Whaddya Think, Doctor Fink?

  Every year three billion fortune cookies are made. The largest, according to Guinness World Records, weighed over three pounds. The average sits in the palm of your hand. Whether dining at a fancy restaurant or munching from white-and-red takeout cartons, fortune cookies are the beloved “dessert” after a Chinese dinner. Chinese? Brace yourself. While Chinese fortune cookies have many different stories, one fact remains uncontested. Chinese fortune cookies are Japanese. Riddles, April fools’ jokes, and fake news aside, people

Food historians believe it dates back 8,700 years. A few years ago, Joey Chestnut, the champion of food eating contests, swallowed 32 servings of this snack in 8 minutes. A recent survey found that 92% of Americans can’t get enough of it, munching 17 billion quarts a year. Author Lexi Jacobs reported that it would fill the Empire State Building eighteen times. Have you figured it yet? It originally came from teosinte, a large wild grass native to Mexico, Guatemala,

  In Cantonese (China) they’re called cloud swallows because they float like tiny clouds in soup. Sichuan cuisine calls them folded arms. In Mandarin they’re huntun. In English they’re wontons. What’s a wonton? It’s simple. Take thin dough, add filling, and fold them in a variety of styles. Cook or steam in broth, deep fry in oil, or bake. There are fried wontons, crab Rangoon (fried wontons filled with cream cheese and crab), wonton skin pizza, and strawberry Nutella wontons.

  That is the question. After all, who wouldn’t want to take credit for 197 million birds eaten each day around the world? Fried chicken is everywhere. From popular restaurants, fast food, frozen, and homemade, it’s a global favorite. There are drumsticks, tenders, breasts, nuggets, sandwiches, and just about anything a creative chef can invent. Check out U.S. National Fried Chicken Day (July) or indulge in fried chicken like yangnyeom (Korea), karaage (Japan), pollo frito (Italy), and yassa (Senegal). The

  What’s a hushpuppy? It’s not my noisy dog but a simple, deep-fried cornbread “cake” iconic in southern-style cooking. The name is almost as good as the food. According to author and editor Jorie Nicole McDonald, when it comes to hushpuppies “It’s all about fried food and a good story.” There are so many good stories that it’s nearly impossible to separate fact from fiction. Which only proves that this crispy cornbread fritter has delighted our taste buds and imaginations

  What’s your fancy – brownie points, an old camera, or ugly mythical creatures that love to clean house at night? They’re all brownies but not the yummy chocolate treat we love today.  Americans chow down 1.4 billion edible brownies a year in different flavors, shapes, and sizes. Where did it begin? In the case of brownies no one knows for sure. Fortunately, fiction is often more fun than fact. Which brings us to the question – were brownies a

What’s your fancy – brownie points, an old camera, or ugly mythical creatures that love to clean house at night? They’re all brownies but not the yummy chocolate treat we love today. Americans chow down 1.4 billion edible brownies a year in different flavors, shapes, and sizes. Where did it begin? In the case of brownies no one knows for sure. Fortunately, fiction is often more fun than fact. Which brings us to the question – were brownies a mistake,

What in the world is choux? Choux is a unique dough made from butter, water, flour, and eggs. There’s no baking powder, soda, or yeast. The dough is mixed and piped into long, finger-like shapes and baked at a high temperature. The steam inside makes it rise. The end result is a hollow golden shell, ready to be filled. Choux is an old-world pastry that can be traced back to Catherine de Medici, Queen of France (1547-1559) who wanted to

What’s your favorite? Sharp cheddar or pepper jack? Honey gouda or cave-aged gruyere? American or Swiss? Imagine the cheese that you’re eating was first made nearly 8,000 years ago. People ate cheese before they started to record history. That’s a long time ago. No one knows where cheese originated but it was probably from a lot of different places at the same time. Let’s go back to the prehistoric Neolithic world, about 12,000 years ago. After the end of the

  Cheese begins with milk. Do you prefer cow or goat milk? Sheep or water buffalo? How about camel, yak, or moose? You might want to try donkey or reindeer . . . Cheese is one of the most popular foods in the world. You can eat it straight, melt it, spice it, or add it to endless recipes. Where the milk comes from and how the cheese is produced affects the flavor, texture, and intensity. You can make it