NATIONAL ACORN SQUASH DAY

September 6, 2026August 24, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 1 Comment

National Acorn Squash Day is observed annually on September 7th. The day celebrates winter squash that is also known to some as a pepper squash.

Even though it is considered a winter squash, acorn squash belongs to the same species as all summer squashes including zucchini and yellow crookneck squash.

The most common variety comes in a mostly green outer shell, often with a splotch of orange on its side or top. However, varieties, including the Golden Acorn and the White Acorn, offer gardeners and cooks options. This versatile squash also grows in variegated color.

The acorn squash resembles its name in shape, an acorn. They usually weigh between one to two pounds and generally grow between four and seven inches long. This hardy squash also keeps for several months, making it a great item to store for yumminess all winter long. Just be sure to store it in a cool, dry location.

Since acorn squash is versatile, it can be baked, microwaved, sautéed, or steamed. Some cooks like to stuff it with rice, meat, cheeses, or vegetable mixtures. You can also toast the seeds of the acorn squash much like pumpkin seeds.

Nutritionally, the acorn squash offers a good source of dietary fiber and potassium. It also has some vitamin C and B, magnesium and manganese.

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Acorn Squash Day
National Pumpkin Day
National Zucchini Day aka Sneak Some Zucchini on your Neighbors Pourch
Oven Roasted Vegetables
Asparagus Month
National Soup Month
Spinach and Squash Month

HOW TO OBSERVE #AcornSquashDay

Visit your favorite farmer’s market. You can also drive out to a pick your own farm. Once you’ve collected your squash, share your recipes or growing tips. Try acorn squash in soup or broil it. Experiment with the flavors as you fill your plate with this colorful garden vegetable. Whatever you do to celebrate, be sure to share it with others. Use #AcornSquashDay to post on social media.

NATIONAL CHICKEN MONTH

August 31, 2026August 7, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 3 Comments

For over two decades, the National Chicken Council has banded together with major chicken producers in the U.S. to promote chicken sales in September. As a result, September is known as National Chicken Month! This once slow month, as the summer grilling season waned, has turned into one of the year’s best performing sales periods. September might be the month we find out which came first, the chicken or the egg.

First domesticated for cockfighting, the chicken eventually made its way to the dinner table. Many families have their own homemade spice recipes. A major part of enjoying chicken is the spicing. Food experts have debated for years about the contents of KFC. White pepper, paprika, and even Thousand-Island dressing are among the eleven herbs and spices supposedly in the Colonel’s recipe.

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There are 25 billion chickens in the world, making them the most abundant bird species. Did you know all vertebrate species lay eggs? And, all hard-shelled variety eggs originated with reptiles? Chickens, like many birds, are descendants of the dinosaurs. Chickens are relatively closely related to reptiles on the evolutionary chain. In recent decades, many researchers have started describing dinosaurs as more like flightless birds than reptiles. Even though chickens are not entirely flightless, they can get airborne enough to get over a fence or into a tree.

Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!

Ever wonder why so many different meats like rattlesnake and alligator apparently taste like chicken? Several explanations point to why mainstream Americans tend to have limited experience with judging flavor. Our taste buds, in other words, are not finely tuned. Our meat experiences are limited mostly to beef, pork, and chicken. A gourmet with a seasoned palette has a broader experience, which makes them more apt to identify exotic meats like rattlesnake and alligator.

Chicken is full of health benefits. When eaten without the skin, chicken is very lean. It is carb-free and rich in Vitamins B3 and B6, as well as two important minerals, phosphorus, and selenium. Various parts of the chicken are considered special treats in some countries. For instance, in China, chicken feet are considered a delicacy.

HISTORY

For over two decades, the National Chicken Council has banded together all of the major chicken producers in the U.S. to promote chicken sales in September, turning a once slow month, as the summer grilling season waned, into one of the year’s best-performing sales periods.

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Chicken Cordon Blue Day
National Chicken Month
National Keto Day
National Chicken Curry Day
National Chicken Wings Day
National Fried Chicken Day
National Rotisserie Chicken Day
National Poultry Day
National Pork Rinds Day
National Chicken & Waffles Day
National Chicken Boy Day
National Chicken Lady Day

HOW TO OBSERVE

There are several ways to observe National Chicken Month. We recommend trying a new recipe. Whether you choose white meat, dark meat, fried, broiled, baked or warmed over, prepare your chicken the way you like it!

Try one of our family favorites…

Use #NationalChickenMonth in social media correspondence.

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NATIONAL POTATO MONTH

August 31, 2026August 7, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 3 Comments

This month we salute the terrific tuber, the spud, otherwise known as the potato! September is National Potato Month!

It’s hard to imagine a world without potatoes. Once indigenous to South America, specifically Peru and Bolivia, the potato has become a staple food in much of the world. In fact, it is an integral part of the food supply in many countries. Spuds are grown in all fifty states in the U.S. alone!

Gurney's Seed & Nursery Company Yukon Gold Seed Potato - Best Early Eating Potato on The Market - Includes one 2-lb Bag — Gurney’s Seed & Nursery Company Yukon Gold Seed Potato – Best Early Eating Potato on The Market – Includes one 2-lb Bag

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In 1784, Thomas Jefferson set voyage on a trip to France with his slave James Heming. Jefferson brought his slave along in hopes he would learn some of the French culinary skills. Upon return to the U.S., Jefferson made Heming prepare one of the many culinary delights learned in France, the French fried potato. The dish was served at Jefferson’s private residence. Despite the fact Heming learned the culinary skill to make French fried potatoes and brought that skill back the U.S., Jefferson is given credit for introducing French fried potatoes. The earliest known recipe for the potato chip appeared in a cookbook published in 1817. The preparation resembled the French fried potato prepared by Heming.

The potato continues to have a vast history after its initial introduction. Most notably, the history of potatoes relates to the Irish potato famine of the 1840s. Sadly, starvation and disease claimed as many as a million lives in Ireland during the famine. It was during this time that nearly 500,000 Irish immigrated to the U.S.

Mash-Up Potato Facts:

The word “spud” first made an appearance in New Zealand around 1850. Potato planters used spuds, a sharper version of a spade, to dig up potatoes. Technically, it had nothing to the with the potato.
The world’s largest potato chip was produced by the Pringle Company in 1990. It measures 23′ by 14.5′.
Potatoes have even made an entry into pop culture. Possibly the most famous potato known to man, Mr. Potato Head. A creation from New Yorker George Lerner, the Hasbro Company launched the beloved toy in 1952. Unfortunately, Mr. Potato Head lost his pipe in 1987 mostly due to pressure from anti-smoking groups.
The “Mashed Potatoes” was a popular dance craze in the early 1960s. Mashed Potato Time was a 1962 chart-topping hit for soul singer Dee Dee Sharp.

Potatoes also have health benefits. For instance, potato skins are a good source of roughage and potassium. The average potato with the skin intact only contains 110 calories. It’s all the stuff you put on it that makes it fattening. As long as toppings are used in moderation, you can enjoy potatoes in all their deliciousness!

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HOW TO OBSERVE

Potato dishes can be found in all corners of the world, making it easy to find something that suits your taste buds!

Use #NationalPotatoMonth in social media correspondence.

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National Potato Day

August 18, 2026August 7, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 2 Comments

National Potato Day is August 19, so if you like spuds, this one’s for you! Never celebrated this tasty tot before? Good news, we have the lowdown on how to do things up right with facts and links to turn you from couch potato to party animal.

Potatoes have been a popular food for centuries so it’s about time we recognize this versatile and ap-peeling favorite. Mashed, smashed, chipped, or covered in cheese, potatoes can be eaten with just about every meal — or as a meal! — making these starchy veggies a delicious and easy way to get iron, potassium and vitamin c. The puns are just baked right in! Now just fry and stop us from telling you the whole scoop on what makes National Potato Day so …spudtacular.

NATIONAL POTATO DAY ACTIVITIES

Did you know there are over 4000 different kinds of potatoes? It’s true! Choose your favorite or choose a bunch because potatoes are so tasty and easy to cook that no matter what you pick you won’t be wrong! And not being wrong is a wonderful way to celebrate anything, so try it out this August 19.

There’s no wrong way to prepare a potato and the Internet (and probably your grandma) have a million and one recipes for you to try. Select a favorite, chop to it and discover for yourself why this hot potato is such a hot commodity. Don’t forget to invite some friends and make it an event! This is a celebration, after all.

Creamy and buttery or crispy and salty, the last step to enjoying this day is the best step — eating! —and we will eat potatoes in any form (even baked into bread)! We think consuming these delectable spuds in mass quantities is the best way to pay homage on their special day.

Gurney's Seed & Nursery Company Yukon Gold Seed Potato - Best Early Eating Potato on The Market - Includes one 2-lb Bag - Can't Ship to States of ID, ME, MT, or NE — Gurney’s Seed & Nursery Company Yukon Gold Seed Potato – Best Early Eating Potato on The Market – Includes one 2-lb Bag – Can’t Ship to States of ID, ME, MT, or NE

Betty Crocker Butter & Herb Mashed Potatoes, 4 ounces (Pack of 8) — Gurney’s Seed & Nursery Company Yukon Gold Seed Potato – Best Early Eating Potato on The Market – Includes one 2-lb Bag – Can’t Ship to States of ID, ME, MT, or NE

WHY WE LOVE NATIONAL POTATO DAY

Potatoes are a staple for a reason Hashbrowns or potato salad, hot or cold, no matter how you slice ‘em, potatoes have been a staple in diets all over the world because they’re easy to grow, tasty and relatively inexpensive to produce and buy. Nearly ever cuisine has potatoes in it, so you can take a culinary journey with your trusty potato by your side.

Potato chips are the best snackThe people have spoken! Potato chips are regularly regarded as the most delicious snack and we couldn’t agree more. Plus, there isn’t a better party food than the potato chip. Just pour them in a bowl and let the festivities begin! With chips coming in more and more flavors all the time, you’ll never run out of ways to enjoy your favorite spuds with your buds. That deserve a few chip-chip-hoorays!

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How to OBSERVE

Potatoes are America’s cropPotatoes are grown in all 50 states! It makes sense that there should be a national day to celebrate the crop that can feed an entire country. We really do think this starchy, vitamin packed veg is all that and a bag of chips so pick up a bag, choose a recipe and feast with friends!

No matter how you celebrate share it on social media with #NationPotatoDay. We look forward to seeing your favorites.

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NATIONAL FAJITA DAY

August 17, 2026August 10, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 2 Comments

On August 18th, National Fajita Day recognizes the sizzling deliciousness of the savory Tex-Mex flavor found in fajitas.

In the early 1930s, Mexican vaqueros in Southwest Texas developed what we’ve grown to love all over the United States. Using throwaway cuts of beef, they developed the fajita. However, it wasn’t long before they became a staple in the region. These cowboys cooked the steak over an open fire or grill. Once cooked, they served it with flour or corn tortillas. In later years, fresh Pico de gallo, guacamole, and southwestern spices elevated the fajita. Soon the convenient meal for hardworking cowboys made an introduction to new audiences. The fajita became a destination food in the culinary world.

As their popularity grew, fajitas added a colorful flair to Tex-Mex menus. Sizzling platters full of bright peppers, onions, and a mouthwatering aroma delighted patrons. Menu choices beyond tender steak also broadened the fajita spectrum. Sweet shrimp, lean chicken, or pork with freshly made tortillas arrived at tables with fanfare. By the 1980s, most Mexican restaurants in the United States served fajitas. In the modern culinary kitchen, lime, cilantro and a plethora of vegetables find their way into a fajita, too. Add to that the perfect seasonings and mouths really begin to water!

Another flavor boost comes from grilling with mesquite. It adds a smoky flavor and bacon adds crunch. Of course, who could forget the cheese? With their festive presentations, fajitas continue to be enjoyed today. The fajita has come a long way from skirt steak trimmings!

NATIONAL FAJITA DAY HISTORY

In 2016, On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina founded National Fajita Day to celebrate the sizzling Tex-Mex flavor of the fajita!

About On The Border

On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina is the world’s largest Mexican casual dining brand. They offer an extensive menu of great-tasting, classic, and contemporary Mexican food. When you visit, enjoy sizzling mesquite-grilled fajitas, and Margaritas as big and bold as the border itself. On The Border is owned by Border Holdings, LLC, with more than 150 restaurants in 34 states, Puerto Rico, Asia, and the Middle East. Follow and like On The Border on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OnTheBorderMexicanGrillandCantina and @ontheborder on Twitter. For more information, visit www.ontheborder.com.

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HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalFajitaDay

While you’re celebrating the day, invite a friend to join you for these flavorful entrees! Whether you prefer shrimp, steak or chicken, there’s a fajita for you. Pick your favorite from all the amazing flavors, and don’t forget to use #NationalFajitaDay to share on social media.

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NATIONAL CHICKEN MONTH

Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!

HISTORY

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HOW TO OBSERVE

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