What cooking and eating was like on the Oregon Trail (it was rough), and a 19th century recipe for johnny cakes

The real-life story of Chef Boyardee and a likely recipe for his original spaghetti with meat sauce

What it was like on Ellis Island in the early 20th century, and two recipes for dishes that appeared on an Ellis Island menu in 1920

Ship kitchens and the cooks who manned them, and a recipe for a hearty stew thickened with hardtack (clack clack)

Special guest culinary historian Michael W. Twitty joins me to cook hoppin’ john, a dish that is said to bring good luck in the new year, and he shares the history of hoppin’ john and its roots in Africa and the enslaved population of early America

Special guest culinary historian Michael W. Twitty joins me for a special Q&A where he answers your questions and mine about the foods of Africa and of the enslaved population in early America

The rise and fall of fruitcakes and a Civil War era recipe

The history of Dr Pepper, including the company’s campaign to make hot Dr Pepper a thing, and the simple recipe for it

Ruth Wakefield’s invention of the chocolate chip cookie with the original recipe and a WWII ration-friendly version

Flying on the Hindenburg, from luxury to disaster, and a dessert recipe from Escoffier that appears on its menu

How the United States provided Thanksgiving dinner to its troops during WWII, and recipes for classic Thanksgiving sides from the 1944 Cook Book of the United States Navy

The events of the morning of November 22, 1963, and JFK’s last meal: breakfast at the Hotel Texas

The history of pumpkins and the first recipe for a custard-style pumpkin pie

Riotous Halloween celebrations and the first townwide Halloween party, along with a 19th century candy recipe

The grueling routine of lighthouse keepers and a corn chowder from 1896 that they would have had the ingredients for

The fictional woman who became a household name and a friend of homemakers across the country, and her 70-year-old recipe for pineapple upside-down cake

The various versions of that nectar of the weary farmhand and congressman alike, popular in the 18th and 19th centuries

Delicious, creamy baked oysters and the oyster craze in 19th century New York City.

The crucial role of coffee in a Civil War soldier’s life, and the alternatives they came up with for it

The surprisingly good food in one of history’s most notorious prisons: Alcatraz