September 20th is National Fried Rice Day. No doubt, everyone who enjoys Chinese food has had fried rice. We can eat a big plate of it as a main course! But today, we offer you something different: A fusion Italian Fried Rice recipe.

What makes it “Italian” fried rice?

Instead of rice, the recipe uses orzo, a rice-shaped pasta (“orzo” means barley in Italian). It also uses Italian vegetables (asparagus, zucchini) instead of bean sprouts and bamboo shoots—not to mention Parmesan cheese.

Orzo is used most traditionally in soups, but this versatile pasta has been widely adapted by chefs in Italy and America for both main courses and side dishes. You can even use it to make risotto!

> The history of fried rice.

> Check out more fried rice recipes below.

> The different types of rice.

> More grain types (plus beans).
 
 
RECIPE: ITALIAN FRIED RICE

This recipe, sponsored by Barilla, was created by Brandon Cook, Executive Chef of Culinary R&D at The Cheesecake Factory, using Barilla orzo.

Chef Brandon advises: “Have all your ingredients prepped and ready to go along with the crispy fried egg. Once you start cooking, the dish will come together very quickly!”

You can purchase sofrito in a jar, or make it with the recipe below.
 
Ingredients For 2 Servings

 
Preparation

1. SAUTÉ the diced vegetables in olive oil. Set aside

2. SOFT-POACH poach the eggs in simmering water and shock them in ice water. Drain and pat dry.

3. SEASON the panko with salt and pepper and the grated Parmesan. Bread the poached egg in the seasoned flour, beaten egg, and seasoned breadcrumbs. Deep-fry the egg at 350°F for 45 to 60 seconds. It’s important that the eggs are cold going into the fryer so that the yolks remain runny after frying. Remove the eggs from the fryer to a paper towel-lined plate and season with a pinch of coarse salt.

4. BRING a pot of salted water to a boil with added Parmesan rinds, if available (keep them in the freezer for occasions like this, and for making soups). Cook the orzo until al dente. Drain.

5. HEAT a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the soppressata and sofrito to the pan, tossing to incorporate.

6. ADD the shallot, zucchini, and tomatoes to the pan, stirring to incorporate. Continue to cook until the tomatoes begin to blister and shallots begin to caramelize. Add the chiles, asparagus, and orzo to the pan, stirring and tossing to incorporate.

7. DRIZZLE the colatura into the pan. Add the torn basil and Microplane (or substitute another tool) an even layer of grana over the ingredients. Stir and toss to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

8. MOUND the fried pasta in two shallow bowls and sprinkle the reserved asparagus tips and toasted pine nuts all over. Top each serving with a crispy poached egg and Microplane more Grana Padano over the entire dish. Crack the second egg over the dish. It’s ready to enjoy!
 
 
MORE FRIED RICE RECIPES

You can make “fried rice” with any grain, from brown rice to quinoa. It’s a great way to use leftover grains.

 
 
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*Substitutes include serrano and Anaheim chiles, or red chili flakes. You can also use hot sauce to add spice.

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[1] Italian fried rice. A poached egg coated in panko sits on top (photo © Flavor & The Menu | Carlos Garcia).

[2] Italian fried rice uses orzo, a rice-shaped pasta (photo © Barilla)

[3] Classic fried rice, topped with shrimp for a main course (photo © Good Eggs).

[4] What looks like a stuffed crêpe is a sophisticated take on Shanghai Fried Rice from Tao Downtown in New York City (photos #4 and #5 © Tao Group).

[5] Inside the “stufffed crêpe.”

[6] You can use any grain to make “fried rice,” including quinoa. Here’s the recipe (photo © P.F. Chang’s).

[1] General Tso’s chicken, the most popular Chinese food (photo © Spicy Southern Kitchen).

[2] Tamales are ground meat, poultry, or vegetables stuffed into masa (corn dough) and steamed in a corn husk (photo © Mackenzie Ltd).

[3] Chicken pad Thai, garnished with cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice (photo © Good Eggs).

A new study has revealed that Chinese food is the most Googled cuisine, according to Google search data.

The research, conducted by BBQ experts Food Fire Friends, analyzed Google search data related to the 40 most popular cuisines in the world, across the 50 U.S. states.

Here’s what Americans googled most. Can we assume it’s what Americans eat most? Not necessarily, but it’s food for thought!

#1: CHINESE FOOD. With an average of more than 3.35 million searches per month, Chinese is the clear winner by far. According to GrubHub, General Tso’s Chicken (photo #1) is not only the most popular Chinese dish; it’s the 4th most popular dish of all foods that are ordered through GrubHub [source]. Here are the Top 10 most popular Chinese dishes.

#2: MEXICAN FOOD. With an average of 1.22 million Google searches, Mexican food tickles the palate with hot salsas and spices that include allspice, cinnamon cloves, coriander, Mexican oregano, and thyme. Not to mention guacamole and Margaritas! The difference between authentic Mexican food and Tex-Mex.

 
#3: THAI FOOD. More than 823,000 monthly Google searches puts Thai cuisine into third place. Yes, please, we’d love some tom kha gai (chicken in coconut milk soup) and pad Thai (photo #3—stir-fried rice noodles with shrimp or chicken, peanuts, scrambled eggs, sprouts, and other vegetables). We also recommend green papaya salad

#4: INDIAN FOOD. Registering an average of 673,000 Google searches, Indian food favorites include biryani, curries, tandoori chicken, fish and shrimp, and great flatbreads.

ROUNDING OUT THE TOP 10

#5: KOREAN FOOD, with an average of 246,000 Google searches per month. Bibimbap, Korean BBQ, jjigae (Korean stew), kimchi, and Korean fried chicken are among our favorites.

#6: JAPANESE FOOD, with an average of 201,000 Google searches per month. Beyond sushi and sashimi, cooked favorites include ramen, soba, tempura, teriyaki, and yakitori.

#7: SOUL FOOD, 201,00 searches. Top ranking: collards, cornbread, fried chicken, fried pork chops, macaroni and cheese, and don’t forget the peach cobbler.

#8: GREEK FOOD, 165,000 searches. We always start with a mezze plate (assorted spreads), Greek salad, or horiatiki, followed by kabobs, moussaka, pastitsio, or souvlaki, with baklava as our dessert of choice.

#9: ITALIAN FOOD, 165,000 searches. In addition to antipasto, pasta, and pizza, we want bagna cauda, polenta, porchetta, ribollita, and a basket of focaccia with EVOO for dunking. For dessert: gelato? ricotta cheesecake? tiramisu? all of them?

#10: HAWAIIAN FOOD, 90,500 searches. One reason we feel that Google searches don’t equate to foods consumed, is that who has had Hawaii’s #1 dish, poi (steamed or baked taro root)? More Americans have had poke, a type of sashimi salad. Loco moco is a favorite comfort food, a hamburger patty topped with gravy and a fried egg, all placed atop a heaping plate of white rice. Here are more Hawaiian favorites.

Are you inspired to discover a new dish?

We’ve had lots of the first nine cuisines, but with the exception of poke, none of the tenth.

In search of Hawaiian food in New York City, we were so excited to find a restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, that “manages to cram all of Hawaii’s greatest hits onto one menu” [source]. Alas, the article was from 2013; the restaurant has closed. Another, in Harlem, is still open.

Field trip!

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Our Top Pick Of The Week is something special for lovers of chicharrónes (fried pork rinds or cracklings), or for those who love a low carb chip but don’t eat pork*†.

As with chicharrónes, Flock Foods turns seasoned strips of skin and fat and fries them to a crispy, puffy state. Fly down to the next section to learn all about them.

> National Pork Rind Day, a.k.a. Pork Rind Appreciation Day, is Super Bowl Sunday, when one pigskin recognizes the other.

> July 6th is National Fried Chicken Day. That includes the skin!

> If you’re vegetarian or vegan, check out these PigOut Pigless Pork Rinds.

> The history of chicharrones is below.
 
 
FLOCK FOODS: CHICKEN CHIPS & THEN SOME

At Flock Foods, what started as a single flavor of crispy, packaged chicken skin chips has became a zero-carb line of small-batch, wok-fried, tasty snacks in:

 
The chips are all natural, made from just three ingredients: chicken skins, a proprietary seasoning blend, and oil. That’s it!

There are 13g of protein per one-ounce serving.

While we’ve only tasted the chicken chips, the line has expanded to:

 
Flock Foods has become the place to go for all the high-protein, low-carb meat snacks your crunch-loving palate desires.

The line is dairy-free, gluten-free, and keto-friendly. All products have zero sugar, and zero carbs.

The snack is also an excellent source of collagen protein, the protein found in connective tissue, skin, tendon, bone, and cartilage. Collagen provides structural support to tissues and is also involved in essential bodily processes, including tissue repair and signaling between cells. (here’s more about it).
 
 
WAYS WE USE FLOCK CHICKEN CHIPS

Add them to the plate, or incorporate them into:

 
Recipes

[1] Crispy snacking: chicken chips (all photos © Flock Foods).

[2] There are four flavors.

[3] Toss some on a salad instead of croutons.

[4] Add them to a cheese or charcuterie board.

Head to FlockFoods.com.

In addition to a supply for yourself, treat friends who are on carb-avoiding diets, and give them as party favors and stocking stuffers.

For a bigger gift, sign someone up for a subscription!
 
 
THE HISTORY OF CHICHARRONES

As with so many cooked foods, the origin of chicharrónes (the plural of chicharrón) is lost to history. Certainly, pork skins and other edible animal skins have been consumed since man discovered how to use fire. Every part of an animal that could be eaten, was.

The word entered the English lexicon in the 1940s. In the U.S., the snack crossed the border into the Southwest, and became popular with followers of the Atkins Diet in the 1970s.

It got a boost in the 1990s when President George H.W. Bush proclaimed chicharrónes to be his favorite snack.

Their compliance with gluten-free, keto, low-carb, and paleo diets helped raise awareness even more in recent years. Here’s more history of chicharrónes.
 
 
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*Chicharrones can also be made from the skin of chickens, cows, pigs, or sheep. The snack began in Spain and traveled to Latin America. Here are the regional differences.
 
 

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[1] Some people thrill to a four-layer cake, but we’re happy with just two layers. Here’s the recipe for this beauty (photo © King Arthur Baking).

[2] While there’s no evidence that red velvet cake originated in the south, you can find recipes in most southern cookbooks, like this one (photo © Chronicle Books).

[3] The toughest part of baking was to refrain from eating the bowl of icing so there’d be enough left to ice the cake (photo © McCormick).

[4] Mascarpone, rich and creamy (photo © Vermont Creamery).

[5] A top pastry chef make the beet purée from scratch, but we’re happy to purée canned beets (photo © Libby’s).

[6] Baking chocolate is unsweetened—it has no added sugar, i.e., it’s 100% cacao (photo © Scharffen Berger).

September 18th is National Red Velvet Cake Day, so what did we do? You guessed it: We baked a red velvet cake.

The recipe below, which we found in our files, is purportedly the original Red Velvet Cake recipe from the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City. It shows why we don’t like most red velvet recipes: not enough chocolate. Just a pretty red layer cake.

Our baker extraordinaire mom would say to this complaint: If you want a chocolate cake, bake a devil’s food cake. And experts agree that the cake is supposed to have just a hint of chocolate.

But bake the red velvet we did. We liked it, and the icing was heavenly.

But back to National Red Velvet Cake Day: Although no one can pinpoint when and where the recipe was created, “it is certain that the Waldorf-Astoria helped popularize red velvet cake in New York” [source].

Here’s the “origin story” on the hotel’s website. They call the story an urban legend.

The truth is out there!
 
 
WHAT ABOUT THE MASCARPONE?

The hotel claims to have sold the cake in the 1920s*; however, the recipe only appeared in print around the 1940s and 1950s [source].

Now here’s the rub: Few people in the U.S. at that time had ever heard of mascarpone cheese.

While the fresh, spreadable cheese was first made in Italy in the 16th or 17th century, it was very perishable and wasn’t exported at that time. In fact, it didn’t even get imported into the U.S. until the 1980s or so—and then, you had to search specialty Italian cheese stores.

It was the craze for tiramisu, “discovered” by American tourists, that brought the rich, succulent “Italian cream cheese” to New York City in the early 1980s. (Tiramisu is more than half mascarpone.)

In that culinary decade, “tiramisu became a major dessert preference in almost every Italian restaurant and bakery in New York City” [source].

We can vouch for that: We were there, eating tiramisu for dessert at every Italian restaurant meal.

Then, the rise of artisan American cheesemakers led to a delicious domestic mascarpone somewhere around the 1990s (photo #4). Vermont Creamery and Crave Brothers make such great mascarpone, that a container and a spoon is all we need to be happy.

And Crave Brothers makes chocolate mascarpone, too!

> More about mascarpone.

> The history of red velvet cake and more red velvet recipes.

> The history of tiramisu.

> Easy tiramisu recipe.
 
 
RECIPE: RED VELVET CAKE FROM THE WALDORF ASTORIA—MAYBE?

Regardless of its provenance, we enjoyed this cake very much, and are already planning to make it more “chocolatey” with the addition of chocolate chunks, next time around. And maybe we’ll add chocolate to the frosting, too.
 
Ingredients

For The Cake

 
For The Icing

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Butter and line three 9-inch round cake pans with waxed paper.

2. MIX the sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla with an electric mixer on low speed for 2 minutes.

3. SIFT together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and continue to mix on low speed until everything is incorporated.

4. MELT the chocolate in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of boiling water. Add the melted chocolate to the mixture while mixing on low speed. Add the puréed beets and food coloring. Continue to mix on low speed.

5. EVENLY DIVIDE the batter between the 3 pans and bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes or until the center of the cake is done. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Let cool for 10 minutes in pans, then turn the layers out onto the rack and let cool completely.

6. MAKE the icing: Pour the cream into a bowl and whip it into soft peaks. Place in the refrigerator.

8. USING a serrated knife, trim the top of each layer of cake so that it is flat. Top each slice with icing and repeat until all the layers are covered, and then ice the top and sides of the cake.
 
 
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*Along with the Waldorf-Astoria, the Adams Extract company and Eaton’s Department Store in Toronto also lay claim. Irma S. Rombauer’s “The Joy of Cooking,” originally published in 1931, allegedly had a red velvet cake recipe (we haven’t been able to find an early copy to check it out) [source].

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September 18th is National Rice Krispies Treats Day. Make no mistake: We really like Rice Krispies treats. But it made us wonder: What about other cereals? We also love Cheerios, Corn Flakes, and Raisin Bran.

And Rice Krispies Treats can be made with any crisp breakfast cereal, bound together with butter or margarine and marshmallows. They are one of 11 types of cookies, a no-bake of “faux” cookie.

Today, instead of another recipe for Rice Krispies Treats, we offer you a switch-of-crunch to Cheerios Treats.

Why Cheerios?

The answer follows, along with:

> The recipe for Peanut Butter Cheerios Treats.

> The history of Rice Krispies Treats.

> The history of Rice Krispies cereal.

> More cereal bar recipes.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The history of cold breakfast cereal.

> The history of cookies.

> The 10 basic styles of cookies.

> The different types of cookies, a photo glossary.

> The year’s 14 cereal holidays.

> The year’s 44 cookie holidays.
 
 
THE TOP CEREAL BRANDS

Cheerios are the #1 breakfast cereal in the U.S. What’s #2? Honey Nut Cheerios!

When we received this Cheerios Treats recipe from Culinary.net promising chocolate-iced treats in just 5 minutes, we got up from the computer, walked into the kitchen, and made them.

They were a hit. Next time, we’ll try Corn Flakes, a favorite of ours but way down on the top cereals list, at #19.

Rounding out the Top 10 breakfast cereals in the U.S. are, in this order, Frosted Flakes, Honey Bunches of Oats, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, Froot Loops, Frosted Mini-Wheats, Life, and Fruity Pebbles. Note that eight of the Top 10 are packed with sugar [source].

Our beloved Raisin Bran just missed the Top 10 (it’s #11), and Rice Krispies are #13.

Although when Rice Krispies Treats were invented, in 1939, most cereals on the list had yet to see the light of day.
 
 
RECIPE: CHEERIOS CHOCOLATE-PEANUT BUTTER TREATS

This recipe mixes the melted milk chocolate and dark chocolate together. We’re not sure why two varieties of chocolate are used.

It seems that milk chocolate people will want to use milk chocolate, dark chocolate fans will want all dark chocolate, and those who love white chocolate can use all white chocolate.

A video of the recipe is at the bottom of the page.

The recipe was adapted from 5-Minute Dark Chocolate Cereal Bars at ScrummyLane.com. Find more seasonal dessert recipes at Culinary.net.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

If you’re using different types of chocolate, you can melt them in the same bowl.

1. LINE a 9-by-13-inch pan with parchment paper.

2. HEAT a saucepan over low heat. Add the butter, marshmallows, and peanut butter; stir to combine. Add the cereal; mix until coated. Add the cereal mixture to the pan.

3. MIX the melted milk chocolate and dark chocolate in a bowl and drizzle the chocolate over the cereal mixture. Spread it evenly over the cereal mixture and allow it to cool.

4. CUT into bars and serve. Store in an airtight container. When you need a bite of chocolate-PB goodness, just pop the lid and take one out.
 
 
MORE RICE KRISPIES & CEREAL BAR RECIPES

 
Another way to use cereal treats: Make a batch in a loaf pan as a base for cake pops, marshmallow pops, or other sweets-on-a-stick. After the pops are gone, slice the loaf, eat it as is, use the slices as a base for a sundae, or dip them in melted chocolate.

You can also toss leftover holiday candy—candy corn, for example—or stale marshmallows, into a batch of cereal bar treats.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF RICE KRISPIES TREATS

Rice Krispies Treats were invented in 1939 by Malitta Jensen and Mildred Day, recipe developers in the home economics department at the Kellogg Company. The recipe was created as a fundraiser for the Campfire Girls.

[1] Cheerios Treats with chocolate-peanut butter icing. The recipe is below (photo © Family Features).

[2] Another Cheerios Treats variation with peanut butter. Here’s the recipe (photo © Just A Taste).

[3] Cheerios Treats with a red, white and blue theme. You can use any holiday or seasonal colors. Here’s the recipe (photo © Betty Crocker).

[4] Celebrate National Rice Krispies Treats Day (photos #4 and #5 © Kellogg’s Rice Krispies | Facebook).

[5] The original Rice Krispies Treats recipe.

[6] Scotcheroos use Cocoa Krispies instead of Rice Krispies. Here’s the recipe (photo © Kellogg’s).

Brand names differed by country: Rice Krispies Treats in the U.S. and Mexico; Rice Krispies Squares in Canada, Ireland, and the U.K.; and LCMs* in Australia and New Zealand.

Soon other manufacturers had offered similar products under similar names, such as Crisped Rice Treats and Marshmallow Treats.

Here’s the Original Rice Krispies Treats Recipe.

Subsequently, Kellogg created Chocolate Scotcheroos with Cocoa Krispies and peanut butter (or regular Rice Krispies and chocolate morsels substituting for Cocoa Krispies. Here’s the recipe.

Today, you can go to RiceKrispies.com and find Treats recipes for every holiday of the year, and then some.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF RICE KRISPIES CEREAL

Rice Krispies, made from a patented process that Kellogg’s called “oven-popping,” are one of the iconic American cold breakfast cereals, launched in 1928 by W.K. Kellogg Company.

Their first television commercial aired in 1955.

When milk is added to the cereal, it collapses the crispy grains, resulting in onomatopoeic sounds that are represented by the three elfin brand characters. Snap first appeared in on the package in 1933, with Crackle and Pop joining in 1939.

The characters and their sounds are tailored for foreign languages (see †footnote).

In recent decades, their popularity has resulted in line extensions: Chocolate and Vanilla Rice Krispies (mix), Cocoa Krispies, Rainbow Krispies, and Strawberry Krispies as well as now-discontinued specialty flavors like Apple Cinnamon, Banana, and Marshmallow Rice Krispies.

There are also generic brands called Crispy Rice or Rice Crispers.

> See how the Rice Krispies package art has changed over time.
 
 

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*The name LCM didn’t stand for anything; it was just catchy-sounding. However, customers attributed the initials to Light Crispy Morsels, Little Cereal Milk Bar, or Little Crunchy Munchies, among others [source].

†The English Snap! Crackle! Pop! is translated into: Afrikaans: Knap! Knetter! Knak!, Belgium: Poos! Pas! Pes! Danish: Pyf! Paaf! Pof! Dutch: Pif! Paf! Pof! Finnish: Riks! Raks! Poks! French: Cric! Crac! Croc! German: Knisper! Knasper! Knusper! Spanish: Pim! Pam! Pum! Swedish: Piff! Paff! Puff!
 
 

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