As autumn marches on, the campus is beginning to change. Students' moods are becoming darker, the libraries are becoming more crowded and State Street — save for a few determined revelers — is starting to feel significantly non-festive on Wednesday evenings. These three signs can only mean one thing: Midterm season is upon us.
The mental and emotional strain of midterms burns a significant number of calories. At least, that is what I tell myself on repeated trips to the College Library vending machines for study snacks. Regardless of whether or not intense intellectual focus raises the body's energy requirements, studying begets snacking.
Most students have a specific snack they turn to when hunger pangs strike. Often they reach for chips or candy without a second thought, but with the repeated snacking that midterms inevitably bring, the old standbys can begin to taste boring. Occasionally, one gets a yearning for something a bit out of the ordinary.
Given Wisconsin's strong German heritage, the pretzel would seem to be an appropriate choice of alternative munchies for residents of the state. However, this starchy snack is less German than some people think. According to the authoritative Auntie Anne's Pretzels website, a seventh-century Italian monk created the pretzel as a reward for his students. The young ones would earn a pretzel for good deeds or thorough knowledge of religious doctrine.
In spite of the fact that the pretzel was an Italian invention, it was the Germans that gave the pretzel its conventional shape. By tying the dough in a knot with three holes, 16th-century German bakers created the pretzel that people all over the world know and love today. Many historians feel the bakers created the telltale shape in order to symbolize the Christian Trinity: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Regardless of what you feel about the pretzel's religious significance, eating them will probably not get God on your side for your Anthro 104 exam. However, they do create divine study fuel while providing a much-needed break from potato chips or Skittles.
For students who find themselves hungry for something a bit more unorthodox than a pretzel, pemmican is an excellent choice. It is nutritious, very portable and, unlike the pretzel, it was invented on this continent.
While most people associate the term "pemmican" with the beef-jerky producer of the same name, it is actually a combination of beef suet (a hard type of fat found around the kidneys), beef and dried fruit.
It is difficult to imagine people eating balls of fat, meat and fruit today, but many people did so in the past, primarily for utilitarian reasons. The nomadic tribes of Northeast Native America who taught European settlers how to prepare it subsisted largely on pemmican during long journeys. Pemmican was also a staple of 19th century fur traders on long expeditions in the French and British colonies that today comprise parts of Canada and the U.S. According to the Notukeu Heritage Museum in Saskatchewan, Canada, the company traveled with 14,000 calories per man per day worth of food. Because pemmican was relatively lightweight, rich in calories and did not need refrigeration, it was the traders' main source of nourishment.
There is also evidence that Lewis and Clark packed something not unlike pemmican in their backpacks during their famous expedition. According to National Geographic, the expedition's manifest stated that the cargo contained 193 pounds of "portable soup," a mixture of beef, vegetables and eggs. History suggests the explorers would have done well to follow the original pemmican recipe, though; most of the "soup" returned home with them uneaten.
In spite of the benefits of refrigeration and 21st century society's distaste for beef suet, some people choose to eat pemmican today. Most of these are followers of the "Paleolithic diet," a program that demands the consumption of only those foods that one can hunt or gather. The essential philosophy of the diet is that humans are designed to eat what pre-agricultural humans ate thousands of years ago. While most physicians agree the diet's claims to health benefits are specious at best, its followers have done wonders for the United States pemmican industry.
But whatever the impact on your health, both pretzels and pemmican provide a good break from the snacking norms. They are nonperishable, nutritious and portable. Furthermore, their rich histories make them nourishing food for thought, or at least distractions from your homework.
Jason Engelhart is a junior majoring in economics and history. E-mail him with your favorite snack at [email protected].
