It’s National Hoagie Day.

The sandwich, on a crusty, oblong roll (or a portion of a loaf of French or Italian bread), is piled high with Italian cold cuts or other lunch meats, provolone and perhaps another cheese. Garnishes typically include sweet and/or hot peppers, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, oregano and a vinegar and olive oil dressing.

In Europe, this type of sandwich is known as a baguette or a ciabatta, after the type of bread used.

One of the prevailing explanations of the name “hoagie” is that it was introduced by Italian Americans working at the shipyard known as Hog Island, in southwest Philadelphia, during World War II. It became known as the “Hog Island sandwich,” which evolved to “hoagie.”

A classic hoagie. Photo courtesy Dietz & Watson.

But the sandwich had earlier roots with New York Italians. According to some food historians, the sandwich originated in the late 19th century to serve Italian laborers, who wanted the convenient lunch they had enjoyed in Italy.

It became known as a hero sandwich. The name is credited to New York Herald Tribune food writer Clementine Paddleford, who wrote (in the 1930s) that “you needed to be a hero to finish the gigantic Italian sandwich.”

Depending on the region, the sandwich is also called a grinder, po’ boy, torpedo, zeppelin and no doubt, other names.

The popular meatball sub (or hoagie). Photo by Jill Chen | IST.

What About The Submarine Sandwich?

It’s another name for the same type of sandwich. The submarine, or sub, has at least two claims to invention; plausibly, it may have occurred in both places.

The first location is Boston at the beginning of World War I, at a local restaurant that served Navy servicemen stationed at the Charlestown Navy Yard. The bread was a specially baked baguette intended to resemble the hull of the submarines after which it was named.

Another claim credits Dominic Conti (1874–1954), an Italian immigrant who started Dominic Conti’s Grocery Store on Mill Street in Paterson, New Jersey in 1910. According to Wikipedia, he named the sandwich in 1918, after seeing a recovered submarine in the Paterson Museum Of History.

Conti’s granddaughter recounts that he was selling traditional Italian sandwiches made on long, crusty rolls, filled with cold cuts, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, onions, oil, vinegar, Italian herbs, spices, salt and pepper. The sandwich started with a layer of cheese and ended with a layer of cheese so the bread wouldn’t get soggy.

Popular variations evolved to include hot meats: the meatball hero/hoagie/submarine sandwich, eggplant parmigiana and chicken parmigiana. Basically, anything served on an oblong roll is a now called a hero/hoagie/sub/etc.

Celebrate With A Gourmet Hoagie

Build yourself a gourmet hoagie to celebrate National Hoagie Day. Use these upgrades to the classic Italian deli meats, or create your own recipe.

We’re so hungry just thinking about it—we can’t wait until lunch.

Friday, May 4th is National Orange Juice Day. While it’s easy to celebrate with a glass of OJ at breakfast, there are other ways to use orange juice. Here are 10 of our favorites.

1. Basting Liquid. Orange juice adds delicious flavor to beef, pork and poultry.

2. Cake Mix. Replace the water in the recipe with orange juice in vanilla/white/yellow and chocolate cake cake mixes.

3. Cocktails. There are many, including the Mimosa, Sex On The Beach and Tequila Sunrise. But the classic is a Screwdriver: 1.5 ounces of vodka and 6 ounces of orange juice, with an orange wheel garnish.

Baste your chicken with orange juice. Photo courtesy Perdue.

4. French Toast, Pancakes & Waffles. Add a tablespoon of juice to your batter. This works best with an added teaspoon of orange zest—and is a reason why you should zest citrus rinds and freeze the zest before throwing out the pulp.

5. Ice Cubes. Freeze the juice in ice cube trays—plain or with an added berry, cherry or snippet of sweet herb (basil, rosemary, thyme).

6. Ice Pops. Freeze the juice plain in an ice pop mold, or mix with vanilla yogurt for a Creamsicle effect.

7. Marinade. Add 1/4 cup of orange juice to your regular marinade. For a basic marinade, start with 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 1/3 cup olive oil, 2 cloves chopped garlic, 1 tablespoon each of two different chopped herbs (parsley and thyme go well with everything), and for some heat, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes.

8. Salad Dressing. For a green salad or fruit salad, substitute orange juice for half the vinegar. You can also use one or more tablespoons of juice to thin the mayonnaise in a chicken salad, cole slaw or any salad that’s bound with mayo.

9. Smoothie. Add 1/4 cup of orange juice to your regular smoothie recipe; or whip one up with 1/4 cup orange juice, 1 cup fresh fruit and 1 container (6 ounces) of your favorite nonfat yogurt.

10. Spritzer. Enjoy OJ with fewer calories. Dilute orange juice with club soda (try 1/3:2/3, then 1/2:1/2) for a refreshing soft drink, with an optional squeeze of lemon or lime.

What are your favorite ways to use orange juice?

It’s time to celebrate National Pigs In Blankets Day.

Ask for some pigs in blankets in the U.K., and you’ll get a cocktail sausage wrapped in bacon (more like a pig in a pig, we think).

At IHOP, the International House Of Pancakes, you can chow down on pork sausage links rolled in a pancake “blankets.”

But across the U.S., what caterers declare to be the most popular hors d’oeuvre is a cocktail frankfurter in a pastry blanket. And don’t forget the mustard.

Culinary historians have tracked the first recipes for modern pigs in blankets—small cocktail franks baked in flaky crust—to 1950. According to FoodTimeline.org, these pastry-wrapped piggies are likely direct descendants of Victorian-era canapés.

The earliest recipe found in American cookbooks that was called “pigs in blankets” was published in the 1930. But there was no frankfurter or other sausage: it comprised oysters wrapped with bacon.

You know which little piggie recipe won out. So head to the market, grab some cocktail franks and a roll of croissant dough, and join the Neelys in the video, as they demonstrate how easy it is to make pigs in blankets.

We highly recommend Dijon mustard (check out the different types of mustard).

While pigs in blankets are classic cocktail fare, we find them even more delicious with beer. Enjoy!

Immigrants with pushcarts try to sell fresh
fruit to people who really need it. Photo
courtesy Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund.

Launching on Sunday. April 22—Earth Day 2012—the Do Something Reel Film Festival affords the opportunity to watch some of the best food-focused documentaries online.

It’s sponsored by Whole Foods Market and partners that include Applegate Organic & Natural Meats, Earthbound Farm Organic and Siggi’s Cultured Dairy Products.

Each year, a number of terrific food films are released but get limited distribution. Even we, who would love to see them for professional reasons, don’t have the time to get to wherever they may be showing.

But stream them online at DoSomethingReel.com, and we’ve got a whole month to tune in.

The Do Something Reel Film Festival is a much-needed showcase for provocative films about food and environmental issues. Viewing is on a pay-per-view basis. Ticket sales help to fund filmmaker grants for new projects.

Launching This Sunday

The online film festival opens on April 22, with a live screening of “The Apple Pushers,” narrated by the actor Edward Norton. It will be followed by a panel discussion with the film’s writer/director, producer and other experts.

While there is a charge to watch the film, the panel discussion can be viewed free online from April 22nd to April 30th.

The film follows five immigrant street-cart vendors who sell fruits and vegetables in New York neighborhoods where fresh produce isn’t widely available. The vendors personify what it means to be an American entrepreneur, and their stories shed new light on the nation’s food crisis and skyrocketing obesity rates.

A New Film Each Month

Each month the festival will showcase a different film online. Following “The Apple Pushers,” the films currently slated are:

The struggle of one watershed to support 30 million people. Photo courtesy Kontent Films.

So mark your calendar for a monthly movie night with the Do Something Reel Film Festival. It’s your opportunity to connect with these important films and their thought-provoking issues. And you’ll see how your everyday decisions and purchasing power can make a difference.

For additional information, a complete schedule of events and details about the grant program, please visit DoSomethingReel.com.

Have you ever had a grilled cheese sandwich for dessert?

There are more than a few sweet grilled cheese sandwich recipes out there, perfect for dessert or a sweet snack. We’ll start you off with two, courtesy of the Grilled Cheese Academy, the best grilled cheese website, sponsored by the great cheese makers of Wisconsin.

THE BIANCA: A SWEET GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH WITH DULCE DE LECHE

Ingredients

Sink your teeth into this delightful combination of mascarpone, homemade dulce de leche and raspberry preserves on cinnamon raisin bread. Makes 4 servings.

Here, mascarpone is the grilled cheese. Photo courtesy Grilled Cheese Academy.

Preparation

1. To make dulce de leche, place a can of condensed milk in a deep pot and cover with water; bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 90 minutes. Turn burner off and let the can sit in the water until cool. Dry and open the can. The contents will be caramel-colored (and hard to resist eating).

2. Mix mascarpone with vanilla; stir to incorporate air and lighten the cheese.

3. Heat skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. Butter bread slices on one side; place in pan, butter-side down and grill until golden brown and crisp.

4. Remove and spread the unbuttered sides of 4 slices of bread with 1 tablespoon raspberry preserves, 2 tablespoons mascarpone and 1 tablespoon dulce de leche, in that order. Top with another toasted piece of bread, browned-side up, and more dulce de leche. Garnish with whipped cream and fresh raspberries, if desired.

Bananas, bacon and peanut butter were a favorite of Elvis. But because there is already an Elvis sandwich, this one is called the Lisa Marie. Photo courtesy Grilled Cheese Academy.

THE LISA MARIE: A SWEET GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH WITH HOT FUDGE

Ingredients

Bananas, peanut butter, butterkäse cheese and chocolate-sauced bacon caramelized with brown sugar and maple syrup: Wow! Makes 4 servings.

Butterkäse originated in Germany. A very mild and creamy cheese with a buttery texture, the name literally means butter cheese. If you can’t find it, substitute cream cheese or mozzarella.

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.

2. Place bacon slices on baking sheet pan with sides (a jelly roll pan) and bake until lightly browned and starting to crisp, about 5-6 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, mix brown sugar and maple syrup until smooth. Using a pastry brush, brush the hot bacon slices with mixture. Return to the oven for another 5-6 minutes, turning once and being careful not to burn the sugar. Remove to cooling rack and let cool.

4. Heat griddle or sauté pan over medium heat. Butter one side of the bread slices. Spread other side with peanut butter. Top each slice, peanut butter-side up, with 1 butterkäse slice and some banana slices. Place butter-side down on griddle and grill until sandwich bread bottoms are light golden brown.

5. Meanwhile, heat chocolate sauce until warm (the microwave is perfect for this). Dip each slice of bacon into warm chocolate to cover half of strip and place over bananas. To serve, drizzle sandwiches with additional chocolate sauce.

The Biloxi: pork butt, bacon and fontina
cheese. Photo courtesy Grilled Cheese
Academy.

For National Grilled Cheese Month (there’s also a National Grilled Cheese Day, April 12th), feast your eyes upon 30 creative grilled cheese recipes from the Grilled Cheese Academy.

You’ll find more than a few must-try recipes. In fact, you might be inspired to host a grilled cheese party.

To make the best grilled cheese sandwiches, here are 10 tips from the experts at EatWisconsinCheese.com, creators of the Grilled Cheese Acadmey.

CHEESE TIPS

1. To Slice Or Not To Slice. Often it’s best to grate or shred the cheese. This promotes faster melting, as well as a smooth and more even melt.

2. Slicing And Melting. It’s easier to slice and grate cheese when it’s cold. Furthermore, cheese melts best at room temperature.

3. More Is Better. Don’t be shy: Pile on the cheese. Expand your horizons by using several types of cheese at once, as well as different toppings (arugula, caramelized onions, chutney, cranberry sauce, figs, garlic-sauteed spinach, gherkins, grapes, grilled vegetables, jalapeño, olives, pepperoncini, pesto, pickled vegetables, relish, sprouts, sautéed pineapple, sundried tomatoes, tomato sauce….whatever’s in the fridge or pantry). Remember, American, Cheddar and Swiss aren’t the only cheeses in town.

BREAD & BUTTER TIPS

4. Use The Real Deal. For great flavor, use real butter to pan-toast your grilled cheese sandwich. Margarine and other butter wannabes win you no points.

5. Soft Is Good. Butter at room temperature is the way to go. Not only does it spread easily, but it also browns the bread more evenly.

6. Use Your Imagination. White bread is not the only answer; in fact, it’s often not the best answer. Pick specialty unique breads to create equally more exciting and flavorful grilled cheese sandwiches.

COOKING TIPS

7. Size Matters. Always use the right size skillet or suffer the consequences. If you opt for a skillet that’s too small, your sandwich will cook too slowly and not evenly.

The Nantucket: smoked salmon, cream cheese, scallions and melted aged Cheddar. Photo courtesy Grilled Cheese Academy.

8. Cast Off Cast Iron. Cast-iron pans and grilled cheese sandwiches are not friends. Always use a nonstick pan to minimize “stickage.” It also makes cleanup easier.

9. Flip. Press. Repeat. You want the cheese to spread evenly as it melts. So always press the sandwich with a spatula after you flip it. (Open-faced grilled cheese sandwiches do not require flipping.)

10. Low And Steady. Don’t grill over high heat. Not only will the bread brown too fast, but the cheese will not melt completely. Be patient and always grill over low heat.

April 4th is National Cordon Bleu Day. Le Cordon Bleu (French for “The Blue Ribbon”) is the world’s largest school for hospitality education, for both cooks, service and management personnel. Originating in France, it now has 35 schools on five continents.

The inspiration for the school began in 1578, with a group of French knights called L’Ordre des Chevaliers du Saint Esprit. Each member wore the Cross of the Holy Spirit, which hung from a blue ribbon.

The knights became known for extravagant and luxurious banquets, known as “cordons bleus.” The order closed with the French Revolution. In the late 19th century, the name was revived by a French culinary magazine, La Cuisinière Cordon Bleu. It offered lessons by some of the best chefs in France, which eventually grew to become a cooking school. Le Cordon Bleu cooking school opened in Paris in 1895 and became one of the finest cooking schools in the world.

Recipes for Chicken Cordon Bleu and Veal Cordon Bleu emerged: chicken breasts or veal slices sandwiched with ham and Gruyère cheese, dipped in an egg mixture, rolled with bread crumbs and baked or sautéed.

Here’s a recipe for Veal Cordon Bleu:

A chocolate mousse alternative that can be
vegan. Photo courtesy HouseFoods.com.

Allergic to eggs? Lactose intolerant? Vegan? Cholesterol-averse?

You can still celebrate National Chocolate Mousse Day, April 3rd, by substituting soft tofu.

While traditional mousse recipes use heavy cream and eggs (high in calories and cholesterol), House Foods America provides a healthier and vegan-optional alternative for you to celebrate National Chocolate Mousse Day.

House Food’s Soft (Silken) Tofu is a flavorless ingredient that can transform itself into any flavor or texture (find more recipes on the company’s website).

The recipe delivers a smooth texture that, when blended with semi-sweet chocolate, milk or coconut milk, vanilla, cinnamon and cardamom, creates a luscious dessert that tastes just as indulgent as the traditional version.

This recipe serves 4-6, and takes only 15 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. Open the tofu package and strain out the water. Remove tofu and blend in blender until smooth.

2. With the stove on low or simmer, melt the chocolate chips and milk in a pot, stirring until smooth. Add the tofu mixture and stir until it is blended evenly with the chocolate.

3. Stir in vanilla, cinnamon and cardamom. Quickly remove from heat, cool in a bowl or individual serving dishes and set in fridge until the mixture becomes mousse-thick.

You can add your own personal twist to this recipe:

The Classic Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Here’s Julia Child’s chocolate mousse recipe, and the history of mousse.

Enjoy a glass of Scotch: It’s World Whisky
Day. Photo courtesy Chivas Regal.

People across the world will raise a dram to Scotland’s national drink on March 27th, thanks to the efforts of a University of Aberdeen Student.

Blair Bowman, 21, has established the first ever World Whisky Day.

Unlike other drinks such as beer, tequila and vodka, whisky did not have its own dedicated holiday. When the enterprising young Scot discovered this, he quickly set about creating a “day” and a website, WorldWhiskyDay.com (which is “currently unavailable”). Some 125 events are registered in more than 30 countries.

To celebrate World Whisky Day, have a shot, a whisky cocktail or this ice cream brownie sundae with Scotch caramel sauce. Here’s the recipe. You can also mix two tablespoons of whisky into a jar of warmed caramel or chocolate sauce.

Can Anyone Establish A Holiday?

In our free-speech society, anyone can declare anything they want. In order for it to get noticed outside the circle of one’s friends, however, broader awareness is required.

There’s an official process for a “sanctioned” holiday. Here are the details, along with all the food holidays in the U.S. (To get the daily holiday, sign up at Twitter.com/TheNibble.)

How Many Types Of Whiskey Have You Had?

Whiskey is spirit made from a fermented mash of grain or malt, aged in barrels; the brown color comes from barrel aging. There are numerous types of whiskey—American (Bourbon, corn, Tennessee, rye), Canadian, Irish, Scotch and others. Each is distinguished by the type of grain (barley, corn, rye) used in the fermentation process, as well as the distinct distillation and aging process. The color comes from aging in wood barrels.

Australia, England, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and Thailand, all strong markets for whiskey, now produce their own. Regardless of the variety or country of origin, a general rule of thumb is that all straight whiskeys must be aged at least two years in wood, generally oak. Each nation has its own rules and regulations about what constitutes a true whiskey.

Check out our Whiskey Glossary for a quick review of whiskey types and terms.

Whisky Vs. Whiskey

In Ireland and the U.S., the word whiskey is spelled with an “e.” Brits, Scots and Canadians usually drop it. Interestingly, a 1968 directive of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms specifies “whisky” as the official U.S. spelling, but allows the alternative spelling, “whiskey,” which most U.S. producers (and we) prefer.

The gourmet version of Raisinets, from Lake
Champlain Chocolates (certified kosher).

Today is National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day. In the form of Raisinets, the dried-fruit-in-a-candy-shell is a movie theater staple and the third-largest selling candy in U.S. history.

To make the candy, raisins are coated with oil and spun in a hot drum with milk or dark chocolate. They’re then polished to a shine.

Raisinets are the earliest brand on record, introduced by the Blumenthal Brothers Chocolate Company of Philadelphia in 1927 (the brand was acquired by Nestlé in 1984).

We don’t know that the Blumenthals originated the concept. Hard chocolate was invented in 1847, enabling confectioners to develop all types of chocolate candies (the history of chocolate). No doubt, chocolate-dipped fruit was in the repertoire.

See all the food holidays.

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