April 20th is Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Day! All that’s old is new again on this day as a treat that was actually born in medieval times is celebrated in the modern age. How’s that? According to food historians, the first upside-down cakes were developed during the Middle Ages, and found a resurgence in the 1900s.
But it wasn’t until Jim Dole first canned pineapples in 1903 and the Hawaiian Pineapple company published a recipe in 1925 that the classic Pineapple Upside-Down Cake was born. That year, the contest was announced and the 100 winning recipes were published in a cookbook the following year.
The Bottom Line: Delicious facts about pineapples!
The Full Story:
- Pineapples were kept on ships to ward off scurvy. Sailors would wash their pineapples down with a measure of rum.
- Have a cold or a cough? Try a pineapple – they’re packed with Vitamin C!
- Thailand is the biggest producer of pineapples in Southeast Asia.
- One pineapple plant produces only one pineapple every 2 years. A true perfectionist.
- Pineapple plants can fruit for up to 50 years in the wild.
- The word “pineapple” was first used in 1398 in reference to a pinecone. It was derived from the Spanish word “piña” which means pinecone. It was then changed nearly 300 years later for the word “pine cone” so the fruit could have a name all its own.
- Bromelain is an enzyme contained in pineapple that breaks down proteins. This enzyme is good for digestion, but also means pineapple juice can be used as a meat tenderizer.
This year, April 20th is National High Five Day! Every year, the third Thursday in April is all about celebrating the high five and giving high fives to everyone you meet, including friends, classmates, coworkers, and strangers. A group of students at the University of Virginia declared the first National High Five Day in 2002. Today, people all across the country celebrate this unique holiday and help raise money for the National High Five Project.
Nobody knows who invented the high five. NBA player Derek Smith claimed that he created the high five while playing for the University of Louisville basketball team in 1979. According to another story, a man named Mont Sleets popularized the gesture. While Mont was growing up in Kentucky, his father's old army friends would greet each other by extending their arms straight up in the air and saying the name of their division: "Five." As a young boy, it was difficult for Mont to remember all of the names of his father's friends, so when he saw them he would just say "Hi, Five!" This childhood greeting stuck with him and he started to greet others with high fives.
Want to know the trick for the perfect high five? Look at the other person's elbow as you are about to high five them. You’ll have a perfectly accurate high five every time