Literally translated, “ropa vieja” (Spanish) means “old clothes.” But, let me tell you, this delicious beef dish does not taste like old rags! The reason for the name, apocryphal origin stories aside, is because...
This blog, dedicated to food history and historical foodways, has existed in one form or another for the better part of a decade (nine years this month) and during that time I have posted...
It has been several months since quarantines due to Covid-19 began across the United States, and since half of the country – if not the world – appeared to suddenly discover bread-baking with their...
The recent decision of the Quaker company to rebrand the Aunt Jemima line of products to remove the name and image on their branding, which they have acknowledged is a racist legacy from slavery...
I think anyone who has been reading this blog for some time knows that I am very much attracted to sweet things, and that when I look for recipes to recreate here, gravitate towards...
This recipe comes from a 1959 book titled Pillsbury’s Best 1000 Recipes: Best of the BAKE-OFF Collection. And before I get to the recipe, I want to tell you how I came to own...
Something not sweet for a change! Today’s recipe comes from an 1876 book by Mary F. Henderson titled Practical Cooking and Dinner Giving: A Treatise Containing Practical Instructions in Cooking; In the Combination and...
A couple of years ago I was at a food history conference (they DO happen!) and one of the attendants gave me a neat little stack of papers, sandwiched between two layers of cardboard...
In case you have not figured this out, I have a huge sweet tooth. Not only that, but I prefer baking over all other kitchen activities. One of my goals for this blog for...
With the holidays coming up, I thought I’d share a drink that, although it had a different use in its period, would be an excellent addition to the booze selection at any modern holiday...
Last year, sometime during the fall semester, I was reading a book about the colonial American Southeast and came across a brief reference to an illicit orange trade between Spanish Florida and some of...
