Nilla

A box of Nilla Brand Wafers

Nilla is a brand owned by Nabisco that is most closely associated with its line of wafer biscuits. The name is a shortened version of vanilla, a flavor common to all Nilla-branded products (Nilla wafers have been flavored with synthetic vanillin since their introduction^[1]).

Nilla wafers are round wafers that are often eaten with milk as a snack. "Nilla wafer" is used colloquially as a genericized trademark for similar products. The brand was registered in the United States in 1968, having been first used in late 1967.

Uses

Several varieties of Nilla wafers are manufactured, including a reduced fat version. Nilla wafers are often used in homemade recipes as an ingredient, particularly for banana cream pie or with banana pudding. A banana-flavored Nilla wafer was also offered at one time. The wafers are also used in icebox cake which is a no bake cake made by layering wafers with cream and pudding. Nabisco also offers Nilla-branded pie crusts designed to save time for cooks who would otherwise have to crush the wafers by hand. The pie crust brand was registered in 1993. Nabisco also sponsored the "B'Nilla Bowl" game in 2001.

History

Nilla Wafers

Briefly owned by Philip Morris, Nabisco was combined with Kraft Foods and spun off from Phillip Morris in 2007.

Cultural references

Comedian and published humorist Daniel Dickey has written several popular blogs about his love for Nilla Wafers.

The Guy Clark song "L.A. Freeway" contains the line "Throw away all your papers and that moldy box of Vanilla Wafers".

In Richard Wright's "Black Boy", he mentions Nilla Wafers several times and shares that they are his favorite food.

Internet comedian Brock Baker has stated that his screen name McGoiter came from a cartoon character of his own invention who had a supply of Nilla Wafers.

Mr. Church, the head of the U.S. Department of Military Sciences in Jonathan Maberry's sci-fi novel Patient Zero, has a particular fondness for Nilla Wafers and is often seen eating them. This is a source of some amusement and bafflement to the other characters.

The antihero of the Monster Nation zombie novel by David Wellington, unable to remember her old name, decides to call herself Nilla after eating a packet of wafers.^[2]

References

1. ^ Also, Nilla is an Indian name, meaning moon. Nabisco. "Specimen (postmarked January 16, 1968, filed September 26, 2007)". USPTO. http://tmportal.uspto.gov/external/portal/tow?SRCH=Y&isSubmitted=true&details=&SELECT=US+Serial+No&TEXT=72288971#. Retrieved 2009-09-15. "INGREDIENTS: Flour, sugar, shortening, whey solids, eggs, pure creamery butter, emulsifier, salt, leavening, vanillin and other artificial flavor." 
2. ^ [1]^{[dead link]}Archive copy at the Wayback Machine

External links

• Nilla product line on Nabiscoworld.com