Relax and savor tidbits `in A History of Foods by Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat. Visit this link for availability in our library: http://library.morainevalley.edu/record=b254534~S0. Find out about the legends of coffee, sugar, and the peach. Who wouldn’t want to know about the history of breads and cakes? Do you know what the most widely eaten plant in the world is?
Discover little known facts about well known foods –
Wines:
“The ancient world did not see intoxication, whether induced by mead, beers, or diluted wine, as reprehensible. To some extent it was regarded as an act of religion”(p229)
“Rosé wine is not a mixture of red and white wine, but is made from black grapes” (p232)
Fish:
“In Arab tradition, to dream of fish is a very good omen.” (p281)
“Among the 15,000 species of edible sea fish, only about 40, as have seen, are sold in the developed and wasteful societies of Europe.” (p284)
Spices:
The Greeks and Romans first valued cinnamon as “medicine, a cordial and an aphrodisiac.” (p437)
“The scent of vanilla is so intoxicating that in large doses, for instance inhaled by workers who handle large quantities daily, it sometimes has an effect like a drug.” (p473)