Food Trivia Questions
Food trivia questions about ice-cream sodas, George Washington Carver, Fannie Farmer, Gerber's, Frankfurters and more.
How did the ice-cream sundae get its name?
A: The sundae was created in Evanston, Illinois, in the late
nineteenth century to get around a Sabbath ban on selling ice-cream
sodas. It was dubbed Sunday but spelled with an "e" instead of
a "Y" to avoid religious objections.
Who introduced standardized level measurements to recipes?
A: Fannie Farmer.
With whom did the shallow champagne glass originate?
A: With Marie Antoinette, from wax molds made of her breasts.
Who introduced table knives in the seventeenth century?
A: Cardinal Richelieu. Daggers were in fashion at the dinner table
until he became disgusted with their use as toothpicks and ordered
knives with rounded ends.
What did blind cellar master Dom Perignon say when he discovered
Champagne in 1668?
A: " Oh, come quickly. I am drinking stars!
What nation produces two thirds of the world's vanilla?
A: Madagascar, the world's fourth-largest island (after Greenland,
New Guinea and Borneo).
What now famous chef joined the OSS (Office of Strategic
Services) during World War II, hoping to become an American spy?
A: Julia Child.
How did the Gatorade fruit drink get its name?
A: From the University of Florida football team--the Gators--after
the team tested it.
Why did candy maker Milton S. Hershey switch from making caramels
to chocolate bars in 1903?
A: Caramels didn't retain the imprint of his name in summertime;
chocolate did.
What fruits were crossed to produce the nectarine?
A: None. The nectarine is a smooth-skinned variety of peach, and
not--as many people believe--a cross between a peach and a plum.
What was used to make the coffee substitute given to American
soldiers during World War II?
A: Peanuts. It was one of hundreds of peanut by-products
developed by Tuskegee University scientist George Washington Carver.
What food product was discovered because of a long camel ride?
A: Cottage cheese. An Arab trader found that milk he was carrying in
a goatskin bag had turned into tasty solid white curds.
What does cookbook author Julia Child claim is "so beautifully
arranged on the plate--you know someone's fingers have been all over
it"?
A: Nouvelle cuisine.
The peanut isn't a nut. What is it?
A: A legume-- a member of the pea family.
Where were the first frankfurters sold in the United States?
A: At Coney Island, in Brooklyn, New York, in 1871. They were made
by Charles Feltmann, a butcher from Frankfurt, Germany.
Wild rice isn't rice. What is it?
A: A coarse, annual grass native to shallow, marshy lakes and
streams.
Who is credited with having invented the Manhattan cocktail, a
combination of sweet vermouth and rye whiskey?
A: Winston Churchill's Brooklyn-born mother, Jennie Jerome.
For over fifty years, Ann Turner Cook's portrait has been the
symbol for what well-known food product?
A: Gerber's baby food.
What part of the traditional Thanksgiving dinner is the
merrythought?
A: The wishbone of the turkey.
What is the name of the evergreen shrub from which we get
capers?
A: The caper; or caper bush.
What is the largest fruit crop on earth?
A: Grapes, followed by bananas.
