I Hate The French

[st.cronin]

It's true. I don't want to hate them, because it's such a cliche. I never used to have any particular prejudice towards anybody. But in my job, apart from spending huge amounts of time surfing the web and playing FM, I have to deal with people from all over the world. The French are in a class by themselves. They are universally high-maintenance, low-reward, rude, arrogant, and condescending. In the last year or so, every single time I have dealt with somebody from France, I have ended up wanting to punch them out.

Phew.

Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.

[Joe]

I like their short shorts.

[JonInMiddleGA]

But their fries are pretty good.

[Raiders Army]

Chicks giving french kisses are great.

[Raiders Army]

Oh, hairy armpits are not.

[spleen1015]

A company I used to work for was French owned. Whenever they had to lay people off because of their mismanagement, they laid off Americans.

I hate them with you.

[Raiders Army]

What about French Canadians?

[Subby]

You hate an entire country based on your dealings with a double-digit subset of the population?

You will do well as an old white guy.

[EagleFan]

You hate an entire country based on your dealings with a double-digit subset of the population?

You will do well as an old white guy.

Lighten up Francis!!!

[WVUFAN]

You hate an entire country based on your dealings with a double-digit subset of the population?

You will do well as an old white guy.

So you're saying all old white guys hate entire countries? :)

[BreizhManu]

I don't really like them either and I must admit French companies are a pain in the ass.

Oh and I'm french btw.

[JeffNights]

What about French Canadians?


To quote a rather insulting dog named Triumph....

"Whats that sound?......Thats the sound of nobody giving a shit!"


:)

[fantastic flying froggies]

The French are not really arrogant, they just have a hard time getting understood.

Here's a lesson in french attittude:
http://www.cestsoparis.com/attitude-game.php

[MizzouRah]

As I make french toast for the kids this morning, I will tip my cap to them for a brief few seconds.

[JPhillips]

I prefer French to Greek.

[Honolulu_Blue]

A company I used to work for was French owned. Whenever they had to lay people off because of their mismanagement, they laid off Americans.

I hate them with you.

That's because French labor laws make it nigh impossible for French companies to fire French employees.

[Logan]

Is Darkiller still around?

[fantastic flying froggies]

A company I used to work for was French owned. Whenever they had to lay people off because of their mismanagement, they laid off Americans.

I hate them with you.

That's pretty funny, because a company I used to work for was American owned. When the company started having problems because of their mismanagement, they closed down the french office, despite it being profitable.

However, I don't hate all Americans because of that.

[fantastic flying froggies]

Is Darkiller still around?

Yep, but nowadays, he hangs mostly around IHOF though.

[Abe Sargent]

That's pretty funny, because a company I used to work for was American owned. When the company started having problems because of their mismanagement, they closed down the french office, despite it being profitable.

However, I don't hate all Americans because of that.

Heh.

[bulletsponge]

As I make french toast for the kids this morning, I will tip my cap to them for a brief few seconds.

French Toast was invented by an American named French

[Abe Sargent]

French Toast was invented by an American named French

Since when?

[st.cronin]

The French Canadians I've known have been very nice. I think I would enjoy living in Quebec.

I have been to France, and found it loathsome. It's almost as bad as Boston.

[stevew]

Taco Bell was started by an american named Bell.

[MrBug708]

That's because French labor laws make it nigh impossible for French companies to fire French employees.

So they've unionized?

[MrBug708]

Since when?

It has also been called "American toast" in the U.S., where there is a story that it was invented in 1724 by a man named Joseph French in a roadside tavern near Albany, New York. In England this dish is known as "Eggy Bread".

:D

[MizzouRah]

Taco Bell was started by an american named Bell.

Wasn't he the guy who died on the toliet?

[spleen1015]

That's pretty funny, because a company I used to work for was American owned. When the company started having problems because of their mismanagement, they closed down the french office, despite it being profitable.

However, I don't hate all Americans because of that.

Was that French company purchased by the American company 15 years ago after the company had been a successful, profitable business that was a major part of American culture since the invent of the radio?

[Abe Sargent]

:D

I guess there are two questions here:

What is the origin of the term "French Toast"


What is the origin of the actual dish


Both go back farther than a Mr. Frech.

The very wiki article you cite lists the term as being older:

"The Oxford English Dictionary cites usages of "French toast" in English as early as 1660 (toasted bread with wine, orange juice, and sugar)"


Other sources of info:

"French toast is a dish we have borrowed from the French, who call it "pain perdu", or lost bread...It is known in England as the poor knights of Windsor, which is the same phrase used in many countries: "fattiga riddare" in Sweden; "arme ridder" in Danish; and "armer ritter" in German. One theory about how the latter name came about goes as follows: In olden times, one of the symbols of distinction between the gentry and the common herd was that the former were expected to serve dessert at dinner. Knights, of course, were gentry. But not all of them were rich. Those who were not, in order to maintain their status, made do with "armer ritter'," often served with jam."
---Craig Claiborne's The New York Times Food Encyclopedia [Times Books:New York] 1985 , Craig Claiborne (p. 178)


"This dish does have its origins in France, where it is known as "ameritte" or "pain perdu" ("lost bread"), a term that has persisted, in Creole and Cajun cookery; in Spain it is called "torriga" and in England "Poor Knights of Windsor," which is the same name for the dish in Denmark, "arme riddere," and Germany, "arme ritter." At one time or another in America it has been referred to as "Spanish," "German," or "nun's toast," and its first appearance in print as "French Toast" was in 1871. "
---The Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, John F. Mariani [Lebhar-Friedman:New York] 1999 (p. 134)


"...what amounts to French toast seems to have been popular throughout [medieval] Europe. But everyone seems to have has his own name for the dish: Maestro Martino and some English authors called it "suppe dorate" and "soupys yn dorye" respectively, while French writers favored "tostees dorees," reserving the word "soupe" for slices of bread soaked in the potage (which gives rise to the expression "trempe comme une soupe," the French equivalent of "soaked to the skin"). Eventually, as we know, the world "soup" would come to mean the actual liquid in which these soupes were soaked. Other English sources surprisingly call this dish "payn purdeu," clearly the same as today's French name, "pain perdu." And of course the modern English term is "French toast": what goes around comes around. In England and in Italy, these golden brown bread slices were served with game meats and with peacocks and other grand birds. We do not know exactly how they were used in France even though there are several otherwise undefined menu references to venaison aux soupes, "game meat with sippets." In any event, we have once again thrown in our lot with Maestro Martino, because his recipe is the most polished of them all, using rose water where no one else thought to do so. Still, some of the English recipe are not without delicacy, specifying that the butter for frying the toast should be clarified (gently boiled to separate out its impurities, which prevents burning) and that the bread would be soaked not in whole eggs but in beaten egg yolks that have been put through a sieve to make them perfectly smooth and creamy."
---The Medieval Kitchen, Recipes from France and Italy, Odilie Redon et al, [University of Chicago Press:Chicago] 1998 (p.207)

"The popular history behind French toast (aka German toast, American toast, Spanish toast, Nun's toast, Cream toast, Amarilla, Poor Knights of Windsor) is that it was created by medieval European cooks who needed to use every bit of food they could find to feed their families. They knew old, stale bread (French term "pain perdu" literally means lost bread) could be revived when moistened with milk and enriched with eggs. The traditional method of cookery was on a hot griddle prepped with a little fat (butter, oil). Quite like today.

Actually, recipes for "French toast" can be traced Ancient Roman times. Apicius simply calls it "Another sweet dish." Linguistic evidence confirms the connection, as one of the original French names for this dish is "Pain a la Romaine," or Roman bread. Culinary evidence confirms "French toast" was not just a food of the poor. Recipes printed in ancient and medieval texts employed white bread (the very finest, most expensive bread available at the time) with the crusts cut off. In many cases, expensive spices and almond milk were listed as ingredients. This is not something a poor, hungry person would have eaten. It is also important to note that until very recently, cook books were not written for the the "average" person. Only the noble, wealthy, and religious leaders were taught to read. The recipes contained in them reflect the meals of the upper classes. www.foodtimeline.org"


As such, a bit of research demonstrates the story you resourced to regale us with to be a false accounting of French Toast's history.


-Anxiety

[Glengoyne]

What about French Canadians?

Pretty harmless. Hell, they're Canadian.

... In the last year or so, every single time I have dealt with somebody from France, I have ended up wanting to punch them out.

Phew.

Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.

This is funny, but that is how I find myself feeling about the people I've worked with in Georgia.

[headtrauma]

Taco Bell was started by an american named Bell.

Don Money invented the money shot.

[st.cronin]

Don Money invented the money shot.

Actually, it was Eddie Money.

[King of New York]

I've lived in France for extended periods of time, mostly in the south, a bit in Paris:

It's not so much a French/American thing as an urban/rural and a northern/southern thing. Parisians can be a very tough lot, but that's understandable, because they live in a huge city with crummy weather. Go to the south of France where the pace of life is easier and the weather is glorious, and you'll find most people are just as nice as you could want.

[kcchief19]

IIn the last year or so, every single time I have dealt with somebody from France, I have ended up wanting to punch them out.
I'll take Feelings I'm Sure Are Mutual for a thousand, Alex.

[FrogMan]

Pretty harmless. Hell, they're Canadian.


and I would agree. :D

FM

[st.cronin]

bump

:mad:

[bulletsponge]

you just dealt with more frenchy's Cronin?

[st.cronin]

you just dealt with more frenchy's Cronin?

yep

Honestly, if you hate America, go somewhere else on vacation.