Episodes
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As a brief announcement, this morning we lost a beloved member of the Delicious History family, my dog Worf. He died as he lived: courageously and in the company of loved ones.
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We all like to eat, but some of us REALLY like to eat. And some of us like to eat so much that we cause the downfall of an entire imperial dynasty. If that's you, you're in good company: with Roman Emperor Vitellius! Find out more on this episode of Delicious History!
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Now that we've gone well over 10,000 listeners, it's time to take a peak behind the microphone. In this special bonus episode, find out more about the brains (if you can call it that) behind the show, how it came to be, how it's made and where it's going!
Thank you so much for listening and being a part of the growth of this special community!
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This week on Delicious History on Vacation, we take you to the enchanting city of Venice, Italy. But this great city was built on the back of something quite small: spices. Peppercorn trade in particular took paupers and made them into princes, like Romano Mairano, the subject of this week's episode. Find out more on this episode of Delicious History!
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You may not have realized it, but I'm actually an audio professional. Having worked for multiple agencies as an audio engineer and podcast producer, I'm off on my own and accepting clients! For more information, email me at [email protected].
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Most people like spice and flavor in their food, but are they willing to kill for it? Saffron is by far the most expensive spice in the world, and although it's fallen in and out of favor in the West throughout history, people have always gone to great lengths to get their hands on it.
This week, as we're visiting the historic city of Milan, Italy, find out how much of our modern world we owe to some little flower parts!
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For a lot of us, Nestle is a company that's given us chocolate, coffee and other pick-me-ups over the years. But what if something sinister was being planned in their Swiss boardrooms?
This week, we're in Montreux, Switzerland, just one train stop away from Vevey, the world headquarters of Nestle. Find out how infant formula got Nestle in plenty of trouble, while millions of babies lost their lives on this week's episode.
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Marie Antoinette is one of the most famous figures in European history and with one of the most famous quotes: Let them eat cake! What exactly did that mean and, more importantly, did she actually even say this at all? Find out while Dave is in the Louvre, getting to the bottom of one of history's mysteries!
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D-Day was the largest and arguably most important military operation in history. The planning, preparation and sacrifice needed to make it a success is almost unimaginable. Despite this, there was one man who played a much bigger role in that victory than he gets credit for.
Juan Pujol Garcia, a failed chicken farmer, made a chance connection with a Duke in a Madrid hotel. Needing some Scotch for his aunts, the Duke offers Pujol something worth its weight in gold: a passport. Find out how this case of Scotch could have been the key to success for all of World War II on this episode of Delicious History!
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Have you wondered why bananas are so cheap? Spoiler alert: the answer isn't good. Entities like the United Fruit Company had a nasty habit of taking advantage of low-wage workers, working them under the worst of conditions to sell cheap fruit back in foreign countries. But what happens when the workers fought back? Spoiler alert: the answer isn't good.
In this episode, we talk about the Banana Massacre of 1928 in Colombia. Find out who hurt people for fruit and what effects it had for most of the 20th and 21st centuries.
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The Spanish were known for cash cropping throughout their empire. When sugar and rice crops ended up requiring more labor, they turned to a dark option: slavery.
While the establishment of the Atlantic slave trade led to the suffering and death of millions of innocent victims, a group of 23 marooned slaves in Esmeraldas, Ecuador found an opportunity. Instead of being condemned to work in the sugar fields, they were going to write their own destiny. Their grit and determination developed into their own distinct culture and mark on the world.
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Hello and welcome back! Delicious History is coming back with a vengeance, and this time it's personal! For this season, we'll be on the road, talking about some of the most important ways food has affected history on location!
Starting in Ecuador, we'll take you to Colombia, Spain, France, Switzerland, a whole lot of Italy and ending up in New York! Why buy a ticket when you can just download the season?
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Who doesn't like a good story from Down Under? When the Australian government tried to kill two birds with one stone by helping World War I vets grow large amounts of wheat, they never anticipated the third bird: more than 20,000 emus.
Find out how farmers in Western Australia and the military got in over their heads with the Great Emu War!
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Continuing with our theme of food and Italian fascism, we discuss how Futurists set the stage for the new political changes that were about to come. While most of Europe was starting to see their colonialist policies as something of a relic of the past, Italians felt that they had to catch up. How would they get the public on board? The only way they knew how: through their stomachs!
Once again, we are joined by Dr. Diana Garvin, author of Feeding Fascism: The Politics of Women's Food Work and professor of Italian studies at the University of Oregon. This week she goes into great detail about how the Italian Futurists used the strange and wonderful foods of Eastern Africa to set the stage for the horrible atrocities that were to would come.
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When you think of Italian food, the first thing that probably comes to mind is pasta. But the truth is that Italian is extremely diverse and that diversity has played a huge part in its development, especially during the fascist regime of Mussolini.
This week we are joined by special guest Dr. Diana Garvin, professor of Italian studies at the University of Oregon and author of Feeding Fascism: The Politics of Women's Food Work. She helps us to understand the role that Italian rice weeders played in changing hearts and minds during some of Italy's darkest days. Plus, how they filled people's stomachs with risotto!
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There's no denying it: American politics are weird. They make no sense and people have been trying to change it for years. Something as simple as the food a candidate eats on the trail can change history. From Garbage Plates in Rochester to crab cakes in Maryland and even tamales in Texas, what a candidate eats and how they eat it can make all the difference.
In this episode, we go over a mishap that befell President Ford while visiting the Alamo in the great state of Texas. How did a single tamale change American history? Find out on this episode of Delicious History!
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Look who's back! After going over the structure of the late Bronze Age in our last episode, we go over what toppled the house of cards that had been set up for centuries.
What finally did it in? Was it the Sea People, food shortages or just own poor planning? We talk about that and more in this week's episode!
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We've reached a point where we need to catch up on our research to make sure that we can present the highest quality information possible. So, we'll be taking a month's break. But don't worry! We're upgrading our gear, bringing in guests and making Delicious History better than ever!
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While so many of us are worried about the world ending now, we forget that it already ended...about 3,000 years ago! The fall of the Bronze Age was one of the most historical events in the history of the world, forming much of what was to come. But how did it happen and how was food involved? Tune in to this week's episode to find out!
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Putting our focus on Europe, how did coffee upset the social and political systems of the 17th and 18th centuries. Plus, what did that have to do with the United States or Haiti? Find out why rulers such as Charles II and Frederick the Great were so keen on outlawing coffee within their borders and why you should thank your morning brew for creating the world we live in today!
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