food

Cheese Pizza; No Toppings

On September 5th, one of the most popular varieties of pizzas gets its day of honor. Hold the toppings, please. It’s National Cheese Pizza Day!

In ancient Greece, the Greeks covered their bread with oils, herbs and cheese which some believe is the beginning of the “pizza”.
In Byzantine Greek, the word was spelled “πίτα”, pita, meaning pie.
A sheet of dough topped with cheese and honey, then flavored with bay leaves was developed by the Romans.
The modern pizza had its beginning in Italy as the Neapolitan flatbread.
The original pizza used only mozzarella cheese, mainly the highest quality buffalo mozzarella variant which was produced in the surroundings of Naples.
It was estimated that the annual production of pizza cheese in the United States in 1997 was 2 billion pounds.
The first United States pizza establishment opened in 1905 was in New York’s Little Italy.
Pizza has become one of America’s favorite meals.

I included the above information from the National Day Of Calendar because I was under the false impression pizza did not originate in Italy. I stand corrected and hopefully you do to.

So, what toppings do you like on your pizza. The picture shows what Americans call a white pizza, just oil and garlic under the cheese. My grandson will eat a red sauce pizza with just cheese when he refuses everything else. Personally, I like mushrooms, black olives, roasted red peppers and artichoke hearts with fresh mozzarella and pesto sauce. My husband likes spicy meats, lots of garlic, oregano, and crushed red pepper flakes with red sauce and gooey hot cheese.

In ninth and tenth grade, because my older sisters had gone off to college and beyond, I often had three or four girl friends stay overnight on the weekend. For a snack, I would make a pizza, using the crust mix, sauce and parmesan cheese that came in the box and usually add pepperoni and mushrooms. Recently two of the ladies that had been there as teenagers told me how awful those pizzas were. Funny, they always got eaten, if not in the evening, then cold for breakfast. I should probably admit to you folks they couldn’t compare to a fresh hot pie from the local pizzeria but in a one block town, at that time, we didn’t have that luxury.

The last point above must be true because there are at least ten different pizza joints within three miles of my house in the suburbs. A little further away we have a new place that has great gluten free crust, and for one price, they put on all the toppings you ask for as you go through the line (like building your own sub). I like to go there, everyone can have their own choice of flavors on their lots-more-than-just-cheese pizza.

09/05/2016 0

National Trail Mix Day

Have you gone shopping for trail mix lately? In the super market I use, Wegmans, there are multiple kinds in the nut section, there are different kinds in the bulk food section and there are yet others in the health food section. So, I leave the definition of trail mix to you. I have read the first one made was just peanuts and raisins.

I like to take a bag of trail mix when we go on a car trip. {It used to be motorcycle trip but the husband’s back gave out, and we have had too many close friends get hurt; I’m actually afraid to get on one now days.} The handy snack satisfies all sorts of cravings. You can pick out just the chocolate when you need a sweet fix, and you can pick out all the cashews at one time, before anyone else gets to the bag. The little pieces of dried fruit often give a more sour flavor burst if that is what you desire; and all jumbled together sends the taste buds into happy land, plus puts off the “I have to stop to eat!” demand for a while. It’s a great staple for in the room too, no refrigeration or heating necessary.

Trail mix was “invented” for just that, eating on the trail when hiking. I have been on some beautiful trails in my life. Number one would be on Mt. Rainier in Washington state. We parked in the Paradise parking lot and my friend pointed UP. “You see that bench up there?” “Yeah.” “That’s where we are eating lunch.” “Really?” I didn’t have the exercise gene back then either, but I made it. Trail mix was our dessert and the begging jay birds had some too.

Now I am back living in New York state, home territory. There is a park named Harriet Hollister Spencer State Park that has wonderful views from the trails. If you didn’t grow up around here, you’ll need a GPS to find it. We also have Letchworth and Stony Brook state parks, plus many others. I’m sure you have a great park near you. Grab a bag of trail mix and go check one out.

One word of caution; dried fruit and chocolate can last almost indefinitely, not so with some types of nuts. In an open bag in the cupboard they can go rancid. So buy yourself some fresh trail mix and enjoy the Labor Day Weekend (If you are in the U.S.) while eating it, even if you do so in front of the TV, on the golf course, or around a fire pit.

08/31/2016 0

National Toasted Marshmallow Day

Toasted Marshmallows go hand in hand with campfires, fires on the beach or around the back yard fire pit, and sometimes over the gas flame on the stove in the kitchen. They are an age defying treat some like golden brown and others like charred black with a gooey white center. But be careful, I have heard of a rule that if your burning delight falls in the fire, you don’t get another one!

Ghost or scary stories come to mind when I think back about marshmallows. There was always that one camp counselor that could tell an animated tale that made the hair on the back of your neck stand up. We called that fun, but now I’m not quite sure why. Most of us knew there really wasn’t a boogeyman in the woods, but because of our age, there was always that niggling concern there might be. Laughing as a group and walking back to our tents with marshmallow strings stuck to our chins made the hairs lay back down.

I would guess the statistics are pretty high that people who rent cottages for a time during the summer have marshmallows on their list of food items to take with them, or they make a quick trip to the nearest grocery store to get them before the bonfire is lit. I’ve only been in a few RV camp registration offices that have essentials for sale, but those essentials include marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate bars. S’mores are not an optional item when camping; whatever your definition of camping might be.

If you don’t like your marshmallows toasted they are great in Ambrosia Salad, melting on the surface of a cup of hot chocolate, or as a swirl in chocolate ice cream. The fluff form is used in making fudge, and mixed with yogurt it makes a great fruit dipping sauce.

There’s a way to make any form of marshmallows even better. Enjoy them with friends or multiple generations.

08/29/2016 2

National Chop Suey Day

I can’t say as I have any memory connected to chop suey, so I decided to share the information from the National Day of Calendar. The myths are interesting.

“A prime example of culinary mythology” and typical with popular foods, there is a long list of colorful and conflicting stories of the origin of chop suey, according to food historian Alan Davidson.

It is believed, by some, that chop suey was invented in America by Chinese Americans. However, anthropologist E.N. Anderson concludes that it is based on tsap seui (miscellaneous leftovers) which is common in Taishan, a district of Guangdong Province. Taishan is the home of many early Chinese immigrants to the United States.

Another account claims that chop suey was invented by Chinese American cooks that were working on the transcontinental railroad in the 19th century.

A prime example of culinary mythology. ~ Alan Davidson on the origin of chop suey.

A tale is told of chop suey’s creation stemming from the Qing Dynasty premier Li Hongzhang’s visit to the United States in 1896. According to the story, his chef wanted to create a meal that was suitable for both the Chinese and the American palates. It has also been told that Li wandered to a local Chinese restaurant after the hotel kitchen closed, where the chef, embarrassed that he had nothing ready to offer, came up with the new “chop suey” dish using scraps of leftovers.

Another myth tells of an 1860s Chinese restaurant cook in San Francisco that was forced to serve something to the drunken miners after hours. To avoid a beating, having nothing fresh to offer, he threw leftovers in a wok and provided a makeshift meal to the miners. The miners loved the dish, asked him what it was called to which he replied, “Chopped Sui.”

When I looked up recipes for chop suey I was very surprised to see pictures of American goulash. I have to admit I don’t get the connection. You know how sometimes a person will say they were born in the wrong century. I think maybe I was born in the wrong country, or had a life before this one and I lived in the Orient. I could eat Chinese dishes five times a week and be happy about it. I have never mastered making anything like it at home. Maybe that’s what we’ll have for supper tonight.

08/27/2016 0

National Waffle Day

The first United States patent for a waffle iron was issued to Cornelius Swarthout of Troy, New York on August 24, 1869.

1911 – First electric waffle iron introduced by General Electric

1953 – Frank Dorsa’s Eggo Frozen Waffles are sold in Supermarkets for the first time

1964 – Belgian Waffles debut at New York’s World’s Fair.

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So now you know, the waffle you usually get when you order one in a restaurant is a Belgian Waffle. In North America, they are a variety of waffle with a lighter batter, larger squares, and deeper pockets than ordinary American waffles. They were originally leavened with yeast, but baking powder is now often used.

I don’t ever remember eating a waffle at home while I was growing up. I rarely ate breakfast food for breakfast. I ate left overs from the night before, like cold spaghetti or pizza. Sometimes it was fresh venison fried in butter then put on a piece of toast.

I spent many years working in the restaurant business. One of my favorite treats was to get a waffle, slather it with butter, then fill all the squares with maple syrup and leave it under the heat lamps for at least fifteen minutes. Of course it lost all its crispness, but that was the idea. The buttery maple flavor was heavenly as I purposely chewed it in a deliciously slow manner. I still like the occasional Belgian Waffle when I eat out, but now I order it with bananas, nuts and cinnamon sauce. My tastes have matured some.

My grandson in a waffle lover. His favorite is Eggos, heated in the toaster, any time of day or night. He’s a skinny kid, he could eat waffles all day for a month with no adverse effects; unlike me. I offer him an egg , bacon, or sausage to go along so he has some protein, but he usually declines.

And now we have waffle cones to eat our ice cream out of. I like them much better than the round ones with the flat bottom that cut the roof of my mouth. Shoot, now I want one! Either will do, a gooey Belgian waffle or chocolate raspberry truffle ice cream on a waffle cone.

08/24/2016 2

National Lemon Meringue Pie Day

Sometimes when you are the youngest you get to help your Mom do something just because you fit in the spot where the problem is. I must have been about seven years old when I had the privilege of cleaning up the mess of all messes.

Whenever we got a new puppy my mother was the one who had the job of house training it just because she was home all day. To make the job easier, and to keep track of the puppy better, we used a table leaf to barricade the doorway from the kitchen to the dining room and to the bathroom. We humans just had to step over the twelve-inch obstacle. A black dachshund puppy didn’t know how to jump it.

Shortly after we got Dee, I came home from school one day and could smell lemon when I went in the house. I thought, “Oh, Mom baked.” When I got to the dining room I just stood there looking at the remains of a whole lemon meringue pie underneath the dining room table, like someone had thrown it there on purpose. There were pieces of the meringue in big chunks on the linoleum floor, there was the lemon curd filling hanging on the center, arm size, corkscrew turned spindle table leg and all over the floor, and the unbroken glass dish was upside down wedged against the leg, waiting for someone to rescue it. Me!

I asked, “What happened?”

My mother was sitting in her green chair at the head of the kitchen table. Luckily she had a great sense of humor. With a very matter of fact tone, she answered, “I wanted to show your father (who was in the living room) the best meringue I had ever made and I forgot to step over the table leaf.”

“Did you fall down?”

“No, just the pie.”

“Why is it still there?”

“So all you girls could see how perfectly it landed.”

I think I asked if I could eat some of it with a spoon and the answer was no. After we laughed that someone couldn’t have made it land that way if they had tried, Mom got out two pancake flippers. She scooped what she could reach off the floor. I went under the table, got the pie plate, and put what I scooped into that. Then the “fun” part had to be done.

Mom slid me a large pan of warm water with a dish rag in it. I sat comfortably under the table and cleaned every individual crevice of that table leg until it wasn’t sticky anymore.

The next day she moved all the chairs away from the table and mopped the floor then made us another lemon meringue pie.

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08/15/2016 1

Sue Spitulnik

Writing, Sewing, Travel, and Thoughts

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