The Past-a

Kaitlin Schuler  

Mostaccioli. Orecchiette. Cavatelli. Macaroni. Tortellini. All these words rhyme, of course. But more importantly, all are types of pasta noodles, one of the most popular foods around the world today.

Pasta remains a staple to the diet of college students and lazier people of all ages. Boil some water, drop the dried noodles in, and wait only a few minutes before you’ve got soft, delicious shapes to serve with whatever suits you—vegetables, sauces, or (my personal favorite) olive oil. Boxes of any shaped noodles come reasonably priced: a two-pack of Barilla Angel Hair pasta costs $2.56! Macaroni noodles are famous from their use in Kraft Mac and Cheese, or for the on-the-go college kid, Kraft Easy Mac.

Where did this food come from, though? We all know that pasta came from Italy, but that’s about as far as the average person can go into the history of pasta. Let’s take it a little further here, so we can all be better informed about the food that aids us in our laziness and our desire to make a decent meal without too much effort.

Pasta is traditionally associated with Italian food, but it is actually extremely difficult to trace the origins of pasta. It is likely that the Italian version of the noodles were influenced by Asian noodles, commonly thought to have been brought to Italy by Marco Polo in the 13th century. Asian noodles were made with a barley-like substance, however—different from the process the Italians developed.

What we will refer to as pasta is made from unleavened dough consisting of water or eggs and ground durum wheat (see the PBS website below). The durum is what sets pasta apart from other noodles; it helps pasta have a long shelf life when dried and makes it easy to cook with just water—two qualities all stereotypical Americans like to have in their food. The less time it takes to cook, the more time we can spend being productive and changing the world! (Or, watching the last five episodes of House of Cards while thinking about starting your paper due tomorrow…)

In what was his most important contribution to American history, Thomas Jefferson actually helped pasta gain popularity in the United States while he was serving as Minister to France, where he fell in love with macaroni. This could have been any shape of pasta at the time, but he returned with two cases of the pasta and sent for more from a friend in Naples when he ran out.

Pasta was made to be eaten fresh and soon after it was made, but Americans have grown accustomed to eating dried pastas that we’ve imported from Italy. In actuality, many of the pasta companies now have outposts in the United States. Barilla, for example, makes most of the pasta sold in the United States at a plant in Iowa, with a few exceptions of pastas made in and shipped from Italy.

Like most foods when they initially became popular in America, pasta could only be afforded by the upper class until the time of the Civil War. Today, pasta can be dressed up extravagantly with a slew of seasonings and sauces that can include fancy wine and expensive spices. It can also go casual with just cheese or olive oil poured on top. There is a type of pasta out there for every person, even the pickiest of toddlers or the friends with gluten allergies.

Pasta has remained fairly the same throughout history, but Italian immigrants made some changes when they brought the noodles to America. First, meatballs were created because meat was less expensive in America than in Italy. Americans also added large portions and the seasonings of garlic, oregano, and chili pepper flakes to the tradition of pasta.

So, whether you like your noodles plain and simple like me, or covered in meatballs and sauce, we’re brought together by these simple strips and shapes of delicious dough. Next time you eat your Easy Mac for the fifth meal in a row, make sure to remember the history behind it.

References: http://civilwartalk.com/threads/history-of-pasta-in-america.75951/
http://www.barilla.com/faq
http://www.pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/uncover--the-history-of-pasta/

Super Bowls, Seahawks, and ¡SALSA!

Zoe Bauer  

If you’re a Broncos fan, salsa dipping and chip munching may have been the highlight of your Sunday evening. But for all viewers, salsa is a necessary component of Super Bowl Sunday. Scooping it is fun, eating it is delicious; what more could you want from a Super Bowl snack?

Yet it’s that question that irritates culinary enthusiasts, who long for the “all American” sports snack to return to its roots as a meticulously prepared, traditional Mexican dish. Here in the States, there aren’t any guidelines for salsa. Even the ordinary tomato-based salsa at the supermarket comes in countless varieties: spicy or mild, sweet or savory, thick or thin, and chunky or finely chopped. Outside the realm of tomato-based salsas, there are also black bean, peach, mango, pineapple, and even olive oil variations of the dip. And, as the variety in salsa ingredients has increased, so has the diversity in salsa’s dipping partners, ranging from the typical corn tortilla chip to celery or even to fried chicken. But despite the impressive creativity of American salsa producers, salsa aficionados should understand the true origins of the dip before plummeting their chips into it.

In its classical form, salsa is a delicacy. It’s used to complement the rich flavor of dense meats, such as veal or chorizo, or to be drizzled over a dish that may lack flavor, like a simple taco or tortilla. The word delicacy is key; salsa is used in moderation. In other words, people raised in Mexico would be shocked at the American tendency to load chips with spoon-full amounts of salsa.

Additionally, Mexican salsas possess a depth of flavor that American-made salsas often fail to mimic. Traditionally, each salsa ingredient is added merely to highlight the brilliant flavor of chili peppers. First, the type of chili is chosen; if fresh, chefs typically choose from serrano, jalapeño, poblano or habanero, and if dried, they have their choice of guajillo, cascabel, ancho, morita or chipotle. Different chilies are often mixed together in one salsa, but fresh chilies are almost never combined with dried ones. Then, additional ingredients are selected to emphasize certain aspects of the chilies that were chosen. Whether it has a salty, sweet or acidic vibe, the finished product includes a minimal amount of ingredients and gives off an intense amount of heat.

The depth of the salsa’s flavor is developed in its preparation. Ingredients can be soaked in spices or oils before the dish is put together, or the entire blend can be stored for multiple days before serving so that each element has time to influence the others. Chefs also play with variations of heat usage while making salsa. The sauce can be made completely in raw form (salsa cruda), with no ingredients that have been heated during or after the ingredients are combined, or can be prepared by cooking certain elements, either together or one at a time (salsa cocida). Julia Moskin discusses the difference between raw and cooked salsas in her article “Rediscovering Salsa, the Soul of Mexico in a Bowl”. She describes how raw salsas are “explosive, setting off fireworks of heat and acid in each bite”

So maybe authentic salsa isn’t meant for mindless dunking while rooting for your favorite team—for that we have American made salsas— but for your next “Taco Tuesday,” try incorporating a more authentic salsa into your Mexican-influenced meal. Check the labels for very few ingredients and some of the chilies mentioned above to know that a salsa is authentic; or try making your own! I recommend this recipe; it’s a salsa cocida using jalapeño peppers!

Doing Spaghetti with Style

Andre Bshara  

While you’re eating a bowl of this stuff, expect to get a little something on you. As you try to keep this food from falling off your fork, it’s almost impossible not to soil your brand new white t-shirt with some sauce. The food that I’m talking about, possibly one of the most entertaining foods to eat, is spaghetti. Spaghetti with meatballs is a go-to meal for many chefs, but you can prepare your spaghetti in so many other ways. Notice that none of these methods make eating spaghetti cleaner. In fact, they create a very chaotic dish.

If you’re in the right mood, getting messy with spaghetti is, strangely, fun. The getting down and dirty portion of your meal should occur during, what I like to call, the “slurpation” process. Quite self-explanatory, slurpation is when you vacuum up pieces of spaghetti one strand at a time. While you do this, the tail end of the pasta hanging from your mouth tends to swing back and forth—the faster you slurp, the more violent the swing. Slurp with caution, if you’re a little girl. I’ve heard of some people going through great measures to avoid getting messy. These measures usually involve putting a napkin on their laps and even cutting up the pasta into smaller, more controllable pieces. Although I can’t bash these people’s livelihoods, I can tell them to loosen up a bit. Have some fun—get some food on your clothes.

Some people put ketchup on their spaghetti, though I don’t understand it. If you want more tomato, add more sauce, which has ingredients to make the spaghetti better. Better yet, get a hot dog and put ketchup on that if you love ketchup so much.

Personally, I like garlic bread with my pasta. And no, I don’t eat it like a high-class woman who is afraid of anything slightly unsanitary. I make a spaghetti-garlic bread sandwich. I usually end up licking sauce off of my hands, just because I don’t want to waste any. By doing this, I use one less napkin, and I get more sauce in my belly, benefiting both nature and my mental state. Get at me.

If you’re feeling pretty crazy, then you may follow in the footsteps of Buddy the Elf from the famous Christmas movie, “Elf.” Make it a savory and sweet experience by adding Pop-Tarts, chocolate syrup, and any variation of candy you can think of to your noodles. If you’re wild enough to try this, then you probably won’t mind eating it with your hands. And while you’re doing that, put on an elf’s suit and some green tights. That’ll make you feel ridiculous.

Celebrity Demands

Emily Kastl  

We’ve all heard stories about outlandish celebrity demands: floor-to-ceiling white dressing rooms, constant room temperatures of exactly 73 degrees—you get the idea. Pampered celebs are used to all their demands being met, no matter how bizarre, and food appears to be no exception.

An article from The Daily Meal outlines some of the weirdest backstage ration requirements. Undeniable senses of entitlement aside, perhaps it becomes acceptable to request 7 (but absolutely not 9) grains in one’s bread after selling millions of albums or winning multiple Oscars.

Ever wonder what Jennifer Hudson, spokeswoman for Weight Watchers, craves after a show? Answer: baked hot wings.

What does swooner Michael Bublé expect to see upon his arrival to a performance? “One bottle of premium single malt scotch and a local team hockey puck,” of course.

If you’re thinking about having T.I stop by for a performance, get ready to drop some major dough. Be prepared to have nine filet mignons (at exactly 9 oz a piece), Grey Goose, Patrón, and Rémy Martin VSOP on hand. If that sounds like too much preparation, T.I will graciously accept a $1,000 prepaid bar tab instead. What a guy…

Ever the altruist, Katy Perry requests her and her staff are provided with SIGG water bottles at all times in order to minimize their carbon foot prints. Oh, and while you’re out picking up those water bottles, don’t forget to pick up some freeze-dried strawberries!

The late-great Whitney Houston requested “M&Ms, peanut butter cups, Butterfingers, Raisinets, as well as shrimp cocktail, crab legs, sweet and sour chicken or shrimp, spring rolls, and shrimp fried rice” on her Southeast Asia tour. Maybe Ms. Houston was really saving all her love for her after-show munchies!

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, these celebs are apparently creatures of habit who know exactly what they want. If you take anything away from this article, for the love of god, do not—I repeat, DO NOT—try to serve Selena Gomez her turkey sandwiches on Wonder Bread.

Righty—Hungry, Lefty—Full?

Emily Kastl  

Since snacking is a favorite past-time for many, we often find ourselves sitting in front of the TV, hand mindlessly passing from chip bag to mouth. This comforting cycle can sometimes last the duration of an hour-long show and before we know it, our hand is brushing the bottom of the bag desperately searching for any last morsels.

Since we become classically conditioned to snack over time, this question may seem a bit odd: which hand are you using as the primary transporter of your snacks?

An interesting study from the University of Southern California has been receiving some media face time recently due to its remarkable results. According to this study, people who used their non-dominant hand during nosh sessions consumed 30% less calories than those who employed their usual method.

So, what makes this seemingly arbitrary approach so effective? When we throw a kink in an automatic process – like snacking – our brain gets knocked off course and causes us to become aware of our behavior. This can prompt us to feel fuller sooner, resulting in fewer chips consumed.

The actual details of the 3-part study are pretty clever, too; participants sat in a dark movie theater, watched trailers and snacked on popcorn. The purpose of the dark theater was to create an automatic atmosphere, since many of us associate movies with mindless munching.

In part three of the study some participants were directed to snack with their non-dominant hand while in the movie theater. For those who had previously reported frequent movie time popcorn pig outs, the total amount consumed was 30% less than that of part one of the study.

So the next time you eagerly tear open a bag of cheese puffs, resist the urge to dive in with your dominant hand; you might find yourself reaching for the chip clip much sooner.