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Roald Dahl’s second children’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory celebrates its 60th birthday this year. In this episode I’m joined by Dr Alessandra Pino and Vanessa Baca from the Fear Feasts Podcast . We’re delving into the wicked side of chocolate and how this is represented in Dahl’s book and its movie adaptations.
Useful Links
Fear Feasts Podcast that analyses the horror genre in films and literature through the use and symbolism of food. You can find Fear Feasts on Instagram and Twitter/X.
Vanessa is also one of the hosts of the Sharing the Flavor podcast. You can find Vanessa on Instagram and Twitter/X.
Allie is a co-host of the A is for Apple Podcast (along with myself and Dr Neil Buttery). You can find Allie on Instagram and Twitter/X. Her book A Gothic Cookbook, co-authored with Ella Buchan, will be out this autumn. Allie was also a guest on Episode 4 of this season in which we looked at murderous chocolate.
You can find the chocolate aubergine ‘parmigiana’ recipe we talked about at the end of this episode over on the A is for Apple Substack.
Suggested Reading/Viewing
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (2000)
The Witches by Roald Dahl (2022)
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl (2024)
The Twits by Roald Dahl (2016)
Marvellously Revolting Recipes by Roald Dahl (2023)
Complete Short Stories by Roald Dahl (2013) - this contains many of the stories which became the television series Tales of the Unexpected.
The Gremlins : The Lost Walt Disney Production : A Royal Air Force Story by Roald Dahl (2006)
Neil Gaiman author of books such as American Gods, Good Omens and Coraline.
Struwwelpeter: Merry Stories And Funny Pictures by Heinrich Hoffman (1845)
‘Candy Boys And Chocolate Factories’ by Catherine Keyser in Modern Fiction Studies
Vol. 63, No. 3 (Fall 2017), pp. 403-428
‘The 19th-Century Book of Horrors That Scared German Kids Into Behaving’ by Sarah Laskow on Atlas Obscurer 14 June, 2014
Consuming Gothic: Food and Horror in Film by Lorna Piatti-Farnell (2017)
Sibéal Pounder author of the Witch Wars and the novelisation of Wonka
‘Roald Dahl And Danger In Children's Literature’ by Barbara Basbanes Richter in The Sewanee Review Vol. 123, No. 2 (Spring 2015), pp. 325-334
Tales of the Unexpected
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory trailer (1971)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory trailer (2005)
Wonka trailer (2023)
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THE FOLLOWING EPISODE FOCUSES ON THE MEDICINAL USES OF CANNABIS WITH OCCASIONAL REFERENCES TO RECREATIONAL USE.
In the early days of chocolate, before we started stuffing it full of sugar, it was hailed as something of a health food. Chocolate was recognised as a suitable vehicle for all manner of medicines such as laxatives and vermifuges. In the twentieth century chocolate confections like brownies were adapted to convey cannabis as an alternative to smoking it.
In this episode I’m joined by Dr. Bradley Borougerdi Professor of History from Tarrant County College in Arlington, Texas and drug historian Emily Dufton. We will be exploring the history of hash or weed brownies and how they have been used to alleviate the symptoms of critical diseases like AIDS. In particular we discuss Meridy Volz and Mary Jane Rathbun who achieved notoriety by selling these chocolate delicacies in the 1980s.
Potpourri a la Liberté
Mix, in a big country, a magic herb, a blend of people (do not separate), and lots of chutzpah. Pour off prohibition, strain out and discard unjust laws. Use no DEA. Whip media into a frenzy. Smoke remainder for several decades. Serve. (Brownie Mary's marijuana cookbook, Dennis Peron's recipe for social change)
Useful Links
Commodifying Cannabis: A Cultural History of a Complex Plant in the Atlantic World by Dr Bradley Borougerdi (2020). Reaktion Books will be publishing a Global History of Cannabis by Bradley in 2025.
Grass Roots: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Marijuana in America by Emily Dufton (2017). Her new book, tentatively titled Addiction, Inc: Medication-Assisted Treatment and America’s Forgotten War on Drugs will be published by the University of Chicago Press in 2025. You can find out more about Emily on her website or follow her on Instagram or Twitter/X.
You can find Meridy Volz on Instagram and Facebook where you can see examples of her artwork.
The recipe for Brian Gysen’s Haschich (sic) Fudge originally published in the UK edition of the Alice B Toklas Cookbook (1954) can be found online in a collection of Alice’s writing called Murder in the Kitchen (2011)
Ann Arbor Hash Bash
Shanti Project
Suggested Reading/Viewing
‘Go Ask Alice: The History of Toklas’ Legendary Hashish Fudge’ by Layla Eplett, Scientific American, 20 April 2015
‘Activist Preserves Legacy Of Husband Who Won Right To Medical Marijuana Grown By The Feds 45 Years Ago’ by Kyle Jaeger on the Marijuana Moment website, 8 May 2023
Brownie Mary's Marijuana Cookbook, Dennis Peron's Recipe For Social Change by Mary Jane Rathbun and Denis Peron (1996)
Home Baked: My Mom, Marijuana, and the Stoning of San Francisco by Alia Volz (2020)
‘My Mom Secretly Made Pot Brownies For AIDS Patients And It Changed My Life’ by Alia Volz on the Huffington Post website, 5 August 2020
‘Activist Robert C. Randall Dies’ by Graeme Zielinski in the Washington Post, 7 June 2001
‘Brownie Mary’ Robert Dunes Video on YouTube
‘I love you Alice B Toklas - Best Brownie Recipe’ (clip from Peter Sellers’ movie via YouTube)
Bong Appetit on YouTube
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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In Episode 6 I am joined by chocolate historian, archivist and novelist Alex Hutchinson to discuss the rise and fall of the Bristol based Fry’s chocolate company.
In this episode I discover what made quakers such good business people and why chocolate in particular appealed to them (aside from its delicious taste, obviously). We chat about the innovations in chocolate processing and business opportunities that helped make Fry’s the leading British chocolate manufacturer in the nineteenth century before its decline in the early twentieth century. So what went wrong?
Useful Links
Alex the Archivist
Penny Thorpe Books:
* The Quality Street Girls
* The Mothers of Quality Street
* The Quality Street Wedding
* A Quality Street Christmas
You can follow Alex on Twitter/X and Instagram.
Records of J S Fry and Sons, chocolate manufacturers, of Bristol are kept at the Bristol Archives.
You can view an advert for Fry’s Churchman’s Chocolate here.
A written Virtual Tour of chocolate sites in Bristol is available on Internet Archive.
More information about the various Test Acts is available at parliament.uk
Don’t forget to check out my new podcast collaboration with Dr Neil Buttery and Dr Allie Pino the A is for Apple Podcast. You can follow this podcast on Instagram, Twitter/X and there is a newsletter on Substack too!
Suggested Reading
Fry's Chocolate Dream: The Rise and Fall of a Chocolate Empire by John Bradley, 2013
Cadbury's Purple Reign: The Story Behind Chocolate's Best-Loved Brand by John Bradley, 2008
Chocolate Wars: From Cadbury to Kraft: 200 years of Sweet Success and Bitter Rivalry. by Deborah Cadbury, London: Harper Press, 2010
‘J.S. Fry & sons: Growth and Decline in the Chocolate Industry, 1753-1918’ by Stefanie Diaper in Studies in the Business History of Bristol edited Charles E. Harvey and Jon Press, Bristol: Bristol Academic Press, 1988, pp33-55
‘Dying for a Humbug, the Bradford Sweets Poisoning 1858’ by Ben Johnson on Historic UK
Sailor Rations in the 18th Century - Burgoo (YouTube)
The Chocolate Conscience by Gillian Wagner, Chatto & Windus, 1987
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Before you tuck into your chocolate eggs today I thought you might like to hear a little bit about how they came being. In the UK Fry’s of Bristol are credited with inventing the first moulded chocolate bar in 1847 and hollow chocolate eggs a couple of decades later. I had a chat recently with chocolate historian and archivist Alex Hutchinson about Fry’s which led to a discussion about the unsung beauty of French chocolate. So were Fry’s as creative as we think or should we be looking further afield for the chocolate innovators?
You’ll be able to hear the full interview with Alex soon where we discuss rise and fall of the Fry’s chocolate company. You can also find two recipes for Easter Biscuits on this Substack including a chocolatey version.
Useful Links
Alex the Archivist
Penny Thorpe Books:
* The Quality Street Girls
* The Mothers of Quality Street
* The Quality Street Wedding
* A Quality Street Christmas
Suggested Reading
You can discover more about the history of chocolate in my book, The Philosophy of Chocolate, published by the British Library
You can read more about the origins of Easter eggs in this article I wrote for English Heritage a few years back.
Rachel over at has also written a rather good piece on Easter Food Traditions on Substack.
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In this episode I explore the life of some extraordinary business women in the eighteenth century with Helen White, Senior Interpretation Manager from the Old Royal Naval College and Dr Sara Pennell, Associate Professor in Early Modern British History at the University of Greenwich. We had a fascinating chat about chocolate house owner Grace Tosier and confectioner Mary Eales.
There is a teensy error in my intro. Thomas Tosier (Grace’s husband) became the Royal Chocolate Maker in 1714 not 1717 as stated by myself. You can read more and watch a short video about the discovery of the Chocolate Kitchens at Hampton Court Palace here.
From 29 March until 3 November 2024 you will be able to visit a new exhibition at the Old Royal Naval College to discover the key role chocolate played in the revival of Greenwich. As part of the exhibition, there will be a recreation of the Tosier Chocolate House, which was run by Grace Tosier, and was once located on the edge of Blackheath in what became known as Chocolate Row. Discover how Greenwich became a popular destination for sophisticated people, and a hub for astronomy, science and culture, with Sir Christopher Wren’s iconic architectural project, the Royal Hospital for Seamen at its centre.
Useful Links
Chocolate House Greenwich Exhibition at the Old Royal Naval College
Follow the Old Royal Naval College on Instagram and X (Twitter)
Further Reading
Reading and Writing Recipe Books, 1550-1800 (2013) Edited by Michelle DiMeo and Sara Pennell
The Birth of the English Kitchen, 1600-1850 (2016) by Sara Pennell
Mrs Mary Eales’s Receipts (1718)
Royal Chocolate House, Greenwich on the Blackheath & Greenwich History Blog
Greenwich Historical Society
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Apologies for the radio silence folks! 2024 has been hectic so far hence no new Comfortably Hungry episodes. There will be some more additions to Season 2 but in the meantime I wanted to share this new podcast I am working on with Dr Neil Buttery (of the British Food History Podcast) and Dr Allie Pino (of the Fear Feasts Podcast).
A is for Apple is an encyclopaedia of food and drink in podcast format. Each season we will be discussing a variety of edible and drinkable delights (and anything in between). You subscribe to the newsletter on Substack which will include extra audio and recipes inspired by the episode theme.
In this pilot episode Allie takes on apples…a seemingly simple route but she looks at the darker side of this humble fruit. Witchcraft, ghosts murder and….apple detectives! Neil explores the green tinted history of absinth and I investigate the nineteenth century dodgy dealings done in the name of adulteration.
Links to things mentioned in this episode:
‘13 Magical Ways to Use Apples’
Glyn Hughes’ Alan Turin sculpture
‘Lancashire man poisoned after eating cherry seeds’ article on BBC News
‘How Did La Belle Époque Become Europe’s Golden Age?’ article on The Collector
‘Site of "The Absinthe Murders"’ article on Atlas Obscura
The Apple Tree (1952) by Daphne du Maurier
Hallowe’en Party (1969) by Agatha Christie
The July Ghost (1982) by A.S. Byatt
A treatise on adulterations of food, and culinary poisons. Exhibiting the fraudulent sophistications of bread, beer, wine, spirituous liquors, tea, coffee, cream, confectionery, vinegar, mustard, pepper, cheese, olive oil, pickles and other articles employed in domestic economy ; and methods of detecting them. (1820) by Friedrich Accum
Join our free Substack to get extra bonus features: https://substack.com/profile/147444179-sam-bilton
Anything to add? Don’t forget we want to hear your suggestions for future topics.
Contact us:
email: aisforapplepod.gmail.com
Social media:
twitter/X: @aisforapplepod
Instagram: @aisforapplepod_
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In this episode I will be discussing the enduring popularity of the yule log or bûche de noel (the edible version rather than the flammable one) with American baker and author of Sweet Paris, Frank Adrian Barron who you may know from Instagram as @cakeboyparis. We’ll also be talking about how this dessert has evolved and the secret to making a great bûche de noel.
To whet your appetite here is French pastry chef, Pierre Lacam’s recipe originally published in Le Mémorial Historique Et Géographique De La Pâtisserie (1890).
Bûche de Noel
Elle se fait en biscuit à la poche, et en génoise sur plaque. En biscuit, c’est plus coûteux pour la crème, vu les cintres des bouchées. La génoise est chère par sa pâte et ses rognures, mail n’a pas de cintres à boucher. Prenons la génoise, vous coupez une dizaine de ronds égaux, je suppose, vous les collez l’un contre l’autre à la crème moka ou chocolat. Vous masquez bien tou autour et lissez. Vous la couchez sur un front allongé parsemé d’amandes grillées. Vous a décorez d’un bout à l’autre à la fine douille à breton, bien égale, imitant l’écorce de l’arbre, et après, vous y posez quatre ou cinque noeuds en biscuit épais coupés à l’emporte-pièce imitants les noeuds de branches, vous les masquez et les décorez de bas en haut même douille, l’on masque les deux extrémités de la bûche sans décorer. Il y a des maisons qui passent avec pression de la pâte d’amandes vert à la passoire, d’autres sèment des pistaches hachées très fines. On en fait à la meringue italienne, mais ferme.
Here is the literal translation from Google to give you an idea (clearly it doesn’t do technical pastry terms!).
It is made in biscuit in the pocket, and in sponge cake on a plate. In biscuit, it is more expensive for the cream, given the hangers of the bites. Sponge cake is expensive in its dough and trimmings, but has no hangers to butcher. Let's take the sponge cake, you cut about ten equal circles, I suppose, you stick them against each other with mocha or chocolate cream. You mask well all around and smooth. You lay it on an elongated forehead sprinkled with toasted almonds. You decorate from one end to the other with a thin Breton nozzle, very even, imitating the bark of the tree, and then you put four or five knots in thick biscuit cut with a cookie cutter. imitating branch knots, you mask them and decorate them from bottom to top, same sleeve, we mask the two ends of the log without decorating. There are houses that strain green marzipan through a sieve, others sow very finely chopped pistachios. We make it with Italian meringue, but firm.
Pierre Lacam (1836-1902) was the son of a dyer born near Sarlat in the Dordogne, France. He decided to follow his older brother into the patisserie profession working his way up to eventually work for the Prince of Monaco, Charles III in 1877. He was interested in regional cakes and breads which led to the publication Le Mémorial Historique Et Géographique De La Pâtisserie in 1890. This was the first time a recipe for the bûche de noel appears although it was invented earlier.
In Le Glacier Classique et Artistique en France et en Italie par Pierre Lacam and Antoine Charabot (1893), Lacam wrote:
‘Today there are new desserts but we no longer know the name of the inventor. For example, we were never able to find out who had created the Yule Log…. after looking, I found that it was a man named Antoine Charabot, chef at Maison Sanson , 14, rue de Buci, who created the tree branch in 1879. It remained the same for a few years. Several patisseries began to make it and since 1886 its fashion has not diminished.’
Le Glacier Classique includes an ice cream version of this Christmas dessert.
Useful Links
You can find out more about Frank Adrian Barron’s cakes and workshops on his website or follow him on Instagram.
Sweet Paris by Frank Adrian Barron (2022)
This year Maxime Frédéric of Le Cheval Blanc in Paris has produced a bûche de noel shaped like an old fashioned steam train, ‘La Chocomotive’.
Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert by Michael Krondl (2010) - don’t forget to listen to episode 3 of this podcast where Michael and I discuss the history of the Sachertorte.
A full biography (in French) on Pierre Lacam can be viewed here.
‘Ceremonies for Christmas’ in Hesperides by Robert Herrick (1648)
Le Mémorial Historique Et Géographique De La Pâtisserie by Pierre Lacam (in French)
Le Glacier Classique et Artistique en France et en Italie par Pierre Lacam and Antoine Charabot (1893) (in French)
Fanny Cradock has a lot to say about Swiss Roll’s (including yule logs) and the best way to roll them. Take a look at Kevin Geddes’ blog post or this clip of Fanny’s TV Christmas favourites.
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We all know that chocolate can be lovely but it definitely has a darker side and I’m not referring to the amount of cocoa solids there are in a single bar. In this episode I am joined by author Dr Alessandra Pino, who has co-written the forthcoming Gothic Cookbook, and food writer and novelist Sue Lawrence (check out the links below to Sue’s books) to explore how chocolate has been used in the past as a vehicle for poison (mostly by women). Hell hath no fury, as they say..
Useful Links
Allie Pino on Twitter and Instagram
Fear Feasts Podcast & Instagram
A Gothic Cookbook co-authored with Ella Buchan
Romancing the Gothic with Dr Sam Hirst
Sue Lawrence on Twitter
Sue’s cookbooks include A Taste of Scotland's Islands (plus many more). Sue also has a new book on Scottish Baking out in August 2024.
Sue’s novels include:
Lady’s Rock (out March 2024)
The Unreliable Death of Lady Grange
The Green Lady
Down To The Sea
Suggested Reading/Listening
If you’d like to find out more about the two murder cases discussed in this episode take a listen to Lucy Worsley’s Lady Killers Podcasts on Madeleine Smith and Christiana Edmonds.
The Phantom Thread movie which features a poisoned mushroom omelette
The Philosophy of Chocolate by Sam Bilton
The Christiana Edmonds case was the inspiration for The Black Spectacles by John Dixon Carr
Australian Poison Mushroom Case by Bill Chappell on NPR
The Chocolate Box by Agatha Christie
The Invention of Murder by Judith Flanders
Stephen Fry on the enduring appeal of Georgette Heyer
Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon
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Ever since Europeans encountered chocolate in the sixteenth century it has been a divisive substance as I explore in my latest book The Philosophy of Chocolate. So you probably won’t be surprised to learn that wars have been fought over it. We’re not talking about modern warfare with guns and tanks but in the field of commerce where chocolate and who or what it represents can be a controversial subject.
In this episode I am joined by food historian and author of Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert, Michael Krondl. We’re going to be talking about the iconic Sachertorte which Michael has described as ‘an edible manifestation of an urban, cosmopolitan Vienna, as smooth and fitted as a little black dress.’
Useful Links
Do take a look at Michael’s Books Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert, The Taste of Conquest: The Rise and Fall of the Three Great Cities of Spice and The Donut: History, Recipes, and Lore from Boston to Berlin
Aldi’s Cuthbert Advertisement (2023) can be found here.
Ed Cumming, Caterpillar wars: time to pick sides in battle of Colin v Cuthbert, The Guardian, 18 April 2021.
The Original Sachertorte on the Hotel Sacher Website
Demel the famous Viennese Pastry Shop
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Welcome back to Season 2 of the Comfortably Hungry Podcast!
Today is the 2nd of November (unless of course you are listening to this episode after this date). In the Christian calendar it is known as All Souls Day and in Mexico specifically Dia de los Muertos or day of the dead. But as we shall see it is far from a mournful occasion.
‘To the modern Mexican death doesn't have any meaning. It has ceased to be the transition, the access to the other life which is more authentic than this one. But the unimportance of death has not taken it away from us and eliminated it from our daily lives. To the inhabitant of New York, Paris, or London death is a word that is never uttered because it burns the lips. The Mexican, on the other hand, frequents it, mocks it, caresses it, sleeps with it, entertains it; it is one of his favourite playthings and his most enduring love. It is true that in his attitude there is perhaps the same fear that others also have, but at least he does not hide this fear nor does he hide death; he contemplates her face to face with impatience, with contempt, with irony: 'If they're going to kill me tomorrow, let them kill me for once and for all.’ Octavio Paz The Labyrinth of Solitude (1959)
In this episode my guest is Maite Gomez-Rejón an educator, writer and cook who explores the connection between art and culinary history with Artbites. She has recently curated two exhibitions at LA Plaza Cocina in Los Angeles, Maize: Past, Present & Future and The Legacy of Cacao. When you have a moment do check out Maite’s podcast with actor Eva Longoria Hungry for History. We are taking a look at the role chocolate plays in the Day of the Dead celebrations.
Are there any chocolatey subjects you’d like me to explore further? Let me know in the Subscriber chat.
Useful Links
Maite’s website is Artbites and you can find her on Instagram @artbites_maite
Hungry for History Podcast with Maite & Eva Longoria. In particular you may like these episodes:
“Pan Dulce y Dia de los Muertos”
“Chocolate: The Food of the Gods”
Maite also recommends this “Day of the Dead special” on Pass the Chipotle podcast
The British Museum produced this short film on the Day of the Dead celebrations.
Further Reading
The True History of Chocolate by Sophie & Michael Coe (1996)
The Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy (2009)
Sacred Consumption: Food and Ritual in Aztec Art and Culture by Elizabeth Moran (2016)
Sacred Gifts, Profane Pleasures: A History of Tobacco and Chocolate in the Atlantic World by Marcy Norton (2010)
Que vivan los tamales! Food and the Making of Mexican Identity by Jeffrey Pilcher (1998)
The Village in the Valley by Corinna Sargood (2021) (for an evocative description of the Dia de los Muertos celebrations from a British perspective)
If you’d like to find out more about Josefina Velazquez de Leon (the subject of the next exhibition Maite is curating at LA Plaza Cucina) take a look at The Forgotten Legacy of Mexico’s Original Celebrity Chef from Saveur (2016).
Additional music (Mexican Dia De Muertos Mariachi composed by Brais González) produced by Blue Panda, sourced via Pond5.
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Welcome back to the comfortably hungry podcast where yesterday’s dinner is tomorrow’s history. I hope you’ve been keeping well over the past few months and are ready for a new season of delicious episodes.
2023 has been a hectic year for me. As well as the podcast I’ve busy writing articles on everything from my pet subject gingerbread to festive food which appears in the new Christmas Book published by Phaidon earlier this year. I’ve also just released my third book called The Philosophy of Chocolate published by the British Library which is handy as CHOCOLATE is the theme for season two of the podcast.
The Philosophy of Chocolate explores our complex relationship with this versatile confection. The book moves between the ceremonial uses of chocolate and its reputation as an aphrodisiac, investigates its reputed health properties and poisonous possibilities. Other chapters reveal the darker side of its production in the Americas, through slave labour and exploitation of indigenous populations, as well as its commercialisation as a sweet treat in Western cultures, and chocolate consumption around the world.
This season I’ll be taking a look at some of chocolate’s more surprising history. So join me on All Souls day on the 2nd November when I’ll be examining chocolate’s role in the Mexican Day Of The Dead celebrations.
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Welcome back to Part 2 of Make Do and Cook, the final episode of Season 1. Last time I chatted to food writer Urvashi Roe and food historian Sejal Sukhadwala about resourcefulness in the kitchen particularly when it comes to store cupboard ingredients and leftovers.
In this part I discover that eating leftovers was not always embraced by some sectors of Indian society while others took more of a stalk to root approach to cooking vegetables.
Useful Links
Biting Biting: Snacking Gujarati-Style by Urvashi Roe
https://urvashiroe.com/
Follow Urvashi on Instagram & X
Kitchen Press
Urvashi will be appearing at the following food festivals:
Rangeelu Gujarat 1st - 3rd September 2023
Ludlow Food Festival 8th - 10th September 2023
Dartmouth Food Festival 20th - 22nd October 2023
If you’d like to try making Dhokra ENO Fruit Salts are available here
Philosophy of Curry by Sejal Sukhadwala
Whoever heard of Vegetable Offal? by Sejal Sukhadwala
Follow Sejal on Instagram & X
Original Home Economist Podcast ‘Make Do and Mend’
The British Food History Podcast ‘Tinned Food with Lindsay Middleton’
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In this last episode of season 1 of the Comfortably Hungry Podcast I wanted to take a slightly different approach to the theme of austerity.
I’m sure many with you are familiar with the ‘Make Do And Mend’ initiative launched by the British government in 1941. New clothing was rationed from June of that year so people were encouraged to repair or repurpose clothes (you can hear one of my earlier guests Liz Trigg and her mother Val talking about this on the Original Home Economist podcast). I’m not going completely off piste but the concept of ‘make do and mend’ did get me wondering about how it can be applied to the kitchen. Whether it’s a canny use of leftovers or utilising vegetable offal (more on that later), I want to explore how we can make the most of what we have available in our kitchen cupboards.
I could of course have focused on the war years in Britain when food rationing was place but I‘m particularly interested in how other cultures approach this idea of making do. To help me answer this question I have two guests with me today of Gujarati heritage. Now we talked for a very long time so I have split this final episode into two parts. The second part will be released in a couple of weeks.
Useful Links
Biting Biting: Snacking Gujarati-Style by Urvashi Roe
https://urvashiroe.com/
Follow Urvashi on Instagram & Twitter
Kitchen Press
Urvashi will be appearing at the following food festivals:
Rangeelu Gujarat 1st - 3rd September 2023
Ludlow Food Festival 8th - 10th September 2023
Dartmouth Food Festival 20th - 22nd October 2023
If you’d like to try making Dhokra ENO Fruit Salts are available here
Philosophy of Curry by Sejal Sukhadwala
Whoever heard of Vegetable Offal? by Sejal Sukhadwala
Follow Sejal on Instagram & Twitter
Original Home Economist Podcast ‘Make Do and Mend’
The British Food History Podcast ‘Tinned Food with Lindsey Middleton’
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In Episode 6 I chat with Professor Rebecca Earle from the University of Warwick about the fascinating history behind the potato.
The potato is one of the most versatile vegetables we eat in the western world. To quote Rebecca from her book Feeding the People: The Politics of the Potato :
‘Today the potato is a remarkably successful global food. It ranks just behind wheat, maize and rice in terms of the volume harvested each year, and is the world’s fifth most valuable food crop. More potatoes are eaten per capita in Malawi than Peru itself. Overall, Europeans are now the world’s most assiduous eaters of potatoes consuming on average some 82 kilos per person each year.’
But it hasn’t always been plain sailing for this south America immigrant. It has been plagued by myths surrounding it’s edibility, such as links between its consumption and leprosy, leading some writers to assume that potatoes weren’t widely eaten in Europe by the working classes prior to the nineteenth century when in fact they were. Over the centuries it has been hailed as both a health food and as a nutritional pariah accused of making the working population lazy. At times the potato has been a source of social unrest yet during both world wars it was relied upon to feed allied and enemy nations. Although in Britain they don’t count as one of your five a day, potatoes are a source of potassium, vitamins C, B1 and B6 and their skins contain fibre. However, finally the potato’s importance to global food security has been officially recognised by the United Nations which declared 2008 the International Year of the Potato.
You can find out more about Rebecca on her website. Rebecca has written a number of books including:
Feeding the People: The Politics of the Potato, Cambridge University Press (2020).
Potato (Object Lessons), Bloomsbury (2019)
The Body of the Conquistador: Food, Race and the Colonial Experience in Spanish America, 1492-1700, Cambridge University Press (2012). Winner of the Conference on Latin America History 2013 Bolton-Johnson Prize.
The Return of the Native: Indians and Mythmaking in Spanish America, 1810-1930, Duke University Press (2008). Winner of the Conference on Latin American History's 2008 Bolton-Johnson Prize Honorable Mention.
Further Reading
Domestic Medicine by William Buchan (1801)
Rural Rides by William Cobbett (1822)
Cottage Economy by William Cobbett (1828)
I’m afraid there were a few Gremlins in the system when we recorded this session but there is a transcript available here.
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It’s very easy to get carried away when chatting to my guests so I’ve collated a few of the bits that didn’t make it into the original pressure cooking episode. Given that we’re in the height of summer I thought it would be interesting to explore how nations with consistently hotter climates than Britain utilise pressure cookers and even slow cookers to great effect.
As an aside I was intrigued to discover that it wasn’t only Denys Papin who was convinced chicken would benefit from the pressure cooker treatment (listen to Episode 5 if you don’t know what I’m talking about). A certain ‘Colonel’ Harland Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame doctored a pressure cooker in 1939 so that he could fry chicken quickly and with less oil. This is dangerous in modern, domestic pressure cookers so don’t try it at home. Today’s fast food chains use specially designed pressure fryers. This ultimately helped Sanders (who was given the honorary title of ‘colonel’ by the state in 1935) grow his franchise and in 1964 sold his interest in the company for $2m.
You can find Catherine Phipps on Twitter @catlilycooks or Instagram @catherinephipps. Do subscribe to Catherine’s Substack newsletter Catherine is Under Pressure. Catherine has written several books including Modern Pressure Cooking, as well as Citrus, Leaf, Chicken and The Pressure Cooker Cookbook.
Further Reading
Taste of Life: When Punekars warmed up to introduction of Icmic cooker by Chinmay Damle, 10 November 2022
Indumadhab Mallick revolutionized the kitchen with the invention of ‘Icmic Cooker’, 7 May 2021 on GetBengal.com
Kentucky Fried Chicken Started With An Iron Pan, Dining Room Table & A Gas Station, Consumerist May 2015
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Pressure cookers have been hailed as a saviour of the kitchen in these financially straitened times. They cook food quickly and efficiently thereby saving energy and money. BUT… I can’t get the idea of the pressure cooker being a steaming demon out of my head, ready to spew forth its contents like Regan MacNeil of The Exorcist fame being told she has to attend church on Sunday. Hence, my pressure cooker has been buried beneath a tower of boxes in the attic for many years.
Or at least it was until I read Modern Pressure Cooking by Catherine Phipps. She has a far more positive view of pressure cookers and chats to me in this episode about the history behind this device, how it works and the benefits of this mode of cooking. So if you’re a pressure cooking doubter be prepared to be converted.
Like so much kitchen gadgetry the pressure cooker has its origins in the depths of history. A French protestant refugee called Denys Papin (1647-1713) is credited with designing a prototype for the pressure cooker. Papin’s steam digester cooked meat under pressure to produce tender, tasty and nutritious morsels. So intense was this process that even after a short period of time bones were rendered as soft as cheese. He published his results in A New Digester Or Engine For Softening Bones, Containing The Description Of Its Make And Use in 1681. Papin’s aim was that the digester could be used to make portable meat jellies for use at sea (these he argued would be more nutritious than the salted meat usually served on board ships). He concluded that when the jelly was seasoned with sugar and lemon juice he ate it with much pleasure.
The Fellows of the Royal Society were seemingly not put off by the device looking and sounding like a contraption designed for torture and were astounded by the results. Seventeenth century diarist John Evelyn exclaimed:
‘I went this afternoon with several of the Royal Society to a supper which was all dressed, both fish and flesh, in Monsieur Papin’s digester, by which the hardest bones of beef itself, and mutton, were made as soft as cheese, without water or other liquor, and with less than eight ounces of coals, producing an incredible quantity of gravy; the best for clearness and good relish, and the most delicious that I had ever seen, or tasted.’ (12 April 1682)
In the twentieth century the pressure cooker was tamed and additional safety features mean that the risk of explosion has been nullified so kitchen worktops and walls do not run the risk of being sullied by any sudden pressurised outbursts. I’m a convert, how about you?
You can find Catherine Phipps on Twitter @catlilycooks or Instagram @catherinephipps. Do subscribe to Catherine’s Substack newsletter . Catherine has written several books including Modern Pressure Cooking, as well as Citrus, Leaf, Chicken and The Pressure Cooker Cookbook.
Further Reading
Castro Opts For Steam Power, Associated Press in The Guardian, 10 March 2005
The Diary of John Evelyn, Volume 2 (M.W. Dunno, 1901)
A New Digester Or Engine For Softening Bones, Containing The Description Of Its Make And Use by Denys Papin, (1681)
Papin’s Digester by Andrea Sella and Thony Christie in Chemistry World, 1 October 2019
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In this week’s episode I will be exploring the benefits of using a haybox or Wonder Bag to prepare meals and cut down on energy costs. My guest is Liz Trigg (liztrigg_), one of the hosts of the Original Home Economist, who has had first hand experience of this mode of cooking.
As the name suggests haybox cookery involves placing partially cooked food in a box lined with hay although other materials with similar insulating properties can be used. A dish is prepared on a hob then brought up to boiling point and usually cooked for a short period at a highish temperature before being transferred to the haybox. The hay helps harness the residual heat in the cooking vessel. It’s a great way to prepare things like stews and porridge that benefit from slow cooking. Hay boxes were particularly popular during the world wars, although as I discovered the idea of cooking with residual heat may go back to the medieval era.
Interest in this form of ‘automatic’ cooking appears to have been sparked by an exhibit at the World’s Exposition in Paris in 1867:
The twentieth century would see a number of authors praise the virtues of this mode of cooking although it has to be said that not everyone was convinced. Margaret Johnes Mitchell (1869–1952) was an American writer and a dietician at the Manhattan State Hospital, New York. She published The Fireless Cook Book in 1909 which includes details on how to build a haybox. As well as saving energy, she believed the haybox eliminated excessive heat and odours from the kitchen, improved the flavour of food and could even dispense the need for servants. She also offers the following tips:
* Cooking depends on the retention of heat so the larger quantity of food/liquid the more likely the heat will be retained.
* The cooking vessel should be full in order to maximise the benefits of this style of cooking.
* The cooking vessel should fit into its nest snugly.
* Make sure the haybox is close to the stove so that you can transfer hot food quickly.
* The box should be tightly closed once the food has been put in.
* All food needs to be cooked for a certain amount of time before being moved to the haybox. This is vital to ensure that the contents cook correctly.
* Hardness of water can affect cooking times i.e. food will take longer.
Useful Links & Further Reading
Liz’s recipe for Fabada Asturiana can be found in Instagram
Oatmeal porridge in a haybox (Ministry of Information film, 1940)
The Self-Acting Norwegian Cooking Apparatus - New York Medical Journal Vol X 1870
A fragment of a mediaeval fireless cooking pot, found in Monmouth Castle grounds
The Great War Cook Book by May Byron (1918)
Haybox Cookery by Ambrose Heath (1961)
“Two Anglo-Norman Culinary Collections Edited from British Library Manuscripts Additional 32085 and Royal 12.C.Xii.” Speculum 61, no. 4, by Hieatt, Constance B., and Robin F. Jones. (1986)
The Fireless Cook Book by Margaret Johnes Mitchell (1909)
Wonderbag
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Welcome to Episode 3 where Dr Neil Buttery and I continue our exploration of the curious world of tripe. This time we’re keeping our feet firmly in Britain.
‘So home and dined there with my wife upon a most excellent dish of tripes of my own directing, covered with mustard, as I have heretofore seen them done at my Lord Crew’s, of which I made a very great meal.’ Samuel Pepys, Friday 24 October 1662
Perhaps one of the reasons tripe has declined in popularity is that we’ve forgotten how to prepare it? Neil tracks down a tripe seller (yes, they do still exist) and tries some historic recipes to see why this meat was once popular.
Do you eat tripe? If so, tell us your favourite recipe!
You can tag me on Instagram: @mrssbilton or Twitter: @sjfbilton (Neil’s details are below) or drop me an email at [email protected]
Don’t forget to check out Neil’s website British Food: A History loaded with fascinating historical recipes. His books include The Dark History of Sugar and Before Mrs Beeton. And if you haven’t done so already, do give his British Food History podcast a listen.
You can find Neil on Instagram: @dr_neil_buttery and Twitter: @neilbuttery
If you enjoy the podcast please don’t forget to rate it to help other listeners discover the Comfortably Hungry series.
Useful Links/Further Reading
In 2016 the Oxford Food Symposium had Offal: Rejected and Reclaimed Food as its theme. The proceedings of the symposium contains some fascinating papers on tripe and other offal.
For a history of tripe in Britain try Tripe: A Most Excellent Dish by Marjory Houlihan
For further culinary inspiration try:
The Talisman Cookbook by Ada Boni (1975 - English Version)
The Cook and Housewife’s Manual by Margaret Dods (1827)
Nose to Tail Eating: A Kind of British Cooking by Fergus Henderson
Offal: The Fifth Quarter by Anissa Helou
The Accomplisht Cook by Robert May (1678)
The Experienced English Housekeeper by Elizabeth Raffald (1786)
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Welcome to Episode 2 and the first part of my journey to find out more about the alien like substance called tripe. Assisting me in this quest is food historian and host of the British Food History podcast Dr Neil Buttery.
Tripe refers to the stomachs from cows, sheep, pigs and other animals. It was once widely eaten across Britain by all levels of society and was regarded as a nutritious and economical meat. But tripe has gradually fallen out of favour in Britain since the mid twentieth century making it quite tricky to source.
‘Tripe called by any other name would achieve the popularity it undoubtedly deserves. It is one of the most digestible of foods - indeed, a doctor of my acquaintance puts all his patients suffering from indigestion upon a diet in which tripe stewed in milk, figures largely - while it can be most palatable and is undeniably cheap.’ Majorie Swift, Feed The Brute (1925)
In other parts of the world there is a fondness for this curious white flesh. Tripe soup is popular in both Mexico and Turkey. In Rome there is an area called Testaccio which is renowned for its offal based cuisine. In this episode British food writer and Guardian columnist Rachel Roddy shares some insights into how modern day Romans prepare tripe.
Rachel’s books include Five Quarters: Recipes and Notes from a Kitchen in Rome, Two Kitchens: 120 Family Recipes from Sicily and Rome and the An A-Z of Pasta: Stories, Shapes, Sauces, Recipes. You can find more of her recipes and musings in her Guardian column or on her blog Rachel Eats.
You can find Rachel on Instagram: @rachelaliceroddy or Twitter: @racheleats
Don’t forget to check out Neil’s website British Food: A History loaded with fascinating historical recipes. His books include The Dark History of Sugar and Before Mrs Beeton. And if you haven’t done so already, do give his British Food History podcast a listen.
You can find Neil on Instagram: @dr_neil_buttery and Twitter: @neilbuttery
If you enjoy the podcast please don’t forget to rate it to help other listeners discover the Comfortably Hungry series.
You can follow me on Twitter @sjfbilton and Instagram @mrssbilton or discover more about my work and books at sambilton.com.
Useful Links/Further Reading
In 2016 the Oxford Food Symposium had Offal: Rejected and Reclaimed Food as its theme. The proceedings of the symposium contains some fascinating papers on tripe and other offal.
The tripe recipe Rachel mentions can be found in The Talisman Cookbook by Ada Boni originally published in the 1930s but link above is for English version published in 1975.
For a history of tripe in Britain try Tripe: A Most Excellent Dish by Marjory Houlihan
For further culinary inspiration try:
The Cook and Housewife’s Manual by Margaret Dods (1827)
Nose to Tail Eating: A Kind of British Cooking by Fergus Henderson
Offal: The Fifth Quarter by Anissa Helou
The Accomplisht Cook by Robert May (1678)
The Experienced English Housekeeper by Elizabeth Raffald (1786)
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In Episode 1 Sam discusses a nineteenth century food protest with freelance writer and illustrator Josh Sutton.
The early years of the nineteenth century were marked by social and economic upheaval caused by war, rising inflation and the loss of access to common land due to the The General Enclosure Act of 1801. As a result, many agricultural labourers during this period struggled to support themselves and their families and were forced to rely on parish relief to supplement their meagre earnings. Even this did not prevent huge numbers of people living in a state of poverty where hunger was a daily reality.
The Ely and Littleport riots took place in April and May 1816 as a response to hunger, poverty and unemployment. The protestors’ slogan was ‘bread or blood’ which was inscribed on their banners. They also brandished a loaf on a stick as they marched.
Hundreds of people were involved in this demonstration. For a short while it appeared their demands for higher wages would be met but their protest ended in tragedy. Listen to the podcast to find out what happened.
If you enjoy the podcast please don’t forget to rate it to help other listeners discover the Comfortably Hungry series.
Josh explores the Ely and Littleport riot and many other food protests in his book Food Worth Fighting For, (Prospect Books, 2016). Other titles by Josh include:
Outdoor Ovens – if you can’t stand the heat, go al fresco (Prospect Books, 2017)
Food from Childhood (Prospect Books, 2019)
For details on his other books visit joshsutton.co.uk or follow Josh on Twitter @BooksFez and Instagram @redfezbooks
This podcast features the song Bread or Blood by The Commoners Choir which is available to download here.
You can follow Sam on Twitter @sjfbilton and Instagram @mrssbilton or discover more about her work and books at sambilton.com.
Further Reading
Besides Food Worth Fighting For you may find these other publications and websites of interest:
John Burnett - Plenty & Want: A Social History of Diet in England (1979)
William Cobbett - Rural Rides (1830)
JL & Barbara Hammond - The Village Labourer (1920)
Trussell Trust
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