Learning English. I'm Neil.

And I'm Rob.

In this programme, we're talking about biscuits!

Biscuits - a subject close to my heart -

something important to me

and that interests me.

I know, Rob.

You are a biscuit connoisseur after all.

And in the UK, many of us

love to nibble these sweet treats.

And we have lots of names for them too.

Yes, we have the chocolate digestive,

the garibaldi, the custard cream and

the jammie dodger.

It's making my mouth water.

I can see.

But we're not going to be tucking into

any biscuits today.

Instead, we'll be looking at the

origins and the language of this humble snack.

And before we do that, Rob,

let's test your knowledge of biscuits

with a question.

The British aren't the only fans of biscuits.

So in which country are barazeks

traditionally eaten?

Is it in... a) Syria, b) Morocco, or

c) Spain?

Hmmm, well, I've not eaten one,

but I'll have a guess at Syria.

OK, I'll reveal the right answer later on.

But now, let's talk more about biscuits,

also sometimes known as cookies.

They come in all shapes, sizes

and varieties.

They can be sweet or savory -

but I prefer the sweet ones

that are crisp, crunchy and are good for

dunking in my tea.

'Dunking' means dipping into a liquid

for a short period of time.

But enough about your eating habits, Rob.

Let's find out how the biscuit got its name.

It's something the BBC Radio

4 programme Word of Mouth has

been exploring.

Dr Laura Wright, a historical linguist from

the University of Cambridge, explains its origins...

From Latin 'biscoctum' - twice cooked.

And it comes to us via Anglo-Norman French but it's

bread that's been cooked twice

to extract all the moisture so that it goes hard,

and it'll stay fit for consumption for a

long time, which is why you can take it to

sea and have a sea biscuit...

and from the 1500s at least

we spelt it like it sounds 'bisket'

but at some point, in the 1800s,

we started to prefer the French

spelling for reasons of poncy-ness!

So, the English word for biscuits has

its origins in Latin.

It describes cooking bread twice to make it hard.

This baking process meant a biscuit could

be kept for a long time, and as Dr Wright said,

it would stay fit for consumption -

another way of saying edible

or able to be eaten.

That's why they were taken on

long sea voyages - but they weren't like

the biscuits we eat now - they were plain,

simple and very hard baked.

Interestingly, the word biscuit used to be

spelt B-I-S-K-E-T but the French spelling

B-I-S-C-U-I-T was later adopted.

Biscuits are a handy go-to snack for

when I'm hungry or bored.

But how did biscuits become

such a popular foodstuff and how

did we come to depend on them so much?

It's something Anastasia Edwards author of

Biscuits and Cookies, A Global History,

talked about in the Word of Mouth programme.

Listen to the word she uses to mean

'food' in her explanation.

One key fact in the rise of the popularity of

the biscuit is meal times.

Before the Industrial Revolution, people

have a later breakfast and an

earlier supper.

By the end of the Industrial Revolution,

breakfast is much earlier,

the evening meal is much later, so you've

got this big gap of time

where people need sustenance, and so

lunch comes to greater prominence

and tea time comes to greater prominence,

and snacking - so there's this

great opportunity for real really biscuits -

something small, something ready,

something easily consumable, not

expensive, you know, a bit of a sugar rush.

Right, so it was the Industrial Revolution that

led to the rise - that's the increase -

in the popularity of biscuits.

Because the time between breakfast and dinner

in the evening increased, people got

hungry and they needed food

to give them energy - what Anastasia

called 'sustenance'.

So, this is when smaller meals,

such as lunch or tea,

became important or more well-known -

it had greater prominence.

And this included snacking on biscuits.

These were cheap and easily

consumable - easy and quick to eat.

And because of their ingredients,

they gave you a sugar rush -

a quick blast of energy.

Of course, now, we eat biscuits at

any time, and because of their sugar content,

we know to only eat them in

moderation, Rob!

I think a packet a day is fine -

but a whole box, well, that would really

take the biscuit!

Take the biscuit!

Good idiom there, Rob,

to mean 'be the most foolish,

annoying or surprising thing to do'.

But now let's find out the answer to

my quiz question.

Earlier, I asked which country are

barazeks traditionally eaten in?

And I thought Syria. Was I right?

Yes, you were. Well done.

You are a smart cookie!

Barazeks are biscuits filled with

roasted sesame seeds and

pistachio chips.

They sound delicious.

I would love to try some.

OK, well we've been discussing

the language of biscuits and

mentioned some of these words.

'Dunking' describes dipping something,

like a biscuit, into liquid

for a short period of time.

Describing something as being fit for

consumption means it's edible -

which is another one of our words

and it means 'it can be eaten'.

'Sustenance' is another word for food.

And something that has 'prominence'

is important or more well-known.

And when you get a 'sugar rush',

you get a quick blast of energy from,

unsurprisingly, eating something containing

lots of sugar.

OK, well, we only get six minutes for this

programme - that's the way the cookie crumbles -

so we're out of time.

Bye for now.

Goodbye

Hello. This is 6 Minute English

from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

And I'm Sam.

Do you like trying new food?

I do indeed -

I love eating foods from around the world

and I especially like trying out

restaurants that serve new kinds of food.

Me too, and I like food that is

a mix of different styles -

sometimes called fusion food.

But could I tempt you to some insect

tapas or a tarantula doughnut?

Maybe not -

the idea of eating food made from

bugs and creepy crawlies doesn't appeal.

Well, maybe I can convince you in this

programme because that's what we're discussing -

and teaching you some vocabulary along the way.

But first, I must serve you a question

to answer. It's about food -

but not made from bugs.

Do you know what type of food

is sometimes known as 'priest chokers'?

Is it: a) cheese?, b) pasta? or

c) potato?

I think I know this one, Neil.

It's pasta, isn't it?

Well, I'll give you the answer

at the end of the programme.

But, let's get back to food

made from bugs -

which is a growing trend in the Western world.

Insects are an alternative source of

food and experts say they're filled with

lots of good nutrients, including amino acids

and protein.

And eating them could help

to fight world hunger and

reduce pollution.

I'm not convinced yet,

but I do know that the word

for eating insects is 'entomophagy'

and it's something BBC World

Service programme, The Food Chain, discussed.

The programme spoke to experts who think

cooking with bugs is a great idea.

One of them was Andy Holcroft,

founding director of Grub Kitchen

and Bug Farm Foods.

He explained the challenge of getting some

people to eat bugs.

In the Western culture, we've got

a bit of an uphill - I'd say - struggle

because pre-conceptions around eating insects

are already sort of ingrained in society, so

we already think before we even tried

them, they're going to taste disgusting or gross.

So, to actually get someone to

put it in your mouth - the easiest

way we find straight away is

to try maybe, a cricket cookie

or a chocolate chip cricket cookie

where you have...

we're using cricket powder so you don't

actually see any insects whatsoever -

you're getting the idea that you're eating them

so people can deal with that

a bit more than actually seeing

the whole insects.

Interestingly, it seems to be Western

cultures that don't like eating insects -

perhaps because it's thought to be wrong or

just disgusting, even if it's not!

As Andy says, people have pre-conceived

ideas about it.

To change these ideas is an uphill

struggle or needs a lot of effort to achieve.

Yes, the negative attitude to eating

bugs is ingrained into society,

meaning this is a long-lasting attitude

that is difficult to change.

But Andy and other chefs are

trying to change that attitude

by subtly introducing insects into food,

such as his chocolate chip cricket cookies.

This is just for starters!

Other interesting and exotic dishes,

where you do see the bugs you're eating,

are now being served.

I'm still not convinced but maybe

chef Joseph Yoon can change my mind?

He is a chef and an 'edible insect ambassador'.

He's also trying to persuade

the squeamish - people easily upset

by something unpleasant -

to overcome their fears of crickets,

worms and spiders, and instead see

them as a tasty, alternative source of protein.

Here he is,speaking on the BBC's

Food Chain programme talking about

changing people's attitudes.

We approach our work with openness,

with understanding and inclusivity.

When people approach me and

they go like 'urghh' or they

react very viscerally,

I don't get confrontational, I go

like, I understand that you

can feel that way and what we need to do