because of its relatively high cholesterin content. But recent research has corrected this and shows that in healthy people there is little correlation between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol; This is even shown in studies where several eggs per day and a person were on the menu. In the egg, cholesterol is found exclusively in the yolk fat; it can only be influenced insignificantly by breeding and feeding. And contrary to a popular opinion, which is occasionally misused to provide misleading consumer information, eggs from Araucana chickens (the only “green layers”) or from quail (speckled eggs) do not have a lower, but sometimes even higher cholesterol content. This apparently ineradicable wishful thinking can be easily refuted; Cholseterin-free eggs would not be able to hatch chicks, which would automatically cause such breeds to become extinct

What about the color of the shell?

The usual quiz question “who lays white eggs, who brown eggs?” is always answered incorrectly. Because with the plumage color, as one might assume, there is no connection. Rather, it is a question of a genetic freak of nature, in that the color of the eggshells is combined with that of the chicken’s earlobes: breeds with white earlobes lay white-skinned eggs, breeds with red earlobes lay brown-skinned eggs.
The widespread opinion, however, that brown eggs are healthier or even more ecologically produced, is based on an old wive’s tale.

The Yolk and Egg White

Contrary to popular belief, the color of the yolk has no connection whatsoever with the nutritional value, taste, or way of keeping the chickens; it all depends on the feed. While the Swiss prefer more intense yellow yolks, the Americans (also with health concerns) prefer it pale yellow.

Very Nutritious, and Versatile

Eggs are a valuable staple food. One egg covers around 10 percent of the daily protein and mineral requirement as well as a quarter of the vitamins A and D. In addition, it has ideal kitchen qualifications: foam formation and stability (whipped egg white), emulsion stability of the egg yolk (mayonnaise), baking and cooking properties (emulsifying, stabilizing, coagulating, liquid binding), not to forget the coloring effect of the egg yolk (baked goods and pasta). The protein content of three eggs corresponds to that of 110 grams of steak (with a big market price difference). 

In Switzerland we consume approximately 200 Eggs per person; in  America about 295 per person.

All of this justifies finally thinking again about those who lay these eggs: the chickens.

Original story by Heini Hofman, Urner Wochenblatt, April 3, 2022

The Tomato,

a fruit regarded with suspicion until recently in England is finally making its way from the ornamental garden to the dining table.

A Plant native to the coastal highlands of western South America, the tomato first emigrated first to Central America and then to Mexico, where the indigenous peoples first crossbred and cultivated them, naming them tomato

Imported to Europe from the New World by Spanish conquistadores early this century, the tomato initially suffered from mistaken identity. European botanists it as a member of the Solanaceae family, whose only local relatives are the deliriants, mandrake, and deadly nightshade, leading to the inference that the fruit of the tomato must also be poisonous.

In fact,

the Solanaceae family also includes such useful and decorative plants as tobacco, chili, sweet pepper, eggplant, potato, and petunia – all previously unknown in Europe but now achieving widespread use.

In his 1544 book,

Italian herbalist Matthiolus documents the existence of tomatoes in local gardens and reports that Italians ate them. It will be interesting to see how they are used in Italian cuisine. The popular English herbalist John Gerard wrote that, while Spaniards and Italians ate tomatoes, the plant was nevertheless “of rank and stinking savour.” It has already achieved a variety of nicknames. The Dutch botanist Dodoens labeled it “an amorous apple,” observing that tomatoes “be of two sorts, one red and the other yellow, but in all other poyntes they be lyke.”

In Italy,

it is called “Moor’s apple,” pomo dei mori, and another name with a similar sound, poma amoris, or “love apple.” The French use the same term, pomme d’amour.  The English call it “stinking golden apple,” and routinely throw it at mediocre actors and other performers as a sign of displeasure.

and so it was, they say!!

The size, weight, and more importantly, the price, of bread, is to become standardized. In a decree called the Assize of Bread and Ale, King Henry III has requested uniformity in the production of this staple food to avoid major price variations and to weed out any dishonest pricing practice

The Assize was enacted in response to the perceived shortage of grain and wheat. Because farmers only grow wheat in small quantities, prices vary each season. Although there have been cases of unprincipled bakers overcharging for bread in lean times, there have also been some cases where bakers have been mobbed by angry people who believe that bread is being kept from the population.

The Assize of Bread

and Ale is designed to regulate the industry, providing not only bread but fair prices too. Bakers who sell underweight loaves will now be subject to fines or other punishments. Some bakers are now selling 13 loaves at a time to make sure that the total weight complies with the regulations.

and so it was, they say!!!😀

The Mayan civilization

cultivated it in the Yucatan peninsula as early as 600 CE. and drank it with chili. Hernandez Cortez introduced it to Spain in 1528, and for almost 100 years Spain guarded it as a secret. It has been used as a currency, as precious as gold, and though in France many people considered it a “barbarous product and noxious drug.” there were others who considered it an aphrodisiac.

What is it? It’s cocoa- and its beans are roasted and ground to produce cacao powder.

Cacao trees

are native to tropical America. The French, Dutch, and English all cultivate it in their colonies, and so cacao has started to reach a wider audience, though it has so far been relatively expensive to produce.

That is, until this year.

Dutch chemist Coenraad van Houten has invented an effective method of extracting the cocoa oil and leaving a cake to be ground into powder. His innovative and inexpensive process uses a hydraulic press to extract much of the cocoa butter from the center of the bean. The residue is then mixed together with alkaline salts, which ensure that the cocoa powder can be easily mixed with water or milk. (The alkali neutralizes the acidic chocolate.) This new process is being called dutching or Dutch processing.   No longer reserved for the aristocracy and the upper classes, cocoa powder is now set to become a firm favorite with people everywhere.

Spain, 1496

The Spanish court is buzzing with excitement at their first taste of a succulent new fruit brought back to Europe by Christopher Columbus after his second voyage to the New World.

This exotic fruit

has become known as a “pineapple” because it looks just like a large pinecone. It is native to southern Brazil and Paraguay where it was spread by the Indians northward through South and Central America to the West Indies. Columbus discovered the fruit when he lowered anchor in a cove off the lush volcanic island of Guadeloupe in 1493 and rowed ashore to inspect a deserted Carib village, where he found cultivated plants bearing fruit.

The pineapple has become a “Regal” fruit, an item of celebrity and curiosity for royal gourmets and horticulturalists alike.

and so it happened! they say!

Roquefort-Sur-Soulzon, France, 1411

The residents

of the town of Roquefort-Sur-Soulzon are sporting cheesy grins today. King Charles VI has given them exclusive rights to produce their famous smelly cheese. In.  an effort to stamp out inferior imitations of the cheese, genuine Roquefort now can only be produced at Roquefort-Sur-Soulzon, being aged in the nearby caves that produce the particular mold that is responsible for this unique cheese.

A similar style

of cheese has been in existence since Roman times. Mention of it can even be found in the writings of the great Roman historian Pliny. The cheese was a particular favorite of the emperor Charlemagne, and a captivating legend surrounds its discovery.

The story

says that a local shepherd once thought he saw a beautiful woman in the distance and left his sheep to pursue her. He also left his lunch of rye bread and cheese in one of the dark caves of the Grotte du Combalou. When he returned some weeks later, sadly without the young woman, the air currents in the cave, combined with the dampness of the rocks, had caused an odd blue mold to grow in streaks along the surface of the ewe’s milk cheese. The shepherd ran down to the village shouting: “It’s a miracle, it’s a miracle.” The people of the town gathered around him, tasted his cheese, and liked it!

Ever since

then the limestone caves of Mount Combalou near Roquefort-Sur-Soulzon have been used for the production of this famous blue cheese. The cheesemakers still use milk from ewes that graze on the Aveyron Plateau. The cheese is white, crumbly, and slightly moist, with distinctive veins of blue mold that produce a sharp tang. It has no rind, and the exterior of the cheese is edible and slightly salty.

Next time you enjoy a piece of that cheese, remember where it came from¨Bon Appetite!

“FRENCH COOKING’S ALL VERY WELL, BUT THEY CAN’T DO A DECENT ENGLISH BREAKFAST.”

quote by: Prince Philip, England

CheeriOats,

a new oat-based breakfast cereal that is ready to eat without cooking has been introduced to consumers. Manufactured and marketed by General Mills Inc., the oatmeal, rye, and corn cereal shaped into “little doughnuts” is sold using the slogan “The breakfast food you’ve always wanted!”

General Mills Inc.

was formed in 1928 through a merger of several of the leading milling firms in the United States. After the merger, General Mills Inc. was the largest flour miller in the world, controlling 27 different milling companies.

When cereal was first developed, it made up of single flat flakes. In 1937 General Mills Inc. invented the “puffing gun,” which heats grains such as rice until they puff up into crunchy little balls. The first puffed cereal available was “Kix.”

And so it was, they say!

New Haven, Connecticut, USA, December 1900

A small lunch

wagon that sells steak sandwiches to local factory workers in tiny New Haven, Connecticut, has served what they are calling a “hamburger,” which was hastily made for a man who dashed off the street asking for a quick meal that he could eat on the run.

According to

the diner’s owner, the “snack” consisted of a hurriedly broiled beef patty thrown between two slices of bread. “I don’t like to waste the excess beef from the daily lunch rush, so I ground it up, grilled it, and served it in a sandwich..”

The chef preferred not to be identified. And so it is! or was😃

A fast-food outlet in suburban Chicago is doing a remarkable trade and celebrated its second anniversary today. The outlook of owner/manager Ray Kroc is reflected in his objection to a local reporter’s usage of the term “hamburger- joint.” It is, he says, a family restaurant.

It is evident from the immaculate grounds, neatly and uniformly dressed staff, hygienic kitchen, rapid service, small standardized menu (focusing on hamburgers), low prices, consistent standards, and no-tipping policy, that Kroc’s intention is to appeal to busy young suburban families. These pressed-for-time families he suggests, are seeking a reliable cheap meal that will appeal to children, and a friendly, polite, and safe environment.

Kroc first made a name for himself

after the war selling contraptions that allowed busy drugstore owners to mix five milkshakes at a time. When sales began to fall, he recognized that neighborhood drugstores were in decline.

However, one hamburger outlet in California,

which was called McDonald’s, had bought 10 of his “multimixers.” Curious, he investigated and was impressed by the business’s cleanliness and orderliness, the systematic method, family-friendly atmosphere (“no leather-jacketed guys, jukeboxes or cigarette machines,” Kroc says), and remarkable popularity. He convinced the McDonald brothers to make him their franchising agent and soon opened his own McDonalds.

Kroc militantly protects the company’s reputation by very carefully considering all potential franchisees and locations, and strictly imposing set menus, prices, standards, and methods on all takers.

Twelve McDonald’s

were opened around the country last year but Kroc envisages hundreds more. With his fierce drive, determination, and competitiveness, he seems sure to succeed.

TODAY, MCDONALD’S IS IN 120 COUNTRIES WITH 37,855 RESTAURANTS, EMPLOYING 250,000 PEOPLE!!