This Pistachio Pineapple Delight first gained popularity in the mid-1970’s when instant gelatin was invented. Watergate salad ingredients:
(replace the medley of disastrous events with…)
- 1 package of of instant pistachio pudding mix
- 1 can crushed pineapple
- 1 cup marshmallows
- ½ cup chopped nuts
- Cool Whip (as desired)
The sweet treat itself was born before the blueprint for the Watergate complex was even drafted, so how did it get its name?
No one seems to know its exact origins, but that hasn’t stopped amateur food historians from trying. Believe it or not, there was a Watergate cake before the salad. The cake also had pistachio pudding in the mix, giving it that unforgettable green hue. In a Daily Mail article, someone offered that the cake was called "Watergate" cake “because of all the nuts that are in it” and that it too, had a cover up.
Others say that the salad was served at the Watergate Hotel during the time of the scandal. Some even say that pistachio was Nixon’s favorite flavor.
There is also discussion that the desert's name has nothing to do with Richard Nixon, but was only named to capitalize on the newsworthy events at the time.
Even though the Watergate scandal can be found closely tied to today’s time, the same cannot be said for the Watergate salad. Speculation has concluded that this is simply due to its drop in popularity and people’s growing conscious of health concerns.
Evidently, there is no agreed upon conclusion to how the dessert got its name, but it is an interesting concept to think that a pudding came out of the scandal that changed politics for decades to come.
Sources:
https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2019/08/03/746312155/watergate-salad-a-fluffy-green-bite-of-washington-d-c-s-past
https://www.myrecipes.com/community/what-is-watergate-salad
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/13811/watergate-salad/
I reallly enjoyed how you found such a unique topic to blog about. Like many people, I had no idea the salad ever existed or its origin. This post made me curious about more political foods, where I eventually found a list of our Presidents and their favorite foods. Some are quite normal, for example Bill Clinton's favorite food being cheeseburgers. But some are quite absurd, like George W. Bush's favorite food being cheeseburger Pizza's. I found this source interesting as it gives us a greater understanding into our current and former presidents.
ReplyDeleteSource:
https://www.businessinsider.com/presidents-favorite-food-dishes-white-house-2019-5#bill-clinton-cheeseburgers-41
I really like this topic you chose! This light hearted topic contrasts with the other darker issues that the Watergate scandal brought to light. After doing some more research on its origins, I found that most of the more "interesting" reasons for the name are just speculation. In fact, many of the reasons have little evidence to support them. Some believe that food writers and newspaper editors changed the original name to "watergate" to capitalize the scandal's growing fame. Regardless, the name is very provocative and compelling, and I might have to try this dessert sometime!
ReplyDeletehttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/watergate-salad-why-called-184908123.html
Wow! This is a really creative post. I enjoyed reading about the salad and how it did (or didn't) relate to Watergate. It is interesting that its origin is unknown because it coincides with the Watergate investigation and hotel, a major part of Nixon's presidency and American history. It is definitely interesting that a pudding came out of a scandal that destroyed Nixon's presidency.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this post and thought it was super intresting! It was a nice contrast from the typical serious and grim blog post while still being relevant to the time period and political aspects. I really liked that you inclded the multiple theories behind the cake and its strange name, I thought that the theory by Daily Mail regarding how it was given its name because it has nuts with in it and also has a cover up is very clever and serves as a great symbol for the scandal. I feel that in a way the cake serves almost the same way a political cartoon would of the issue although this time with a bit more room for interpretation .
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