Have you ever wondered how your favorite foods were invented?
Most of us have actually in one way or the other, tried to experiment with food hoping to discover something new. We are living in the world where we are surrounded by countless types of food raging from solid to liquid to semi solid foods. Majorly food either come from plants or animals but it may not be interesting if we just harvest our farm produce or slaughter animals just to eat them directly. Experimenting and trying to combine one food with another is what makes it fun. There have been several reports of how dumb experiments led to inventions of amazing dishes and several cuisines allover the world.
Ice Cream Cones
In 1904, Arnold Fornachou created ice cream cones—with some help from a fellow vendor. Business was booming on that hot summer day, and eventually, Arnold ran out of plastic cups in which to serve his mouthwatering ice cream. Luckily, a pastry chef was selling pastries nearby and came to Arnold’s rescue.
The pastry chef had some waffles left over. He showed Arnold how to roll them up to form a cone-like shape that would easily hold a good amount of ice cream. This was a delicious way to serve ice cream, and Arnold’s customers loved it.
Today, ice cream is served in wafer cones, waffle cones, kiddie cones, and even waffle cone bowls. We can all thank Arnold Fornachou and the pastry chef for this great invention.
The Sandwich
In the 1700s, John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, discovered that two slices of bread with lettuce, tomatoes, onion, and mustard inside tasted delicious. His story, you ask? There are many versions that suggest why and how the sandwich was made.
One popular tale is that John Montagu gambled a lot. It took up so much of his time that he could not possibly leave an intense card game. So he often requested that meat be brought to him between two thin slices of bread. That way, he could eat a meal without using a fork or getting his hands dirty by directly touching the meat.
Another version of the story is that Montagu sat at his desk for hours, trying to create a utensil-free meal that could fill up his stomach and still be easy to eat. Eventually, he came up with the sandwich.
As time went on, people thought of the different types of sandwiches that we eat today. People now fill sandwiches with meat, veggies, sauces, and even different types of sweets.
Potato Chips
In 1853, George Crum worked at Moon’s Lake House near Saratoga Springs. He was a chef and wanted to fulfill his customers’ orders without any flaws. One day, a loyal customer ordered a batch of fried potatoes but did not enjoy their thickness. So he sent them back to the kitchen to be remade—but thinner.
His request was taken seriously, and the cook fulfilled his second order. Unfortunately, the second batch was not to the customer’s standards. This happened one or two times, each batch not being thin enough for the customer’s liking.
Tired of the complaints, George took a potato and sliced it as thin as he possibly could, knowing that this had to be the order that the customer would like to eat. George fried and salted the potato slices, trying his hardest to make them as delicious as possible.
He brought them out to the customer and hoped that this batch would be satisfactory. The customer loved them, and this new food was named the potato chip.
Corn Flakes
In the 19th century, William and John Kellogg invented corn flakes. These two brothers worked at Battle Creek Sanitarium, where vegetarianism and knowing how to be healthy were very important.
One day, the Kelloggs were looking for a substitute for bread. First, they boiled wheat. Unfortunately (but fortunately for us), they boiled the wheat too long. When they rolled it out, it fell into many flakes. Lastly, they baked it—and poof! Out came the bread flakes!
Many people thought that this was delicious, but the Kelloggs knew that they could make it better. The brothers substituted corn for wheat, and corn flakes were born.
Slurpees
In the late 1950s, Omar Knedlik invented the treat we all know and love—Slurpees. You may have had this delicious drink as a refreshment at the movie theater or as a yummy dessert. But did you know the story behind the invention of the Slurpee?
Knedlik owned a Dairy Queen franchise. Compared to today, the shop’s machines were not quite as reliable. One day, the soda fountain wasn’t working so Knedlik stuck bottles of soda in the freezer. He kept them in a bit long, and the liquid became slushy and solid. He served the concoction to his customers, and surprisingly, they loved it.
Knedlik continued to receive requests for this slushy soda, and he proceeded to call it a Slurpee!
Coca-Cola
In 1886, John Pemberton invented Coca-Cola. He was a wounded veteran who was addicted to morphine. Pemberton wanted to create a replacement for the morphine to alleviate his addiction. He experimented many times until he devised a formula with small amounts of cocaine and kola nut.
To this day, Coca-Cola is a well-known soda brand that is sold throughout the world. You can get this drink at the movie theater, at a festival, at the store to take home with you, or anywhere else you can possibly think of!
Chocolate Chip Cookies
In 1930, Ruth Wakefield invented the chocolate chip cookie. You may be wondering how such a delicious treat could have been created by complete mistake. But, of course, it was. Surprisingly enough, she and her loving husband owned a tourist lodge called the Toll House Inn.
One day at the inn, she was making chocolate cookies for her many guests and discovered that she had run out of baker’s chocolate, one of the key ingredients. Instead of running to the store to grab more baker’s chocolate, she chopped up some Nestle chocolate and put it into the cookie batter.
She assumed that the Nestle chocolate would spread out to create a whole chocolate cookie when it was baked in the oven. Instead, she invented the chocolate chip cookie. This one little mistake created greatness in America’s food history.
