Flour Tortilla
Corn tortillas ("tortilla de maiz") date back several centuries, but flour tortillas ("tortilla de harina") are cited in the 19th century and are believed to have been first…
Archive for 08/2008
Texas Trinity (brisket/ribs/sausage; mustard/mayo/pickles)
Louisiana cuisine has its "Holy Trinity" of onions, celery and bell peppers. There is no single "Texas trinity" of food, but both "brisket, ribs and sausage" and…
Pie Car
The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus performs often at Madison Square Garden in New York City, but the circus is also frequently on the road. The performers are fed in a railroad…
Cuatro Leches or Quatro Leches (four milks cake)
"Tres leches" (three milks cake) contains evaporated milk, condensed milk, and whole milk or cream. "Cuatro leches" (or "quatro leches") is a "four milks…
Bean Burger (Beanburger)
The San Antonio tradition of the "beanburger" (or "bean burger") supposedly began at Sill's Snack Shack ("Triple S") in 1953. The building (at the corner of…
Dutch Broadway (Courtlandt Avenue in the Bronx)
German immigration to New York City was high in the years before World War I. The term "Dutch" was often used for Germans (for "Deutsch"). Courtlandt Avenue in the Bronx had so…
Blue Alert 〈“Amber Alert” for officers〉
The "Blue Alert" for law enforcement officers was patterned after the "Amber Alert" (children) and the "Silver Alert" (seniors). If a law enforcement officer is killed…
“Harder than eating red beans with a pitchfork”
"Harder than eating red beans with a pitchfork" is said to be an East Texas saying for something that is very difficult to do. Nobody eats beans with a pitchfork -- the beans slip…
Killtown or Kill-Town (Killeen nickname)
"Killtown" (or "Kill-Town") is a hip-hop nickname for the city of Killeen. The name "Kill" comes from "Killeen" -- a city that has about the same amount of…
Galvatraz (Galveston nickname)
"Galvatraz" (Galveston + Alcatraz) is a nickname for the city of Galveston that's been used since at least 2000. Both Galveston and Alcatraz are islands; perhaps, to some people…
“It looks like a toothpick in a pie” (J. Frank Dobie on UT tower)
Folklorist J. Frank Dobie (1888-1964) was no fan of the University Tower on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. The twoer was completed in 1937. Dobie refused to move into an office in…
Klobasnek or Klobasnik (“sausage kolache”)
A "klobasnek" (or "klobasnik") is a Czech food that has been also called a "sausage kolache" (pastry). Both the kolache and the klobasnek are popular with the Czech…
First Monday Trade Days (Horse Monday; Dog Monday)
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: Canton, TexasCanton is a city in Van Zandt County, Texas, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 3,292. It is the county seat…
Waldorf Cocktail
The Waldorf cocktail is one of several cocktails from the Waldorf Hotel (later the Waldorf-Astoria). The Waldorf cocktail is cited in print from at least 1914 and contains ingredients such as rye…
Texas Nectar (cocktail)
"Texas Nectar" is a cocktail offered by the Hill Country barbecue restaurant in New York City, at 30 West 26th Street. The cocktail contains Maker's Mark bourbon, Southern Comfort,…
Demosthenes of Texas (Richard Bennett Hubbard, Jr.)
Richard Bennett Hubbard, Jr. (1832-1901) was known for his large size and his oratorical skills. Hubbard was Texas governor for only a brief period (from December 1, 1876 until 1879); in 1884 he…
“Edmonton is to Calgary as Austin is to Houston”
"Edmonton is to Calgary as Austin is to Houston" (Edmonton:Calgary::Austin:Houston) compares a capital city and a largest city. The Canadian province of Alberta (where Edmonton is the…
LBJ Law or Lyndon’s Law or LBJ Rule (simultaneous runs for senator and vice president)
Entry in progress--B.P. Wikipedia: Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973), often referred to as LBJ, was the thirty-sixth President of the United States,…
Southside Fade (haircut)
The "Southside Fade" is a "fade" haircut that is short on the bottom and progressively thicker on the top of the head. "Southside" means the south side of Houston,…
Knightees (Queens College women’s teams)
Queens College calls its men's athletic teams the "Knights." In the 1970s, the women's athletic teams were called the "Knightees." The "Knightee"…