Today it was Tony's turn to research again. He came up with these interesting state facts:
- Missouri You can thank the state for the ice cream cone. In 1904, St. Louis hosted the World’s Fair. A Syrian gentleman named Ernest A. Hamwi had a concession at this fair, selling “crisp, waffle-like” pastries. In the neighboring booth an ice cream vendor was doing his thing. It was so popular the vendor’s dishes were fully depleted. Hamwi rolled his pastries into cones… and the rest is history.
- Maryland Mary Pickersgill designed the flag that flew over Ft. McHenry during the War of 1812. Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner” after seeing the flag still waving during a battle in 1814.
- California Has the highest and lowest points in the contiguous U.S., more national parks than any other state, and an economy so massive it frequently ranks among the top ten largest globally.
- Ohio Officially became the 17th state of the United States on March 1, 1803. Interestingly, while President Thomas Jefferson signed the act enabling Ohio's statehood on February 19, 1803, Congress had technically forgotten to officially ratify the state constitution. This administrative oversight wasn't officially fixed until 1953, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower retroactively signed a resolution recognizing March 1, 1803, as the official date of statehood.
- Wisconsin During the summer, the population of Door County reaches ten times the number of year-round residents (28,000 vs. 250,000).
Tony had a jam-packed schedule today, including dinner out with a friend, so we agreed that he would prepare his food item for lunch. That item ended up being a frozen pizza from Imo's, the original St. Louis style pizza, which opened their first restaurant in 1964. The frozen pizzas were rolled out in 2022.
St Louis style pizza has a cracker crust and is topped with Provel cheese (a processed blend of cheddar, Swiss, and provolone). In the restaurants the pizza is cut into squares. Today Tony chose to cut his freshly-baked pizza into the more traditional wedges and serve it with a green salad.
I don't know all the different regional pizzas. Just the ones I have had here in California. I know what I prefer, and that is a thin crust; not paper thin like a flatbread but not a deep dish because too much bread. I'm more into the toppings and the cheese.
ReplyDeleteProvel is a very polarizing ingredient. It's an acquired taste that you either love or hate.
DeleteI love pizza in every way
ReplyDeleteMe too. I've never met a pizza I didn't like.
Deletei found your way of celebrating the birthday of your dear country very interesting dear Kathy :)
ReplyDeletei am not fond of pizza but i eat it when my whole family is together and children want pizza
I bet you grew up eating more traditional foods than American ones,
DeleteCan't go wrong with pizza!
ReplyDeleteNope!
DeleteI am fixing to have a slice of pizza as I type this. I'm learning so much about our beautiful states in the US. I'm sure there are things about TEXAS that I still do not know...
ReplyDeleteI could say the same thing about my state.
DeleteI didn't know where the ice cream cones came from. I used to love those, making a tiny cone from the end of the original cone. Simple pleasures.
ReplyDeleteThe tiny end of the cone is the best, especially if it contains a bit of chocolate to keep the ice cream from dripping out the bottom.
DeleteAnytime is a good time for pizza.
ReplyDeleteAmen!
DeleteI am enjoying these posts-thank you
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome.
DeleteI don't mind pizza if the crust is thin but I don't like a lot of bread. I like to make my own with tortillas, quick, easy and I put what I want on it. Or I get premade dough of some kind to make one with. I've never heard of provel.
ReplyDeleteWhen he was a tween, Youngest Son's favorite dish was something we called tortilla and cheese-salsa and cheddar spread on a tortilla, a second tortilla placed on top, and the whole thing heated in the microwave.
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