You Can't Make This Stuff Up!

[Lee Stewart]

Tomatoes were once so feared that they were called "poison apples." Their bad reputation was all a tragic mistake, however: Wealthy diners ate the fruit on pewter (made with lead) plates; the acid from the tomatoes leeched lead from the plates, sickening diners. Even people who didn't use pewter plates avoided the fruit because tomatoes are part of the deadly nightshade family. Today, however, we love tomatoes, eating them in everything from pasta sauces to pizza to salad.

[Lee Stewart]

You'd never guess it today but one of the priciest dishes on fancy menus—lobster—used to be so universally disliked that it was only seen fit to feed to prisoners. And even then there were laws restricting how many days in a row they could have it, lest their punishment be considered too harsh. The reason for the dislike was that they didn't cook them long enough. They were being served half cooked/half raw.

[Lee Stewart]

Again, oversupply rendered this delicacy "poor people's food." That is, until around 1910, when the sturgeon population crashed from overfishing and the once plentiful eggs—they used to be served as bar food—were impossible to find. This lead to several generations of Americans who may have heard of it but never ate it.

When my mother and I went to Istanbul, while shopping at the famous bazaar we came upon a small "pushcart" vendor selling 2 pound tins of Caviar for $5 US money. Mom bought one and brought it home with us and stuck in in her cedar closet up on a shelf. And there it sat for a number of years until we had a special occasion (can't remember what it was) and she said we should open the Caviar to celebrate. I remember us boiling the eggs and chopping up the yolks and chopping up onions and making toast points, Then we brought out the Caviar. Well . . . whoever had tinned it didn't make it air tight so when we opened the lid - there was this horrible smell. All 2 pounds of it had spoiled!

[Lee Stewart]

Around 1900, oysters were so plentiful that their shells were used to pave Pearl Street in New York City (which explains the name); people ate them daily as a cheap source of protein. However, like the sturgeon, they quickly became overfished, to the point where they were considered functionally extinct in the New York harbor and other popular harvesting grounds. Scarcity means higher prices and a higher status so now, instead of being seen as the poor man's beef, they're prized as gourmet foods.

[Lee Stewart]

This plant grown high in the Andes was cultivated for centuries by native people for its nutrition and taste. Yet hardly anyone outside of the small region even knew of its existence. It was "discovered" in the 1970s and sold as a health food, but it didn't really catch on until the last decade. Now it's so popular that the Peruvians who farm it can't afford to eat it. There's a good reason for its new status as a superfood though, Werth says. "It's the only plant food that is a complete protein, containing all the necessary amino acids," she explains. "As vegan and vegetarian diets have risen in popularity, they've increased the demand for quinoa."

Being a meat eater, all I can say is . . . that looks like bird seed!

[Lee Stewart]

This staple of health food bakeries and Reuben sandwiches used to be considered food fit only for people so poor they couldn't afford wheat. But it rose in popularity thank to the blending of cultures, Werth says. "Rye bread is often used in Jewish cuisine, and they made it popular in America," she says. It's a good thing, too, as the whole grain bread is high fiber and can aid in weight loss, she adds.

One of the things I miss while living in NM . . . good Jewish Rye Bread! And NY Bagels!!!

[Lee Stewart]

Sky Bars are coming back to stores

[Lee Stewart]

Twinkies Cereal coming to a grocer near you

[Lee Stewart]

The largest (land size) Military Base in the USA is the White Sands Missile Range in NM: 3,542,862 acres. Only Nellis Air Force Range comes close at 3,092,317 acres.

[Lee Stewart]