Curio Cabinet

If the East Coast has a flavor, it’s surely briney and served on a bun! Lobster rolls are considered a must-eat item in states like Maine and Massachusetts, yet unlike some of the Friday foods we’ve covered so far, this succulent dish hasn’t been around all that long.
 
Lobster rolls are exactly what they sound like: a dish of lobster meat, served on a split bun or “roll”, usually seasoned with lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Sometimes they also include butter, mayonnaise, and/or chopped veggies. Their connection to the East Coast is obvious, since the region has long been known for fishing and seafood. As for which state lobster rolls originate from, many historians believe that that honor goes to Connecticut, specifically a restaurant in Milford called Perry’s, where it was served starting in 1929. A portable dish popular with working people, many lobster rolls were served near East Coast beaches and docks, often in humble takeout containers or wrapped in paper. They weren’t mentioned in print for the first time until 1937, in The New York Times, when they were touted as a dish popular in Connecticut. By then, lobster rolls had spread through much of the East Coast, where they continued to be popular. A restaurant in Maine called Red's Eats sold a particularly popular version. Still, they weren’t yet a revered regional dish, as they are today.
 
That change didn’t come about until the 1990s, when a New York City restaurant called Pearl Oyster Bar began serving the dish. Food critics praised lobster rolls, and soon they began popping up all over the city. Their connection to Maine and Connecticut was a big part of their appeal, since both states were and still are famous for lobster. Throughout the early 2000s, the lobster roll received much acclaim, with Bon Appétit even calling it the dish of the year, in 2006. Today, lobster rolls can be found just about anywhere along the East Coast, from fancy restaurants to seafood shanties. Lobster lovers, rejoice!
 
[Image description: A lobster roll in a white, cardboard container.] Credit & copyright: Deane Bayas, Pexels

Peanuts—you either love them or hate them. Probably the latter, if you’re one of the millions of people who are deathly allergic to them. Soon, though, preventing a reaction to peanuts may be as simple as wearing a patch. As reported cases of peanut allergies have increased in recent years, few novel treatments have been developed to address the growing problem, with most sufferers relying on emergency epinephrine autoinjectors in case of emergencies. Unlike other food-related allergies, peanut allergies are particularly dangerous because peanuts are often processed in facilities that also process other, unrelated products like spices and grains. That means not only do patients have to avoid peanuts themselves, but a seemingly random assortment of pre-packaged grocery items that may have come in contact with them. Some people grow out of their peanut allergies, but for many others, it’s a lifelong medical concern.
 
Exposure can cause mild symptoms like a runny nose or an upset stomach, but peanuts are the leading cause of food-induced anaphylaxis, which causes constriction of airways and other deadly symptoms. Fortunately, a group of researchers working on a solution have published the promising results of a phase 3 trial for a new type of treatment in the The New England Journal of Medicine. Phase 3 clinical trials involve up to 3,000 volunteers who are monitored for up to 4 years, and it’s the penultimate step before a drug or treatment goes to market. In this case, the epicutaneous immunotherapy was provided to 300 children by way of skin patches over the course of 12 months, and at the end of the trial, 67 percent of the children developed a tolerance to peanuts, or twice that of the placebo group. That doesn’t mean that they’re ready to chow down on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but accidentally eating a few peanuts could now lead to milder, less deadly symptoms. Moreover, the trial proved that the skin patches are safe, so even if they’re ineffective, they’re unlikely to cause further harm. Let’s see this thing from soup to nuts!

 
[Image description: A white bowl of peanuts with shells.] Credit & copyright: Creativegen, Pixabay

The Indianapolis 500 might claim to be the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” but some racing enthusiasts might argue that the title really belongs to the Coopers Hill Cheese Roll! This year, fans of the centuries-old competition were treated to a particularly eventful race, as the women’s cheese roll was won handily by an individual who wasn’t even conscious as she crossed the finish line. As absurd as it may sound, cheese rolling has been around for a while in Great Britain, with some proposing it may have started in pre-Roman times. The premise is simple: a 7 pound wheel of Double Gloucester cheese is sent rolling down a steep, 200-yard hill, and competitors must chase after it. Due to the challenging topology of the “track,” that almost always results in people tumbling down the hill alongside the cheese. Fortunately for the competitors, that doesn’t really matter; regardless of the form of locomotion, the first person to get to the finish line wins the wheel of cheese—all 7 pounds of it!
 
To vie for the enviable prize, competitors from all around the world gather at Coopers Hill in Gloucestershire, where the race takes place every year. Onlookers chant “Roll that cheese!” before the race starts, and competitors waste no time in rushing down the hill once the master of ceremonies gives the signal. Chasing the cheese down the hill is no easy task, and plenty of people have been injured during the race. The winner this year for the women’s race was a Canadian named Delaney Irving, who traveled all the way from Vancouver Island to participate in the event. While making her way down the hill, she lost her footing and was knocked unconscious, but her body tumbled to the finish before anyone else. She told The Guardian, “I remember running, then bumping my head, and then I woke up in the [medical] tent. I still don’t really believe it, but it feels great.” Don’t worry, the wheel of cheese also survived intact.
 
[Image description: A wheel of cheese surrounded by cheese paper, being held aloft with one hand.] Credit & copyright: Federica Gioia, Pexels