Graham and Kellogg ou l'histoire des céréales...

4 Juin 2014 , Rédigé par Laurence B Publié dans #Personnes célèbres

Graham and Kellogg: The Health-Crazed Men Behind Our Kitchen Favorites

Graham crackers* and corn flakes: two staples* of every American pantry*. Chances are* you’ve enjoyed a bowl of cornflakes for breakfast or snacked on a s’more by the side of a campfire. But did you know that both of these foods trace their roots* back to the 1800s and two men’s obsession with clean living*?
A cracker est un biscuit sucré ou salé
A staple = aliment/ denrée de base
A pantry = un garde-manger
Chances are (that)… = il y a de grandes chances que, il est très possible que
S’more (« some more ») = un dessert populaire aux États-Unis et Canada, composé d'une guimauve grillée et d'un carré de chocolat entre deux biscuits Graham que l’on mange au coin d’un feu de camp. La journée nationale du S’more est le 10 aout aux EU!
A root = une racine
Clean living = vie saine

Sylvester Graham was born in 1794, the son of a Connecticut pastor. He became an Evangelical minister* himself, and lectured* widely* on the evils* of the American diet. According to* Graham, meat*, alcohol and fatty* foods led to gluttony*, lust* and materialistic urges*. The all-American meat and potatoes diet, in other words, was quickly turning America into a nation of drunk*, sex-crazed* maniacs. His devoted followers, called “Grahamites,” followed their charismatic leader on a restricted diet of vegetables, fruits and whole grains.
A minister = un pasteur
To lecture on = faire des conférence/ cours/ sermon sur
Widely = largement, beaucoup
The evils = les méfaits, les conséquences funestes/ négatives
According to = selon
Meat = la viande
Fatty = gras
Gluttony = gloutonnerie
Lust = la luxure
An urge = une forte envie, une soif de
Drunk = ivre
To craze = rendre fou

Grahamites were especially cautioned* to stay away from white breads and flours*. Graham espoused* that many beneficial nutrients* were lost in the quest for* whiter, lighter* bread. Though* white breads were a status symbol at the time (only the poor ate brown, whole-grained* breads), Grahamites consumed bread made from unsifted*, unbleached*, wheat berry* flour. The crackers baked from this flour were called, of course, graham crackers, although what the Grahamites ate bore little resemblance* to the modern day version. While the original Graham flours and breads were said to be quite tasty*, they were made with little to no added sweeteners*. And Sylvester Graham certainly wouldn’t have been a fan of the mass-produced nature of the majority of graham crackers on the market today.
To caution = avertir, mettre en garde
Flour = la farine
To espouse = défendre une cause, épouser, embrasser
Nutrient = nutriment
The quest for = le quête de, la recherche de
Lighter = plus léger
Though = quoique
Whole-grained = complet
Unsifted = non tamisé
Unbleached = non blanchi
Wheat berry = grain de blé
To bear resemblance to (I bore – born) = ressembler à
To be tasty = avoir du goût
With little to no added sweeteners = avec peu ou pas de sucre ajouté

John Harvey Kellogg was born 50 years after Graham, but he considered himself a Grahamite through and through. Kellogg wasn’t a preacher*, but a medical doctor, running the Battle Creek Sanitarium in Michigan for many years. The sanitarium* featured* treatments based on water therapy, vegetarianism and enemas* to cure* ailments* from fatigue to alcoholism and soon became a sort of health resort* for the upper classes*, attracting such luminaries as Amelia Earhart, Sojourner Truth and Henry Ford.
A preacher = un prédicateur
A sanitarium = une maison de repos
To feature = faire figurer, mettre en vedette
An enema = un lavement
To cure = guérir
Ailments = affections, maux
A health resort = une station thermale
The upper class = la haute société
Luminaries = des sommités (personnes importantes)

Kellogg believed in the same vegetable-centric, whole grain diet as Graham had, but the cereal that would make Kellogg famous came about by accident. While working on recipes* for a healthy* alternative to bread, Kellogg’s brother, Will Keith, left a batch* of boiled* wheat sitting out in the sanitarium’s kitchen, causing the wheat to go stale*. With money tight*, the Kellogg brothers couldn’t afford* to just throw away* perfectly good food. So they put the wheat through a dough roller*, hoping to get thin* sheets* of compressed wheat—but got flakes* instead*.
A recipe = une recette
Healthy = sain
A batch = une fournée, un lot
To boil = bouillir
To go stale = rassir, s’abîmer
With money tight = avec l’argent qui manquait
They couldn’t afford = ils ne pouvaient pas se permettre
To throw away = jeter à la poubelle
They put the wheat through a dough roller = ils ont passé les grains au rouleau à pâtisserie
Thin = mince
A sheet = une feuille
A flake = un flocon
Instead = au lieu de, à la place

To their surprise, the sanitarium’s patients enjoyed the flaked cereal, and the brothers continued to experiment with a variety of corn* and rice* cereals, receiving their first patents* in 1896. But the brothers soon parted* ways: Will Keith wanted to add sugar to the cereals to appeal* to a broader* mass market*. John Harvey wouldn’t hear of it*. So Will branched out* on his own* to create the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company, which later became the multinational corporation we know today as Kellogg’s.
Corn = maïs, grain
Rice = du riz
A patent = un brevet d’invention
To part = se séparer
To appeal = plaire à, intéresser
Broader = plus large
Mass market = le grand public
John Harvey wouldn’t hear of it = J H ne voulait pas en entendre parler
To branch out = étendre son activité
On his own = de son côté, tout seul

March 21, 2014

By Stephanie Butler, www.history.com