swimming in the Teuchitlán River.

A.

The first American restaurant—specifically a tavern—was founded in Boston in 1634 by a settler named Samuel Cole. Early establishments like taverns were relatively inexpensive and generally attracted the poorer and middle classes, for whom preparing food at home was expensive (the cost of wood or coal required to keep a stove going was prohibitive for many). In fact, early on in the U.S., only the wealthy had the staff and economic resources to eat regularly at home. Among the most famous American taverns was Fraunces Tavern, founded in 1762 in New York City, and still operating today.

C.

Walla Walla in southeastern Washington is perhaps the only wine region in the world that is renowned for both its delicious red wines and its delicious, jumbo-size sweet onions—about 19.5 million pounds (9 million kilograms) of which are harvested each year. Like the Vidalia ones from Georgia and the Maui ones from Hawaii, Walla Walla onions are low in sulfur (the compound that makes you cry) and so sweet they can be eaten out of hand, as you would an apple.

D.

Graham crackers, named after Presbyterian minister Sylvester Graham, are not considered an aphrodisiac. Graham believed eating a vegetarian diet rich in bread products could help keep society “pure” by preventing people from having impure thoughts and suppressing the impulse to masturbate (which Graham considered to be a catalyst for blindness and early death). While no food has scientifically been proven to stimulate desire, some foods do have certain “feel good” properties. Historically, spicy foods such as hot peppers were thought to awaken the senses, figs, rich in antioxidants, may help increase blood flow, and oysters, well oysters resemble certain parts of the anatomy. We’ll leave it there.

B.

Su filindeu meaning “the threads of God” in local dialect, is a rare pasta dish from the island of Sardinia. The pasta is made by pulling and folding semolina dough into thin threads, followed by placing the noodles into sheet-like layers on a tray to dry. The dried sheets of noodles are broken into pieces and served in a mutton broth with pecorino cheese. Because of its time-consuming and challenging nature, su filindeu wasn’t readily available to the public. In fact, originally only three women— matriarchs of the Abraini family— knew how to make it.  The recipe has been passed down to subsequent generations for over 300 years. Additionally, su filindeu is on the Ark of Taste list— an international directory of endangered heritage foods. The list is designed to preserve at-risk foods that are a part of a distinct region, sustainably produced, and unique in taste. Have you ever had a bowl of su filindeu? Neither have I.