Virginia's peanut soup has origins that reside in the motherland, Africa. While its history can't be traced back to a specific date, it's African cuisine staple in countries like Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria. Peanut soup is also extremely popular in east Asian countries like Taiwan. Peanut soup made its way stateside during the colonial era of the state of Virginia. With African slaves still holding onto their heritage, they made the dish popular and mainstay in the United States.
The soup typically features a groundnut or peanut base crushed into a smooth paste with elements of chicken stock, onions, and celery to provide a smoother consistency and burst of flavor that is undeniably exquisite. With Virginia being able to hold on to this soup as a culture dish since the beginning formation of this country, it has to be good. Restaurants like the 1776 Log House Restaurant in downtown Wytheville, Virginia have been stirring up pots of peanut soup for centuries now.
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.