Did You Know? Peach Melba

The "king of chefs" and Peach Melba

The tall chef's hat is called a "toque." During the 16th and 17th centuries, toques came in all shapes: berets, stocking caps, and even pointed hats with tassels. During the 18th century the tall hat came into use to show order of importance among the kitchen staff.

One of the greatest chefs is Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935). He started working in his uncle's restaurant at age 14 and went on to work in the world most famous hotels. Recognised as the "king of chefs and the chef of kings." During a visit to Paris, William II of Germany is said to have remarked to him: "I am the emperor of Germany, but you are the emperor of chefs."

Escoffier's most famous recipe was Peach Melba, created for Australian opera star Nellie Melba (1861-1931) when she was staying at the Savoy in 1893. Dame Melba also liked her toast made in the way that today bears her name: Melba toast.

DID YOU KNOW? Food Trivia

An espresso has less caffeine than a cup of coffee!

A cup of drip brewed coffee has about 115 milligrams of caffeine, an espresso (and percolated coffee) about 80mg, while instant coffee has about 65mg of caffeine. Decaffeinated coffee is not totally caffeine free, containing about 3mg of caffeine. A can of Coca-Cola has about 23mg of caffeine, Pepsi Cola 25mg, Mountain Dew 37mg, and TAB 31mg. Tea has about 40mg of caffeine, while an ounce of chocolate contains about 20mg.

The first Espresso machine was introduced in 1822 by the French, but it was the Italians who perfected and distributed it.
Coffee business

Coffee is the world's most popular stimulant: 4 out of 5 Americans drink it, consuming more than 400 million cups a day. Consumption in Scandinavian countries is more than 12kg (26lb) per capita. With more than 25 million people employed in the industry, coffee is one of the largest trade industries in the world.

Although coffee is believed to have been grown near the Red Sea since the 7th century, an Arabian author of the 15th century, Shehabeddin Ben, wrote that Ethiopians enjoyed coffee ever since anyone could remember. By the 16th centuries, coffee plants were found throughout the Yemen region of Arabia. After a Turkish ambassador introduced it to the court of Louis XIV in 1669, Europeans quickly acquired a taste for it. A few years later, the Dutch introduced coffee into Java. In 1714, the Frenchman Desclieux planted a single cutting of a coffee tree on the island of Martinique. Plantations soon grew from French Guiana to Brazil and Central America. Today, coffee is planted in moist regions around the world.

Instant coffee was invented in 1906 by Mr. G. Washington, an Englishman living in Guatemala.

DID YOU KNOW? Food Trivia

Crisco, introduced in 1911, was the first solid hydrogenated vegetable shortening. Initially it was not a huge success - women were even reluctant to accept 1 1/2 pound cans of Crisco as free samples! Many of the early users of Crisco were Orthodox Jews, since it contained neither lard or butter (meat & dairy) it could be used at any meal without violating kosher dietary laws. Commercial success for Crisco came during the First World War due to shortages of lard.

DID YOU KNOW? Food Trivia

The lettuce that we see today, actually started out as a weed around the Mediterranean basin. Served in dishes for more than 4500 years, lettuce has certainly made its mark in history with tomb painting in Egypt and identification of different types of lettuces by various Greek scholars. Christopher Columbus introduced lettuce to the new world and from there, lettuce in the United States began cultivating.