Saturday, July 18, 2026Daily Trivia Questions are below TODAY’S FOOD QUOTE“They take great pride in making their dinner cost much; I take my pride in making my dinner cost so little.” Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) FOOD HOLIDAYS - TODAY IS:• National Caviar Day (Caviar Description & Facts) (Caviar Quotes) • National Tropical Fruit Day (Tropical Fruit Articles) • Strawberry Rhubarb Wine Day (July 18, 2026 -3rd Sat) • National Sour Candy Day TODAY IN FOOD HISTORY64 AD The Great Fire of Rome begins and burns for a week. Rumors accuse Emperor Nero of ordering the burning of the city while he played his lyre as 70% of the city was destroyed. (Italian Cuisine Articles) (Italian Food Quotes) 1720 Gilbert White was born (died June 26, 1793). English naturalist known as the “father of English natural history.” Author of 'The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne,' a classic work of natural history which has been in print continuously since 1789. 1818 A plague of grasshoppers devastates crops and everything green in Red River, Manitoba. (Grasshopper Trivia and Facts) 1867 36 inches of rain fell in 36 hours at Sauk Center, Minnesota. (Minnesota Food Trivia) 1892 Thomas Cook died. In 1841 Cook hired a special excursion train between Leicester and Loughborough in England for a temperance meeting. The beginning of Thomas Cook & Son, the worldwide travel agency. 1935 Curtis and Prestley Blake founded Friendly Ice Cream Co. in Springfield, Massachusetts. 1936 The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile is invented. It is a giant hot dog on wheels. Invented by Carl Mayer, nephew of Oscar Mayer, it was built by General Body Company at Chicago, Illinois. There are now a fleet of six. (Hot Dog Trivia --- Hot Dog Quotes) 1936 Elizabeth Coblentz was born in Berne, Indiana (died Sept 17, 2002). Syndicated Amish cooking columnist and cookbook author (The Amish Cook, The Amish Cook Cookbook, An Amish Christmas, etc.). 1949 Wally Bryson of the music group 'The Raspberries' was born. 1968 'Grazing In The Grass' by Hugh Masekela is #1 on the charts 1994 Crayola introduced scented crayons. 2013 The city of Detroit, Michigan files for Chapter 9 bankruptcy. (Michigan Food Trivia) ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** July 15-18, 2026 41st Annual Mattoon Bagelfest Mattoon, Illinois July 15-18, 2026 Wabasha County Fair Plainview, Minnesota July 16-18, 2026 - Annual Johnson County Peach Festival - Clarksville, Arkansas July 16-18, 2026 75th Pageland Watermelon Festival Pageland, South Carolina July 16-19, 2026 Picklesburgh Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania July 16-19, 2026 King County Fair Enumclaw, Washington July 17-19, 2026 Waterford World's Fair Waterford, Maine (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? · The Big Mac was introduced at McDonalds for 49 cents. · Smucker's introduced ‘Goober’, peanut butter striped with jelly. · The first Red Lobster restaurant opened in Lakeland, Florida. · About 98% of U.S. farms have electricity, 83% have telephones. · Flesh eating Zombies are on the loose when the film 'Night of the Living Dead' is released. 2) One of the largest trees in the world, Dr. Livingston (I presume) considered it to be a kind of giant carrot that someone had planted upside down. Native to tropical Africa, these trees bear a long, large, oblong fruit whose pulp is used to make a cooling beverage. The leaves are also dried and powdered and mixed with food, and the pulp of the tree is sometimes eaten. Name this tree and its fruit. 3) Native to Mexico and South America, this plant is now widely cultivated as a garden ornamental, and its flower is one of the most widely recognized edible flowers. The leaves and young stems can be eaten in salads, the flower buds and the young nutlike fruits can be pickled and used as a substitute for capers. The flower blossoms can be minced and used to flavor cream cheese and butter. All have a peppery flavor similar to watercress. Name this plant. 4) In 1612, Captain John Smith described this dish as it was made by the Indians of Virginia: "Their corne they rost in the eare greene, and bruising it in a morter of wood with a Polt; lappe it in rowles in the leaves of their corne, and so boyle it for a daintie." This ancient Mexican dish, was served by the Aztecs to the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez and his men. Name this dish. 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 TOP |