A Few Fun Food Facts

This experiment has made me much more curious about our food, so I've been doing a little research. Some of the more interesting facts so far:

* Some Native Americans believed that they could prevent cutworms from damaging their vegetables by having a squaw walk naked in the garden under a bright moon while dragging her clothes behind her. Anyone want to bet that it was a man who came up with that one?

* The rise in popularity of coffee houses created a subsequent rise in intellectual debate in coffee houses. Apparently the quality of intellectual discussions in ale houses left something to be desired

* Twinkies originally had a banana filling, but it was changed to vanilla due to the scarcity of bananas during WWII

* The Three Musketeers bar was originally 3 pieces of candy--chocolate, strawberry & vanilla. The chocolate was the most popular, and when wartime sugar restrictions began, the less popular flavors were phased out

* According to one book, phenylethylamine (PEA) is supposed to be the chemical in chocolate that puts the chocolate-eater into a happy state of mind similar to falling in love, is actually found in greater qualtity in sausage and cheese. So, next Valentine's Day, you might think Hickory Farms versus Godiva. And maybe some breath mints.....

* That white rind found on brie is edible, but as it's produced by spraying the surface of the cheese with a mold, called penicillium candidum, before the cheese is aged briefly, it really depends on how comfortable you are with consuming mold. I have no idea if it helps you get over diseases.

* In Tudor England, fresh fruit was thought to be bad for you, and fruit was only consumed after it was baked into a pie or tart.

* "American" cheese is not really a true cheese--it's natural cheese with emulsifiers, stabilizers & flavor enhancers added for a shelf-stable, mass-producable product. Figures.

* Chocolate really doesn't cause acne. My face just believes it does