food museum blog

Athens Olympics Closes in Wheatfield

In terms of food imagery, the Athens games were our favorite from start to finish. See our blogs on the use of the olive branch as a symbol of the games.....olive wreaths crowning winners; the torch was inspired by an olive leaf.

The entire closing ceremony used wheat as a symbol. The companion jumbo screen showed a golden wheatfield video. Among other things, the final ceremonies of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games featured 100 “koudounatoi” - a Greek custom with direct origins in the Bacchic rituals of ancient times, as well as a line of 60 Pontos dancers, doing one of the most powerful Greek dances. All was taged in a spiral field of golden stylized "wheat" made of 45,000 stalks.

Here's an explanation for the choice of wheat: (excerpted from the Official Guide to the Closing Ceremony):

A golden spiral wheat field at the centre of the stadium formed the centerpiece of the programme. Made up of 45,000 individually ‘planted’ stalks, it covered an area of almost 6,000 sq. metres. It took 100 man-hours to ‘plant’ the wheat stalks.

The spiral wheat field was chosen because, in Greek folklore, golden wheat is the “fruit of the marriage between the earth and the sun”.

In Greek festivities, “wheat symbolised the fertility of the earth, the awakening of life that arises from death”.

According to the Technical Director of the ceremony, “The spiral represents the notion of infinity, a form that frequently recurs in nature. Our galaxy is spiral in form.”

The programme started with a colourful and vibrant ‘mosaic of celebrations’ a medley of ancient, traditional and popular Greek music with the synopsis,“May the dances last forever”.

The theme was “May God keep us healthy, so we can always meet and celebrate, dancing in circles as free as a river.”

"The Opening Ceremony was a celebration of humanity while the Closing Ceremony will be a warm and human celebration. It will be like an invitation to eat, drink and dance and sing with us, the Greek way. It will feature a colourful mosaic, compiled of pieces of Greek celebrations gathered from all regions of Greece featuring a fast edit of a constant flow, like rivers of energy, of 2,100 volunteers." according to an official press briefing.

The image (above right) of Demeter, the Greek goddess of agriculture carrying wheat sheaves, is from:http://www.geschiedenisvoorkinderen.nl/Griekengoden.htm

Image above left is from the BBC:

Did you watch? What did you think of the wheat imagery? Did you cook or eat anything Greek during the two week Olympic run?

Carrot Parades in NYC Protest

We saw at least one vegetable among the massive street theater protest that paraded past the Madison Square Garden site of the Republican National Convention that begins Monday.

A bright orange carrot bearing the sign "Carrot2004.com."

Seems carrot is running for President, the PETA/vegetarian candidate. Click here for Carrot's theme song.(Once the song loads you can diminish and continue viewing the blog or whatever.)

Did anyone see any other food related demonstrations during the C-Span three hour plus coverage?

Food Business Profits--Fat or Lean

"Is the food industry part of the solution or the problem?" asks a NY Times headline. Here's an excerpt from the article by reporter Dan Buss.

"A new obsession of America's food, beverage and restaurant companies is thwarting childhood obesity. With more nutritious products, healthier menus and new activity programs, the companies have begun a big push aimed at the youngest generation.

Frito-Lay is offering reduced-fat Doritos in school lunch rooms. Oscar Mayer has added apple sauce and other healthy choices to its Lunchables meal-kit line. Kraft has come out with a sugarless Kool-Aid that is being marketed in magazines like Diabetic Cooking and Diabetes Forecast.

Among restaurant chains, Wendy's has slipped orange slices into children's meals, and Denny's has made French fries much harder to find on its menu than new side dishes of fruits and vegetables.

And, this fall, Coca-Cola is helping finance a new after-school fitness program."The big idea is to give kids education, motivation and access to ways to change," said Brock Leach, the chief innovations officer at PepsiCo, which owns Frito-Lay. "The food business can play a very constructive role in that, making these foods available to kids and marketing them in ways that make a healthier lifestyle more attractive."

For decades, of course, the industry has been known for serving up sugary or fat-laden products, promoted with ceaseless advertising. And despite all the new, healthier options, that will not change. "If they stop, their competitors are right there and will fill the void," said Dr. Walter Willett, chief of the nutrition department at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Critics say these companies are taking a new direction only to escape or mitigate possible court verdicts that could blame the food industry for the fact that about 15 percent of American youth now are plumper than they should be, more than double the proportion of 25 years ago. "There are hordes of lawyers looking at the industry's marketing practices in a way that's never happened before," said Marion Nestle, a nutrition professor at New York University."

Better late than never that food companies develop and market healthier foods for kids? Or is it simply the parents' fault that they have overweight kids? What's your reaction to this trend? Leave a comment below.

Frito Pie

Frito Pie memories and recipe discussed here. ( The writer seems to have grown up in New Mexico and now lives in the Philadelphia area. ) Your blog host grew up in the Philly area and now lives in NM.

Last weekend I photographed a Santa Fe woman taking a break from Indian Market to eat a Frito Pie served out of an actual Frito package. She told me that though the old Woolworth's on the Plaza was gone, they still make Frito Pies at the rear of the old store.

The recipe for Frito Pie may originate with Teresa Hernandez who worked at the Santa Fe Woolworth's counter in the 1960's. Other food historians contend it was a popular dish in Texas for generations. Elmer Doolin was so inspired by his frito pie lunch one dayin San Antonio that he paid $100 for the recipe. He experimented with mass producing the frito corn chip base of the dish and started the Frito part of what became Frito-Lay Corporation in Dallas in the 1930's.

Basically, you spread three cups of corn chips in a baking dish. Sprinkle a half cup of chopped onion and and half cup of grated Cheddar cheese, pour 3 cups of chili over that, and top with another cup of chips and onions and cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Now as to the Santa Fe version which comes in the Frito bag? Stay tuned.

What are your minor food passions or occasional food indulgences....possibly stemming from your childhood?

Revelers Wage Tomato War in Spain

La Tomatina, the infamous, tomato epic battle held annually in Bunol, Spain has colored the world's websites (including ours) with red. Click here to see the latest batch from Google images. The headline above comes from the AP via the NY Times.

Tomatina numbers:
--it began in 1940 with a teenage lunchtime food fight in the town square;
--1941 same guys met next year last Wed of Aug to pelt passersby with tomatoes;
--town provides 500 makeshift showers for revelers to clean up;
--10,000 pop of Bunol;
--36,000 record setting people participated this year;
--140 tons of ripe tomatoes.

The Food Museum's tomato exhibit is here.

The BBC has a saucy red photo gallery of the event.

Olympians Mad About Melons: One Chef's Perspective

Here's one chef's perspectives:

Warren Conference Center Executive Chef Todd Boule has cooked for crowds at the country's top restaurants and glittering events, but he has never gone through 2,700 melons in a day.

The melons are one of the hottest items, Boule said, at the Olympic Village's casual dining outlet in Athens, Greece, where he is working as senior executive chef. The athletes are also keen on carbohydrates, going through 500 pounds of rice a day.

"It's phenomenal some of the volume we're going through," Boule said in a telephone interview yesterday. "It makes me feel great to be a part of that. I can serve them great food and give them good nutrition. It's fantastic."

The casual dining facility is open 10 a.m. to 1 a.m. and is set up like an informal Greek "taverna," said Boule. It serves lunch and dinner to about 700 people, peaking with an estimated 10,000 meals daily, he said.

"The main dining room seats about 5,500," said Boule. "They're not in a rush when they come here."

Pizza is also a popular menu item, and Boule said every offering has a nutrition information label to go with it.

Preparing meals for crowds is not that much different than cooking for intimate groups, Boule said. Organization is key, said Boule, who is managing four executive chefs, five sous chefs (assistant chefs) and about 110 cooks.

"You still have attention to detail, but it's a little different," said Boule. "It's managing the masses."

One organizational challenge revolves around the daily food deliveries, Boule said. Security precautions, including scanning food trucks with X-rays prior to entering the Olympic Village, take extra time, he said.

Boule thought language would be the biggest problem in the kitchen, but the English- and Greek-speaking workers have found common ground, he said.

"We speak the language of food," said Boule. "It's like watching a ballet now here in the kitchen."

Boule said he usually works 38-hour shifts, then sleeps nine hours and begins again. The long days are worth it to make sure the games run smoothly, he said.

"It's making sure my staff has the tools they need to serve great meals," said Boule. "I know it's only for 20 days, and it's not going to kill me."

And this from the Philadelphia Daily News, Aug 18, 2004:

1. You would have to eat an entire meal every 2.5 seconds for 60 days straight to equal the 2 million meals that will be consumed in the Olympic Village during the Summer Games.

2. It will require a crew of more than 2,000 - including 50 chefs and 700 cooks - to satisfy the cravings of hungry Olympians; that's nearly four times the number of athletes in the U.S. Olympic delegation.

3. One of the world's first cookbooks was written in the 5th century B.C. by a Greek named Archestratus. It was called "Gastronomia." That's where the word "gastronomy" comes from.

4. If you laid out all of the bread being served during the Athens Summer Games, it would cover 6 ½ basketball courts.

5. All of the bananas to be consumed in the Olympic Village, if lined end to end, would cover the marathon route three times over. (That route, by the way, follows part of the original path run by the messenger Phidippides in 490 B.C.)

6. Athens powerlifter Pyrros Dimas won Olympic gold in Sydney by snatching 187.25 pounds. He would have to lift 1,202 times that to equal the weight of all the seafood that will be consumed in the Olympic Village.

7. The 6.65 million bottles of water that will hydrate athletes in the Olympic Village could fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

8. It would take the average American 1,264 years to consume the amount of potatoes that will be eaten during the Summer Games.

9. If you put all the eggs Olympians will consume end to end...you could circle the Olympic track 34,895 times.

10. Aramark/Dasko company will go through enough cheese to top more than 100,000 pizzas.

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Researcher Urgently Seeks Info: Collegiate Food Services

Remember "Mystery Meat?" Anyone who went to college in the 1960's surely recalls that delectable dorm cafeteria offering, as well as "the white meal," a pallid plate of white meat, white potatoes with white gravy, and cauliflower.
( Or maybe it was just my school...)

Anyway, maybe alert bloggers can assist Lee Krehbiel with the following:

"I am exploring the history of university/collegiate food service....
The project begins with the rise of
universities (named later) around the 12th century and going through
the emergence of massive contractors on the 20th. We are not limiting
ourselves to universities in the West, although that will be our
primary focus. Anecdotes, food products associated with an institution of
higher education, stories of food rebellions, etc., are all of
interest.

Many thanks. "

Lee Krehbiel, Ph.D. krehlee@isu.edu
Assistant Dean, Student Affairs
Idaho State University
208 282 2794

Fueling Olympians: Philly's Aramark Corp's 13th Olympic Catering Gig

Philadelphia's Aramark Corporation is fueling their 13th group of Olympians this week in Athens. Here's an article with how they are doing it.....50 chefs, 700 cooks, 16,000 athletes, each burning an average 5,000 calories per day, 75,000 meals daily, 45 tons of ingredients, 50 entree buffet line etc.

Grub for the games

CENTER CITY COMPANY FEEDING ATHLETES AT OLYMPICS 24/7

By APRIL LISANTE

adamsoa@phillynews.com

WHEN AN OLYMPIC track runner is jonesing for a midnight snack of, say, four bagels or six bowls of cereal, or a gymnast wants two pizzas in one sitting, nobody better get between them and the food.

The same might be said of the 50 chefs, 700 cooks and assorted other kitchen staff from Center City's Aramark Corp. who face an Olympic challenge of their own: preparing enough food to satisfy 16,000 athletes who are burning an average of 5,000 calories daily during the 17-day athletic competition under way in Greece.

This is Aramark's 13th Olympic catering gig, so they have the monstrous task down to a science. They spent months perfecting recipes for a cafeteria that's open every day, 24 hours a day, serving 75,000 meals a day - that's 45 tons of food - in a massive, tented dining hall in the Olympic Village. At prime mealtimes, 6,000 coaches, volunteers and athletes create a frenzied din as they work the 50-entree buffet line for unlimited eats.

You've seen some of these buff young competitors on TV. Would you stop them from having seconds? Or thirds?

"They eat an incredible amount of protein and vegetables and fruits," said Bridgett Stapleton, director of operations for Aramark in the Olympic Village. "It's something to see, how much they eat. When we have steak, I would normally have one. They have no problem asking for three or four at a time."

It makes a village

Most people envision the Olympic Village as a temporary cluster of tents. But it's more like a complete city of 27,000 residents, with an infrastructure that will remain standing long after the Olympics end and the athletes leave.

The village, 10 miles north of downtown Athens, has hundreds of townhouses for coaches and athletes. But none of the units has a kitchen, which sends everybody to the culinary tent complex - five tents, each the size of a football field. Four offer seated dining; one is for kitchen prep. It has 60 ovens and, at any given time, about 100 chefs working inside.

Aramark, which is partnering with a Greek food company, Dasko, began testing recipes at its culinary center in Old City's Bourse in January.

"We have been testing and retesting foods to please people from so many different nations, 202 in all," said Marc Bruno, vice president of the international group for Aramark.

A marathon of a day

The day can't start at a certain time for the Aramark chefs because it never officially ends.

Breakfast begins at 6 a.m. and runs through 10:30 a.m., the first feasting session for the athletes in Olympic Village. From 10:30 to 5 p.m., an extended lunch is served, then dinner takes over until midnight.

A late-night comfort food menu is offered from midnight to 7 a.m.

"It's pretty much packed all the time in here," said Stapleton. "Even when it's down time and we're transitioning between meals, we have 1,500 or 2,000 people eating."

Athletes come in at 2 a.m. looking for deep-dish pizza, or steak and eggs. Oddly enough, this Olympic games, athletes are opting for proteins and not as much pasta, chefs said.

To keep things running smoothly around the clock, a daytime prep crew breaks into 10 teams to staff 10 food stations, from vegetables to desserts.

Each team has six stoves and ovens. The staff responsible for cold entrees works inside a refrigerator - wearing jackets.

"They don't get to see much of the gorgeous, sunny Greek weather," said Stapleton.

Chowing down

Each day, hot and cold buffets are offered to athletes. On the cold buffet, they can find dozens of salads, cheeses and meats. The hot buffet offers 50 entrees at each meal, and the menu always changes between lunch and dinner.

Among the athletes' favorites: Brazilian fish stew, Moroccan lemon chicken and bougatsa (a phyllo dough-wrapped cream pie).

There's a strong Greek accent to many of the dishes because Aramark chefs have to rely on local produce and spices. They tested this in advance, too, on the nearby island of Crete, to assure that the recipes they'd developed here in Philly would work well with Greek ingredients.

"Crete is so well-known for its cuisine," said Stapleton. "It has produce farms, dairy farms, fabulous foods. Aramark chefs from Philly adapted their recipes to fit the Mediterranean grocery store they now must work with. At lot of this produce also isn't available at home."

Rachel Uff, a managing supervisor with Aramark at the Wachovia Center, is charged with the cold-food preparation, including salads, pastas and vegetables.

"Greek salad is a popular staple on our cold-food menu. We also offer many types of Greek cheeses - wonderful feta and manouri. I love the kasseri," she said.

"The produce here is completely out of this world! The tomatoes are so sweet that you could eat one just like an apple. I have never had tomatoes like this before."

Special deliveries

One of the biggest challenges isn't necessarily cooking the food; it's keeping the larder stocked.

Deliveries are supposed to come through the front gates of the Olympic Village only between midnight and 6 a.m., according to Olympic regulations. Since July 30, when athletes started to arrive, trucks have been hauling in 45 tons of food a day - 75 tons on "peak" eating days. That's about 15 tractor-trailers' worth.

"It worked out well that we found a warehouse," said Bruno. "It's a chocolate distributor normally, so it's slow during the summer months because, well, chocolate melts."

The food service tents were specially designed for easy removal once the Olympics end Aug. 29. They're raised about 15 feet off the ground to hide a maze of piping and wires that will be lifted up and carted away.

"We literally took a flat piece of earth and made an entire dining facility," Bruno said. "It's amazing it will be gone when the Olympics are gone."

Feeding Firenze

This food tour of Florence really got my mouth watering. Besides claiming the Florentines invented ice cream it brings up the touchy subject of how Italians really taught the French to cook. It's by Jay Rayner in the Observer Food Monthly, one of our favorites.

Food Palindromes & More Dished Up at eGullet

Just discovered the online discussion smorgasbord: eGullet. They encourage contests and other fun. That's where these food palindromes (word, sentence or phrase that read same backwards and forwards) were posted.

Sit on a potato pan, Otis

Ana, nab a banana.

Emil, a sleepy baby peels a lime.

Evil olive.

I saw desserts; I'd no lemons, alas no melon. Distressed was I.

Red rum, sir, is murder.

once wrote an article using some of these palindromes ...

This post has been edited by Gifted Gourmet on Jul 19 2004, 02:38 PM

Go hang a salami, I'm a lasagna hog.

Can you add to the list? If so leave your palindromes here.