Meat pies have been a part of almost every culinary culture across the world. Some could even argue that the meat pie is the world's number one comfort food. Variations of this filling pastry can be found on every continent from Peru to Jamaica to Iraq to China, societies everywhere have taken this dish and applied their own cultural aspects to the meat pie. This just so happens to include the state of Michigan who received their rendition of the pie, known as the pasty, from the Cornish copper mining immigrants.
Since the introduction of the pasty to the settlers in Michigan from the Cornish, the pastry has added and taken on different elements making the food item specific to the region. The pasty is traditionally known for its ingredients consisting of beef, potato, onions, and rutabagas and can now be found in several different options including garden vegetable mixes for the health-conscious. The pasty is such a Michigan institution now, the state holds an annual festival and parade for the pastry on the Keweenaw Peninsula.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.