Today is Thursday, December 29th, 2011 

Pepper Pot Day

Today is Pepper Pot Day! Pepper pot is a thick spicy soup first created on December 29, 1777. During the Revolutionary War, the Continental Army experienced an exceptionally harsh winter in Valley Forge. The soldiers were low on food because the farmers in the area sold all their supplies to the British Army for cash rather than the weak currency that the Continental soldiers could offer.

Christopher Ludwick, the baker general of the Continental Army, gathered whatever food he could find to feed the frail soldiers. The chef was able to find scraps of tripe, meat, and some peppercorn. He mixed the ingredients together with some other seasonings and created the hot spicy soup we now know as pepper pot. It became known as "the soup that won the war."

To celebrate this historic dish, try making your own pepper pot soup today! It’s the perfect way to warm up on a chilly December day.

December is National Fruit Cake Month & National Egg Nog Month

mages and text courtesy of MyPunchbowl.com" -- http://www.mypunchbowl.com/

History for December 29 1848 - U.S. President James Polk turned on the first gas light at the White House. 1851 - The first American Young Men's Christian Association was organized in Boston, MA. 1888 - The first performance of Macbeth took place at the Lyceum Theatre. 1940 - During World War II, Germany began dropping incendiary bombs on London. 1952 - Sonotone Corporation offered the first transistorized hearing aid for sale.

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"It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life does not lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach. It isn’t a calamity to die with dreams unfulfilled, but it is a calamity not to dream. It is not a disgrace not to reach the stars, but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for."

--Benjamin E. Mays