Archive 2 - listing of past virtual food history talks Jan-Feb 2021

The first archive of links is filling up since several months had over 200 talks. The original calendar post will maintain the current month of virtual talks listing Calendar of virtual talks. This post is to "archive" all (including not taped) virtual talks on the events list from the past months.  Many talks are not taped (only a fourth of the talks are) and marked in red as Tape Those which are taped will be placed in the various categories when I have time. 

Streaming from the hearth - virtual hearth cooking and baking in ovens

Some cooks and museums have done virtual demos of bake oven and cooking over the fire. But. There should be more! People are curious about the unusual activity, and it's a unique way to get donations. Links to tapes of hearth cooking and bake oven are below, and upcoming virtual demos.

So hearth cooks out there... grab your laptop or smart phone and share the fun you are having at the hearth.

Eating and sleeping in the Capitol at the start of the Civil War, April 1861

To honor our troops now sleeping on the floor of the US Capitol and visitor's center to protect it from another terrorist assault...

Tea Talks

It is National Hot Tea Month with 15 talks. Saved the taped talks from 2020, 2021. Blog Post on Ice/Iced Tea HERE

Cookbooks and Manuscripts virtual talks tapes

Taped talks on cookbooks and manuscripts: Medieval and Renaissance, US, Suffrage ckbks, Mexico, Ireland, India, Medical books with recipes, Manuscript ckbks, Folger & Newberry symposium. 2020 was the celebration of 100 years since women earned the right to vote, resulted in three tapes on suffrage cookbooks. Manuscripts are a rich source of culinary and medicinal recipes.
Upcoming talks at the end.

Hard Sauce and taped Christmas talks

Brandy Sauce or Hard Sauce is a butter and sugar mixture flavored with Brandy, Rum, Sherry or wine and put on Plum Pudding or Mincemeat pies.
Also, some holiday talks - upcoming and taped.

15th cen. Boar's Head poem, Medieval manuscripts digitalized

The Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries (PACSCL) digitalized all 160,000 pages from Medieval works held by member libraries. HERE
A fifteenth century Carol about the boar's head at a Christmas feast.

Holiday virtual talks 2020

The upcoming holidays - Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, and a special day - 'Stir-up Sunday' to make Plum Pudding for Christmas - are the subject of many virtual talks this year.

Uncle Sam is depicted cutting the turkey for Thanksgiving dinner with various naturalized citizens following the ratification of the 14th Amendment in 1868.

British foodways virtual talks

There are many upcoming talks on British foodways and tapes of talks: Queen Victoria, Stir-up Sunday Christmas Pudding (Nov 22), Colonial sugar trade, Scottish food and many more. Once I find the tapes of talks after they are given, this post (and other topic posts) will only keep the talks with tapes.

King George III toasting muffins, satire by James Gillray in 1791.

Being Human: A Festival of the Humanities, UK - 11 food history talks

Food history events, listed below, and many more interesting talks (over 200) in this UK festival from Nov 12 to 22. HERE

Adobe ovens photos; Bread, flour, oven talks

Location, location, location. The ovens were on the ground... or on a building... or in a building... or on wheels (apologies to Dr. Seuss). Next week will be a talk baking in an adobe horno! Two talks are by bakers who use clay ovens, one portable on wheels. Below the pictures are talks on breads, flour and a very good talk on the history of making salt in Scotland and England.

Day of the Dead - Dia de Muertos

Sugar skulls were sold in market stalls (1908 image). Other items for the family alters include candles, Pan de Muerto (a sweet yeast bread), mole and other foods. Several upcoming virtual events are listed below. Some give history and make one of the items such as a sugar skull artist. Dia de Muertos is Nov 2 with activities beginning on Oct 31.

Acorn Mush cooked in basket

Incredibly, the steam was from a rock heated in a fire, then stirred in the Wiiwish... IN a basket. The pounded acorns and water eventually thickened and the basket was not burned.

Notice to Milkman!

Quarantine sign tacked to the front door during the Typhoid Fever epidemic of 1911, ordered that the milk bottles were not to be exchanged or the milkman would be fined $5 to $100 (currently $75 to $1500). 

Do you know the Muffin Man's... little bell? October 15 start of street selling

The "tinkling" of the muffin sellers' small bells commenced on the fifteenth of October until Spring. Some associated the high tone to the colder weather; a writer in 1832 disliked the sound ever since childhood. Ofcourse there were other bells - church, postman, town crier, dustman - but Parliament tried, unsuccessfully, to ban the the muffin men's bells before 1851. and chocolate? ...more at the end.

Drink up! Talks: Taverns, Prohibition, Temperance, Beer, Wine, Cocktails, Whiskey...

There is no denying it... there are more and more virtual talks about drinks as our Covid lockdown continues. Grog (yes, grog by a Naval museum), beer, whiskey/whisky, gin, cocktails, teas and chocolate. Many talks include recommended  samples - either mailed or picked up locally. And even beer games done museum style (Penn Museum of UPenn). Tapes, then the October talks.

6 series of talks and 90 virtual talks now thro October

There are several interesting food history series in October that I want to bring to your attention. Signup just started for Folger and Newberry libraries "Food and the Book: 1300-1800." A conference next week on "Material Culture of Sugar in Early New England" is at Historic Deerfield. Also the British Library’s "Food Season," "Masterworks of Japanese Tea Culture," and a series by Enfield Shaker Museum. "Food History Seminar" by Institute of Historical Research has 6 talks. Next week a talk on the study and redoing of the 1739 kitchen at Newlin Grist Mills. October already has over 70 talks.

Ideas for local business pair-ups in virtual talks with museums and tour companies

More and more talks provide the option to buy a box of samples (beer, alcohols, tea) or ingredients to make along with the talk. Starting Oc 9, Plimoth Grist Mill (yes, the one with the Mayflower) will have a virtual mill tour then 3 more dates making cornbread, Indian Pudding and pancakes using its cornmeal, which can be picked up or shipped. It is a great way to support small businesses, and small businesses (ie. cheese shop; tea shop) are even presenting virtual talks.

Dr. Clarissa F. Dillon - One Cool Colonial series

Clarissa F. Dillon, the authority (she wrote the book!) on 18th century kitchen gardens, is introducing us to unusual plants and their uses in true quarantine fashion - virtually. We get to follow along as she tends her period correct garden at the 1696 Thomas Massey House, see the end results (medicinal, cosmetic, and yes, as food) and delight in Clarissa’s vast knowledge, sharp wit and great sense of fun. She is One Cool Colonial... in 10 minute episodes.

Archive listing of past virtual talks during Covid lockdown 2020

The original calendar post will maintain the current and future virtual talks listing and other materials Calendar of virtual talks. This post is to "archive" all (including not taped) virtual talks on the events list from the past months - 684 talks. Many talks are not taped, so only a third of the talks have tapes to view and marked in red as Tape. Those which are taped will be placed in the various categories (ie museums, culinary groups, subjects) on the other post... when I have time.