How King Midas Lost His Dinner

No fables here! We’re travelling back 2700 years to uncover the case of King Midas’ lost funeral feast. Join us as we explore how an ancient civilization sent people off to the afterlife with a rocking good party. We’ll also learn how modern technology is revealing the diets of ancient civilizations as well as the recipe for the oldest cocktail in the world. Find out how historical tastes are making a comeback with a little help from the craft brewing industry. All this and more on this week’s episode of The Feast. 

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Technical Direction by Mike Portt

Click here for more goodies about King Midas, including some ancient recipes from his funeral feast.

Episode Soundtrack can be found here. 

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War Cake & Emergency Steak

Grab your ration books, The Feast is heading back to 1945! Find out how the US and Canada got patriotic with its cooking during World War II. This week we'll see how both radio and radar transformed North American food. What did Betty Crocker have to do with the war department? How do you bake a cake without eggs? And why did the Canadian government want people to drink more milk? From war brides to washing machines, get ready for a kitchen revolution on this week's episode. 

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Research Assistance by Meghan Kirby

Technical Direction by Mike Portt

Click here for lots of great information on Betty Crocker, the war brides of WWII, and all the 1940s radio you can handle, as well as this week's episode soundtrack.

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The Thousand Dollar Dinner

Dog days of summer getting you down? Why not treat yourself to a story about one of the first families of ice cream in 19th century Philadelphia? Learn how a modest ice cream shop went head to head with New York’s famous Delmonico’s to become one of the finest restaurants in America. A special feature from The Feast this week, in collaboration with Becky Diamond, author of “The Thousand Dollar Dinner”, we’ll cool you down with some scandalous vanilla ice cream and take you behind the scenes of one of America’s first great cookery challenges.

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Technical Director: Mike Portt

Special thanks to Becky Diamond, author of "The Thousand Dollar Feast: America's First Great Cookery Challenge". Available in paperback September, 2016.

www.beckyldiamond.com

All the ice cream recipes, stories of the scandalous vanilla bean, great music from the episode & more can be found here.  

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A Sour & Salty Trip to Byzantium

What does ketchup have to do with medieval politics? Find out this week, when we travel back to 10th century Constantinople to dine at the emperor’s table. We’ll follow in the footsteps of a picky Italian ambassador who can’t find a thing to eat in the largest city in the medieval world! We’ll learn some ancient tricks for making wine & how a few lines of poetry can cure a nasty hangover. Discover how the fall of the Roman Empire profoundly changed the eating and drinking habits of western Europe & how an ancient salty fish sauce may be lurking in your kitchen cabinet. 

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Research Assistant: Megan Kirby

Technical Direction/Olympic Commentary: Michael Portt

Click here for more information on the episode, including recipes, featured songs and resources.

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Down with Pasta! Italian Futurist Cuisine in the 1930s

Can you imagine Italian food without pasta? This week, we journey back to the 1920s & 1930s when an artistic movement declared war on noodles, one of the most beloved Italian culinary traditions. Find out how the golden age of the airplane inspired an entirely new way of thinking about eating; when restaurants resembled aircraft hangers, chicken tasted of steel, and your dinner soundtrack was an airplane engine! 

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Resident PunMaster & Technical Direction by Mike Portt

Recipes, Resources, & Episode Soundtrack available here

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A Victorian Dinosaur Dinner

Ever dream of dining with a T.Rex? Join us for a New Year's Eve dinner in 1853 at London's famous Crystal Palace where you can meet the man who coined the term dinosaur itself, Sir Richard Owen. And dinosaurs won't just be the talk of the table, they'll be the table itself! Discover how one Victorian dinner helped to launch the dino-mania of today, from The Flintstones to Jurassic Park.  

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Technical Direction: Mike Portt

Research Assistant: Megan Kirby

Soundtrack, resources, & recipes available here

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Episode 4: How Do You Solve a Problem like Christina? Papal Banquets in 1655

Deposed queens, papal politics, sugar sculptures, & Bernini- a combination that could only happen at a Baroque feast! Join us this week as we explore the politics of feasting in the 1650s when Pope Alexander VII did the unthinkable & invited a woman to dinner! Learn about sugar sculptures that cost more than a car & how the design of an armchair had the potential to make or break Bernini's career. After all, no one throws a feast like the Romans! 

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

For more information on Queen Christina, Baroque feasting, and the episode soundtrack, please see here.

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Episode 3: The Medieval Michelin Guide: Finding Food on the Camino de Santiago, 1490

Where can a medieval pilgrim expect to find a good meal on the Camino de Santiago? Learn how to survive your pilgrimage with Roman tips on how to make your bread last longer as well as where to find safe water while travelling in the countryside. We'll also sample some of the local diverse treats of medieval Spanish cuisine including the Persian-inspired dish of escabeche and miraculous pastries from a town where chickens are sacred. See you on the Camino! 

Written & Produced by Laura Carlson

Find delicious medieval recipes, resources, and soundtrack information here.

Cover Image: "Saint James as a Pilgrim with a Purse and a Staff" (Paris, 1440), courtesy of Getty Images

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Episode 2: The St. Charles Hotel, New Orleans, 1846

Join us for an opulent night at America's most famous hotel, the St. Charles in December, 1846. Located in the heart of New Orleans, we'll watch the golden age of Louisiana unfold before us. Joining some of the most prominent members of American society and politics, we'll dine in the finest French fashion on mock turtle soup, lobster salad, stuffed rooster, roasted bear, and more. See how meals were served in the 19th century & take part in one of the richest culinary traditions in America. Don't forget to down a cocktail or two, the latest drinking trend sweeping the nation. See you at the table! 

Written and produced by Laura Carlson

Additional audio help by Mike Portt (aka Oakey Hall)

Find more information about 19th century New Orleans as well as historical recipes and music featured in the episode here.

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Episode 1: Oktoberfest 1896

Travel back with us to Munich in 1896 to witness the origins of some of the most famous Oktoberfest traditions. We'll visit some of the earliest beer halls, sample some of the newest brews Munich has to offer, and eat all the German pretzels you can handle. How was Napoleon responsible for Bavarian beer? What do horse races have to do with a wedding feast? And just how do you roast an ox using a steam locomotive? Find out all this and more on this episode of The Feast. 

Researched, written, and produced by Laura Carlson

Find recipes, the episode soundtrack, and more on the history of Munich's Oktoberfest here. 

Comic by Henry Albrech, Das Oktoberfest in München (1895) courtesy of Bayerische StaatsBiblibliothek

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