Have you planted tomatoes in your garden or windowsill pots yet? You might even be on your second planting by now. Statistically, 55 percent of American households have a garden. About 43 percent of those gardens grow food, and tomatoes are planted in 86 percent of food gardens. In fact, Americans eat about 1 billion pounds of tomatoes annually. With over 10,000 varieties to choose from in a cornucopia of colors, tomatoes could be called an all-American fruit. Or are they vegetables?

Tomato Trivia

Tomatoes originally grew wild near the Andes mountains. Over time indigenous people brought the plant they called tomatl north through Central America and into Mexico. The tomatl was used in cooking and as a gift for newlyweds to promote fertility.

When Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mexico in the early 16^th century, they called the food tomate. It is said Cortez discovered the fruit in Montezuma’s gardens and brought the seeds back to Spain. The first variety of tomato to reach Europe was probably yellow, leading to the name poi d’oro, or yellow apples.

Over time, the plant made its way further into Europe, most commonly as an ornamental plant. The new plant had several names. In 1544 Italian herbalist Pietro Andrea Mattioli classified the tomato as a nightshade and a mandrake. Mandrakes were known as aphrodisiacs, which may be why the French called the new fruit a love apple —the pomme d’amour—or golden apple. This potentially scandalous application limited the number of people willing to try the new food.

Many thought the new plant was poisonous, and called the fruit a poison apple. In fact, the leaves, stems and roots of the tomato plant contain solanine, a neurotoxin and should not be eaten. The tomato plant is also a relative of deadly nightshade. Botanist Joseph Pitton De Tournefort gave the new fruit its official name of Lycopersicon esculentum. The moniker translates as edible wolf peach. Peach because the fruit was round, and was thought to be the poison Galen referred to in the 3rd century when discussing ways to entice and then kill unwanted wolves.

Alternatively, German myths claimed that witches used mandrake and nightshade to summon werewolves. And the earliest German name for tomatoes was Wolfpfirsich which translates to wolf peach. Later in the 18th century, Carl Linnaeus modified the translation of Lycopersicon esculentum to “edible wolf peach.”

Some people tried the fruit, and lived to tell the tale. But, the didn’t care for the taste or the smell. In 1597 English botanist John Gerard declared tomatoes were corrupt and of rank & stinking savor.

However, these technical details were not why people thought the tomato was poisonous. Many upper class Europeans died after consuming tomatoes, proving it was better not to eat the fruit, no matter how delicious it looked. It turns out this was a false association. Upper class Europeans ate off of pewter plates, and acidic tomatoes leeched lead out of the pewter. Thus wealthy diners died from lead poisoning after consuming tomato based dishes off pewter dishes. Sometimes common pottery makes the best dinnerware.

But tastes change. In the 19^th century Italians began using tomatoes in their pasta dishes. Previously, Italians had used lardo, the pig back fat that was a byproduct of processing prosciutto, with their pasta dishes. But in the 19^th century, pig farmers changed to a different breed that produced a leaner prosciutto. The lardo, however, did not taste as good as before. Italian cooks began experimenting and settled on tomato based sauces to accompany pasta dishes.

Over time, tomatoes became better known in North America. Maria Parloa’s 1872 Appledore Cook Book included an early recipe for Tomato Soup.

Peel & slice tomatoes enough to fill a two-quart basin. Put them into the soup kettle with six quarts of water & 2 pounds of beef. Boil 3 hours. Season with pepper, salt & and spoonfuls of butter. Strain. Serve with toasted bread.

During the tomato’s checkered history, it was considered a fruit. The story of how the tomato became a vegetable is in my next blog.

Illustrations & A Few Sources

Garden Tomatoes by Mdmad1234; Yellow Tomatoes by Goldilocks; Tacuinum Sanitation Mandrake Dog c. 1390; Tomatoes, gouache on vellum by Hans-Simon Holtzbecker, 17th century; Pasta Eater: Allegory of Taste by Luca Giordano, 17th Century; Illustration from the original Appledore Cook Book; Bowl of Tomato Basic Soup by Srujanabotcha. Jacqui. “Neapolitan Zita Pasta with Italian Lardo.” the Pasta project. Feb. 23, 2022. Peggy Trowbridge Filippone. “The History of Tomatoes as Food.” The Spruce Eats. Dec. 28 2022. Dale E Hammerschmidt & Michael J. Franklin. “The Edible Wolf Peach.” Translational Research. Vol. 146, Issue 4, October 2005.

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I’m a big fan of gardenias. The plant requires little attention, and the white flowers with their heady fragrance are pure joy. Less joyful are the tiny thrips that feast on the flowers. There are various cures for this. I put the blossoms in soapy water for a bit, and then rinse them off before placing the flowers around the house.

Gardenia Lore

Gardenia plants are part of the Rubiaceae family, which also includes coffee plants. They love tropical and subtropical climates and are plentiful in Asia, Africa, Madagascar, and Pacific Islands. Their scent is described as intoxicating with piquant and earthy mushroom nuances. 

Gardenias can reach a height of three to eight feet, and can be as wide as they are tall, depending on the particular cultivar. There are over 200 varieties of gardenias.

In ancient lore, gardenias were sacred to Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams. The Greeks thought one whiff of a gardenia could transport a person to the Elysium fields of paradise.

Victorians had a different perspective on gardenias. They though white gardenias symbolized a promising new friendship, or then again, gardenias could represent a secret love between two people.

My favorite story is how the gardenia received its name. Dr. Alexander Garden was a Scottish naturalist who moved to Charleston, South Carolina where a distant relative was a church minister. Garden’s favorite occupation was collecting specimens of plants and animals which he sent to Carl Linnaeus in Sweden and John Ellis in London. The three men delighted in introducing new species, and Linnaeus developed a classification system.

Ellis thought Garden’s contributions merited having a plant named after him. Linnaeus was less enthusiastic about the idea. Eventually, Ellis persuaded Linnaeus to use gardenia as the scientific name for Cape Jasmin [gardenia jasminoides], a plant sourced in Japan and China. Garden himself probably never encountered a gardenia.

Gardenias & the Floral Industry

In 1926 Rod McLellan started a floral nursery in the San Francisco area, and by 1935 his company was the leading grower of gardenias, with 80,000 plants.

During and after World War II, gardenia corsages became popular. By 1945 McLellan shipped 3 million gardenias a year to florists throughout the country to be made into corsages to compliment gowns for high school proms and as all or part of bridal bouquets. 

My Sweet Gardenia Lei

Fragrant flowers naturally lend themselves to romantic images of a moonlit night on a tropical beach. Danny Kuaana and Bernie Kaai capture the feeling in My Sweet Gardenia Lei (1949).

Jungle Gardenia: The World’s Most Exotic Perfume

In 1932 an American firm called Tuvache introduced Jungle Gardenia. One writer described the scent as a combination of wet gardenia and sweet tuberose. The fragrance blended gardenia, jasmine, and lily-of-the-valley to produce a strong scent.

American Bernadine Angus, founder of Tuvache, didn’t object when newspapers reported her company was French. That’s precisely why she chose a French name at a time when French companies dominated the perfume industry. In 1989 Coty purchased Tuvache and decided to stop producing Jungle Gardenia, so they could repurpose the bottles for another perfume. Coty no longer owns Jungle Gardenia. Today several manufacturers produce a perfume called Jungle Gardenia, though ingredients differ.

Warning: In close quarters, flowers with a strong scent, like gardenias, can cause headaches, nausea, and/or other allergic reactions.

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Bookplate for Gardenia jasminoides.

Photos by Author.

Jungle Gardenia. My Fabulous Fragrance.

Meaning Behind the Gardenia. Verdissimo.

Stories of Gardenia. Per Fumus.

Heather Williams. “7 Flowering Plants That Might be Aggravating Your Allergies. All Women’s Talk.

The post GARDENIAS first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

Holly, with its dramatic red berries, and ivy are two more evergreen symbols of Christmas that predate the Christian celebration. Romans decorated their homes with holly and ivy during Saturnalia, a year end festival honoring Saturn. Celts used the plants during the winter solstice.

Both plants stand out during bleak winter days, with or without a blanket of snow, and both can provide forage for animals. Over time, holly became a sacred plant to the Druids who equated it with fertility and eternal life. Bringing holly into the home brought good luck, and placing it around the door, often as a wreath, prevented evil spirits from entering.

Ivy also became a symbolic plant associated with rebirth, romance, and fertility. Compared to holly, ivy’s foliage is weak and entwining.

Hence, holly was seen as a masculine plant, and ivy as feminine. Songs about holly and ivy created a contest between the two to determine if the master or mistress would rule the family. 

THE CONTEST OF THE HOLLY & THE IVY

in which Holly takes the victory and Ivy is eaten

Refrain: Nay, Ivy, nay, it shall not be I wis;
Let Holly have the mastery, as the manner is.

Holly stands in the hall, fair to behold:
Ivy stands without the door, she is full sore a-cold.

Holly and his merry men, they dance and they sing,
Ivy and her maidens, they weep and they wring.

Ivy hath chapped fingers, she caught them from the cold,
So might they all have, aye, that with Ivy hold.

Holly hath berries red as any rose,
The forester, the hunter, keep them from the does

Ivy hath berries black as any sloe;
There come the owl and eat him as she go

Holly hath birds a fair full flock,
The nightingale, the popinjay, the gentle laverock.

Good Ivy, what birds hast thou?
None but the owlet that cries how, how.

COME, YOU SHALL BE CROWNED FAVORS

In which Ivy is crowned with victory

She is the worthiest in the world
Those who say otherwise are wrong
And she is worthy to bear the crown
Come, you shall be crowned

Ivy is soft of speech, and mild
In the face of ills, she is relief
He who attains her is blessed indeed
Come, you shall be crowned

Ivy’s hue is brilliant green
Among trees, she is the most exalted
And now the truth I prove to you
Come, you shall be crowned

Ivy bears berries of deepest black
God grant that we all get to heaven at last
For in that place we shall nothing lack
Come, you shall be crowned

THE HOLLY & THE IVY

In the late 19th century, Cecil Sharp traveled around England collecting folk songs. He first heard The Holly and the Ivy sung by a Mrs. Mary Clayton, and published it in 1911.

In this song, Holly remains dominant over Ivy, but his importance is superseded by Christian symbolism.

The Holly and the Ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all trees that are in the wood,
The Holly bears the crown:

Refrain: O, the rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.

The Holly bears a blossom,
As white as lily flow’r,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To be our dear Saviour:

The Holly bears a berry,
As red as any blood,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To do poor sinners good:

The Holly bears a prickle,
As sharp as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
On Christmas Day in the morn:

The Holly bears a bark,
As bitter as any gall,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
For to redeem us all:

The Holly and The Ivy emphasizes that in the contest between Holly and Ivy, the male Holly is triumphant. It also contains the essence of the Christian message — Holly’s blossom is white for Christ’s purity; Holly’s red berry for Christ’s blood; the sharp, prickly leaves for the Crown of Thorns, and the bitter bark for the drink offered to Christ on the cross.

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Sled with holly, 1907. Public Domain.

Holly by AnemoneProjectors.

Ivy. Public Domain.

Holly Branch with Bird. Public Domain.

Medieaeval Baebes: Veni Coronaberis

Sam Abramson.” Why do we decorate with holly at Christmas?” How Stuff Works. 

David Beaulieu. “The Holly and the Ivy: History Behind the Song.” The Spruce. Nov. 24, 2019.

The post Holly, Ivy & Christmas first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

It’s December, and almost everywhere you look there are Christmas trees, evergreen boughs, and other symbols of this end-of-the-year “Season.” Long before Santa ever came on the scene, people in the Northern Hemisphere worried about the winter darkness.

Some thought winter came because the Sun God was ill, and celebrated the Solstice because at long last the Sun God would regain his health. In Europe, evergreen plants were a reminder that green plants would grow again. In Ancient Egypt, people filled their homes with green palm rushes.

Many people saw evergreen foliage as a symbol of everlasting life. The association of evergreen trees with Christians began in the 8^th century with a Benedictine monk named Boniface who became so angry at the pagan rituals practiced around a sacred tree, he chopped it  down to prove it had no supernatural power. The pagans subsequently paid better attention to his sermons.

As for the evergreen tree, it’s triangular shape made it a symbol of the Christian Trinity. Eight hundred years later, Germans brought trees into their homes and wired the branches with lit candles.

Though some immigrants brought the German custom to America, the Christmas tree didn’t catch on until 1848 when the Illustrated London News published a picture of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, and their children around a tree. Fashionable Americans adopted the practice, and made it their own. Whereas Europeans placed small trees on tables, Americans preferred trees that reached from floor to ceiling.

The National Christmas Tree 

The concept of public Christmas trees took off in the early 20^th century. On Dec. 24, 1923, President Calvin Cooledge flipped a switch to electrically light the first National Christmas Tree, a 60 foot balsam fir from Vermont. The glittering spectacle was less about the evergreen than the strand of 2500 red, white, and green electric lights.

The Society for Electrical Development sponsored the tree to encourage people to have outdoor Christmas trees using electric lights. The cost came to $5,000 [about $70,680 today].

The Rockefeller Christmas Tree

Our second “national” Christmas tree first appeared in 1931 when construction workers building Rockefeller Center collected funds to erect a 20 foot balsam fir tree, decorated by their families with homemade garlands of cranberries, paper, and a few tin cans.

Two years later, the Rockefeller Center was complete, and a second tree appeared. It was 50 feet tall, and had lights.

Today the tree is usually a Norwegian Spruce between 60 and 100 feet tall with 5 miles of multi-colored LED lights. In 2018 a star made of 3 million Swarovski Crystals topped the tree.

Do you prefer a “real” Christmas Tree?

According to the National Christmas Tree Association, Americans prefer real trees. Between 25 and 30 million trees are sold annually, with another 350 million trees in various stages of growth on Christmas tree farms. It takes about 10 years before a tree is ready to sell.

In 2018 Americans bought 32.8 million real trees, and 23.6 million artificial trees.

The first artificual trees appeared in Germany in the 19^th century. They were made of goose feathers that were dyed green and attached to wire branches. The branches extended from a central dowel that acted as the trunk. The trees became popular, but were flammable.

In 1930, the Addis Houseware Company made a tree from brush bristles that were dyed green. These were less flammable.

Neither of these experiements took hold. Then, in the late 1950s, the aluminum tree appeared, and became enormously popular. The trees made no attempt to look like a real tree as they projected a silvery metallic glow. The trees were at the height of their popularity in 1965 when A Charlie Brown Christmas used the aluminum tree as a symbol of Chirstmas excess and commercialization. Aluminum trees went out of fashion.

Modern artificial trees look like real trees without trying to impersonate them and are very popular for practical reasons. Over time, they are less expensive. An artificial tree is used ten or more years. 

Artificial trees are more convenient. You don’t have to crawl under the tree to pour water into the resevoir. It doesn’t drop needles. Most come with lighting attached.

People leave their decorations up longer. Artificial trees don’t turn brown or become a fire hazard.

Many people are allergic to real trees, making an artificial tree a healthier alternative.

And, some say cats are less interested in artificial trees. Hmm…I don’t think Koa Kat got the memo.

On the other hand, going into the mountains, or the local Christmas tree lot, still has its allure.

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Marcel Rieder, 1898

Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, & their children. London Illustrated News. 1848.

1923 National Christmas Tree

1987 Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree by James G. Howes

Artificial Christmas Tree. Patent Office. 1911

Aluminum Christmas Tree by Michaelleration

It’s a Charlie Brown Christmas.

Koa Kat Under Artificial Tree. Photo by Author

Christmas Trees Sold in the United States. Statista.

Michael Lore. “A Brief History of the Christmas Tree in Rockefeller Center.” Culture Trip. Dec. 12, 2018.

Courtney Vinopal. “Why are More and More Americans Buying Fake Christmas Trees?” PBS. Dec. 24, 2018.

Olivia B. Waxman.”The Electricity Lobby was behind the First National Christmas Tree Lighting” Time. Dec. 1, 2016.

The post Christmas Trees — Symbols of Hope first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

At its most basic level, the holiday of Thanksgiving is about being grateful and eating a special meal. The menu generally includes a roast turkey, or tofu turkey. Pumpkin pie is a staple dessert choice, but far from the only one. The rest of the menu includes family favorites.

Once the meal is over, thoughts turn to other Thanksgiving weekend traditions: shopping and football. Both revolve around this festive holiday.

American football got its start in the late 19^th century. In 1876 college football teams at Yale and Princeton began an annual game, and played on Thanksgiving since most people had a day off from work. What could be more pleasant that a sumptuous feast followed by an open air activity?

But the tradition we have today started with the Detroit Lions. In 1934, team owner George A. Richards wasn’t getting fans into the stadium. His largest crowd was only 15,000. However, Mr. Richards also owned a large radio station, and was able to convince NBC to broadcast the game. The then undefeated Chicago Bears came to play. The Lions sold out their 26,000 seat stadium, and a tradition was born.

In 1966 the Dallas Cowboys began playing on Thanksgiving as a way to gain publicity, and now the NFL sponsors three games on Thanksgiving. This year the Chicago Bears will again meet the Detroit Lions; the Buffalo Bills will match up against the Dallas Cowboys, and the New Orleans Saints will go against the Atlanta Falcons.

Too much football? Not to worry. 

Thanksgiving weekend shopping is a time-honored tradition. Retailers once held off on their Christmas shopping push until after Thanksgiving. But, Thanksgiving was a moveable feast that informally occurred sometime in November, most often the last Thursday. If that Thursday coincided with the last day of November, the shopping season was a short one.

In 1939, Retail Dry Goods Association appealed to President Roosevelt to fix Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday, in order to guarantee at least four weeks of shopping. The President complied with a proclamation. Congress further fixed the date in 1941.

But wait. Retailers had another tradition up their marketing sleeves — Thanksgiving Day Parades. The famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade started in 1924 and utilized Macy’s employees. There were floats, live animals from the Central Park Zoo, and Santa in his sleigh. With attendance at 250,000, Macy’s knew it was an excellent marketing ploy and continued the tradition. In 1927 Macy’s introduced air-filled balloons to replace the live animals.

After World War II, American shoppers embraced what became known as Black Friday, a name that initially reflected traffic congestion in Philadelphia in the early 1950s. The Army-Navy Football game took place the Saturday after Thanksgiving, just as suburban shoppers, tourists, and shoplifters flooded the city. It was a “black” day for Philadelphia police.

Since 2005 Black Friday has been the businest shopping day of the year. Over time, retailers began opening their doors earlier and earlier. Once it was 6:00 a.m. on Friday morning, then 5:00 or 4:00. By 2011 stores opened at midnight. Then it was Thanksgiving Day itself. Publicized “door busters” led to long lines people waiting to get into the store first. Some people enjoy standing in line or “camping” on the pavement while waiting for the store to open. Others really want the enormous television, new computer, or other digital device enough to put up with the inconvenience. [Full disclosure: I participated once, but only once, to buy a desktop computer. The prize didn’t compensate for standing outside for four hours. Or was it six?]

For those who prefer to shop from the comfort of their computer screens, the National Retail Federation launched Cyber Monday in 2005.

Of course, now Black Friday shopping begins the day after Halloween. And if you want to get an extreme head start, there’s Amazon Prime Day in July.

If you decide to hit the mall or big box store, don’t forget to fortify yourself with holiday food. And with three football games on offer, you should be able to complete all three traditional Thanksgiving activities.

Whatever you do, have a Happy Thanksgiving.

A Very Large Turkey, 1900.

Thanksgiving Football Greetings, 1900.

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, 2008 by tweber1

Greeting Card for Odd Fellows and Rebekas by Louieblakesarmiento

Sarah Pruitt. “What’s the Real History of Black Friday?” History. Nov. 20, 2018.

Ethan Trex.” A Brief History of Black Friday.” Mental Floss. Nov. 23, 2018.

Ethan Trex. “Why do Lions and Cowboys Always Play on Thanksgiving?” Mental Floss. Nov. 18, 2018.

The post Turkey, Football, & Shopping first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

On August 23, 1902 Fanny Farmer opened her School of Cookery and continued her revolution in American cookery. In order to appreciate her efforts, it’s useful to start with a recipe comparison for Bird’s Nest Pudding.

The original 1833 recipe is from The American Frugal Housewife by Lydia Maria Child.

Bird’s Nest Pudding

If you wish to make what is called ‘Bird’s-nest puddings,’ prepare your custard, take eight or ten pleasant apples, pare them and dig out the core, but leave them whole, set them in a pudding dish, pour your custard over them, and bake them about twenty or thirty minutes.

The baking occurred in a Dutch oven set to the side of the fire with hot coals on top of the lid.

Questions arise. What is a ‘pleasant’ apple? What temperature should the oven be? Where’s the custard recipe?

Compare Lydia’s recipe with modern directions

Modern recipe from the Old Sturbridge Village website.

6-8+ apples

2 cups of milk

3 eggs

½ cup of brown sugar

½ teaspoon of cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350⁰F

Grease a deep casserole dish (round or rectangular- 9 by 9 inches square or a 9 inch deep pie plate, or a 9 inch Bundt pan)

Peel and core apples and leave whole, to fit snugly in the baking dish.

Make the custard by beating the milk, eggs, brown sugar, and cinnamon together well.

Pour the custard over the apples in the dish.

Bake for 30-40 minutes until the custard is set.

Eat hot or cold.

If you find the modern recipe easier to understand, thank Fanny Farmer.

Fanny Farmer & the Modern Recipe

Fanny Farmer invented the modern recipe such as the one above. She was the first professional cook to insist on precise measurements — level teaspons, level cups, level ounces. No more ‘a handful of this’ and ‘a goodly amount of that.’ 

Fanny didn’t expect a career in cookery. She wanted to attend a women’s college and become a teacher, but at the age of sixteen she suffered what may have been a paralytic stroke and was told she shouldn’t leave the house, or apply herself intellectually.

Fanny didn’t give up, and took a position as a governess for the Shaw family. Her employer saw Fanny’s interest in cooking and encouraged her to enroll in the Boston Cooking School that had been founded to enable women of modest means to obtain employment as cooks. When Fanny graduated in 1889, she joined the school staff. Two years later she became the principal. And in 1896 Fanny published her first cook book, one that didn’t assume women naturally knew how to cook.

“Good judgment, with experience, has taught some to measure by sight,” she wrote, “but the majority need definite guides.”

The 1896 cook book had 1800 recipes. The publisher wasn’t confident the book would sell, because he thought women already knew how to cook. Fanny raised money to pay for the first 3,000 copies, and kept the copyright. The cookbook sold millions of copies.

Fanny’s book and her methods became popular. She became a leading figure on the lecture circuit with her weekly lectures published in the Boston Evening Transcript, and was one of the first women to lecture at Harvard Medical School. She believed that “the time is not far distant when a knolwedge of the principles of diet will be an essential part of one’s education. Then mankind will eat to live, will be able to do better mental and physical work, and disease will be less frequent.“

In 1902 Fanny established Miss Farmer’s School of Cookery in Boston and made enough money to build a house and support her parents and other family members.

Fanny Farmer’s Brownies

Fanny’s 1896 recipe for brownies didn’t contain any chocolate, because it wasn’t readily available.

Original 1896 recipe:

1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/3^rd cup Porto Rico [sic] molasses

1 egg well beaten

7/8 cup bread flower

1 cup pecan meat cut in pieces

Mix ingredients in order given. Bake in small, shallow fancy cake tins, garnishing top of each cake with 1/2 pecan.

Modern Translation:

1/3 cup (75 mL) butter at room temperature

1/3 cup (75 mL) powdered icing sugar

1/3 cup (75 mL) cooking or fancy molasses

1 egg

7/8 cup (240 mL) bread flour

1 cup (250 mL) chopped pecans

Pre heat oven to 350ºF (180ºC)

Mix ingredients in order, then bake 15-20 minutes in small, shallow tart tins. 

Makes about 4. 

Let cool on rack before serving.

You can easily substitute darker molasses or Maple syrup for the fancy molasses if you wish. 

In 1902, Fanny opened her cooking school on August 23. This Friday, whether you cook or not, take a moment to think of Fannie Farmer and the modern recipes we use today.

Woman in replica of 19th century kitchen by Jorge Royan

Lydia Marie Child

Fanny Farmer

Advertisement for Miss Farmer’s School of Cookery, 1903

Kat Eschner. “Fanny Farmer was the Original Rachel Ray.” Smithsonian. Aug. 23, 2017.

Julie Moskin. “Overlooked No More: Fannie Farmer, Modern Cookery’s Pioneer.” New York Times. June 13, 2018.

The post Fanny Farmer & Modern Cooking first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

May with its promise of summer is the time of year when the local home improvement store features rows and rows of shiny barbecue grills. There’s the simple, basic grill; the ubiquitous Weber grill, and upscale gas grills with temperature control.

People have been cooking over an open flame since the discovery of fire. Grilling food over large and small fires, inside using an open hearth or outside in campfires was the norm until the first flat top iron ranges appeared in the early nineteenth century. Cast iron was a sort of wonder material then. It could be cast into prefabricated parts, and withstand repeated temperature swings.

The next innovation was the shift from from wood to gas as a source of fuel. Gas was first processed from bituminous coal and used to power street lights and indoor lighting fixtures. In the late 19^th century, electricity began replacing gas as a source of light. So the gas industry developed the gas stove.

These stoves didn’t require heavy cast iron to withstand the heat, and could be built in forms that were light and compact. They gave off less heat and didn’t require a chimney. Gas stoves could be built of sheet metal-cast iron combination with a baked enamel finish. By 1901, the design with a burner on top and a baking oven with a broiler below became standard.

Strangely, no sooner did gas stoves become standard kitchen equipment in the 1920s, than people began moving to the suburbs and digging barbecue pits in the ground. The Depression and World War II cut off that past time, but as post-war Americans began migrating to the suburbs, the backyard became a place of leisure. And what better leisure activity than grilling food outside?

The first brazier grill was a sheet metal pan on top of unstable legs that sometimes included wheels and a grill on the surface. The object of the game was to light and heat the charcoal to the desired temperature. Grilling required that the charcoal be lit in a timely manner so it could develop the patina of grey ash required for cooking. Many outdoor cooks, most often men, tried to speed up the process with the use of lighter fluid. Nothing like the refreshing aroma of lighter fluid on a summer evening. It balanced out the fuel fragrance from decorative tiki torches scattered on the lawn.

There were a number of disadvantages to the brazier grill. Food was often incinerated on the outside and raw on the inside. Smoke blew into the cook’s face. The grill had no vents to control the fire. Rain and wind could make the entire process unpleasant.

George Stephen observed these drawbacks, and began to tinker. At the time, he worked in sales at the Weber Brothers Metal Works. When Stephen began developing his grill, the company was producing buoys for the Coast Guard. Stephen picked up a buoy and had a eureka moment.

Stephen cut a buoy in half. He installed vents and a grate on the bottom which allowed more control over the fire and the cooking process. The top half fitted neatly over the bottom with a few upper vents. It blocked smoke, and protected the grill from rain and wind.

George’s Barbecue Kettle went on sale in 1952 for $27.95. That equates to around $270 which is why my father didn’t spring for one. After all, no real campfire had a lid. In 1958 the Weber Brothers company name changed to Weber-Stephen Products. 

Today Weber-Stephen sells electric grills, charcoal grills, gas grills and charcoal smokers.

But it all began as a simple enclosed grill. Here’s one of the advertisements from the 1970s. Check out Paul Pircerni’s hair.

Paul Pircerni was best known for his role as Elliot Ness’s partner in The Untoucables.

The claim that the dome shape reflects heat evenly has not been proven.

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Meat on Barbecue Grill by Martin Steiger

Gassgrillwagen Landmann Cronos 12771 by S. John, Elsterwerda

Open Hearth Cooking by Billy Hathorn

Reliable Gas Stove and Ranges. 1905

Meat-Barbecue-Grill. Public Domain.

Replica 1951 Weber Grill by Jauerback.

Weber Barbecue by Sander van der Wei

Weber.com

Sara Elliott. “Grilling History 101.” How Stuff Works. 

Natasha Geiling. “The Evolution of American Barbecue.” Smithsonian. July 18, 2013.

May Wei-Haas. “The Story of the Weber Grill.” Smithsonian. Sept. 2, 2016

The post Backyard Grilling first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

This is a picture of my quasi storage closet. Some items are clothes I take traveling. Some are concert dresses I no longer use. Boots and hats no one wears. A beat up suitcase. In the world of Marie Kondo the latter items are unloved and unnecessary. Yet, though the concept has a certain appeal, getting rid of them isn’t one of my goals of the year. Well, maybe the suitcase. In my defense, the closet is tidy. I see the items and each has its place.

I bring up the topic of decluttering, because it’s a perennial aspiration. Probably the result of growing up with adults perpetually telling us to clean our rooms when we think they look just fine. Or, even worse, cleaning our rooms for us before the patina of dust reaches its perfect cleaning point.

You may be aware that Marie Kondo and her magical method of tidying up began streaming on Netflix this past New Year’s Day. On December 31, Kondo had 710,000 followers on Instagram. Now she has at least 1.3 million. Of course, following and decluttering are two distinct activities.

I’m not sure when we became culturally obsessed with getting rid of clutter, but I suspect Minimalism and Martha Stewart Magazine might have something to do with it. I mention Martha Stewart Magazine, because as a young adult that’s the publication that told me it was important to fold my fitted sheets which I occasionally attempt. Mostly, I kind of roll them up and put them on the bottom of the linen closet. If you want to see how Martha Stewart folds fitted sheets, I’ve included a video at the bottom. So far, the video has had over two million views.

Do you remember when feng shui books flew off the shelves? That was the practice of using energetic forces to harmonize individuals with the surrounding environment. Sound principles, but hard to put into practice, which may be why Marie Kondo and her KonMari principles of organizing just about everything is so appealing.

Kondo suggests our possessions reflect our state of mind, and that when we put our house in order, it follows that we put our affairs and our past in order. Thus it becomes clear what you need and how you should proceed. On the other hand, she has a precise way of folding clothes that you can see below.

There is an order to the KonMari method: clothing, books, documents, kitchen and bathroom miscellany, and sentimental items. There was a bit of a flap recently about the books, because Marie said one shouldn’t have more than 30 books. I think it’s clear from this picture that I’m way over the limit, but if I love a book and use a book, it’s not a violation of KonMari principles. Just don’t keep the ones you’ve never read or reread and probably won’t. Thank them for their service and donate to the library book sale. Someday is no day at all.

To give a sense of Marie’s method, I’ve included this video from her appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres show.

Marie Kondo turns decluttering into the joyful occupation of tidying up. She wants us to have a relationship with our possessions, and if they don’t give us joy, we should thank them and let them go to their next life. Goodwill Industries reports they’ve had a spike in donations. I don’t know if this happens every year or if it’s the Kondo Effect.

I’ve always had a tendency towards a clutter free life, but the tipping point came when I had to empty my parents’ house. Books from their college years. Telephone books from thirty years before, because they might need to find an address someday. That could have been because there was no digital consultant. Carefully stored National Geographic Magazines in official boxes and Reader’s Digests in date order, because they were too good to throw away and someone might want them. Unfortunately that was a generational belief and no library anywhere needed that many copies.

That was the defining experience in my now constant awareness of clutter. I know exactly which closet items will go first.

I’m talking to you, my beautiful shoes that I can’t wear anymore.

Beware, because I can’t predict when the spirit of tidying up will strike.

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Here is the video from Martha Stewart on how to fold fitted sheets. All I can say, is who has that kind of time?

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Picture of Marie Kondo by Diarmuid Greene / SPORTSFILE / Web Summit.

Other Photos by Author

Marie Kondo. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.Ten Speed Press. 2014.

Marissa Martinelli. “Marie Kondo’s New Show Sparks Joy but Fizzles as Reality TV.” Slate. Jan. 1, 2019.

Jessica Ravitz. “Marie Kondo’s Tidying Isn’t Just About Appearances.” CNN. Jan. 18, 2019.?

The post “Tidying Up” first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

The Anglo-Saxons called this month Gerst monath, Barley Month. It was the month for harvesting barley which was processed into a malt barley used in brewing beer.

The name September is from the Latin Septem, which means seven. The oldest Roman calendar had ten months, with March as the first month and September the seventh. The Julian calendar added two new months, January and February, and started the year in January. Which is why although the name September indicates the seventh month, it’s really the ninth.

There are three flowers associated with September.

The first is the Forget-Me-Not. Not surprisingly, the flower represents true love, lifetime connections, and remembrance. There is a German folk tale about the Forget-Me-Not. As two lovers walked along the Danube River,  they saw the bright blue flowers at the edge of the water. The man stooped to pick the flowers for his love, and was swept away by the river. As he swirled away, he asked her not to forget him.

The Greeks called this family of flowers Myosotis genus, mouse ears, due to the small petals.

The second flower of the month is the Aster, representing patience, elegance, and daintiness. A Greek myth explains that when Zeus decided to flood the earth to stop a war among men, Astraea, goddess of innocence, asked to be turned into a star. When the flood waters receded, Astraea wept for the lives lost. Her tears turned to stardust and fell to earth. Wherever her tears fell, an aster grew.

The third flower of September is the Morning Glory, a vine from South America. The symbolism is about unrequited love, and mortality.

TIME TO BAKE FOR THE HOLIDAYS

I know you don’t want to think about December holidays yet, but if you’re planning to make a Christmas cake from scratch, this is the month to bake it. A Christmas cake is not the same thing as the dreaded Fruit Cake, though they share similar ingredients.

In the Middle Ages, people fasted on Christmas Eve day, and ate a plum porridge in the evening. In search of better taste, they added dried fruit, spices, and honey to the mixture until it became a pudding. The spices were very expensive, exotic, and reminded people of the gifts brought to the Baby Jesus by the Wise Men. In the 16th century, someone came up with the idea of adding butter and eggs to the mix — YUM. Even better, bakers started using marzipan for frosting.

Christmas cakes have to be made in advance. Opinions vary on how far in advance —September, October, or even November. After the cake is baked, the baker puts it in an airtight tin. Once a week, the baker takes the cake out of its container and adds about two tablespoons of brandy, whiskey, or sherry to keep the cake moist. The non-alcoholic version adds orange juice or a strong tea such as Earl Grey. This is called feeding the cake.

When it’s time to indulge, a marzipan frosting is added.

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Illustrations

September. Tre Riches Heures du duc de Berry. Public Domain.

Forget Me Not Flower. Attribution: User:Bernie Kohl

Aster Flower by glacier LLC. Creative Commons

Morning Glory. Public Domain.

Christmas Cake by James Petts. Creative Commons Attribution.

A History of Christmas Cakes. Puckles.

Flower Meaning.

The post SEPTEMBER TRIVIA first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

In summer people could expand the living area by going outside. In winter, this wasn’t an option.

People working in the cities had their own small cramped living spaces – too hot in summer; too cold in winter.

These weren’t dwellings for one or two people. They housed multi-generation families, and the occasional boarder.

CONTEMPORARY SMALL SPACES: NECESSITY OR TREND?

Urban renters still find themselves crowded into studio apartments of less than 500 square feet, where as Gene Tempest observed, small is not necessarily as wonderful as Tiny House advocates make it seem.

I bring this up because the TINY HOUSE MOVEMENT seems as popular as ever. Enthusiasts find it to be better for the environment and more freeing for the occupant, most often a single person or a couple. Freed from the financial tyranny of a mortgage, people can live off-grid.

Before I continue, I need to draw a distinction between an official Tiny House a person chooses to live in, and structures people refer to as “tiny houses” that are erected as temporary housing for people who have lost their homes to natural disasters. Residents displaced by the on-going volcanic eruption on Hawai`i Island have temporary housing erected at Pahoa Sacred Heart Church. Smaller than a “tiny house,” each unit has 120 square feet. Units are insulated and have electricity. Many include a bed, desk, and chair. Residents have central kitchen and bathroom facilities. The units aren’t intended to be long term housing and are a far cry from the Tiny House structure in the video below.

By definition a Tiny House is any house designed to be a permanent dwelling that is smaller than 500 square feet, most often between 100 and 130 square feet, and may or may not stand on a distinct parcel of land. Some communities allow them to share a piece of land with a standard house on it; others don’t. Few neighborhoods allow a Tiny House on a single parcel. Building codes frequently specify a minimum of 1000 square feet, as well as hook-ups for water and electricity.

Technically, Tiny Houses aren’t RVs or Mobile Homes. In fact, luxury RVs have an astonishing array of interior features that wouldn’t fit in a Tiny House. They also have a much higher price tag.

Tiny Houses share one feature with Recreational Vehicles. They rest on a trailer chassis and are on wheels, ready to hit the road.

The width of a Tiny House is fairly standard, because of road conditions when the house is moved. Designs tend to favor a ground floor with a loft. One set of plans called for the house width to be 6 feet, ten inches, with a length of 16 feet, two inches. The ceiling height on the first floor is six feet, six inches. In the loft it’s 2 feet, 8 inches. But since that’s the primary sleeping area, perhaps the occupant can just slide in from the stairs.

The first floor is cozy, in a bears in the woods sort of way. A porch can extend six feet or so to provide more living area. The kitchen area is four feet, six inches by 4 feet. The great room can be 8 feet by six feet, six inches. And the bathroom is 5 feet, 6 inches by 2 feet. For visual fairness, I’ve included a video tour below of one such house.

In a perverse way, I’m fascinated by Tiny Houses. I think the feeling is left over from visiting my friend when I was about eight years old. Her family had one of those round trailers that they took on vacation. The rest of the time, it sat in the driveway and could be used as a sort of playhouse. I thought the small size of everything was enchanting. I too was small at the time.

But like Alice in Wonderland, I’ve grown quite tall. And I’ve accumulated various items, like furniture. Before World War II, people wished for housing with bedrooms and indoor plumbing. Nowadays people wonder what it might be like to fit their lives into 150 square feet. I don’t suppose we’ll ever be content with our housing options.

Illustrations:

Cottage from Meenagaargh near Plumbridge, in the Sporrans. Ulster Folk Museum, Northern Ireland. Attribution: Albert Bridge.

Meenagaargh Cottage Interior. Attribution: Albert Bridge.

Street in Tenement District. Manhattan, 1900. Public Domain.

Studio Apartment in Minneapolis by AlexiusHoratius. Creative Commons Attribution.

Tiny Mobile House in Portland, OR by Tammy. Creative Commons Attribution.

Tiny House Interior by Tammy, Creative Commons Attribution.

1966 Sunliner Caravan by sv1ambo. Creative Commons Attribution.

Callis, Tom. “Transitional Housing Blessed.” Hawaii Tribune-Herald. July 1, 2018. A1, A6.

Rebecca Peitsch. “Tiny Houses Are Trendy, Minimalist and Often Illegal.” PBS. July 6, 2016.

Tasha Murtaugh. “Are People Actually Happier in Tiny Houses?” Country Living. July 20, 2017.

Gene Tempest. “What No One Ever Tells You About Tiny Homes.” New York Times. June 2, 2017.

The post LIVING SMALL first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

Chinese gardens, like the photo below from Lu Garden in Shanghai, were constructed to recreate and miniaturize natural landscapes by setting up small scenes that could be viewed from pavilions, bridges, and winding paths. The garden wasn’t a space to be observed from one place, but contained visual vignettes of a pond, bamboo grove, or a blossoming tree.

Chinese gardens are based on Confucian philosophy. Among their common features are mountains, either viewed from a distant point outside or built within. A mountain symbolizes virtue, stability, and endurance. Ponds are usually in the center of the garden as a complement to the mountain. Within the ponds are lotus flowers and goldfish that can be viewed from a pavilion. The latter were selectively bred from Prussian carp to achieve color mutations of gold, white, and red and white.

Among the plantings are the Three Friends of Winter that remain green in the cold months. Pine trees represent longevity and constance in friendship. Bamboo stands as the wise man who can bend without breaking. Plum trees flower in winter as a symbol of rebirth.

Other favored plants are the peach tree for immortality and pear trees for justice and wisdom. Lotus flowers for purity and peonies for opulence are also popular flowers.

Ji Cheng’s three volume book on gardens, Yuanye, appeared in 1631. Ji observed that the garden’s creator and the landscape are interchangeable as both object and subject. To build a garden, the creator must become one with the landscape. 

Constructing a garden is an all-consuming task in which the view “should include a watery expanse of many acres and contain the changing brilliance of the four seasons. The shadow of phoenix trees should cover the ground, the shade of pagoda trees pattern the walls. Willows should be set along the embankments, plum trees around the buildings; reeds should be planted among the bamboos.”

And there should be sound from the birds and insects, from the wind, from rain falling upon leaves, and from water falls.

JAPANESE GARDENS 

During the Heian Period, Japanese culture derived a number of features from the T’ang Dynasty in China which were then blended with Buddhist philosophy. As a result, Japanese gardens developed out of the Chinese aesthetic, particularly the concept of creating a space that emphasizes the natural beauty found in nature.

Rocks are an important element representing islands within water or sand. Sometimes white sand substitutes for the water element. In Buddhism, water and stone are opposites that complement each other. Fish, especially goldfish, came to Japan in the sixteenth century. In the nineteenth century specialists developed koi from common carp. If allowed to breed freely, they’ll revert to their original drab color.

Plantings are important with many trees selected for their change of color in the fall. And in the spring cherry trees put out their pink blossoms. Since the Heian Period, viewing parties have gone out to see the first cherry blossoms and then expressed their emotional response in the 17-syllable haiku.

“The cherries’ only fault:
The crowds that gather when they bloom”
— Saigyo, 12C poet.

“All flocked together
Blossoms upon blossoms.
Asuka Hill”

Gardens have different purposes. A Zen Garden is meant to be viewed as a whole. A promenade garden is viewed one landscape at a time, as in this view from Liliuokalani Gardens in Hilo HI.

If you’re inspired to view actual gardens and don’t have vacation time, you may want to view these two videos from You Tube. The first on Chinese Gardens is just over five minutes, and the second from the Kyosumi Garden in Tokyo runs just over three minutes.

https://youtu.be/K4kNVIJOB44

All Photos by Author

Features of Chinese Gardens. China Highlights.

The Japanese Garden. Bowdoin College

The post Natural Gardens in China & Japan first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

But tomorrow is the Spring Equinox when Spring becomes official in the Northern Hemisphere. An  equinox is when light and darkness are approximately equal. In Spring the hours of daylight lengthen, and life begins its annual renewal. It’s a time to celebrate.

Spring festivals abound. Prior to the Julian Calendar in 45 BCE, the spring equinox marked the beginning of the new year. Time may have moved to January, but spring continues to mark renewal, new beginnings, and ancient customs.

DECORATING EGGS

The tradition of decorating eggs, for example, began long before Christians adapted the custom to Easter. Goddess Ostara, a moon goddess of spring and fertility, held an egg as a symbol of fertility. Her sacred animal was a hare that laid eggs. Hence the still celebrated Easter Bunny.

Druids buried eggs to insure fertility of the land. Beforehand they dyed the eggs red to symbolize menstrual blood and draw life force into the land.

In ancient Egypt and Persia people exchanged decorated eggs at the spring equinox. Hundreds of years later King Edward I’s household record shows his order to decorate 450 eggs to be given as Easter gifts.

SPRING CLEANING

Another custom of the season is Spring Cleaning, now a synonym for “deep cleaning.” More than a chance to open up the house to fresh spring air, Spring Cleaning underpins two spring festivals.

Iranian tradition celebrates the new year as Now Rouz. Two weeks prior, Iranians embark on khaneh takani, the “Shaking of the House.” The entire house is scoured, and fresh flowers are brought in to renew energy.

The Jewish custom of Pesah, Passover, also involves cleaning. Passover celebrates the Hebrew escape from Egypt when the people had no time to bake leavened bread. Prior to the festival believers deep clean their house to remove any crumbs of leavened bread that may have escaped normal cleaning.

Whether you “Spring Clean” or not, Spring is a time of Joy, Renewal and New Life. It’s about going outside and experiencing all that Nature has to offer. Enjoy this seasonal bridge between Winter and Summer.

Illustrations from Wikimedia Commons.

Garden with Tulips and Narcissus by Anita Martinz. Creative Commons Attribution.

Easter Basket with Eggs by Toelstede. Creative Commons Attribution.

The Deducting Pump 1906. Public Domain.

Mute Swan with Nine Cygnets by S. Sepp. Creative Commons Attribution.

Josh Clark. “Why do we Traditionally Clean our Homes at the Beginning of Spring?” How Stuff Works.

Kathleen Halloran. “A History of Spring Traditions.” Mother Earth Living. Feb/Mar. 1999.

Miranda Omer. “The Meaning of the Spring Season.” Mother Nature Network. Mar. 7, 2010.

Nola Taylor Redd. “Spring: Season of New Beginnings.” Live Science. Mar. 17, 2016.

The post Spring Traditions first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

As faithful readers know, I like to look up anniversaries of events that changed modern life. So imagine my delight when I discovered December 22, 1891 is the date Seth Wheeler received the patent for his toilet paper roll. I’m informing you now because life gets hectic that close to Christmas and you might want to celebrate early.

It appears that the cats playing with this toilet paper roll found a dispenser with the paper going over the roll, confirming received wisdom that threading the paper under the holder creates a tidier appearance and makes it harder for pets to unravel the paper. Advocates of threading the paper over the holder claim it reduces the transfer of germs and makes the end easier to find.

This is a debate of some importance, so you can imagine the excitement when illustrations of Wheeler’s patent drawing became public. Clearly, Wheeler meant the paper to go over the holder.

The historian in me engaged, as I delved deeper into toilet paper history. It appears Joseph C. Gayetty invented the first patented toilet paper in 1857. Gayetty’s Medicated Paper sold in flat sheets. It’s generally thought advertising didn’t enter public consciousness until the 1920s, but Gayetty’s ad demonstrates him as a man ahead of his time.

Gayetty marketed his Medicated Paper for the Water Closet as the Greatest Necessity of the Age. “Printing paper, everybody knows, is rank poison to tender portions of the body.” In the long run, “how much cheaper in every respect is it to use a paper made of the purist material and medicated with the greatest care?” Product assurance guaranteed by a water mark on every sheet. Gayetty’s paper was sold until the 1920s.

Wheeler was the first to to patent toilet paper on a roll, but he may not have been the first inventor. Scott Paper Company developed it in 1880 and began selling the product under their own brand in 1896. An advert from 1915 warns consumers about Toilet Paper Sales. The customer sees an announcement of eight or ten rolls of toilet paper for a quarter. “Did you ever ask yourself how much real paper there is in these rolls?” . . . Scott Tissue Toilet Paper has 1000 sheets to the roll for ten cents and is “soft as old linens,” snowy white, and very absorbent.”

Toilet Paper hasn’t changed much. Each producer claims softness, absorbance, and that clean, fresh feeling.

Charmin uses animated bears in their popular ads which also demonstrate the ongoing debate about how to put toilet paper in the holder. In the ad from 2011, the paper is threaded under the roll.

In the 2016 ad, it’s over the roll.

https://youtu.be/Sx21zzST0Kg

The important thing is to find the method that works best for the household. Cats get into the toilet paper no matter which method you choose.

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Illustrations from Wikimedia Commons.

Cats with Toilet Paper by Dan4th. Creative Commons Attribution.

Toilet Paper Roll, U.S. Patent Illustration. Public Domain.

The Greatest Necessity of the Age Advertisement, 1859. Public Domain.

Scott Tissue Toilet Paper Advertisement, 1915. Public Domain.

Soft Weave Advertisement from Ladies’ Home Journal, 1948. No Known Copyright Restrictions.

Toilet Paper History

Amanda Kooser. “Why an 1891 Toilet Paper Patent is All Over Facebook.” Cnet. Mar. 18, 2015

Kim LaCapria. “The Great Toilet Paper Orientation Debate.” Snopes.

Brandon Naff. “The Way You Hang a Toilet Paper Roll Secretly Reveals Your Personality.” KKRV. April 7, 2016

Megan Willett. “124-Year-Old Patent Solves the ‘Over versus Under’ Toilet Paper Roll Debate.” Business Insider. Mar. 19, 2015.

The post Toilet Paper — Over, Under, or Just Right first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

Fun, exuberant little cakes, the cup cake is almost sincere in its potential for simplicity. There’s automatic portion control. The little cakes bake more quickly than regular cakes which makes them energy efficient. Serving cupcakes, especially with their paper wrappers, is less messy than slicing the traditional cake. Eating a cupcake could be considered as virtuous as it is indulgent.

Nobody knows who invented the cupcake, but the first known recipe for “light cake to bake in small cups” is in the 1796 American Cookery by Eliza Leslie.

Rub 1/2 pound sugar and 1/2 pound butter into 2 pounds of flour.
Add 1 glass of wine, 1 glass of rosewater, 2 glasses of Emptins*
Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Currants.

*Emptins was a liquid form of leavening made from potatoes or hops.

Batter for small cakes was poured into individual pottery cups, ramekins or molds.

The name cupcake was first given to any small cake about the size of a tea cup. The smaller size was an advantage when people baked in hearth ovens. It took longer to bake a cake which often burned. The smaller cup cakes baked quickly and could be fitted around other items in the oven.

The term cup cake also applied to a cake made from measured cups rather than weighed ingredients. These were also called Number Cakes or 1234 Cakes, because their measured numbers made them easy to remember.

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 cups flour
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon soda

Variations of cup cakes remained popular in home kitchens throughout the nineteenth century, but they took off in the mass market in 1919 when Hostess introduced its snack cake. Doc Rice started working for Hostess in 1938. It was his job to dump the baked cakes onto a table. Presumably using hot pads. Anyway, in 1947 he got the job of updating the brand. Three years later Hostess cupcakes became what many school children ate. A white squiggly line across the chocolate frosting identified the brand. Rice added creme filling.

As of 2011 Hostess cupcakes sold over 600 million snack cakes annually.

Mass marketed cupcakes aren’t anything special. Sort of like a cup of black coffee. Then Magnolia Bakery opened its first shop on New York’s West Village in 1996. Magnolia Bakery creates gourmet cupcakes in unusual flavors. This month’s unique flavors are Mango Lime (a coconut cake filled with mango curd) and Red Velvet.

In 2000 Carrie Bradshaw announced her crush on Aiden in Sex and the City while eating a cupcake from Magnolia Bakery. Eating a cupcake became a sensuous experience. The trend took off.

Alas both Sex and the City and expensive trendy cupcakes have moved out of public view. But cupcakes are still a delightful way to celebrate as the these Beached-Themed Bridal Shower cupcakes demonstrate.

Illustrations from Wikimedia Commons.
Bruges Miscellany, Belgium. Public Domain.
Freilichtmuseum, Brunnerbauerhof by Chiisphotographing. Creavei Commons Attribution.
Gift Box of Cupcakes done by Gabby’s Cupcakes. By Keannetamim. Creative Commons Attribution.
Beach-Themed Bridal Shower Cupcakes by Clever Cupcakes. Montreal, Canada. Creative Commons Attribution.

All About Cupcakes

Melissa. The History of Cupcakes. Best Friends for Frosting.

Sara Elliot. Who Invented the Cupcake? How Stuff Works Lifestyle.

Alexis Kleinman. A Brief, Delicious History of the Great Cupcake Takeover. Huffington Post. July 10, 2014.

The post CUPCAKE BREAK! first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

Diwali is a Hindu festival occurring between mid-October and mid-November. This year the celebration takes place from October 29 until November 1. Although there are variations in how the festival is celebrated, its purpose commemorates the victory of good over evil and light over darkness. It’s a time of family and friends dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi, the consort of Lord Vishnu.

Lakshmi is the goddess wealth and prosperity. Diwali is the time to invite her to your home to encourage these blessings in the year ahead. It’s important that the house is spotless, because Lakshmi visits the cleanest house first. Cleaning and decorating correspond with the first day of the festival, called Dhanteras. This is also the day for designing and creating Rangoli, creative floor designs done in sand or colored powder. If you think you might want to make one this year, here’s an example.

I’m struck by the color, beauty, and grace the design. Sadly, I’ve never progressed beyond stick drawings in chalk on the sidewalk.

The second day, called Choti Diwali, represents the festival day in miniature.

Lakshmi Puja, on the third day, is the most important day of Diwali. Account books are balanced. The day is set for the darkest night so that diyas can be set out to invite the goddess to come inside the house. Rangoli also serve as an invitation to family and friends. Doors and windows, balconies and other inviting surfaces are lit to dispel the darkness.

After the prayer rituals, people go outside to set off fireworks. Once those have pierced the darkness, people go inside for a feast followed by sweets. Favorite items are sweetmeats, generally sweet, fried confections. One of these called Lapsi is made from wheat, sugar, almonds, raisons, ghee (clarified butter), and cardamon powder. It looks fairly easy.

It is said that Diwali is the day when Goddess Parvati played dice with her husband Lord Shiva and declared that whoever gambled on Diwali would prosper in the coming year.

The fourth day, Padwa, marks the beginning of the new financial year, and is also the day celebrating the mutual love and devotion of husbands and wives.

And on the last day brothers and sisters celebrate their bond. Sisters perform puja for their brothers and prepare their favorite foods. Brothers respond by giving gifts to their sisters.

Words don’t fully describe Diwali’s fun. This video, though a bit long, shows how one family celebrates the days of Diwali.

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Featured Image: Rangoli of Lights by Subharnab Majumdar. Creative Commons Attribution. Wikimedia Commons.

Pictures:

Sri Lakshmi by Bazar Art. 1940s. India Public Domain. Wikimedia Commons.

Worship by PJeganathan. Creative Commons Attribution. Wikimedia Commons.

Diya by Karanchheda13495. Creative Commons Attribution. Wikimedia Commons.

Food by NivediM. Creative Commons Attribution. Wikimedia Commons.

Diwali Festival

Diwali: Festival of Lights. About Religion.

Seal Sukhadwala. “What’s eaten at Diwali.” The Guardian. Oct 25, 2011.

The post DIWALI – A FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

According to Feng Shui principles, January is “get organized month.” I guess it’s all those pristine new calendars – the ones we still buy even though our entire life is held captive by smart phones. When I think of getting organized, clearing my desk comes to mind. Simply shoving paper into drawers doesn’t count, by the way. I also go through the paper and have been having quite a lot of fun shredding. Did you know modern shredders can reduce paper to the size of a dust mite? Very cathartic.

Why bother? I’m glad you asked.

Nothing new, including positive energy, can flow into your life until you make room for it.

And clutter takes up a lot of room.

Did you know that the United States makes up almost 90 percent of the global market for self-storage units? In 2013 there were 48,000 self-storage facilities covering 2.3 billion square feet. That’s a lot of storage space.

For many people, self-storage units make life in the home less cluttered. Living in a small space may not allow storage for off-season sports equipment such as skis in summer. People move and/or downsize and can’t quite let go of excess items because, well, an extra trampoline might come in handy some day. Or not.

Methods for organizing closets are also big business.

 Many of us fantasize about the perfectly organized closet – the one where we can actually find something. According to the Freedonia Group, the demand for home organization products in the U.S. could grow 3.5 percent annually through 2019.

Disclosure: For the past several weeks I’ve been looking for the perfect way to organize my oddly shaped closet (part reach-in, part walk-in). I think the reason I’ve been looking so intently is procrastination, which is one of the primary reasons we retain clutter.

Other reasons we keep clutter include guilt, because we feel obligated to keep gifts or legacies. Then there’s the fear something may actually be valuable. I’m told this tends to kick in after watching an episode of Antiques Roadshow. My father suffered from the “it might come in handy someday” syndrome. No, it didn’t.

Some people organize their clutter by getting rid of their possessions entirely. Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus walked away from their highly paid jobs and life of stuff, because it wasn’t working for them. In 2009 the young men moved to a cabin in Montana and began calling themselves The Minimalists. They struck a chord among Americans. In 2014 their website had more than 2 million hits, although I’m not sure that translates into converts to the simple life.

What do you get without excess possessions? Joshua and Ryan suggests the most important things are not material. Health, relationships, passion for life, and experiences don’t take up space.

Sounds a bit stark to me. Nevertheless, I’ll do my best to create room for new experiences. I’ve got a book to research after all.

Shameless Self-Promotion: To my delight, Rama’s Labyrinth received a 5-star review in the San Francisco Book Review. Check it out.

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Featured Image: Author’s Desk

Photos:
Corridor of Self-Storage Units by Hankwang. Creative Commons Attribution. Wikimedia Commons.
Walk-in Closet by Wjablow. Creative Commons Attribution. Wikimedia Commons.

Kendra Bozarth. “The Growth of Self-Storage.”

Patrick Clark. “Hoarder Nations: America’s Self Storage Industry is Booming.” Bloomberg Business. Dec. 1, 2014.

Elizabeth Fenner. “The Top 7 Excuses for Clutter.” Real Simple.

Karen Kingston. Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui. NY: Broadway Books. 1997

Liam Pleven. “Need to Store That?” The Wall Street Journal. Oct. 13, 2015.

Josh Sanburn. “Minimalist Living: When a Lot Less is More.” Time. Mar. 12, 2015.

Feng Shui for Real Life.

Home Organization Products – Demand and Sales Forecasts. Freedonia. April 2015.

The Minimalists.

The post For Positive Energy: Get Rid of Clutter! first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.