According to the Dictionary of American Regional English, cream cheese has had a few different labeling when going to different regions. Within the southeastern region of Texas and Louisiana, cream cheese has picked up the meaning of what we (in NJ) would call cottage cheese. Otherwise in New Orleans, the term cream cheese has created its own specific labeling, being a breakfast dessert with cream over sour cheese and sugar is spread over it.
Another term I have taken off DARE is flannel cake. This term is quite interesting because the basic meaning of the term refers to a pancake. Over the time, this term has traveled all over the country. DARE mentions flannel cake being used in Mississippi used to eat with other breakfast foods, served with syrup. Otherwise, it has traveled to other places such as Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Dunkin' Donuts terms:

Dunkachino (sp questionable)-played off the name of the business, blending of words dunkin' (or perhaps playing on the word dunk-able, being able to dip a pastry into the drink) and cappuccino. It's a good combination of words because of the possibility of the an adjective and noun being put together as well as the nice ring to it.

munchkins-since its not as big as a donut, the bite wouldn't be as big. Not a chomp or gobble, but something you could munch on. Again, they are playing on the word "Dunkin'" and added it to the end of the the verb.

McDonald's has a certain way of inventing words by adding "Mc" to their products.

"McChicken"

"McGriddle"

"McCafe"

..and so on. It's easy to memorize and you can always relate the product to the location.

Starbucks words:

Frappuccino comes from the word frappé to blend something. The other half of the word probably comes from cappuccino as that is a popular hot drink to order.

Reese's pieces-derived from the product Reeses, little pieces you can put into your mouth. Has a good ring/rhyme/jingle to it

There are many cooking verbs because of the way they are cooked, how long they are cooked, or with what they are cooked with. We have definitely advanced in forms of cooking techniques. We first began with just wood and fire, which was used just to cook our raw food to avoid illness. We then advanced with more technology such as ovens and stove tops. We learned to boil, fry, bake, and broil. With new technology and new techniques, new cooking verbs emerged. Each main verb also can be broken down into sub-categories because the cooking technique becomes more specific.

The reading gives the example for the verb "to brown". "To brown" has sub-categories "toast", "rissoler", "sear", "parch", and "flamber". All of them serve the general purpose of browning the surface (changing the texture of the material). However, they all have a specific technique in doing the "browning". Flamber requires some sort of alcohol in order to create a certain type of flame. Parch requires baking. Rissoler and sear requires frying, but rissoler requires a long period of time. Toast requires direct heat.

Love is so bittersweet (it has its good moments and its bad)

No use crying over spilled milk (once it's done, it's done. just clean up, move on, and wipe up the mess)

You can't have your cake and eat it too (impossible to have it both ways)

An apple a day keeps the doctor away (being healthy->not sick)

Butterfingers (clumsy, not being able to hold onto something)

Bringing home the bacon (having financial responsibility)

A piece of cake (easy)

A bad egg (a bad person)

You shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket (Don't put all your hopes into one thing)

You're nuts/nutty (crazy)

A couch potato (lazy)

As easy as pie (something is easy)

cup of tea (enjoyable)

souped up (to be excited)

food for thought (piece of a person's mind)

Milking someone for all their worth (taking advantage of someone)

Fishy (suspicious)

like taking candy from a baby (easy)

Like two peas in a pod (very close friends)

Peachy (swell)

putting the icing on the cake (finishing the product)

cream of the crop (prized person)

when life hands you lemons, make lemonade (make the best of a bad situation)

sugar mama/papa (pimp like character)

say cheese

the apple doesn't fall far from the tree

who cut the cheese (who farted)

I'm in a pickle (in a rut/mess)

These terms are taken from the cereal, "Honey bunches of Oats".

“delicious..and nutritious too!”

Showing that it’s not only taste appealing, but it also has nutritional value.

“heart healthy”

Also showing nutritional value.

“try all our delicious flavors”

Advertising other products, making them look appealing by using the word delicious

“crispy flakes, crunchy oats, and a touch or honey”

Texture of the cereal , using two different adjectives in order to show variety (but still the same)

“amazing cereal”

Shows emphasis, positive connotation

reflection

The readings we had to do deal with prototypes and the categorizing of objects. It is interesting to see how sometimes there are formulas for objects within our lives. We collect a list of qualities that make up a category. If the object is missing more characteristics than the other, we consider it as less qualified. For example, you are given a list of fruits and have to rate them on their “fruity-ness”. What makes one fruit less of a fruit than another? If it’s missing certain components, is it no longer a fruit?

Another interesting aspect written in the article is about cultural boundaries. There are object we consider normal to us; that can be found in almost any household in America. However, that object will not always be found in other cultures. The example the reading gave is a saucepan. First off, not everyone…everywhere has a stove top and would know what It is. If you are exchanging recipes with a person with no stovetop, how would you explain the usage of a stove top and the cooking technique? It makes you think about how what is thought to be a norm here, won’t always be the case for the next person you interact with.

brie

quiche

brulee

fillet

sangria

curry

brushetta

matcha

ravioli

sushi

escargot

entree

hummus

margarita

vinegrette

java

souffle

tortilla

pesto

chili

cafe

crepe

fondue

fondant

In Rozin&Rozin's article, "Culinary Themes and Variations", they discuss how certain seasonings have an attachment to cultures all over the world.These flavors get passed down within the different cultural generations. It molds their tastes and creates what their palates might find delightful or repulsive. Without their distinct flavors of a dish, it would have feelings of being incomplete. In fact, without the distinct flavor, some people would try to find a familiarity with what ingredients they may have. I know that within the Filipino culture, we have a salty fish sauce called patis. They will put it on anything and everything, especially their rice or main/side dishes. In the Japanese culture, the most common distinct flavors would be soy sauce or fish stock. They season everything (and I mean almost everything) with soy sauce. There is even a commonly made dessert that has a soy sauce flavoring to it! Those molded within the Japanese culture can find their sweet taste buds affected by this. Desserts we enjoy over here would be too sweet for them. (If you tasted a cake from here in comparison to a Japanese bakery, the sweetness would be a big difference.)

Menu Language

The menu I will be describing is from Legal Seafoods. They had their menus in different sections such as children's menu, dessert, entrees, appetizers, and lunch menu. I choose to describe and analyze their Dinner Menu.

http://www.legalseafoods.com/index.cfm?cd=LOCATION&pid=11279&cdid=11857

The majority of the menu has no full sentence phrases. It pretty much has a list structure, lists after lists. Each section has different highlights such as Simply Legal (Fish, just fish. This phrase is somewhat of a catch phrase, a play on words to highlight their restaurant name and what they are trying to sell), Legal Classics (Favorites, again using restaurant name), Seafood bar, and Chowders, Soups, & Salads. Everything (that is being sold) is listed as a noun or noun phrase, followed by the price. Some sentences also seem like narratives as they make suggestions, such as "Have your fish...WOOD GRILLED" or "Flavors...ADD a little something extra". Underneath the main entrees, some of them have descriptions in the form of verb phrases, prepositional phrases, or noun phrases. Examples: sauteed with tomato, scallions, and mushrooms, tossed with fresh pasta (verb phrase), with drawn butter (prepositional phrase), [Lite Clam Chowder] clams and aromatic vegetables in a clear broth (noun phrase) . They also use massive amounts of adjectives in order to "spice" up their menu and make it seem appealing to customers. They like to talk about texture (creamy) , aroma/taste (lemony) , technique of cooking (pan seared, broiled, grilled).

Starbucks

I decided to take a different perspective on the assignment. (I don't know if it will count or not) It isn't a cookbook, but a collection of ideas. Being a Starbucks barista, I decided to go on the Starbucks website to look for recipes (as I know they exist somewhere there). There is a section on the website called, "My Starbucks Idea". It gives customers and just about anybody to throw out a suggestion they have. People occasionally submit recipe ideas on here. I believe this gives coffee/tea drinkers galore a community membership significance. They can share their ideas and likes of what they enjoy. All of them being narratives of their experiences from Starbucks and their experimental drinks they have created, bringing them lots of happiness and excitement.

Examples from the website:

Submitted by smalleen75

"As a former barista who liked to play around w/ recipes, the toffee nut hot cocoa is amazing. If you put in equal amounts of mocha and toffee nut w/ the standard pumps of vanilla, it is delicious. I find the mocha to be rather rich, so sometimes I pump one less pump of mocha and one extra pump of toffee nut.

tall: 1 pump vannilla, 2 pumps toffee nut, 1 pump mocha.

delicious!!"

Submitted by Legacy

Okay, a Barista at my local Starbucks and I worked together and found a really good recipe for a Snickerdoodle Latte and a Snickerdoodle Frap.

Snickerdoodle Latte:

Standard latte base

2 squirts each of Vanilla, Cinnamon, & Toffee Nut syrups.



Snickerdoodle Frap:

"Start with a Cream base, but add a splash of Coffee Base mixed in with it.

1 squirt each of Vanilla, Cinnamon, & Toffee Nut.

Both can be topped with whip cream and Cinnamon Sugar.

Just a warning though... the Frap is SUPER sweet. But they both taste surprisingly like the cookie!"

Term Project

I've decided to do a taste sampling of different teas. There are so many different kinds of tea and it is something that I am interested in. I want to see what kind of different answers people can provide me with.

I have selected 8 types of tea that I will provide an organization on campus (that I'm part of) with and have them fill out my hand outs. The teas I've chosen are chai, black, earl grey, white, green, peppermint, passion, chamomile. I will have printouts of fill in one word answer questions. The questions I've chosen are:

What is the aroma like?

How does it taste?

In addition, I want to research a little background information on tea and see what sorts of lexicon they provide me with. (Especially different types of adjectives they provide for taste and aroma)

Twitter Recipe

Milk Tea

Use 2 black tea bags for 12-20 ounce hot H2O. Seep 4 mins. Add warm or cold ¼-1/3 cup of milk. Sweeten to liking. (Optional)Try with Earl Grey Tea or sweetening with vanilla.

The first one is called, “I love Chocolate! Cookbook,” by Mrs. Fields (1994). The second one is, “Baking & Pastry: Mastering the Art and Craft,” created by the Culinary Institute of America (2009). I chose these books because they both focus around desserts at one point or another. By choosing these books, I picked out one recipe that they both shared: chocolate soufflés. First and foremost, I want to compare and contrast the lexical items they use in these recipes.

Mrs. Fields CIA

[the ceramic dish used for baking]

Ramekins soufflé dishes

[melting technique using steam]

Double boiler “in a bowl over barely simmering water”

[The different terms for mixing]

stir blend

whisk whip

beat

[Preparing the dishes with butter and sugar]

“Butter and sugar” “coat…with a film of softened butter…dust with sugar”

[Putting in sugar ]

“slowly add sugar” “gradually sprinkle in the sugar”

[mixture of eggs, sugar]

N/A meringue

Other differences? Relevant? Not sure.

-CIA has their recipes in number form, and Mrs. Fields’s is presented in somewhat of a paragraph format.

-Fields’s mentions different bowl sizes (small, large, medium), but CIA does not (just a bowl).

-CIA is more to the point (short and sweet), while Mrs. Fields is more descriptive and breaks each step down.

-CIA's book is in a form of a textbook with their main audience focus on pastry art students, while Mrs. Fields's book is more friendly...towards the general public?

Random and Interesting

So I was walking around the mall during my break, and I happened to come across something interesting. Borders had two books on display that caught my eye...

"What to eat, what not to eat"

"What to cook, what not to cook"

Apparently there are things we're not supposed to eat or cook?

HMm...

Reflection

A Place at the Counter: The Onus of Oneness

Mary Lukanuski

"Consequently food is prepared with the expectation that it will be shared." (113)

"He who eats alone, dies alone" (116)

One of the main points that Lukanuski brings up in her article is about eating alone. How is it that eating alone has become somewhat of a taboo in our culture? From personal experiences, I know that it is nerve wrecking to eat alone in a public place. It feels as though everyone's eyes are on you, judging you for eating by yourself. In her article, she empathizes how food plays a big role in socialization. Food is something you share with friends and family (people you find important to you). Food also revolves around holiday feasts, which again are assembled with those important people. By not having food with others, you become an outcast; assumptions are created about your social background because of your inability to eat with others (when really it could have been something you do once in a while) "That person's eating by himself...he must not have any friends," is a thought that could go through an outsider's mind. In order to avoid these negative connotations, people avoid eating by themselves. Perhaps by not eating...or going out of their way to find a partner to eat with.

SO then, I decided to Google "eat alone", to see what it would come up with. It came up with titles such as,

"Never eat alone" (a book about being successful)

"How not to eat alone, and not be a loser"

"What we eat when we eat alone"

"How to eat alone with confidence"

Interesting.

Cultural Dimensions of Discourse by Johnson

This was a bit of a complex article full of lots of information. It was a little bit hard to read, so I had to go over it twice. Since the article was a little bit long, I'll elaborate on one of the parts I found interesting.

In Johnson's article, he discusses multiple theories about the role of language in culture. Johnson creates a bit of a metaphor in his description on a theory, which was quite interesting to read and analyze. Here is the quote listed below,

Language is essentially a vehicle for transporting information and ideas. Like any vehicle, language in this view is a medium from getting one place to another. And like any vehicle, language can be improved on, made more efficient and effective, and fueled with higher quality material. (Johnson 50)

In this theory, culture is something you can learn and enhance with the help of communication. Each person is "like a vehicle" with the ability to carry information to others, whom can relay that new information to more people. People can learn from other people's experiences and knowledge they possess. Learning from others, it can change a person's perception, culture, and language. (Like Professor Freed said,) People tell stories in order to pass on their culture. People learn new lexicon based on other people's experiences as well as their own.

(The next part will be based upon my own experiences, not empirical data.)
I've noticed that within some of the younger Asian communities, frozen yogurt has become a craze. A lot of places has opened up within the last 5 years. These places serve frozen yogurt with all these toppings lined up that you can put on your dessert. What does this have to do with language? I believe that because of this craze, some terms have evolved in people's lexixon. Examples would be Fro-yo (slang, representing a shortened version of frozen yogurt), and people have used the terms Pink Berry and Red Mango to represent these stores (when really they are just names of corporate stores). Another craze within the younger Asian communities is bubble tea. It is a new thing replacing just getting coffee or tea. I think it gives them a sense of identity of belonging to the Asian community. (As not many of the older generation would know what bubble tea is.)

Again, this is just a thought, not real data.

First Entry =)

I have an obsession. It's food. I love anything and everything about food. I love cooking, I love going to restaurants, and I even love going grocery shopping. When I saw that there was a new course called, "Language and Food", I knew I had to take it. In this course I hope to learn something new and interesting surrounding the kitchen table, at a fancy restaurant, or around my Starbucks while I am working. I would also like to broaden my vocabulary on kinds of dialect or cultural differences revolving around food. Lastly, I want to learn more about Japanese culture, food, and language, if possible. (Since there were a few things that came across my mind during the class discussion in reference to Japanese culture.) All in all, I expect an interesting and "yummy" upcoming semester. ^^

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/dollarsandsense/detail?entry_id=55562

Here's a random, short food blog (article?) I came across on the internet. It basically talks about how our society is encouraging "healthy" eating, even at fast food places. It mentions places such a Taco Bell and Subway changing around their menus in order to accommodate people's wants/needs. It's interesting because it made me realize the healthy promo Starbucks is going through. We are promoting "skinny" lattes such as our skinny vanilla latte or skinny cinnamon dolce latte. It is interesting because I believe "skinny" has picked up a new definition in this so called trying to be "health"y society. At least in this particular coffee shop, "skinny" stands for nonfat (or should I say skim) and sugar-free. It is most likely that it has originated from the word skinny describing a person's body mass, but it's just a thought.