Wheat fields in America, turning gold in the late afternoon
sun — amber waves of grain. Wheat has been transformed from hand
cutting to mechanical harvesting. The American wheat belt beckons from
Texas northward through Oklahoma, into Kansas, from eastern Washington
state to central Montana. Wheat bread and wheat cakes, from pancakes
and waffles to wedding cakes... wheat holds a special, prominent place
in the American food pattern.
BREAD AND
SOURDOUGHS
Sourdough ranks among the world's most passionately debated foods.
Like fried chicken or spaghetti sauce, it has its factions and fanatics,
and each claims to know more about it than the next person. Some believe
that the only effective sourdough starter is made from hops, water
and flour, and must be several decades old — a sort of eternal
flame of cooking that should never be extinguished. Others are convinced
that potato water makes a better starter than hops, while still others
use only raw milk. Whatever the sourdough starter source, there is
universal agreement that it should be kept in an earthenware pot,
not in a metal container, since metal corrodes and would spoil the
starter.
San Francisco is one of the few American cities where residents get
excited about bread. Woe to a restaurant that serves an inferior loaf.
The favorite bread in San Francisco is sourdough, leavened not with
commercial yeast, but with a sourdough starter where yeast cells have
multiplied for years. There are widely believed stories that a crock
of San Francisco sourdough, removed from its native city, loses its
power to produce top-quality bread.
Sourdough bread was popular in California during the gold rush era,
but it was during the Alaskan Klondike gold strike that miners became
known as "sourdoughs." [7: 1]
Did
You Know?
|
LINDY'S LUNCH:
Charles Lindbergh delayed eating, believing he would become sleepy...
Why, it's past supper time! I untwist the neck of the paper
bag, and pull out a sandwich ... my first food since take-off...
Bread and meat never touched my tongue like this before. One sandwich
is enough ...
May 21st, 1927 [7: 4] |
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DINING ABOARD THE R. M. S. TITANIC
First-Class passengers on the R. M. S. Titanic, that fateful
night, April 14th, 1912, rejoiced at an elegant 10-course meal. [7:
2]
First Course:
Hors d'oeuvres;
oysters
Second Course:
Consommé Olga; Cream of Barley
Third Course:
Poached salmon with Mousseline sauce; Cucumbers
Fourth Course:
Filet Mignons Lili; Sauté of chicken, Lyonnaise;
Vegetable marrow Farci
Fifth Course:
Lamb, mint sauce; Roast duckling, apple sauce;
Sirloin of beef, chateau potatoes; green peas; creamed carrots; boiled
rice; Parmentier and boiled new potatoes
Sixth Course:
Punch Romaine
Seventh Course:
Roast squab and cress
Eighth Course:
Cold asparagus vinaigrette
Ninth course:
Pate de foie gras; Celery
Tenth course:
Waldorf pudding; Peaches in Chartreuse jelly; Chocolate
and vanilla eclairs; French ice cream
NUTRITION, RATIONING AND THE WAR EFFORT
When the United States entered World War I, the general American public
was just begining to learn about the differences between proteins, fats,
and carbohydrates. If Americans could be persuaded to obtain their proteins
from beans and pulses rather than meat, their carbohydrates from corn
meal, oats, and grains, other than from wheat, and if they could learn
to eat fresh fruits and vegetables too perishable to send to Europe,
then soldiers and civilians overseas could be supplied, and there would
be no need for rationing. [7:
3]
BEEFSTEAK AT THE BERLIN OLYMPIC GAMES, 1936
The most obvious food served to members of the American Olympic team
was beefsteak, usually cooked rare or medium. American athletes also
ate on a daily average — three eggs, custard for dessert, and drank
l.5 liters of milk. Their food choices were characterized by white bread,
dinner rolls, and fresh vegetables — especially spinach and salads.
American Olympians were served no citrus fruits and limited their intake
of sugar.[7:
5]
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