Monday, February 23, 2026Daily Trivia Questions are below TODAY’S FOOD QUOTE“Breakfast cereals that come in the same colors as polyester leisure suits make oversleeping a virtue.”
Fran Lebowitz, journalist
FOOD HOLIDAYS - TODAY IS:• National Banana Bread Day (Banana Bread Recipes)
(Banana Bread Cooking Tips) • International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day • National Tootsie Roll Day • Canada: [Toronto Jamaican Patty Day]
(see also August days) • [National Invasive Species Awareness Week] (Feb 23-27, 2026) Raise awareness and identify solutions to invasive species issues at local, state, tribal, regional, international and national levels. • [National Eating Disorders Awareness Week] (Feb 23-March 1, 2026) • National FFA Week: Feb 21-28, 2026
[Future Farmers of America] • UK: [Real Bread Week] (Feb 21-March 1, 2026) A celebration of additive-free loaves and the people who make them.
TODAY IN FOOD HISTORY1603 Andrea Cesalpino died. An Italian philosopher and botanist, he helped establish botany as a separate science. He concentrated on fruits and seeds, and he classified them by logical principles, instead of their supposed medical properties. 1822 Boston ('Bean Town') was granted a charter to incorporate as a city. (Massachusetts Food Trivia) 1846 William Horlick was born (died Sept 25, 1936). Manufacturer of food for infants and invalids, he created and patented (1883) a new formulae named 'Diastoid' - later renamed and trademarked as 'malted milk' which found new and unexpected uses and markets. 1850 Cesar Ritz was born in Niederwald, Switzerland. He managed the Grand Hotel in Monte Carlo and the Grand Hotel in Lucerne, Switzerland. He also worked with Escoffier at the Savoy and Carlton in London. In 1898 he opened the first hotel with his name, The Ritz Hotel in Paris. His name and his hotels became synonymous with the luxury. 1869 Frederick Walton of London, England was granted U.S. patent 87,227 for his invention, Linoleum, the first widely used smooth floor covering. (British patent 3,210 granted May 31, 1864). 1879 Agnes Arber was born. She was a British botanist, who wrote 'Herbals: Their Origin and Evolution' (1912) and 'The Gramineae: A Study of Cereal, Bamboo and Grass.' 1884 Casimir Funk was born (died Nov 19, 1967). Funk was a Polish-American biochemist who realized certain substances in food were essential for good health, He called them 'vitamines' later changed to 'vitamins.' (Vitamin Trivia) 1896 Leo Hirshfield introduced the Tootsie Roll at his small store in New York City, and named it after his 5 year old daughter, whose nickname was 'Tootsie.' It was the first individually wrapped penny candy. 1901 In Canada, the Supreme Court rules the Manitoba prohibition law of 1900 is null and void. 1931 Helen Porter Mitchel died. You probably do not recognize that name, but you may recognize her stage name, Nellie Melba. A world famous operatic soprano born in Australia, Melba Toast and Peach Melba were named for her. Escoffier is thought to have been involved with the creation and/or naming of both dishes 1940 Folk singer Woody Guthrie writes ’This Land is Your Land’ 1944 Leo Hendrik Baekeland was born. He was a chemist who invented Bakelite, the first plastic that did not soften when heated. Those black plastic knobs on stoves were made of bakelite. 1960 Ebbets Field is torn down, the home of the former Brooklyn Dodgers. They played their last game in Ebbets Field on September 4, 1957 and deserted to Los Angeles, California. 1995 The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 4,000 for the first time, closing at 4,003.33. 2007 The movie 'The Astronaut Farmer' opened in U.S. theatres. 2009 Donald Crabtree opened Grand View Topless Coffee Shop in Vassalboro, Maine, where the waiters and waitresses serve their customers topless. (Closed in May 2011). ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** February 12-March 1, 2026 Riverside County Fair & National Date Festival - Indio, California February 21-March 2, 2026 New York City Beer Week
New York, New York February 25-March 1, 2026 92nd Annual Minneapolis Home + Garden Show - Minneapolis, Minnesota February 26-28, 2026 World's Championship Bar-B-Que - Houston, Texas February 26-March 8, 2026 Florida Strawberry Festival - Plant City, Florida February 27-March 1, 2026 Annual National Fiery Foods & BBQ Show - Albuquerque, New Mexico February 28, 2026 Kennett Winterfest
Kennett Square, Pennsylvania (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 U.S. minimum wage is raised by 90 cents to $5.15 an hour.
· Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. removed their voluntary ban of hard liquor ads on television and radio.
· Miss Universe was told to lose 27 pounds or lose her crown.
· Dolly the sheep was born inScotland, the first animal cloned from an adult animal.
· The Smashing Pumpkins won seven MTV Video Music Awards. 2) Ground black cherry pits are used as a flavoring in the Middle East.
What is the name of this flavoring? 3) This is an Asian member of the mint family grown for its unusually shaped edible tubers. They were introduced to Europe in the 1880s (first cultivated in France) and enjoyed popularity until the 1920s. They have been 'rediscovered' lately and their popularity has increased here in the U.S. The tubers look a string of misshapen mottled pearls (they are also described as 'petrified worms). They can be eaten raw, in salads, or stir fried, boiled, baked or in soups.
Name this plant. 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
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