Eat-Q Test: Culinary Innovations (answers)
1. Craig Claiborne called which machine “perhaps the best food invention since toothpicks”?
A. Blender
B. Food processor
C. Silicone spatula
D. Dutch oven
Answer: B. The first home food processors hit the French market in 1971, but they didn’t take off in the US until Carl Sontheimer, an American engineer raised in France, spotted one at a French trade show in 1971 and founded Cuisinart with his wife. In 1973, he sent samples to Julia Child, James Beard, and Claiborne to promote the processor, with great success.
Source: Butler, Stephanie. “Natural History of the Kitchen: Food Processor.” Eat Me Daily, 1 June 2010.
2. Albert Einstein secured patents for, but never developed commercially, which of these kitchen appliances?
A. Microwave
B. Toaster Oven
C. Immersion Circulator
D. Refrigerator
Answer: D. When Einstein learned of the fatal accidents the first models of refrigerators were causing, he developed a patent in 1930 for a safer and quieter machine with no moving parts. Unfortunately, the Great Depression settled in and the machine was never produced commercially.
Source: Wyckoff, Barbara. “Did You Know?” National Geographic Online. Accessed 3 Feb 2011.
3. The microwave was originally called this:
A. Radar Range
B. Food Zapper
C. MicroOven
D. Mini Quick
Answer: A. During World War II scientists invented the magnetron, a tube that produces microwaves. Installing magnetrons in Britain’s radar system, the microwaves were able to spot Nazi warplanes. Several years later, it was discovered that microwaves also cook food. Called the Radar Range, the first microwave oven to go on the market was roughly as large and heavy as a refrigerator.
Source: “The Microwave Oven.” The Great Idea Finder.com. Accessed 3 February 2011.
4. True or False: the dishwasher was invented by a wealthy housewife who was frustrated that her servants were chipping her fine china when they washed it.
Answer: True. Illinois housewife Josephine Cochrane invented the designed the first automatic dishwasher in 1893 to counteract the “indignity” of washing her own dishes by hand when her servants didn’t treat them delicately enough.
Source: Lienhardt, John. “Inventing the Dishwasher.” Engines of our Ingenuity. Fall 1999.
5. In 1917, the US Navy adopted this machine as standard equipment for all battleship galleys:
A. KitchenAid standing mixer
B. Cuisinart food processor
C. Mr. Coffee drip machine
D. Wusthof knife set
Answer: A. The electric stand mixer was invented by Hobart Manufacturing Company engineer Herbert Johnston in 1914. The first commercial machine, the 80-quart Model H, was designed for use in bakeries, food factories, and institutional kitchens, and the Navy quickly added the mixer to all of their battleships.
Source: Kurtzman, Amy. “KitchenAid Mixer: History of the Baker’s Best Friend.” Examiner.com. 27 August 2009.
6. Who invented the quick-freeze method for food?
A. Thomas Edison
B. Clarence Birdseye
C. Harold McGee
D. Julia Child
Answer: B. In 1924, Birdseye developed a method for quick freezing foods by employing the then- innovative idea of packaging the food beforehand. This helps retain most of the food’s flavor and texture once it’s been defrosted.
Source: “Everyday Mysteries.” The Library of Congress Online Catalogue. Aug 23, 2010.
7. The inventor of this kitchen tool originally called the appliance “bamix,” a portmanteau of the French "bat et mixe" (beats and mixes)
A. Immersion blender
B. Food processor
C. Hand mixer
D. Electric whisk
Answer: A. The immersion blender was invented in Switzerland in the 1950s by Roger Perrinjaquet, who coined the nickname that would later become a top-selling brand for kitchen mixers.
Source: Matsumoto, Janice. "The Spin on Sticks." Restaurants & Institutions, March 1, 2000.
8. Which of these materials was originally named after a character in the comic strip “Little Orphan Annie?”
A. Aluminum foil
B. Tupperware
C. Saran Wrap
D. Wax paper
Answer: C. In 1933, college student Ralph Wiley, who cleaned glassware in the Dow Chemical Lab, came across a vial he couldn't scrub clean. He called the substance "eonite", after an indestructible material in the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie." Dow researchers made Ralph's "eonite" into a greasy, dark green film, which Dow called "Saran".
Source: Bellis, Mary. “The History of Your Toaster.” About.com Inventors Series. Accessed 3 February 2011.
9. The Latin word meaning “to scorch or burn” gives name to this machine:
A. Oven
B. Toaster
C. Microwave
D. E-Z Bake
Answer: B. “Tostum” is the Laitn word for scorching or burning, and toasting bread was a common activity in Roman times as a method for prolonging the life of bread. The first electric toaster was invented in 1893 in Great Britain by Crompton and Co.
Source: Bellis, Mary. “The History of Your Toaster.” About.com Inventors Series. Accessed 3 February 2011.
10. Which of these is not a type of coffeemaker?
A. Glass balloon
B. Piston
C. Napierian balancing siphon
D. Caboose
Answer: D. Between 1835 and 1850, a period referred to by coffee enthusiasts as “The Golden Age of Coffee,” a cluster of assorted inventions appeared, all designed to capture the energy from coffee beans.
Source: “History of Coffeemakers.” Coffee.com. Accessed 3 February 2011.
Your Eat-Q Score:
10 Correct: You’re a gadget guru
6–9: You’ve just upgraded from a blender to a Paco Jet
3–5: Your egg beater is on the fritz
2 or Fewer: Keep rubbing those sticks together!