Historians agree: almonds and dates, mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible are among the earliest cultivated foods.

Not only is in National Vanilla Ice Cream Day, but, also on this day in 1904, the ice cream cone was said to have been invented by Charles E. Minches. He purportedly invented the cone for ice cream eaters’ convenience at the St. Louis World’s Fair (coincindentally The Louisiana Purchase Exhibition).

In honor of National Lollipop Day, be a big sucker and hook yourself up with candy on a stick. While many say the first lollipop was “created” when cavemen used sticks to collect and eat honey from bee hives, the first machine produced lollipop rolled off the line in 1908.

Hot dogs are a quintessential American food, beloved by children and adults. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, Americans eat almost 7 billion hot dogs - all beef, pork, chicken turkey or even veggie, the hot dog is the ultimate in versatility whether loaded with ketchup, mustard, relish, onions, pickles or chili and cheese, just pile it on. Hot dogs or frankfurters are believed to have originated in Frankfurt, Germany around 1484, although some credited the creation to a German butcher from the early 17th century. The American hot dog on a bun is first believed to have been sold from pushcarts on the streets of New York City during the 1860s although there is some debate. What we do know for certain is that New Yorker Harry M. Stevens popularized the term “red hots” and cartoonist T.A. Dorgan gave them their famous name when he drew one as a dachshund on an elongated bun around 1906 and called it a “hot dog.”

New Orleans’ top dog? Many say it‚Äôs the “Lucky Dog” from carts roving the French Quarter.

Test your hot dog trivia knowledge and take the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council’s online quiz to see if you’re the top dog when it comes to hot dogs. www.hot-dog.org/quiz/quiz_1.htm

EMERIL’S ULTIMATE HOT DOG BAR

Yes, I know it’s tough, but we must all eat a chocolate eclair in honor of this most auspicious day. Funny thing is, little is actually known about the origin of the √©clair, although it is believed to have originated in France near the turn of the nineteenth century. Food gurus postulate that √©clairs were first made for French royalty by pastry chef Marie-Antoine Car√™me. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word “eclair” became part of our lexicon around 1861 and was first referenced in print in the 1884 edition of Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Mrs. D.A. Lincoln. In French, the word “Eclair” means lightning; and that’s how fast I can devour one.

CREAM FILLED ECLAIRS

Yes, it’s Cinco de Mayo, the celebration of the Mexican army’s defeat of the the French at The Battle of Pueblo in 1862, but it’s also Amercan culinary icon and author James Beard’s birthday (he’d have been 103). This Sunday and next Monday evenings are the celebrations of the James Beard Journalism and Chef Awards, respectively. Both night’s events pays homage to New Orleans and feature the myriad talents of a large number of New Orleans chefs (including Emeril himself), who will be cooking.

Don’t you just love the name of this recipe? Perfect for Cinco de Mayo.
MANLY MEXICAN BITES

Twinkies went on sale for the first time on April 6, 1930. Now, in honor of the movie King Kong, Hostess has released a limited edition with banana cream filling. Did you know that banana was the original Twinkie flavor back in 1930? During World War II when there was a banana shortage, the company changed the filling flavor to vanilla..

Pancakes, favored breakfast food, takes center stage on Pancake Day (Shrove Tuesday AKA Mardi Gras), when they are typicaly served as an evening meal. Fat Tuesday and Shrove Tuesday, are both names for the day we feast before we fast. “Shrove” is derived from the word “shrive,” the Tuesday before Lent, and the day on which the devout shrive, or confess, their sins. Many eat pancakes on Tuesday because it was a way to use up ingredients that were given up for Lent - milk, butter and eggs - which may not be eaten again until Easter.

MAKE EM PANCAKES

On this day in 1850, Cesar Ritz was born in Niederwald, Switzerland. After many years in hotel managment and a working partnership with Auguste Escoffier (P.S. “Escoffier” is a must-have for any cook book collection), Ritz opened the first hotel with his name, The Ritz Hotel in Paris, in 1898. Since then, his name has come to define luxury. Just because I feel like bragging a bit - I attended the culinary program at the Paris Ritz in 1989 to learn classic French cooking. It is not only a gorgeous hotel, but the food and the chefs are beyond outstanding.

Today is National Croissant Day. During my time at culinary school in Paris, every day began with flaky, buttery croissants. We tried virtually every bakery in the city and never came upon a dud. Thank goodness Paris is a walking city. Recently New Orleans has become associated with chocolate, although there is a longer association with another foodstuff and a one of our city’s other monikers - The “Croissant” (Crescent) City. Hmmmm… chocolate croissants are lovely too.