The most dangerous kitchen tool is the finger guillotine - whoops I mean the mandoline.
It's can be SUPER useful to have around the kitchen if you want to cut produce super duper thin.
It's small and doesn't take up much space. If a recipe says you should have it, you should probably get one.
Before 1492, corn was exclusively a New World crop. Indigenous peoples across Central and North America had been growing and eating corn for thousands of years. Through generations of growing and eating corn, they knew something crucial that Europeans missed.
Indigenous peoples used a process called nixtamalization (hard to say, but bear with me.) This treatment process made all the nutrients bioavailable to the human body. Without it? You're basically eating empty calories that actually block your body from absorbing niacin, an essential B vitamin.
Nixtamazilation uses lime sourced fromleft over from fires, sprinkled into the corn as they cooked it. The lime breaks down parts of the corn that block absorption.
Enter the Europeans
When the europeans arrived in the Americas, they took one look at the corn and thought, "Holy shit, this stuff grows everywhere! It takes ages to go bad. We're def taking this back home with us."
Which they did. But in their excitement (and willful ignorance and arrogance), they completely ignored the processing methods indigenous people had been using for generations.
The Vampire Connection
People who relied heavily on improperly processed corn started developing pellagra, a disease caused by severe niacin deficiency. The symptoms? oh, just a casual list of vampire-like qualities:
- Extreme weight loss and wasting away
- Pale, photosensitive skin
- Bleeding gums
- Insomnia (not sleeping at night)
- Sensitivity to sunlight
Sound familiar? Yeah. These poor folks were essentially living out vampire folklore in real time, all because they didn't know how to properly treat their corn.
The disease was so widespread and the symptoms so disturbing that it likely contributed to vampire myths circulating through European communities in the 16th and 17th centuries. People were literally wasting away, looking gaunt and pale, bleeding from their mouths, and couldn't go out in daylight without pain.
The wildest part? This was entirely preventable. Indigenous Americans had the solution all along: nixtamalization.
So next time someone tries to tell you food history is boring, remind them that improper corn processing accidentally created vampires.
Further Reading
Mary Beth Lasseter
References
Rupp, R. (2011). How Carrots won the Trojan War: Curious (but True) Stories of Common Vegetables. Storey Publishing.
Folklore says: two professional recipe developers at Kellogg's created the Rice Krispie Treats to support a Campfire Girls troops fundraising effort.
Have you ever wondered what kickass human stumbled upon the glory that is the Rice Krispie Treat? Its butter. It's marshmallow. It's Rice Krispie. It comes together in 20 minutes or less. And, the homemade variety is 10x better than any store-bought kind.
In 1939, Mildred Day and Molita Jensen worked as modern-day recipe developers in the Kellogg's Test Kitchen. Throughout the 1900's most major food companies had a team of recipe developers staffed to create recipes utilizing their products. Some of the most famous and beloved recipes originate from these kitchen (Green Bean Casserole was invented by Campbells, Chocolate Chip Cookies by Toll House, etc.)
Back to the Rice Krispies at hand.
Kitchen folklore says it all started with Kellogg received a curious inquiry. A troop of Campfire Girls based in Kansas City were in desperate need of their next fundraising event. Ideally, they needed something easy, tasty and super delicious. The original recipe was less sweet than today's version and had added vanilla.
Mildred and Molita went to work. Eventually, they created the Rice Krispie treat. When the time came, Day went to Kansas City to support the fundraiser. She "brought along specially made baking trays and a giant mixer." The lore says she worked 16-hour days for 2 weeks straight to meet demand. The Rice Krispies Treats were a hit!
Kelloggs put the recipe on the cereal box in 1941 and the rest is history. It took another 50 years for Kelloggs to put out the prepackaged version.
Sources:
- Cookie trivia: Rice Krispie treats history. The Cookie Elf. (n.d.). http://www.cookie-elf.com/rice-krispie-treats.html#sthash.XfrIumAe.QxVZbkvL.dpbs
- Rice Krispies. In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rice_Krispies
- (2017, September 21). From the archives: Love Rice Krispies Treats? You have an Iowan to thank. The Des Moines Register. https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/entertainment/dining/2017/09/21/archives-love-rice-krispies-treats-you-have-iowan-thank/686025001/
- 1949 Rice Krispies ad