- In the famous words of Bob Ross, we don't make mistakes, we have happy little accidents.

Though PBS's is patron saint of happy little trees was talking about painting, I like to believe that these words of wisdom also apply all corners of life, including food.

Some dishes evolve over time through cultural influences and others are intentionally developed by researchers on a quest to delight our taste buds.

But there are some foods that have come into existence through a series of mishaps and unintended happenstance.

Here are just a few instances of foods being invented purely by accident.

(playful music) Most parents today would not let their kids eat something that's been left outside overnight.

But before the dawn of helicopter parenting, kids just ran amok, completely unsupervised and stuck whatever they found in their mouths, grass, dirt, leaves.

Statistically you'd have to think that at some point a child would shove something into their mouths that would cause a ripple effect, a culinary quantum wave, if you will, that would change the world as we know it.

And that is exactly what happened in 1905, when an 11 year old San Francisco Bay area boy, by the name of Frank Epperson accidentally invented the popsicle.

One day, Epperson was stirring powdered lemonade soda in a cup with a wooden stirrer, and he left that mixture on his porch overnight.

It just so happened to dip below freezing.

And when Epperson found it the next morning, he did what any 11 year old boy would do.

He shoved the mystery frozen treat in his mouth and he was delighted.

Similar to how kids set up a lemonade stand, Epperson started selling his Eppsicles, as he called them, around his neighborhood.

Later on in 1924, he applied for a patent and at his children's request, changed the name of his Eppsicles to Pop's sicle, or popsicle!

Nachos were created in 1943 by a man named Ignacio Anaya the maitre d' of a spot called Victory Club in Piedras Negras, Mexico.

This town was only four miles away from the border, close to a Texas town called Eagle Pass.

America was in the throes of World War II.

So there were a lot of military families stationed around Eagle Pass and the nearby Fort Duncan, which at the time was serving as an air base.

It was common for a lot of Americans, particularly the wives of army officials, to go to Piedras Negras for a dinner and night out.

Late one night, a group of women popped into the Victory Club and asked for a bite to eat.

Anaya couldn't find the chef.

So rather than turn his guests away, he decided to whip up something quick using whatever you could get his hands on in the kitchen.

He grabbed fried strips of tortilla, sprinkled on some shredded cheese, and topped it with jalapenos.

He melted the cheese in the broiler, and viola!

They were served.

Because his nickname was Nacho, he ended up calling the dish nachos especiales.

Like Eppsicles and nachos, the Cobb salad is yet another dish that's named after its creator.

Robert Cobb, or Bob Cobb, was the restauranteur in Los Angeles during the 1920s and 1930s, running an infamous restaurant called The Brown Derby.

Cobb went on to open several other Derby locations.

But one of the most popular spots was a 24 hour restaurant on the corner of Hollywood and Vine.

It was working at the Brown Derby where Cobb befriended folks like Walt Disney, Bing Crosby, and George Burns.

One evening, a very sleepy Cobb went to work and decided he wanted to make himself something to eat before starting his night shift.

He cobbled together some leftovers, which included multiple varieties of greens, chicken, bacon, and French dressing.

Jack Warner of the Warner Brothers and Sid Grauman who founded Hollywood's Chinese Theater, they sauntered in after a late night movie preview and after catching a glimpse at Cobb's hearty salad, they asked if they too could have what Cobb was having.

- I'll have what she's having.

- For a long time, Cobb left his Franken salad off the menu while he perfected the recipe.

So diners really had to be in the know if they wanted to have a taste of his legendary salad.

Eventually, he unleashed his creation into the world with a whopping 12 ingredients.

So next time you accidentally add too much spice to a dish or make a desperation meal out of whatever leftovers you have sitting around, take a good look at it before you throw it away.

You may be on to the next big thing.

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