The Founding Father We Have To Thank For Bringing Vanilla To The US

Vanilla's presence on the North American continent has taken a rather circuitous route, starting with the Aztec empire in the 16th century, and returning to the newly-developed States in the 18th century. In the meanwhile, vanilla was making its way across Europe, particularly in France. One American politician with strong ties to the French developed a love for the flavor and began importing it to the homeland.

Thomas Jefferson returned to the U.S. with his French chef in tow, who provided him with traditional European dishes, many of which were unknown in the States at the time. One was ice cream, and in 1791, Jefferson ordered 50 vanilla bean pods to be imported. These frozen delicacies weren't the first in the nation, but Jefferson did popularize ice cream by serving it to other high society members both before and during his presidency. Since then, vanilla has been steadily imported, and today, the United States is its top consumer.

Due to the specificity of conditions needed for growing, the only U.S. state that produces vanilla is Hawaii. The bulk of vanilla is grown in Madagascar and subsequently imported. However, genuine vanilla is expensive, the second priciest spice in the world, in fact, so many U.S. consumers opt for the cheaper alternative, synthetic vanillin. Naturally, only the original was available to Jefferson and company, so the fact that it took off as it did was quite a feat.

Jefferson wasn't the only one with a flair for foreign cuisine. Benjamin Franklin, always ahead of his time, corresponded with a friend about certain "Chinese garavances" (aka garbanzos) – can you guess what it was? Tofu! Franklin came across it during his time in Britain and sought to bring it to the States. William Taft was another POTUS with an eclectic palate, at least by our modern standards. While he didn't introduce turtle soup to the U.S., he certainly popularized it among the higher echelons of society. George Washington loved hoecakes, James Madison loved ham and oysters, and Andrew Jackson preferred floating islands — meringue floating in custard.

Other culinary contributions were in the drinks arena. Presidents like Washington, Grant, and Adams all enjoyed beverages (all hard, to be sure) that we still enjoy today. Adams started his day with hard cider, Washington's love for Madeira is well-documented, and it's rumored that Grant's drink of choice was Old Crow whiskey. Sure, they may not have any recipes credited to them in the way Jefferson does, but any presidential endorsement is pretty good PR, even centuries later.