Does your family name some of their favourite dishes after the person who created them, cooks them well, or really enjoys them? Ouma Anneline’s pumpkin fritters or Susan’s favourite, for instance. Some recipes and dishes named after a person have made it much further than just a family reference and there’s an interesting story behind many of them!
With National Milk Tart Day celebrated in South Africa on 27 February, I didn’t only get my favourite Ouma se Kombuis Milk Tart from my attentive staff, we also decided to treat ourselves with dessert at L’Ami and enjoyed Leipoldt’s Milk Tart Ice Cream! The menu also offers Mrs Huberte’s Salad and Japie se Gunsteling and I realised that there is something very special about dishes named after people.
Mrs Huberte was my mom in law and we love serving one of our favourite salads from her table at La Motte, Japie se Gunsteling (Japie’s Delight), is a popular, traditional pudding named after Japie de Villiers, the husband of the legendary SJA de Villiers, author of Kook en Geniet, one of South Africa’s most popular cookbooks. It was first published in 1951 and is still on the shelves!
Let’s explore food named after people and see if we can learn something more about these dishes.
Why would our Milk Tart ice cream be named after one of South Africa’s famous poets? This article by Tony Jackman explains that Leipoldt was quite opinionated about this delicacy. “I also consulted Leipoldt’s Food & Wine, and the old boy had lots to say about a melktert.” The recipe for milk tart has changed over time with the older recipes incorporating naartjie peel, coconut milk, bitter almond, peach kernels, etc. Some recipes were quite complicated too with one asking you to mix cream skimmed from the morning’s milk with the yolks of as many eggs as will equal it in weight! The paste that lined the pie dish was rolled out at least 14 times and Leipoldt even enjoyed adding something stronger, beating up an egg in a glass of brandy or sweet wine. Read more.
But naming food after a person is a global phenomenon and much bigger than my few family and local references. There are many famous examples, from Pavlova to Eggs Benedict. These names have not turned into brand names but have rather became the globally recognised names of the various dishes. Here are a few that I find most interesting.
I’ve always assumed that Nachos was a Mexican word for the big crispy chips that we like to drown in chili and salsa, but I was wrong. Nachos is named after a resourceful maître d’ by the name of Ignacio Anayawho nicknamed Nacho, who invented the dish in the 1940s. He had to come up with something for a group of hungry US military wives at a restaurant on the Texas border and used leftovers to prepare tortilla chips smothered in melted cheese and jalapeños.
In a similar scenario, an Italian chef in Mexico had a restaurant filled with American customers and a kitchen short on ingredients. He used all he had to create what has become the popular Caesar Salad. Intended as finger food, he used whole lettuce leaves to be dipped in that famous dressing.
While some recipes were born from a crisis, others are the result of what was initially deemed a mistake. Do you know the lovely French Tarte Tatin? Once the signature dish of Hôtel Tatin in Lamotte-Beuvron, the tarte Tatin was the creation of the two sisters Tatin, the owners of the hotel. Stories differ, but as far as the tale goes, the tart dates to the 1880s and is the result of a traditional apple tart gone wrong as they forgot to put the pastry in the bottom of the dish. One of the sisters tried to rescue it by putting the pastry on top and then flipping the dish. It worked a charm!
Staying with fruit, Peach Melba, a dessert of peaches, vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce was created by chef Auguste Escoffier of the Savoy Hotel in London. He was inspired by the 19th-century Australian soprano Dame Nellie Melba who performed at Covent Garden. (Read more) He was such a fan that when she got sick in later years, he also created Melba Toast which became the staple of her diet, even though today, we often serve it with luxurious soups, cheese or pâté.
From thin and crispy toast to rolls that are crispy on the outside, but temptingly soft on the inside. Vienna rolls with their distinctive five-point crown patterns were developed in recognition of Kaiser Franz Joseph I of Austria and called Kaiser rolls.
While we might not consider pizza food for royalty, there is a royal connection with the most classic of pizzas, the Margherita. It was created by pizzeria owner, Raffaele Esposito to celebrate the Naples visit of Queen Margherita of Savoy in 1889. It might not have been the first time that this pizza of basil, cheese and tomato representing the colours of the Italian flag were made, but it only became popular when it found a royal namesake.
Staying with aristocracy and quite fittingly so, as many consider the Chateaubriand the king of steak dishes to order in a grill house. This piece of beef tenderloin often served with a Bearnaise sauce can be a showstopper at the dinner table when set alight during service. The inspiration behind all the theatre is contributed to the 18th-centry French aristocrat and politician François-René de Chateaubriand.
And from aristocracy we go to a Roman Catholic order of brothers, the Capuchin Franciscans. Their brown robes are said to have inspired Viennese coffeemakers in the 19th century to add milk to coffee and the result – the Cappuccino! Its fancy froth came later when espresso machines were invented.
Our last two meats are Beef Wellington and Carpaccio. The latter was developed by Giuseppe Cipriani founder of Harry’s Bar in Venice and named after a famous painter, the 15th century Vittore Carpaccio known for the characteristic red and white tones of his work, similar to the tones of the meat dish. Wrapped in pastry and with more cooking time, Beef Wellington existed as a recipe, but the dish only became famous when named after the Duke of Wellington, a British military hero who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
There are many more interesting food names. Click here to read more about anything from Victoria Sponge, Cobb Salad and Beef Stroganoff to Lamingtons and Earl Grey tea!
Isn’t food just wonderful? So many stories, memories and even history that surrounds it. I hope you have a dish in your repertoire that recognises someone meaningful behind it. It is quite a special tradition!