Several unusual things happened today: Smithfield Market opened for business at midnight, rather than 6.00 a.m., the London Housewives’ Association could be seen in Trafalgar Square conducting some sort of arcane ritual, and Geoffrey Lloyd, the Minister for Fuel and Power, set fire to an oversized model of a ration book.

On such a day,

However, a little self-indulgence seems appropriate as British households are released today from 14 years of careful husbandry and self-restraint. Yes, rationing is officially at an end, with all remaining restrictions lifted on the sale and purchase of meat.

During the course of the war

Many types of food were rationed, essential, and unessential, as well as petrol, clothing, soap, and furniture. The system was introduced owing to the difficulties of importing goods in a wartime environment, and to try and ensure fair distribution. The rationing era also developed a memorable, if not always enjoyable, culture of its own, with coupons, private bartering, lengthy and tiresome queues, a black market, and a number of explanatory characters such as potato Pete and Doctor Carrot. Restrictions were not eased until 1948, and the process of de-rationing has been a very gradual but very welcome one.

And so it is, they say!!

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!!

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 new style of drink is being sold commercially throughout southwestern France. Called Armagnac brandy, it has been successfully distilled and produced in the town of Armagnac, located in the province of Gascony, at the foothills of the Pyrénées.

Not only is Armagnac an invigorating beverage, but it also can be used to revive the spirits of those suffering from shock and as an antidote during epidemics.

The primary grapes used in the production of Armagnac brandy are Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, and Colombard.

Conclusion: Drink the hell out of Armagnac during this Pandemic period! LOL

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!!

This is how I had to learn to prepare meals for an Infantry Company of 80 men in the Swiss Army, in the field! Most of the mise-en-place and preparations were performed in the barracks before transporting the cooking boxes by Haflinger Jeeps to the assigned locations.

The Haflinger All-wheel Vehicle

Below are the highlighted instructions to perform this cooking process in the field.

The Cooking-Box cooking divides into three Work phases:

1. Mine-en-Place. 2. Pre-cooking  3. Final Cooking process

Miss-en-place means the ready-to-use preparation of the food and the ready-to-use material set-up according to the instructions below.

Pre-cooking means all work that will be carried out on the open fire, such as:

– seared, dressed, sautéed

-heat water, let food cook for some time

-binding, seasoned, packaged

The pre-cooking

times specified in the cooking recipes must be strictly observed. Under no circumstances should they be shortened.

Cooking

is usually done without the head chef’s intervention with the  Exception of cooking pasta. The cooking time, i.e. the duration of packaging, should not be changed carelessly. The cooking process is influenced by the following factors:

-Time loss through packaging

-Temperature: 1. of the case and  Roasting. 2. Outside temperature

-Quantity of the food

-Consistency of the food

Cooking in cooking boxes requires thorough preparation, which must be completed before you start cooking:

a. Studying of the recipes

b. Ready-to-use provision of the food, which, depending on your preparation, must be measured and divided ahead of time

c. Distribution of the material

d.Orders assigned to the kitchen team

Cooking in cooking crates must be done according to the recipe given because the work processes differ from cooking in stationary kitchens, the experienced chef also has to scrutinize and study the recipes.

The quantity calculation is made difficult by cooking in cooking boxes due to the following circumstance: In addition to the total calculation of the ingredients for a dish, an allocation to the number of cooking boxes required for cooking is also necessary. Depending on the number of units, and where they are stationed, the dishes must be prepared in different cooking boxes. This makes the exact planning and calculation necessary.

Also seasoning the food

is one of the specialties of cooking in cooking boxes. Since the cooking boxes may no longer be opened during the cooking process, this operation must be carried out before packing, that is, at a much earlier point in time than usual. Since the food is not yet cooked softly in order to be able to absorb salt and spices, it takes a certain amount of practice to be able to achieve balanced results by the time the box is opened and the food served.

The cleaning of the cooking crates and the kitchen material, as well as the daily service for the gasoline gas burners, requires more work and more precise control than the cleaning of traditional kitchens. The head chef must also carefully learn, deploy, and monitor his team in this department.

For a longer, extended period of outdoor exercises, we had to build a “Korean Oven” which took a few men to build, in this oven we were able to bake bread and cookies for the soldiers.

The anchorage for organic products is growing,

and the organically cultivated area is growing. This is shown in the latest edition of the study “The World of Organic Agriculture” based on data from 186 countries for the year 2018. The Research Institute for Organic Agriculture (FIBL) in Frick, Canton Aargau, Switzerland, and the International Association of Organic Farming Movements “IFOAM- Organics International “presented the latest organic farming figures worldwide last week.
In 2018 there were 2.8 million organic producers – most in India (1.5 million), Uganda (210,000), and Ethiopia (204,000).

They manage a total of 71.5 million hectares

of the agricultural area according to organic principles, which is an increase of and three percent compared to 2017 and corresponds to 1.5 percent of the total area. However, numerous countries have a much higher proportion of organic land: In 16 countries, at least 10 percent of the agricultural area is being biologically cultivated.

In Switzerland and Lichtenstein it is 15.4 percent.
Lichtenstein alone commits to 38.5 percent and is, therefore, world champion – followed by Somoa (34.5 percent) and Austria (24.7 percent).
The data collection is supported by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO and the Coop Fund for Sustainability.

(Quoted by Coop Magazine- Feb 2020)

°Is Buying Organic Really Worth it?

°The Pros and Cons of Organic Food

°14 Far-Reaching Pros and Cons of Organic Food

°Sustainable Organic Farming: Pros and Cons