Posts Tagged ‘culinary history’
Medieval Morsels: A Gardener’s Guide to Chaucer-Era Edibles
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 5, 2017 On this day, dear garden enthusiasts and history aficionados, a most intriguing tome graced the shelves of our literary world. Liza Picard’s Chaucer’s People: Everyday Lives in Medieval England burst forth…
Read MoreThe Book of Difficult Fruit: Celebrating the Tart, Tender, and Unruly
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 6, 2021 Dearest reader, On this day, we raise our forks and glasses to a remarkable literary and culinary feast: The Book of Difficult Fruit: Arguments for the Tart, Tender, and Unruly…
Read MoreWine in Pills: Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin’s Wit at the Garden Table
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 1, 1755 Dearest reader, On this day, society was quietly set aflutter by the birth of a man whose name would become as synonymous with the pleasures of the table as roses…
Read MoreAndré Simon: French Wine Merchant, Writer, and Gastronomy Pioneer
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. February 28, 1877 Dearest reader, On this day, we celebrate the birth of André Simon, a figure as refined as the finest vintage and as knowledgeable as the most seasoned sommelier. This French…
Read MoreThe Pineapple King: How James Dole Created a Tropical Empire
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 27, 1877 Dearest admirers of horticultural enterprise, today we mark the birth of that most ingenious cultivator of tropical abundance, James Drummond Dole, whose vision would transform a humble bromeliad into an…
Read MoreNeeps and Tatties: Lorraine Harrison on Scotland’s Traditional Burns Night Fare
by Lorraine Harrison “Neep” is the Scots term for the rutabaga, the root vegetable known as swede in Britain. Neeps and tatties (dialect for mashed potatoes) are the traditional accompaniment to haggis, served on Burns Night (January 25). Recipes vary, but butter and a little spice such as nutmeg or powdered ginger are common additions.…
Read MoreCharles V of France: Royal Patron of Cuisine and a Mysterious End
Death by Poisonous Mushrooms Today is the anniversary of the death of Charles V of France, who died on this day in 1380. He commissioned his cook, Guillaume Tirel, to create the first cookbook. The full title of the book is an exceptionally long one. In English, it translates to: “Hereafter follows the [recipe collection]…
Read MoreAlice Waters: The Garden Revolutionary Who Forever Changed American Dining
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. August 27, 1971 My darling garden enthusiasts, today in 1971, the incomparable Alice Waters—a culinary revolutionary disguised as a humble restaurateur—opened her now-legendary Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley, California. What a delicious milestone…
Read MoreThe Thaddeus’ Secret Cargo: Hawaii’s Potato Pioneers
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. August 2, 1820 On this day, dear gardeners, a most curious botanical revolution took root in the paradisiacal shores of Hawaii. It was not the swaying palms or the vibrant orchids that marked…
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