National Roast Leg of Lamb Day

National Roast Leg of Lamb Day is on May 7th in the United States.

Leg of lamb is a cut from the domestic sheep. In the US, "lamb" can be used to refer to sheep where in other countries the term "mutton" would be used instead, as the name lamb is reserved for younger sheep. The cut means the whole leg, and it would therefore be served on the bone.

Lamb is one of the traditional components in the British and Irish meal referred to as the Sunday roast, or Sunday dinner, although these days it can be served at other times of the week too. The lamb would be accompanied by roast, or mashed, potato, Yorkshire puddings, stuffing, gravy and other vegetables (such as carrots and peas, but others are also popular). Another typical accompaniment for lamb would be mint sauce.

National Beverage Day

National Beverage Day is on May 6th in the United States.

Here's a day that's the absolute opposite of some of the really specific days out there. This one is pretty much as vague as it can get.

A beverage is a drink - which are liquids intended for human consumption. As a consequence, this day can be celebrated with (almost) absolutely any drink of any kind. Oddly, one form of drink that the word beverage is not considered to refer to these days is water itself. Although all drinks do contain water, water by itself isn't classed as a beverage.

You can therefore celebrate this day with a whole bunch of different drinks; hot drinks such as tea, coffee and cocoa; cold drinks such as cordials, fruit juices and carbonated drinks. Even alcoholic drinks are beverages.

Some drinks are better than others for celebrating this day. Generally, high sugar drinks are not the best at any time, and many popular drinks are best consumed in moderation.

National Hoagie Day

May 5th is National Hoagie Day in the United States.

Hoagies are a type of submarine sandwich; submarine sandwiches are sandwiches made from long rolls of bread, usually either French or Italian, that are split into two pieces or opened into a V.

The hoagie type of sub originated in Philadelphia, although the precise origins are uncertain. It's been linked to World War I Italian shipyard workers on Hog Island, where it was known as the Hog Island sandwich, or Hoggies, then, later, hoagies.

They have also been linked to the 19th or 20th century, when sandwiches known as hokies were given away, and the name was pronounced hoagie.

Hoagies are generally different meats, cheeses and lettuce between two slices of bread. Which does mean that there are an awful lot of possible variants that could be called hoagies.

National Orange Juice Day

National Orange Juice Day is on May 4th in the United States.

Orange juice is just what it sounds like, the juice of an orange. Orange juice is known to be healthy and, like the fruit from which it derives, it is high in vitamin C.

There are different ways of making orange juice. Probably the best, and healthiest, is by making it from freshly squeezed oranges. This can be purchased, or made at home, but is doesn't last as long and tends to be more expensive.

The more common commercial kinds of orange juice tend to be made from concentrated juice to which water is later added, although juice marketed as being "not from concentrate" is also available. The second is actually poorer than the first. Canned juice can also be bought. Except for the freshly squeezed orange juice, the others tend to have a variety of additives, including such as sugar and sweeteners. The additives can nullify many of the health benefits of the juice.

National Raspberry Popover Day

National Raspberry Popover Day is on May 3rd in the United States.

Popovers can be either sweet or savoury, depending on what other ingredients are used, and what they are eaten with, and are made from an egg batter, related to that of the Yorkshire pudding, which is cooked in either muffin tins or popover pans - popover pans have straight sided walls. The cooked popover is a light and hollow roll.

This type of popover is a sweet dessert roll. The hollow centre of the popover is filled with the raspberries, or raspberry filling. Raspberries come in a variety of different types, although red varieties are the most common. Raspberries were originally a midsummer crop, which would make May an odd time to have them, but they are now available all year and, in the case of the raspberry fillings, are preserved anyway.

National Truffle Day

May 2nd in National Truffle Day in the United States.

This day isn't celebrating the, often very expensive, fruiting fungus, that is prized in cooking. Instead, it is celebrating what is properly known as the chocolate truffle, a type of confectionery that is named after the former - due to the fact that the shape of the chocolate truffle resembles the shape of the fungus.

Truffles are a comparatively recent creation, dating from the end of the 19th century, probably due to chocolate being comparatively expensive for many years. The chocolate truffle is comprised of a chocolate ganache centre, which is made from cream which is heated and then has chocolate blended into it, and then dusted with such things as cocoa powder, chopped nuts, or icing sugar. The chocolate ganache centre may be replaced with other ingredients, such as marshmallow, liqueur and fruit.

National Chocolate Parfait Day

National Chocolate Parfait Day is on May 1st in the United States.

Parfait, depending on where it is ordered, can be used to refer to different dishes. In France, where the dish originates, it is a frozen dessert. The name is French for "perfect." In the UK, it can be used to refer to very smooth pâtés, usually flavoured with liqueurs.

In the US, the name may be used for the French dessert or, alternatively, to the American variant, which is also a frozen dessert.

American parfait is a layered dessert served in a tall, clear glass. Parfait cream - the actual French dessert made from sugar syrup, egg and cream - is layered with ice cream and/or flavoured and coloured gelatins. This would then be topped with whipped cream, fruit, either fresh or canned, and possibly liqueurs. A variant of American parfait uses yoghurt, granola and nuts or fresh fruits - a rather healthier version.

In a chocolate parfait, there is, of course, chocolate. This will probably include chocolate ice cream and could include such as chocolate sauces or pieces.