The year 5,000 BC was a pretty significant one when it comes to food, according to the
Food Timeline, a fun website that traces the history of food since the beginning.
The Food Timeline tells us the year 5,000 BC brought the world:
– Olives & olive oil
– Cucumbers & squash
– Chili peppers, avocados & taro
– Potatoes
– Milk & yogurt
Wow, some of the wonderful foods we love so much today and include in family recipes were actually being used in recipes and consumed by family groups thousands of years ago! Can you imagine the excitement back then of enjoying hot cooked potatoes drizzled with olive oil and salt, or mashed up with milk? Sorry, all you garlic mashed potato fans, garlic didn’t come into being until a bit later (3,000 BC).
All this talk about food history reminds me to impress upon you to always include a date in every family recipe you add to your family heritage cookbook (hopefully using my make-a-family-cookbook-at-home software).
Dates on recipes not only tie them to a specific era of popularity, it allows family cooks of the future to understand more clearly the tastes, meal plans, and traditions of their family’s past dining lifestyle. For example, any bread, beer or soup recipes you have in your family cookbook could have originated in 10,000 BC!
So putting a date on every recipe in your family heritage cookbook becomes more critical with every succeeding generation. Instead of carbon dating, think of it as “heritage dating.” (Anyway, it’s a good way to tell the difference between the neophyte and Neolithic cooks in your family!)
Happy Cookbooking,
Erin
PS: As a thank you for visiting, why not grab a few free recipe card printables? No signup forms, no obligation.
