The Delicious Legacy

Did you know that humans couldn't digest milk? All humans except babies and toddlers that is. But cheese...Cheese was OK!Our Neolithic ancestors were goat and sheep herders and had this amazing resource, milk from their animals, which was making them ill. Till something clicked and they've realised that we could utilize it if it is transformed to cheese!When did all that happened? Why? Where was cheese first 'invented' by whom and how did it spread across Europe and the world?In this episode - a rerun and re-edit of an older one from season one- I speak with author and cheesemonger and all around great human being Ned Palmer, who's book "A Cheesemongers Guide to the British Isles" was released in 2019 and formed the basis for our conversation here.*Warning there is a somewhat graphic description of the "dead goat cheese" which some listeners might find upsetting.The episode is updated and more concise than the one from Season 1, this one is roughly 50 minutes of fascinating cheese history; we are time-travelling in an adventure to discover one of our most genius creations! Cheese!With so many varieties and styles join us for fun trip to humankind's past! We travel to Neolithic Mesopotamia, Prehistoric Britain and Ireland, Homeric Greece, Ancient Rome and Medieval Europe!Music by Miltos Boumis https://cretanbrioche.com/author/boumis/and Pavlos Kapralos. https://www.youtube.com/@pavloskapralos3969This episode is brought to you with the kind support of Maltby and Greek, UK's No1 Greek Delicatessen.https://www.maltbyandgreek.com/You can get Ned's book here:https://www.waterstones.com/book/a-cheesemongers-history-of-the-british-isles/ned-palmer/9781788161176Support The Delicious Legacy here:https://www.patreon.com/thedeliciouslegacyMany thanks!The Delicious LegacySupport the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On a glorious sunny winter day on 21st of January, I arrive on Horsenden farm intrigued by what I am about  to witness next. It’s a crisp bright afternoon just about lunchtime. People had already gathered and chatted and they were all dressed with some very interesting attire, all mysterious and pagan they’ve seemed to me. Some of them resembled the Holy Man, the winter incarnation of the Green Man that kind of thing, with leaves and branches adorning their head and upper body and capes. Bells around the thighs for noise when walking. And of course all this interesting stuff included hot cider, and people had gathered around a table, waiting for the possession to start, helping themselves with the hot spiced beverage, very welcome on a cold winter day but also delicious.I too helped myself to one or three cups while waiting for the ceremony to start… The whole vibe was very folk, very old spirit of the forest type of thing, really ancient England stuff. I wondered if it was the effect of the hot cider that amplified these surreal scenes, or indeed I stepped into the past…An overall feeling of revelry and party was hanging in the air, people with instruments practising the tunes…and of course plenty to drink and keep us warm on this winter day…The purpose of the Wassailing ceremony is to awake the cider apple trees from the winter sleep and to scare away the evil spirits. And so what happens is the people wet the trees with cider and play music and bang on drums and pans to frighten the evil spirits. This is definitely a weird and wonderful sight to behold.On the verge of extinction, now Wassail is back, almost from the dead! What’s going on? Are we going back to something, hankering to return to some mythical age? Or the disconnect with land, the growing of food and the old folk traditions, breeds a strange not nostalgia but thirst perhaps for knowledge and understanding of our past? Something to connect us in the current disconnected age?Whatever it is that made it possible, it seems Wassail has returned for good in the parts of England that originated, but also in many places that aren’t in Somerset, like Sussex and well, even here in London!Thank you and enjoy!ThomSupport the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chocolate, gambling, debauchery, and plotting to bring down the government...You wouldn't expect that from your average coffee house, but this was part and parcel of the most exclusive clubs of the day, the infamous chocolate houses of St James Square, London...And you thought Aztecs were the wild ones...Sadly almost all that we know for the Aztecs is wrong or plainly exaggerated. Montezuma indeed he had lavish feasts with many courses, but he certainly didn't drink 50 cups of cocoa! And certainly it wasn't an aphrodisiac. This was a strange fascination and obsession of the Spanish conquistadors.The Aztecs drunk it as a ritual drink, a drink fit for the nobility and the higher echelons of society.Find out about the above and a lot more on today's episode about the history of chocolate in the Aztec Mexico and in Europe!Enjoy!The Delicious LegacyThe episode was sponsored by Maltby and Greek. Get your 15% discount if you shop online with the code "delicious" on the checkout.https://www.maltbyandgreek.com/Music by Motion Array.Support the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fun fact about chocolate:The chocolate drink of today, is nothing like the drink the ancient Mayans had! That was 98% cacao nibs, today is probably 2%!Have you ever thought how on earth someone thought to take the seeds of a difficult to grow tree, dry them, ferment them, toast them, grind them and make them into a delicious yet bitter drink? How did all start? When and where?Chocolate has been known for 3000 years , give or take to humankind. And for almost all of it’s history, it has been consumed as a drink. Mayas and Aztecs both used to drink it, making a form of frothy chocolate drink flavoured sometimes with spices such as chilli and vanilla. In order to achieve the froth which was considered a sign of quality, the drink was poured back and forth between two jars.Enjoy!The Delicious LegacyThis episode features music from Motion Array.Support the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Deep in the diverse, evergreen, and humid tropical forests of Yucatan, lies a secret; something that in the past 50 years we certainly have become more familiar with, yet when one sets foot today, in these vast tropical landscapes, it is hard to imagine. Once, this was part of the urban landscapes of the Mayans, long before the European invaders trampled on American soil with their armour and leather boots. Here, Mayans planted cacao trees amongst other crops on these sites, right on the riverbanks. The birdsong in the morning was and still is, intense. Troops of howler monkeys, swing and cry and feast on figs that grow along the river, and which provide the shade that cacao trees need to thrive.Who made the first cacao drink? Where does the name come from?Find out this and a lot more on this episode of The Delicious Legacy!This episode was sponsored by Maltby and Greek UK's No1 Greek Deli!Get your hand to some delicious Greek produce with a generous 15% discount if you use the promo code "delicious" here:https://www.maltbyandgreek.com/Happy listening!Thom & The Delicious Legacy PodcastThis episode features music from Motion Array.Support the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did our ancestors celebrated the birth of Christ? What was considered "special" and celebratory dish and food worthy of the birth of Christ?Are there many differences between the nations of Europe, north, south, east and west?What the Greeks of different regions cook for their Christmas table? what other foods and cakes we serve during the twelve day festive table?And most importantly, why am I so excited and greedy when Christmas comes?Find out all the above and more here!Why there are so many cakes and sweet puddings over the festive period? Traditional cakes made and eaten almost everywhere in Western Europe between Christmas and early January.The Twelfth Night cake, which is in direct line of descent from the Roman cakes of Janus, after whom January is named. Janus, god of the double gate – the gate that opens andthe gate that shuts – had two faces and a double mission: to look back at the past, the Old Year, and forward to the future, the New Year.In Gascony, aniseed cakes used to be distributed after midnight Mass at Christmas.Celebratory foods include Goose, the Germanic tradition was to serve roast goose at Christmas. This is convenient,since the goose, a large bird, hatches in spring and is in its prime at eight or nine months old. Any older and it will not be a success roasted.Or Carp; who is king of the fish in Central Europe, where Christmas or Easter would be unthinkable without it.In South France dried figs also feature among the traditional ‘Thirteen Desserts’ of Christmas. With walnuts or hazelnuts, raisins and almonds, they were one of what were called the quatre mendiants, the four orders of begging friars (so called because the different colours of the nuts and dried fruits suggested the colours of their habits). A treat for children was a ‘Capuchin nougat’ – a dried fig split open and stuffed with a green walnut.Calissons, the famous sweets of Aix-en-Provence, must be made with almonds. They consist of marzipan and crystallized fruits mixed with orange-flower water, all the ingredients being Provençal, and worthy of a sweetmeat which is the pride of Aix. Olivier de Serres, in his Théâtre d’agriculture et mesnage des champs, describes a confection very much like calissons d’Aix. Mme de Sévigné was delighted with a big box of them that her daughter gave her. The word calisson may be from Latin. At Christmas festivities in Aix-en-Provence rich families and confectioners had them distributed by priests at Mass instead of the consecrated bread.Enjoy the latest episode with the welcome support of Maltby and Greek UK No1 Greek Delicatessen!https://www.maltbyandgreek.com/Much loveThom & The Delicious LegacySupport the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Io Saturnalia!Long before Christmas existed and was celebrated...There was another mid-winter festival...SATURNALIA!Gaius Valerius Catullus described it as "the best of times"; an extravaganza of food and drink, an inversion of social roles, an expression of one's self through singing gambling...Originating as a farmers' festival dedicated to Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture and the harvest, it started as one day celebration, usually December 17th, but over centuries evolved to something bigger.Eventually the Roman dramatist Seneca complained 'December used to be a month- now it's a whole year'Can you not relate? Every holiday nowadays seems to last, until the next one! Could be month, could be longer, after all, the Christmas tat goes for sale in August these days!Music by Pavlos Kapralos.You can find delicious traditional Greek products online for your Christmas table at Maltby and Greek with 15% discount if you put the discount code "delicious" here:https://www.maltbyandgreek.com/Happy listening,Thom & The Delicious LegacySupport the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Abbasid caliphate (750-1258) and its associated "golden age of Islam" is famous for a range of achievements in science, literature, and culture. The preservations and translations of ancient Greek texts to Arabic and the flow of discussion, philosophy, the merging of Persian, Greek and Arabic thought with Islam the countless inventions and new paths in science, mathematics and astronomy. All these are more or less known widely. Huge achievements. A mass of ancient texts were preserved for our eyes thanks to Persian scientists. But what about...Pickles?! What do we know about this superb condiment I say?!!?Well let's try and get a sense of place and a starting point to our story!Baghdad was founded in 762 as The City of Peace.The Abbasid empire stretched from the edges of India to the borders of Europe. Baghdad was the heart of the Islamic world and the centre of political rule. It was also the centre of the Translation Movement, when scholars from around the world came together at the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, translating ancient Greek and Roman texts on subjects like algebra, medicine, and astronomy. Music, poetry and art flourished. The society of the Abbasid Caliphate was diverse and open. Think of it a little bit like the “Citadel” in Game of Thrones.As a Metropolis of a vast empire, Baghdad it was a sprawling city with houses of main thoroughfares, connected by narrow, winding and shade-giving streets; all within earshot of the local mosque. Business and trade were kept to the main streets and public squares, bustling and noisy with its food stalls and many other traders. Gardens both public and private, were an imitation of paradise with attention and care to details. Huge water-raising machines could be seen pumping water from rivers into the fields and to the cities and houses.In this hugely influential cultural city al-Baghdadi was born in 1239AD. He was a scribe, and was a compiler of an early Arabic cookbook of the Abbasid period, The Book of Dishes. Originally with 160 recipes but later 260 more were added.Thank you and see you soon!Music by Pavlos Kapralos and Motion Array (Arabian Nights, Barren Sands)Support the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"An Ethiopian goatherd named Kaldi one day noticed his bestgoat dancing about and baaing like a maniac. It seemed tohappen after the old billy goat had been nibbling the berries offa certain plant. The goatherd tried a few himself and soon wasdancing about, too."How do you like your coffee?Dark, bitter, milky, sweet or spiced?Hot, or iced?From Brazil, Mexico, Java, Jamaica or Colombia?But even if it's unimaginable to think your morning without it, there was a time before the caffeinated era! A time that people didn't drink it! I know! The horror!Where did it all started and why? and how come it's the most popular trading commodity in the world after oil?From Ethiopia to Yemen from there to Egypt and Turkey and then Europe...and then the new world and the whole world! Coffee is truly global!Many myths persist on how or why and many wars were fought. And bans on its consumption. And slavery.So much to unpack!Listen and enjoy!Support the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How would our modern day to day life would be like, in a world without sugar?I’m very pleased to have Neil Buttery on the podcast today, the food historian and author of “A dark history of sugar”, who’s book is out now and traces the origins of all the above, sugar’s production and consumption especially during its darkest parts between the 16th and 19th century.  Once, it was called Indian Salt. Or white salt. The Chinese lay claim to be the first to make it; among their many inventions.It seems the art of making it though, came from India. Sugar cane is a giant grass that once was native to the island of New Guinea. This is the history of sugar, and sugar cane, the plant Saccharum officinarum which today is found growing in many places around the world, but crucially used in so many of our foods that it certainly makes it ubiquitous …Darius the Persian King is said to have discovered in India a reed that gives honey without the aid of bees. And brought it home with him. A spice -as it was considered in the ancient world- more expensive than any other, and used for medicinal primarily purposes. Dioscorides, a Greek contemporary of Augustus, remarks that: ‘There is a kind of solid honey called saccharon, which is found in the reeds of India and Arabia the fortunate. It resembles salt in consistency, and crunches in the mouth.’ Sweet foods are very rare in nature indeed. And exactly why before the age of sugar, honey was the no1 sweetener in the world, eaten and used by people all over.Energy giving, it was the only sweetener available in a pure and natural state. We describe people as sweet when they’re nice, polite and so on.Clearly sweetness is something we desire, something we need, something we revered as sacred since our deep ancient past. Honey and sugar have religious connotations too.But we also need high energy for our development. As a species our need for sweet and sugar led us to develop ingenious ways to make things sweeter. From the development of sophisticated apiculture to agriculture and breeding selectively fruit bearing plants that have more sugar. But how did sugar as we know today come to the forefront of our lives? And how it created and was shaped by the transantlantic slave trade, colonialism and exploitation of humans and nature? If you want more archaeogastronomical content, and the extra bits from our conversation with Neil, please subscribe to the Patreon page here:https://www.patreon.com/thedeliciouslegacyYou can buy Neil Buttery's "A Dark History of Sugar" book in every good bookshop.Music by Pavlos Kapralos.If you want to get your hands on some delicious Greek products go to Maltby and Greek website and use the code "delicious" at the checkout to get a lovely 15% discount!Enjoy!The Delicious LegacySupport the podcast on Ko-Fi and Patreon for ad-free episodes! https://ko-fi.com/thedeliciouslegacypodcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedeliciouslegacySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.