Hungry for a book that's light yet nourishing? Then consider a taste of "The American Plate: A Culinary History in 100 Bites," written by the History Channel's chief historian, Libby H. O'Connell. It's a great summer read that mixes fact, humor and illustration to tell the story of American history and social change through food and food trends, from Native American pemmican to the current craze for super foods.
I have a weakness for culinary histories, both popular and academic. This book is of the popular variety; its 10 chapters offer fascinating stories in one- to three-page "bites." Interspersed with the main text on almost every page are shorter bites presented in boxes, such as President Abraham Lincoln's favorite dessert (a white almond cake served with cherry ice cream) and origin stories for American standards such as Cheez Whiz, Cracker Jack, Jell-O, Coca-Cola, TV dinners, Wonder Bread, Spam and Hershey bars. If you need recipes for roast beaver tail or eel pie, or maybe Red Cross Cake and WPA Soup, you can find them here.
History takes on a new flavor when the focus is food. For example, we learn Native Americans preferred fatty meat and valued bear fat, which was rendered into a lubricant for wounds and a cosmetic preparation for skin and hair. They also preserved meat in strips for times of low food supply, a product familiar to us today as jerky. Colonial cuisine featured substantial use of corn, introduced to colonists by native farmers, along with squash and beans. Pork was the meat of choice for early settlers, given that pigs were easy to raise and fattened on corn. The abundant use of pork also gave rise to the development of barbecue and its regional variations.
The increasing numbers of immigrants from countries other than northern Europe brought their own food traditions, which were often looked upon with suspicion by those higher up on the social ladder - "those who came before." This includes the garlic and olive oil favored by southern Europeans, the use of peppers and spices in Hispanic cuisine, or the foodstuffs and kitchen techniques preferred by Asians. In time, Americans came to embrace a more diverse diet; but, as the author says, "distaste toward foreign foods from immigrant groups is a tradition in this country."
A few other highlights provide further hints at what you'll find in this mini-encyclopedia:
Thomas Jefferson enjoyed macaroni and served it at Monticello.
European settlers desired "wheaten" bread, and eventually, regions produced enough soft wheat for local use in breads and pastry and for export. The author notes even in ancient Rome, white bread was associated with cleanliness and upper-class eating habits. Contrast that attitude with today's artisan whole grain breads, which are often considered elitist, although healthy.
Sylvester Graham, a minister, promoted graham bread (graham crackers) and "granula," a cold cereal, to reduce excessive sexual desire.
And yes, early Coca-Cola included flavoring from coca leaves, the source of cocaine, but this flavoring was removed in 1903.
Open up this book at any page, and you'll find something of interest, whether it's the importance of liquor to early settlers and later immigrants, early food advertisements, diet fads through the years, the emergence of the slow food movement - page after page of America's wonderful food heritage.
Madeline Matson is a reference and adult programming librarian at Missouri River Regional Library.