A Little Foodie Quiz- Now With Answers!

I was cleaning out the food storage shelves and a little bottle caught my eye. "Hmmm," thought I as I read the label, "I didn't know that."

So tell me, if you can (without looking in your kitchen or online), what the ingredients are in a bottle of Worcestershire Sauce. Partial answers accepted and bonus points given for the correct pronunciation of said sauce. 

OK, I know you've all been on the edge of your seats waiting for the answer... anyway, here it is. My bottle of Worcestershire sauce lists the following ingredients: distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, water, salt, caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, anchovies, tamarind, natural flavor. And, yes, whole anchovies are used, all of which disintegrate into the sauce during its 2 year fermentation due to the vinegar content. 

However, the original brand of Worcestershire sauce, Lea and Perrins, lists theirs like this: vinegar, molasses, high fructose corn syrup, anchovies, water, onions, salt, garlic, tamarind concentrate, cloves, natural flavorings, chili pepper extract. (The version sold in Britain uses malt vinegar.)

And other brands can include a wide variety of other things such as: lemon oil, soy, coriander, walnuts, brandy, mushrooms, mace, sherry, etc. Author Jason Earls describes some of the surprises he found when he got curious about Worcestershire sauce. "...The overall salient ingredient is something called 'asafetida,' also known as "devil's dung." (You can see why most labels do not list this name, which comes from the spice's foul aroma - when stored in a container, asafetida must be air tight so people don't get nauseous from inhaling it.)

Asafetida is a bitter spice slightly similar to garlic that comes from a tall plant shaped similar to a carrot. Only a tiny amount of asafetida is used in Worcestershire sauce because of its extremely bitter taste, which lessens with the cooking process. Asafetida is also thought to aid digestion, reduce flatulence, and help with cases of bronchitis and asthma. Strangely enough, wolves like the smell of asafetida; and fisherman also use it to attract pike and catfish. 

But anchovies and asafetida are not the only unusual ingredients in Worcestershire sauce. Guess what else it has? Meat. That's correct. William Poundstone says in his book, Big Secrets, that either beef extract or actual pork liver is commonly added to most brands of Worcestershire sauce. And many of the major manufacturers do not admit this on their labels, although some of the lower brands will. For some reason, the big Worcestershire companies aren't too proud of adding beef or liver to their sauces."

There you have it- and I still think it's a good condiment. Oh, and the bonus answer: WOOS'-ter-shîr, or thereabouts.

"Child's Play" quiz answers

Thanks, everyone, for playing! You all did very well.


1. How many channels are there on the average (non-digital) baby monitor?
Answer: 2 (plus "off"), although I realize there is variation from this standard. All guesses given credit.

2. Name a way to take a child's temperature other than placing a thermometer under their tongue.
Answer: Rectal, forehead strips, under arm, pacifier thermometer (anyone tried that?), digital ear reading all get credit. Licking the forehead is of dubious accuracy, though I often use the "kiss and tell" method to see if it's low-grade or high.

3. What is one of the usual flavors for generic (house brand) children's ibuprofen?
Answer: Berry, grape, and cherry all get credit.

4. Which is closest to the average cost of a single diaper (Huggies, Pampers, etc., bought at a grocery or drug store)?
a. 32¢
b. 18¢
c. 55¢
d. 4¢
Answer: A. By my calculations at my local store and at drugstore.com, diapers average about 30-36¢ per each. Marie, I'd like to know where you buy yours! I realize Costco and 1-800-diapers, etc., may have some better deals. Kari gets points for that one.

5. How many diapers does the average newborn go through a day?
Answer: Officially, 10-12. Yes, that means you're paying roughly $100 per month for diapers used at that rate. Fortunately, that rate slows some over time... but by then you're into a bigger size and getting fewer in each package....

6. The World Health Oganization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding as an infant's only source of food until at least what age?
Answer: As the ONLY source of food, they say 6 months, though our culture generally says it's ok to start some very basic solids at 4-6 months. Points to Kari, Tona and Marie. For the record, I had Quinn give his answers and he also said 12 months. Hmm.

7. When do children master toilet-training?
Answer: Yes, it was a bit of a trick question. Marie (and Davey) gets points for what I was looking for: "Whenever they feel like it." Everyone else gets points for good answers; they're all right.

8. Which of the following can be early indicators of autism when observed at about age 1 year?
a. walking on tip-toes
b. not listening to parents
c. not responding to his/her name
d. lack of eye contact
Answer: According to this autism website, along with information seared into me through conversations with a friend who is a specialist in this area, A, C, and D are correct. Not listening to parents is not a red flag for autism. It's normal. (But not hearing parents is something else.)

9. At what age do most children begin to smile back at you?
Answer: Roughly 3 months. Marie is right- this is the time to go to that (underpaid, believe me) portrait photographer.

10. Name 3 vaccinations a child under 2 might receive.
Answer: Good answers by Davey, Tona, and Marie (and Quinn). K- don't you write them down in the baby books? Here's the list according to the CDC.

11. What does NICU stand for?
Answer: Everyone was very close or right on: Neonatal Intesive Care Unit. The place you dread, but are so glad to have around just in case.

12. What is the name of Dora's monkey?
Answer: Boots. Good job, Davey and Kari.

13. Name at least one other song which shares the same tune with Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.
Answer: Yes, the Alphabet Song and Baa, Baa, Black Sheep. (And whatever else you feel like using.)

14. How many weeks long is an official "full-term" pregnancy?
Answer: Everyone was pretty close or right on. 38 weeks is technically "full-term", though there is obviously lots of variation in real life. Past 40 weeks and they start working on you. 40 WEEKS! Man, that's a long time.

15. What is the ingredient in original Desitin which gives it that unmistakable smell?
Answer: Tona gets credit here for the fish oil. I quote the Desitin website, "DESITIN® Original Ointment is formulated with 40% zinc oxide, in a base of cod liver oil (rich in Vitamins A and D), lanolin, and petrolatum." (Desitin is a very good diaper rash ointment.)

16. Which of the following is generally accepted as true?
a. boys and girls both begin talking in sentences at about the same age
b. boys usually begin talking in sentences before girls
c. girls usually begin talking in sentences before boys
Answer: According to my experience (and the answer of a speech-language pathologist) it's C. Girls generally begin using their verbal skills earlier than boys. (And then they never let up!)

17. Which one of the following is NOT a brand or name of a pacifier?
a. Nuk
b. Lull
c. Mam
d. Kip
Answer: Clever, Davey and Tona. I made up the Lull. The Kip isn't very well-known, though.

18. True or false: Children's tendency to play with gender-specific toys at age 2 can be controlled by environmental factors.
Answer: Well, it's false. Kari is right in that you can exclude gender-matched toys and see what happens. But generally, boys will be boys and girls will be girls- no matter what. I know, our generation doesn't want to believe this- we're too idealistic. But if you interact with a group of 2-3 year old kids as they play, you'll see that you have very little control over their need to begin gender identification.

19. Name two benefits of breastfeeding (benefits to child or mother).
Answer: There are so many good answers to this question! My favorite is: it's FREE! Do you have any idea how much formula costs?? Also, it's the food that was made for human babies, so it's a no-brainer. Myraid websites are dedicated to this topic. Here are two with good lists.

20. According to the US Census Bureau, what is the average US family size in 2006? (fractions allowed)
Clarification: total size of the whole family, not just number of kids in the family. You can change your answer if needed.
Answer: This is the only one nobody got right on, but I don't blame you. The Census Bureau says the average US family size is 3.2. That's all! I suppose there are lots of single-parent families and lots with just a few kids... but still!

Bonus: Who first said "If I knew it was going to be this much fun, I would have become a Grandparent first"?
Answer: It rings so true for our parents' and grandparents' generations that I've heard it lots of times. And I always feel a bit cheated, like "If only someone had told ME, I would have become a Grandma first, too, for crying out loud!!" But the credit generally goes to Willard Scott, the first Ronald McDonald, the DC area's Bozo the Clown (long ago), and former weatherman for the Today Show.

Child's Play

Ok, this is in response to some hard blog quizzes out there. I say hard because they are designed to favor those segments of the population which have enough leisure time to keep themselves current with American pop culture and memorize vast quantities of trivia.

This is a different kind of quiz. If you spend more than 15% of your time caring for a child, you ought to know the answers to some of these babies. No cheating, please.

1. How many channels are there on the average (non-digital) baby monitor?

2. Name a way to take a child's temperature other than placing a thermometer under their tongue.

3. What is one of the usual flavors for generic (house brand) children's ibuprofen?

4. Which is closest to the average cost of a single diaper (Huggies, Pampers, etc., bought at a grocery or drug store)?
a. 32¢
b. 18¢
c. 55¢
d. 4¢

5. How many diapers does the average newborn go through a day?

6. The World Health Oganization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding as an infant's only source of food until at least what age?

7. When do children master toilet-training?

8. Which of the following can be early indicators of autism when observed at about age 1 year?
a. walking on tip-toes
b. not listening to parents
c. not responding to his/her name
d. lack of eye contact

9. At what age do most children begin to smile back at you?

10. Name 3 vaccinations a child under 2 might receive.

11. What does NICU stand for?

12. What is the name of Dora's monkey?

13. Name at least one other song which shares the same tune with Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.

14. How many weeks long is an official "full-term" pregnancy?

15. What is the ingredient in original Desitin which gives it that unmistakable smell?

16. Which of the following is generally accepted as true?
a. boys and girls both begin talking in sentences at about the same age
b. boys usually begin talking in sentences before girls
c. girls usually begin talking in sentences before boys

17. Which one of the following is NOT a brand or name of a pacifier?
a. Nuk
b. Lull
c. Mam
d. Kip

18. True or false: Children's tendency to play with gender-specific toys at age 2 can be controlled by environmental factors.

19. Name two benefits of breastfeeding (benefits to child or mother).

20. According to the US Census Bureau, what is the average US family size in 2006? (fractions allowed)
Clarification: total size of the whole family, not just number of kids in the family. You can change your answer if needed.

Bonus: Who first said "If I knew it was going to be this much fun, I would have become a Grandparent first"?