Wednesday, December 17, 2025Daily Trivia Questions are below TODAY’S FOOD QUOTE“It is a problem certainly, that Christmas plum pudding. There is here something that I do not understand at all.”
Hercule Poirot in 'The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding' by Agatha Christie (1925)
FOOD HOLIDAYS - TODAY IS:• National Maple Syrup Day - (Maple Syrup Trivia)
(Maple Syrup History & Production) • Nutcracker Day (see 1892 below) • Dec 17-23: Saturnalia - Ancient Roman festival honoring Saturn, the god of agriculture and harvest.
TODAY IN FOOD HISTORY1797 Joseph Henry was born (died May 13, 1878). American Scientist, he was the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution (1846-1878), where he established a meteorological program which became the foundation of a national weather service. 1843 Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' was published. (various sources list both Dec 17 and Dec 19). It contains numerous and elaborate descriptions of Christmas food and dinners. “Oh! All that steam! The pudding had just been taken out of the cauldron. Oh! That smell!..... Oh! The marvelous pudding!”
(Christmas Quotes) 1870 Bert Benjamin was born (died Oct 1969). Draftsman designer with International Harvester Co. Inventor of Farmall Tractor, the first that could plow and cultivate row crops. Granted 140 patents for tractors and tractor accessories. 1892 The first performance of Tchaikovsky's 'The Nutcracker' in St. Petersburg. 1895 George L. Brownell of Worcester, Massachusetts was issued patent No. 551,615 for a "machine for making paper twine." 1903 Wilbur and Orville Wright make the first successful flight of a self-propelled, heavier-than-air aircraft. 1913 Burt Baskin was born (died Dec 24, 1967). Co-founder, with Irv Robbins, of the Baskin-Robbins ice cream parlor chain in 1946 in Glendale, California. 1940 'Corn Silk' was recorded by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians. 1948 Jim Bonfanti of the music group 'The Raspberries' was born. 1949 'Mule Train' by Frankie Laine was number 1 on the music charts. 1965 The largest edition of the Sunday New York Times was published, with 946 pages. 1974 'Duff' Goldman (Jeffrey Adam Goldman) was born. American pastry chef, owner of Charm City Cakes in Baltimore, Maryland. TV appearances on ‘Ace of Cakes’, ‘Food Network Challenge’, ‘Iron Chef America’, ‘Man v. Food’, etc. 1992 The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed by the leaders of Canada, Mexico and the United States. 2005 A group of 40 people dressed in Santa Claus costumes rampaged through Auckland, New Zealand, robbing stores and assaulting security guards. 2017 The historic Jackson Magnolia tree, the oldest tree on the White House grounds, was cut down. Planted by Andrew Jackson around 1830, the tree was featured on the back on $20 bills from 1928-1998. The species normal life span is from 80-120 years, and the 190 year old tree had been supported by cables, but its structure had finally become too dangerous to leave it standing.
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** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** Nov 18, 2025-Jan 4, 2026 National Gingerbread House Competition & Display - Asheville, N. Carolina December 1-31, 2025 55th Annual Christmas in Newport - Newport, Rhode Island December 10-22, 2025 The Bracebridge Dinner
Yosemite National Park, California December 19-20, 2025 Winter Beer Festival
Seattle, Washington December 20-29, 2025 NOLA Christmasfest
New Orleans, Louisiana (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?
· There are about 15,000 'delis' in New York City.
· There are 32,000 supermarkets in the U.S.
· The Chocolate Velvet Cake was created by pastry chef Albert Kumin of the Four Seasons restaurant.
· The one billionth can of Spam was sold.
· McDonald's opens its 100th restaurant.
· Mike Ilitch opened the first 'Little Caesars Pizza'. 2) These trees and shrubs of the genus Acacia are native to areas of central and northern Africa. A colloidal polysaccharide substance obtained from these trees has been used extensively in commercial food production, especially in the manufacture of candy and confections. It is also used in the manufacture of ales and beers, pharmaceuticals, paper, ink, hair spray and cosmetics.
What is the name of this very versatile plant substance? 3) This free floating, brown marine algae, which can be found in tropical American seas, is kept afloat by small berrylike air bladders. It is used in soups, soy sauce and fertilizers. Name this algae. 4) When you see the words 'Saint Germain' in the name of a dish, what will it most likely contain?
a) Carrots. b) Peas. c) Sauerkraut.
d) Beans. e) Cabbage. 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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