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Gourmet Foods Are Everywhere
By Debra L. Dragon

The number of companies selling items labeled “gourmet” is increasing rapidly, particularly gourmet food items. At one time, getting gourmet food meant going to an expensive, upscale restaurant and giving over a week s worth of pay for your dinner! Now, you can get gourmet foods from your local grocery store and from countless online retailers, and even through several direct sales companies who come into your home to give taste testing parties for you and your friends. Home taste testing parties are extremely fun and you get to try the foods before you buy, which makes it easier to decide what you want.

What exactly is “gourmet” food, and how is it that everything from soup to nuts to brownies have been given the label “gourmet”? The actual definition of the word gourmet isn t food at all it s: a person who is devoted to refined sensuous enjoyment, especially good food and drink. We typically refer to foods themselves as gourmet now, rather than the people who enjoy these good edibles!

“Gourmet” seems to have become the catch-all phrase used to describe foods that taste good, and that are considered to be of higher than average quality. We also might label foods gourmet if they are hard to find.

Does your grocery store offer gourmet-to-go? These are dinners you can take home and serve instantly- that are designed to taste like you made it yourself. Roasted chicken and seafood dinners are commonly offered through the grocery gourmet food section. Gourmet in this case simply means it s going to taste good- and the idea is it s better than your typical fast food stop.

Actually, gourmet foods are all around us, and they give us great and simple gift giving opportunities! People often bring food to house warming parties, or to give the host when invited to dinner. Grab a gift basket of gourmet goodies and your host will be extremely appreciative of the gesture. If you bring dessert items, you may even get to taste them after dinner is served!

Packaged gourmet foods, like nuts, snacks and cheese make great gifts for all types of occasions. They typically come pre-packaged in attractive packaging, and many can be found in gift baskets which saves you time since you don t have to wrap them before giving.

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You can find gourmet brownie mixes, sauces and marinades, and even soups. A popular cooking show on the food network often uses these packaged items to make “almost homemade” meals- but the use of these gourmet packaged goods make it much faster to bring the dinner to the table- giving you more time to enjoy with your family and less time standing in the kitchen.

From coffee to dessert- and everything in between, you can now enjoy gourmet versions of all your favorite foods simply by looking up gourmet foods online or making a quick stop to your local grocery store s gourmet section.

Debra L. Dragon writes for http://hoppyshopper.com about Gourmet Foods and a variety of consumer interest topics.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Debra_L._Dragon
http://EzineArticles.com/?Gourmet-Foods-Are-Everywhere&id=976742

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A Brief History About Ovaltine
By Angela Abbette

You may never have actually tasted it, but chances are you ve heard of it, and chances are that you ve also wondered, along with millions of children in the past century, “What is that Stuff?”

Ovaltine is a chocolaty drink made from malt extract. In the late nineteenth century, a Swiss scientist named Georg Wander invented a process of easily extracting a nutritious syrup from malted barley of the sort used to make beer. Wander believed that he had discovered, in his malt extract, a possible solution to the scourge of malnutrition, or at least a healthful supplement to the average diet.

Perhaps he had, but the problem was that no one was interested in eating Dr. Wander s goo. His son Albert, however, realized that if he mixed the malt extract with sugar, whey, beet extract, and eggs, people would be interested in at least trying the stuff. Albert marketed his product as a powder and called it “Ovomaltine,” from the eggs (in Latin, ovo) and malt it contained.

Served hot as an energy drink at Swiss ski resorts, Ovomaltine was an instant hit and was subsequently exported all over Europe. When it hit the U.K. in 1904, it was sold under the shortened name Ovaltine, and it was Ovaltine that shortly thereafter took America by storm. By this time, the chocolate flavor of Ovaltine had crowded out all the other varieties, and it was advertised as the hot chocolate drink that was good for you.

Ovaltine was a huge success on both sides of the Atlantic largely because of an aggressive and clever advertising campaign of sponsoring children s radio shows. In the U.K.

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In the United States, Ovaltine sponsored both Little Orphan Annie and Captain Midnight, as well as several popular TV shows in the 1950s. And for Mom and Dad, folklore held that Ovaltine, mixed with raw eggs, was a powerful aphrodisiac.

Further marketing resounded the facts that Sir Edmond Hilary had Ovaltine during his Mount Everest expedition, and that Muhamad Ali was a promoter of the brand.

Sadly, as the Ovaltine generation aged, sales slumped, and Ovaltine has in recent years been passed from one owner to another. Perhaps most tellingly, it appears that Ovaltine, once touted as a high-energy pick-me-up, is now viewed by the public as a bedtime sleep aid.

Angela Abbette writes on a variety of subjects, including food and drink articles similar to the ones found at her favorite article directory.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Angela_Abbette
http://EzineArticles.com/?A-Brief-History-About-Ovaltine&id=977866

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