Wednesday, July 22, 2026Daily Trivia Questions are below TODAY’S FOOD QUOTE“Heaven sends us good meat, but the devil sends us cooks.” David Garrick (1717-1779)
FOOD HOLIDAYS - TODAY IS:• National Penuche Fudge Day (Fudge Recipes) • National B.L.T. Day (Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Sandwich) • National Mango Day [National Mango Board]
(Mango Trivia --- Mango Selection & Usage Tips) • Rat Catcher’s Day (see 1376 below)
TODAY IN FOOD HISTORY1376 According to legend, the Pied Piper got rid of all the rats in the German town of Hamelin. When the townspeople refused to pay, the Pied Piper led all the towns children away. This is the date given by Richard Rowland Verstegan in 1605 - the earliest version in English. In 'The Anatomy of Melancholy' (1621) Robert Burton gives the date as June 20, 1484. Other dates range back to 1284 AD. 1461 Charles VII of France was born. His mistress, Agnes Sorel, was a celebrated cook who created several dishes, and had several culinary creations named in her honor. (Agnes Sorel soup garnish, Agnes Sorel Timbales, etc.). 1796 The city of Cleveland, Ohio was founded by General Moses Cleaveland of the Connecticut Land Company. The original spelling of Cleaveland was changed in 1831 when the 'Cleveland Advertiser' dropped the first "a" in the name to reduce the length of the newspaper's masthead. (Ohio Food Trivia) 1822 Gregor (Johann) Mendel was born. Mendel was an Austrian botanist whose work was the foundation of the science of genetics. Working mainly with garden peas (some 28,000 plants over 7 years), he discovered what was to become know as the laws of heredity. 1915 Sir Sanford Fleming died. He devised the present system of time zones while working for the Canadian Pacific Railway. (Time & Time Zone Trivia) 1926 Dorcas Bates Reilly was born (died Oct 15, 2018). As Campbell's test kitchen supervisor she created the classic Green Bean Casserole. She also created hundreds of recipes throughout her career.
(Classic Green Bean Casserole Recipe) 1942 Gasoline rationing with coupons began on the Atlantic coast of the U.S. 1952 Frank L. Zybach of Strasburg, Colorado received U.S. patent No. 2,604,359 for a "Self-Propelled Sprinkling Irrigating Apparatus." This is the now familiar center-pivoting system that waters large circles of crops. 1956 Curnonsky (Maurice Edmond Sailland) died. At the age of 84, he leaned too far out of his window and fell to his death. French writer, novelist, biographer, and gastronome. Curnonsky was known as the "Prince of Gastronomes," a title he was awarded in a public referendum in 1927, and a title no one else has ever been given. 1957 Walter Frederick Morrison filed a design patent (No. 183,626) application for a plastic 'Flying Toy' which he sold under the name 'Pluto Platter' - this was the basic design for the 'Frisbee.' Patent granted Sept 30, 1958. 1967 The rock group Vanilla Fudge made its concert debut in New York 2011 Record high temperatures on the East Coast: Newark, New Jersey hit a record high of 108°F at 3pm
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** July 20-26, 2026 Corn Capital Days
Olivia, Minnesota July 21-25, 2026 National Baby Food Festival
Freemont, Michigan July 22-25, 2026 - Hood River County Fair
Odell, Oregon July 23-25, 2026 Annual Cave City Watermelon Festival - Cave City, Arkansas July 23-August 1, 2026 Delaware State Fair
Harrington, Delaware July 23-26 & July 30-Aug 2, 2026 Glier’s Goettafest
Newport, Kentucky (SEE ALL FOOD FESTIVALS and OTHER FOOD EVENTS)
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** FOOD TRIVIA QUIZ (new DAILY questions)1) All of the following events took place in the same year. What year is it?
· George A. Hormel founded Geo. A. Hormel & Co. as a small retail store in Austin, Minnesota.
· Fig Newtons were created by Kennedy Biscuit Works in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts.
· In St. Paul, Minnesota, Carpenter Electric Heating Mfg. Co. introduces the first electric oven for commercial sale.
· New York City has more soda fountains than saloons. 2) The year is 1768 and Benjamin Franklin is in London pleading the case of the colonies. He writes to his daughter, asking her to send him some of the foods he misses from home. What were the 5 foods Franklin said he was homesick for in his letter? 3) In 1927, Daniel Gerber, a local food processor in Michigan, was told by his doctor to feed his sick daughter Sally strained peas. They were available commercially, but they were expensive, and only sold in a a few parts of the country. In addition, there was one other problem he faced when buying strained baby foods.
What was this other problem that helped inspire him to start Gerber Baby Foods company? 4) In 1846, 65,000 tons, or 175 shiploads of this product were shipped by a Boston company. Large quantities were exported to the Far East, where it is sold at high prices in exchange for cheap silk, which brought high prices in the U.S. What valuable product was in these 175 ships?
a) whale oil. b) seaweed. c) lobster.
d) beef. e) ice.
Click Here for Today’s Quiz Answers
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** Read an article about Chef James and the FoodReference.com website published in the Winona Daily News, Minneapolis StarTribune, and numerous other newspapers: Click here for the Article
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** Dedication
This website is dedicated to:
· Gladys Ehler, my mother, who taught me patience and how to make Sauerbraten (it is still my favorite)
· Edward Ehler, my father, who taught me a love of books and history.
· Barbara Saba, my sister, who taught me how to dance.
· Cpl. Thomas E. Saba, my nephew. Died in action on Feb. 7, 2007 in Iraq. He was 30 yrs. young. Chef James
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