Welcome to May 18, 2022 on the National Day Calendar. Today we celebrate the crafty cleanup and puffed up cheese.

Cooking and then sharing a meal with loved ones is one of the best things in life. The cleanup afterwards…not so much. So thank goodness for socialite Josephine Cochrane. Her household staff had broken too many pieces of her good china during cleaning, so she came up with an idea for washing the dishes mechanically. Cochrane enlisted the help of George Butters to build the first practical dishwasher. Her invention debuted at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago, Illinois and has been a mainstay in kitchens ever since. It doesn’t matter if you use liquid or powdered detergent–or even whether you put the utensil handles up or down, on National No Dirty Dishes Day put that dishwasher to use!

The word soufflé is a French word meaning to puff or to breathe. And many Americans hold their breath while making a soufflé, because frankly they can be hard to master. This is probably because there are so many ways to fail when baking one. You might whip the egg whites too much or too little. And don’t even think about opening the oven door too soon or making a loud noise while they bake. The first recipe for soufflé appeared in 1742, and this culinary masterpiece is still regarded as a worthy challenge. On National Cheese Soufflé Day, celebrate by breathing new life into an old recipe that’s sure to win over a crowd.

I’m Anna Devere and I’m Marlo Anderson. Thanks for joining us as we Celebrate Every Day.

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