The Bored Bridegroom
Aug. 3rd, 2012 07:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
todayiamadaisyThis week's random word:
14. Raisin
What I'm finding with these random words is that they rarely mean the same thing to everyone. Such is the case with raisin, which I now discover isn't used consistently in the anglosphere. Raisin, sultana and currant mean different things to different people (although all involve dried grapes, so you can't go far wrong). For example, parts of the world eat a breakfast cereal called Raisin Bran; in other places (including Australia), the same cereal is called Sultana Bran. To make it even more fun, raisin is the French word for grape; if you want to warn a French speaker about a dried grape that they might slip on, you'll have to say raisin sec, otherwise they'll be looking for a fresh, juicy grape and you'll be pointing at a shrivelled, dried one, and chaos will ensue. CHAOS. The word originally comes from the Latin racēmes, meaning a bunch of grapes. (Currant, since you asked, is a variation of Corinth, from whence that variety of grape came, and sultana is... look, I don't know. It's a type of grape, but I don't know why it's called that. But the sultana is notable for being one of two fruits that are also the title of an important person, the other being the mandarin).
The ancient Persians and Egyptians discovered the secret of making raisins (ie drying grapes) some 4,000 years ago. After enjoying raisins by themselves for a while, they then traded them to the Greeks, who used them as prizes in sporting games, which seems an appropriate thing to note during the Olympics. Instead of those bouquets the medal-winners get, they should give boxes of raisins. Or throw them at the marathon runners. That would add a bit of excitement. The ancient Romans were even more keen on raisins, not only giving them as prizes, but also using them as payment for taxes, a medical cure-all and barter currency; two jars of raisins would get you one slave boy, which is a bargain in anyone's language. Several different websites also tell me that the Romans decorated buildings with images of raisins, but fail to show proof. Given the Roman fondness for raisins, Hannibal had the right idea when he took rations of raisins with him when he crossed the Alps. (And you thought the elephants were the interesting part of that story.) Perhaps if he'd had fewer elephants and more raisins, things might have gone better for him.
Not surprisingly, when Marcus Gavius Apicius wrote the world's first ever cookbook in 100BC, he included a couple of raisin recipes. Here is one. I thought about making it, but, while I like a handful of raisins as a nibble, I am not a huge fan of them in things. (If you make it, Liebstoeckl is lovage; the internet tells me you can substitute chopped celery and a pinch of ground celery, which sounds reasonable, or, at least, like it won't kill you).
Raisins made it to the rest of Europe during the Crusades. In 1374, they were fetching three farthings and tuppence per pound in England. They made it to the New World via Columbus in 1492. Raisins then went quiet for a couple of centuries before making a grand comeback in 1754, when Martha Washington made a 'plumb broth' of marrow bones, bread, sugar, raisins and currants. Her husband, George, proclaimed it 'the greatest success achieved by Mrs Washington since our marriage'. He was humouring her, obviously.
Raisins are a religious fruit, being mentioned in the Bible. Admittedly, most of the times they are mentioned it's as part of those interminable lists the Bible's writers were so fond of, but there is a slightly exciting part (II Samuel 16:1) where Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, gives David a couple of asses laden with two hundred loaves of bread, and an hundred bunches of raisins, and an hundred of summer fruits, and a bottle of wine. Good luck washing that lot down with just the one bottle of wine, David.
They are also a literary fruit, being mentioned by Shakespeare, Cervantes, Virgil and Bunyan, whose Pilgrim's Progress lists them as the original comfort food, being a sweet little morsel ideal for travellers. Bunyan was right on the money there: as well as on pilgrimages, travellers have taken them to the top of Everest, to the North and South Poles and even to space. You can't say that about tamarillos.
If you want to make a tonne of raisins (and why wouldn't you?), you will need four tonnes of grapes. You can dry them naturally, or dip them in lye before drying them in a dehydrator, with or without also exposing them to sulphur. Yum! A handful of raisins has been shown to be equally effective as energy supplement bars and more effective than water alone in providing energy for people running three miles. Raisins are rich in fibre, so are more filling than many other snacks; high in potassium, so can help regulate blood pressure; and contain high levels of anti-oxidants to help with cholesterol absorption and the immune system. They are also the most cost-effective dried fruit. So you can eat them and get healthy cheaply.
California produces 95% of the US supply of raisins and 50% of the global supply, and the city of Fresno is the Raisin Capital of the World based on the number of raisins produced. Despite this, the best raisins in the world come from Malaga, Spain, and are known as black pearls. It's unlikely Geoffrey Rush's ship in Pirates of the Caribbean was named after raisins, but I'd like to think it was.
We will speak nothing of craisins, because that is a stupid name.
So there's a few things to think about next time you have a raisin.
Next week: careen
14. Raisin
What I'm finding with these random words is that they rarely mean the same thing to everyone. Such is the case with raisin, which I now discover isn't used consistently in the anglosphere. Raisin, sultana and currant mean different things to different people (although all involve dried grapes, so you can't go far wrong). For example, parts of the world eat a breakfast cereal called Raisin Bran; in other places (including Australia), the same cereal is called Sultana Bran. To make it even more fun, raisin is the French word for grape; if you want to warn a French speaker about a dried grape that they might slip on, you'll have to say raisin sec, otherwise they'll be looking for a fresh, juicy grape and you'll be pointing at a shrivelled, dried one, and chaos will ensue. CHAOS. The word originally comes from the Latin racēmes, meaning a bunch of grapes. (Currant, since you asked, is a variation of Corinth, from whence that variety of grape came, and sultana is... look, I don't know. It's a type of grape, but I don't know why it's called that. But the sultana is notable for being one of two fruits that are also the title of an important person, the other being the mandarin).
The ancient Persians and Egyptians discovered the secret of making raisins (ie drying grapes) some 4,000 years ago. After enjoying raisins by themselves for a while, they then traded them to the Greeks, who used them as prizes in sporting games, which seems an appropriate thing to note during the Olympics. Instead of those bouquets the medal-winners get, they should give boxes of raisins. Or throw them at the marathon runners. That would add a bit of excitement. The ancient Romans were even more keen on raisins, not only giving them as prizes, but also using them as payment for taxes, a medical cure-all and barter currency; two jars of raisins would get you one slave boy, which is a bargain in anyone's language. Several different websites also tell me that the Romans decorated buildings with images of raisins, but fail to show proof. Given the Roman fondness for raisins, Hannibal had the right idea when he took rations of raisins with him when he crossed the Alps. (And you thought the elephants were the interesting part of that story.) Perhaps if he'd had fewer elephants and more raisins, things might have gone better for him.
Not surprisingly, when Marcus Gavius Apicius wrote the world's first ever cookbook in 100BC, he included a couple of raisin recipes. Here is one. I thought about making it, but, while I like a handful of raisins as a nibble, I am not a huge fan of them in things. (If you make it, Liebstoeckl is lovage; the internet tells me you can substitute chopped celery and a pinch of ground celery, which sounds reasonable, or, at least, like it won't kill you).
Raisins made it to the rest of Europe during the Crusades. In 1374, they were fetching three farthings and tuppence per pound in England. They made it to the New World via Columbus in 1492. Raisins then went quiet for a couple of centuries before making a grand comeback in 1754, when Martha Washington made a 'plumb broth' of marrow bones, bread, sugar, raisins and currants. Her husband, George, proclaimed it 'the greatest success achieved by Mrs Washington since our marriage'. He was humouring her, obviously.
Raisins are a religious fruit, being mentioned in the Bible. Admittedly, most of the times they are mentioned it's as part of those interminable lists the Bible's writers were so fond of, but there is a slightly exciting part (II Samuel 16:1) where Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, gives David a couple of asses laden with two hundred loaves of bread, and an hundred bunches of raisins, and an hundred of summer fruits, and a bottle of wine. Good luck washing that lot down with just the one bottle of wine, David.
They are also a literary fruit, being mentioned by Shakespeare, Cervantes, Virgil and Bunyan, whose Pilgrim's Progress lists them as the original comfort food, being a sweet little morsel ideal for travellers. Bunyan was right on the money there: as well as on pilgrimages, travellers have taken them to the top of Everest, to the North and South Poles and even to space. You can't say that about tamarillos.
If you want to make a tonne of raisins (and why wouldn't you?), you will need four tonnes of grapes. You can dry them naturally, or dip them in lye before drying them in a dehydrator, with or without also exposing them to sulphur. Yum! A handful of raisins has been shown to be equally effective as energy supplement bars and more effective than water alone in providing energy for people running three miles. Raisins are rich in fibre, so are more filling than many other snacks; high in potassium, so can help regulate blood pressure; and contain high levels of anti-oxidants to help with cholesterol absorption and the immune system. They are also the most cost-effective dried fruit. So you can eat them and get healthy cheaply.
California produces 95% of the US supply of raisins and 50% of the global supply, and the city of Fresno is the Raisin Capital of the World based on the number of raisins produced. Despite this, the best raisins in the world come from Malaga, Spain, and are known as black pearls. It's unlikely Geoffrey Rush's ship in Pirates of the Caribbean was named after raisins, but I'd like to think it was.
We will speak nothing of craisins, because that is a stupid name.
So there's a few things to think about next time you have a raisin.
Next week: careen