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Chef James

“The duty of a good Cuisinier is to transmit to the next generation everything he has learned and experienced.”
 
Fernand Point, 1941

FEATURED FOR JANUARY

Updated: Over 9,000 Food Festivals

Football & Tailgating Food & Articles

Appetizer Recipes

Valentine’s Day Recipes

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FEATURED RECIPES & TIPS

· Guacamole & Avocado Dips

· Chicken Wing Recipes

· Original Frank's Redhot Wings

· Ultimate Party Wings

· Meatball Appetizer Recipes

· Mushroom Appetizer Recipes

· Crunchy Snack Mixes

· More Appetizer Recipes

· Fancy Ham Wrapped Fruit

· Ham & Cheese Party Loaf

· Kick Off Kabobs Recipe

· Oriental Pork Pot Stickers

· Sloppy Joe Biscuit Cups

· Avocado Parmesan Potato Bowls

· Bacon Stuffed Portobellos

· Pig Skins

· Potato Salad Recipes

· Cole Slaw Recipes

· Cheddar Cheese Straws

· Snappy Sweet Potato Crackers

· Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Dip

· Holiday Desserts and Cookies

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FREE Magazines and
other Publications

An extensive selection of free food, beverage & agricultural magazines, e-books, etc.

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January Food Holidays:

For Details, History and more DAY, WEEK and MONTH Food Holiday designations, including LINKS to Holiday Origins and Additional Information:
SEE Detailed JANUARY Food Calendar

JANUARY is:

• Be Kind To Food Servers Month

• Bread Machine Baking Month

• Family Fit Lifestyle Month

• National Fiber Focus Month

• National Hot Tea Month

• National Meat Month

• National Soup Month

• Oatmeal Month
• Oats: Grain of the Month
More oatmeal is eaten in January than any other month.

• Prune Breakfast Month

• Wheat Bread Month

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DID YOU KNOW?

Juniper berries are the fruits of an evergreen bush found in northern Europe and America.  Juniper berries are used in wines, beer, brandies, and is the key flavor ingredient in gin.  They are also used in marinades and sauces, especially for pork and game dishes. Usually used dried, they should be crushed before use to release their essential oils.
The name derives from French 'genievre,' which is French for gin.

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Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Daily Trivia Questions are below

TODAY’S FOOD QUOTE

“You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces - just good food from fresh ingredients.”   Julia Child (1912-2004)
 

FOOD HOLIDAYS - TODAY IS:

• National Strawberry Ice Cream Day
  (Ice Cream Recipes  ---  Ice Cream Quotes)

• National Bagel Day (Bagel Trivia  ---  Bagel Quotes)
  (Bagel Recipe).

• National Booch (Kombucha) Day (A Chinese fermented tea drink)

• National Pizza Week (Jan 12-18, 2025 - begins 2nd Sun)  (Pizza Trivia and History  ---  Pizza Recipes)
  (Pizza Quotes)
 

TODAY IN FOOD HISTORY

1785 William Prout was born. An English chemist, he was the first to classify food components into 3 main divisions - carbohydrates, fats and proteins.

1797 James (or John?) Hetheringoton, a London haberdasher, supposedly created the top hat. A large crowd gathered to see this new hat, and he was charged with disturbing the peace (charges were later dropped). The hat was an immediate success. (Similar hats had been created as early as 1793, so the Hetherington story is questionable).

1889 U.S. patent No. 396,089 was issued to Daniel Johnson of Kansas City, Kansas, for a Rotary Dining Table for use on ships. "My invention has for its object, primarily, a combined rotary table and adjustable chair adapted for saloons of sea-going vessels and of other descriptions, in which the occupants of the chairs may be served in rotation from one stationary base of supply without the danger and inconvenience incident to the person making the circuit of the table when the vessel is upon the seas, and also enabling the persons seated at the table to be served with dispatch."

1895 Lever Brothers registered the 'Lifebuoy' trademark (soap).

1915 John Van Wormer was granted a patent for his 'Pure-Pak' - a "paper bottle" to be used for holding milk.  It would be 10 years before a machine was perfected to make the containers.

1915 Fannie Merritt Farmer died (born March 23, 1857). American culinary authority, and author of the 1896 edition of 'The Boston Cooking School Cook Book' later known as the 'Fannie Farmer Cook Book.'  Director of the Boston Cooking School, and founder of Miss Farmer's School of Cookery. Often cited as the first cookbook author to introduce standard measurements.

1919 The Great Molasses Flood. On January 15, 1919, a large 50 foot high storage tank in Boston burst and sent a tidal wave of over 2 million gallons of molasses traveling at over 30 miles per hour. Houses, buildings and parts of the elevated rail system were crushed in its path. Twenty-one people died, and over 150 were injured. It took over 6 months to clean up the mess. The damage was in the millions of dollars.
(See also London Beer Flood, Oct 17, 1814)

1945 'House Party' starring Art Linkletter debuted on CBS radio.

1945 Joan Johnson of the vocal group the 'Dixie Cups' was born.

1958 The song 'Tequila' by the Champs was released

1964 Jack Teagarden, jazz trombonist died.

1967 The 1st 'Super Bowl' was played. The Green Bay Packers of the National Football League beat the Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League, 35-10. ("AFL-NFL World Championship Game" - renamed beginning with "Super Bowl III" in 1969)

1986 Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn was introduced by General Mills. (Popcorn Trivia and Facts)

1990 Campbell's Soup produces its 20 billionth can of tomato soup. (Campbell’s Trivia & Facts)

2013 The Food Safety Authority of Ireland announced that horse DNA had been bound in frozen beef hamburgers sold in several Irish and British stores. Pig DNA was also present in some samples of beef products.  The beginning of a major horsemeat adulteration scandal that would involve many other companies and products (beef lasagnA, beef Bolognese sauce, beef meatballs, etc.)  The scandal soon spread to at least 13 other European countries. Supposed 'Beef' products were found to contain 29% up to 100% horsemeat.
 

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A FEW FEATURED FOOD FESTIVALS
(See All 9,000 Food, Wine & Beer Festivals)

January 1-31, 2025 - California Restaurant Month
Statewide, California

January 9-19, 2025  Restaurant Week South Carolina
Statewide, South Carolina

January 11-26, 2025 - National Western Stock Show, Rodeo & Horse Show - Denver, Colorado

January 16-19, 2025  34th Annual Frog Leg Festival
Fellsmere, Florida

January 17-18, 2025 - 16th Annual Chili Quest & Beerfest - Galveston, Texas

January 17-20, 2025  Annual Napa Truffle Festival
Napa, California

January 18-February 1, 2025  Restaurant Weeks
San Antonio Area, Texas

(SEE ALL FOOD FESTIVALS and OTHER FOOD EVENTS)
 

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FOOD TRIVIA QUIZ    (new DAILY questions)

1) All of the following events took place in the same year.  What year is it?
· E. Bean creates the orange crate. It holds about 200 oranges.
· In Berlin, Ferdinand Tiemann patents a process for making synthetic vanillin, the key flavor ingredient in vanilla beans.
· The Bing cherry is developed by a Chinese orchardman in Oregon.
· The Palace Hotel opens in San Francisco.

2) Legend has it that tofu was developed by prince Liu An (179-122 B.C.) while searching for something.
What was he searching for?

3) What type of oil did the ancient Egyptians use before olive oil was known?
  a) radish seed oil.  b) sunflower seed oil.
  c) avocado oil.  d) whale oil.  e) palm oil.

4) What is the common name for roasted buckwheat groats (or a porridge made from them) in Eastern European countries?

Click Here for Today’s Quiz Answers

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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
 

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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

DID YOU KNOW?

Heliogabalus was a Roman emperor (204-222 AD) who was known for his culinary excesses.  For one banquet he had 600 ostrich brains prepared.

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A FOOD LIFE

"There are those who say that a life devoted to food -- cooking it, eating it, writing about it, even dreaming about it -- is a frivolous life, an indulgent life.  I would disagree.  If we do not care what we eat, we do not care for ourselves, and if we do not care for ourselves, how can we care for others?"
Fictional cookery writer Hilary Small, in episode 6, series 2 of 'Pie In the Sky'

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Click Here for
Food Emergency
Websites, Phone #s, E-mails, etc.

 

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Classic Fish and Seafood Recipes
 

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DID YOU KNOW?

· In 1700 approximately 20% of the world's inhabitants lived in Europe (including Russia).
· In 1913, 33% of the world's population lived in Europe and North America.
· In 2003 the combined populations of Europe, Canada and the U.S. accounted for only 17% of world population.
· By the year 2050 this figure is expected to be just 12%.

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IN SEASON FOR WINTER

VEGETABLES
(Recipes  --  Tips)
Avocados
Beets
Bell Peppers
Broccoli
Brussels Sprouts
Cabbage
Carrots
Celery
Collard Greens
Leeks
Kale
Onions
Parsnips
Potatoes
Pumpkin
Rutabagas
Sweet Potatoes & Yams
Swiss Chard
Turnips
Winter Squash

FRUITS (Tips)
Apples
Bananas
Grapefruit
Kiwifruit
Lemons & Limes
Oranges
Pears
Pineapples
Pomegranates

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DID YOU KNOW?

John Lennon confirmed in a 1980 interview that he repeated the words Cranberry sauce at the end of the song Strawberry Fields Forever.

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Website last updated on Wednesday, January 15, 2025