World's largest tortilla a dud, says Guinness

It seems attempts in the city of Vitoria, up in northern Spain, to enter the iconic Guinness Book of Records by cooking the world's largest tortilla have failed.

Not only did opposition groups in the city say the attempt was "ridiculous," it seems the people at Guinness Book of Records rejected the whole thing, as the tortilla was apparently not cooked correctly.

What the Guinness people said was that they didn't accept the way the tortilla (or potato omelette) was cooked in "precooked portions and assembled like a puzzle."  That is just not on and doesn't comply with the rules.

Apparently what the chefs did was to fry the potato, onion and egg mix in normal-sized tortilla pans, producing rectangular slabs of cooked omelette, which they then fitted together like a jigsaw puzzle to create one gigantic omelette.

Antxon Belakortu, representing the Basque nationalist party Bildu in the town called the whole thing "a circus," while Patxi Lazcoz, from the Basque wing of Spain’s Socialist party, said the whole endeavor was a "scam" adding that Vitoria will now be christened "the capital of the ridiculous" in the worldwide media.

Spanish news agency 20 Minutos referred to the whole thing as "tortillagate."

However, it seems the Popular Party mayor of Vitoria, Javier Maroto, said just having attempted the record was something "positive" for the city and that it was "worth the effort". The record-breaking attempt happened on August 2nd and was supervised by Spanish chef Senén González, who received a 2010 Spanish award for the best tortilla.  The omelette itself comprised a massive 1,600 kg of potatoes, 840 kgs of eggs, and 150 litres of olive oil.

The good side is that the tortilla fed a hungry crowd in the Plaza de Virgen a massive10,000 portions once it was complete.  The bad side was that González had tweeted about how happy he was after the event and will probably be really disappointed now Guinness has failed to confirm the record attempt.

The video below shows the creation of the monster tortilla (Spanish language).  You can see Guinness' point, however, as the whole thing would have needed to be cooked in that giant tortilla pan to be a true record.


Spanish language sources:

El Correo
20 Minutos
The Local (English)

Photo: 
1. Screengrab from the above video on YouTube.
2. Image of tortilla portions CC by-SA Tamorlan

World's oldest man credits Anacin and a banana a day for longevity

Born in Salamanca, Spain in 1901, and now living in the USA, 112-year-old Salustiano Sánchez Blázquez has now been announced the world's oldest man, as Japan's Jiroemon Kimura passed away on June 12 at the age of 116.

Now officially named the oldest living man on Earth by the Guinness Book of Records, Blázquez has credited his longevity to a combination of pain killers and bananas.

 

Succeeding Japan's Jiroemon Kimura, who died on June 12 at the age of 116, Blázquez is currently the only male born in 1901 with proof of birth, giving him the award of being the oldest man alive. 

 

Nicknamed Shorty by his friends, the 112-year-old former coal miner now lives close to Niagara Falls in upstate New York in the US. 

 

However, he was born on June 8, 1901 in the village of El Tejado de Béjar in Salamanca province, Spain. As he was growing up, Blázquez was well known for his musical prowess, playing a "dulzaina", (a Spanish double reed instrument in the oboe family). 

Blázquez earned pocket money playing the instrument at weddings and village celebrations and attended school until he was 10. He now considers himself self-taught. 

 

At the age of 17, he moved to Cuba to work on the sugar plantations.  He then traveled to the US, entering via the iconic immigration center on Ellis Island in 1920. 

Blázquez worked as a miner in Kentucky before finally settling in the Niagara area, close to the Canadian border, where he has lived ever since. Blázquez married the love of his life, Pearl, in 1934 and his children include a 76-year-old son, John, and 69-year-old daughter Irene. He also has seven grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and five great-great grandchildren. 

 

His hobbies include crossword puzzles, nightly gin rummy games with friends and gardening. 

 

He remains humble despite the prestigious award and “does not feel he has accomplished anything special because he happens to be living longer than other men.”

 

In a statement, Blázquez said that he had lived to such an old age due to a daily dose of six tablets of Anacin (a pain-reliever containing aspirin and caffeine) and a banana. 

 

However, his daughter, 69-year-old Irene Johnson, says, "I think it's just because he's an independent, stubborn man." 

 

Anacin's manufacturer, Insight Pharmaceuticals was happy to hear that their product may have helped him live so long and will now be exploring the possibility of a new product: 

 

"Historically, apples are the fruit most associated with staying healthy and avoiding doctors," said marketing vice-president Jennifer Moyer.

 

"Our scientists had never looked into the banana before. But now that the certified oldest man in the world credits bananas and Anacin as his life-extending combo, we're certainly going to explore whether a new 'Bananacin' product makes sense.

 

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/355439