The Food Historian
  • Home
  • About
    • In the Media
  • Projects
    • Blog
    • Book
    • Food History Happy Hour
    • Book Reviews
    • Podcast
    • Newsletter
  • Resources
    • Food Historian Bookshop
    • Recorded Talks
    • Historic Cookbooks
    • Bibliography
    • Food Exhibits
    • TV and Film
    • Wassberg Food Library
  • Contact
    • Media Requests
    • Speaking Engagements
  • Events
  • Members
    • Join
    • Patreon
    • Members-Only Blog
    • Vintage Cookbooks
    • Manuscript
    • Thesis
    • Other Publications

2020: A Year in Review

12/31/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
What a year this has been. A global pandemic, flailing economy, the end of truth as we know it, and the abject failure of political leadership in our country (to the point of cult-like devotion to a would-be dictator) - I don't think anyone thought 2020 would turn out like it did. ​But, surprisingly, it has a lot more parallels to 1920 than we might think. I've already written about comparisons between the coronavirus pandemic and WWI and the Spanish Flu, including eerie parallels with struggling onion farmers (similar things happened with milk and dairy farmers, but I didn't manage to get a blog post up about that!), and as 1920 was the start of Prohibition, I wrote about the Temperance movement and our road to Prohibition. Other parallels to 1920 include a widening income inequality, including struggles with stagflation (a.k.a. the "high cost of living"), the politics of laissez faire economics that favored big business over ordinary people, a post-war recession as European agriculture and manufacturing rebounded, racial tensions and violence and the rise of the KKK (including the work of the Daughters of the Confederacy to rewrite textbooks and put up Confederate monuments). All of these as-of-yet unaddressed issues that are all rising up again, 100 years later. 

When the year first started, I was looking forward to our own "Roaring Twenties" decade, but what I had in mind was more jazz, loosening social strictures, and feminism. Not global pandemic, economic and racial strife, and crazy politics. 

My 2020 New Year's Resolutions didn't turn out quite as I'd hoped. My goals were to write more, teach, organize, and form a food historian community. I didn't get as much writing done on Preserve or Perish as I wanted. I underestimated how much a global pandemic would hamstring the intense higher thought that is required for the complicated task of original research and book editing. I DID make progress though, and that's what counts. What I did to was write a lot more about cookbooks and historic recipes, which WAS one of my goals, as I look back.

Although I did not get any online courses up (although at least two are percolating as we speak), I DID do a lot of virtual teaching, both informally through Food History Happy Hour, which was often the highlight of my week or month, and more formally with the incredible number of virtual speaking engagements I did this year (and already 2021 looks like it might outstrip 2020, now that people are used to Zooming). 

The organizing I didn't get much of a chance to do until this month! Some Christmas money meant I could afford to order 3 more bookshelves to match my existing ones in my guest-bedroom-cum-office-and-library, and that's about it in terms of what I can fit up here. I also rearranged where my desk is and made room for the new shelves, which should arrive next week. 

And while I didn't go about creating an intentional food historian community, I have watched with pleasure the new folks joining in on Facebook, the food history community on Instagram, and of course everyone who has supported me on Patreon. 

My goals in 2021 are a little more modest - keep Food History Happy Hour going as long as I can, keep plugging away on the book, and keep this blog going. And finish reorganizing my library and making my office more functional and cozy. I didn't expect to spend nearly as much time up here as I did, but working from home does that to a girl. Do you have any 2021 goals? Or don't want to jinx it?

Top 10 Posts of 2020

My maintenance of the blog was a little more hit or miss this year than I would have liked. Sadly, World War Wednesday kind of fell by the wayside compared to 2019, although I hope to bring it back in full force in 2021. I did, however, get to focus a lot more on historic recipes. Here are the top 10 blog posts (thanks, Google Analytics!), published in 2020, in order of popularity.

1. Black Food Historians You Should Know
This one I published back in February of this year, but I wrote it because with a few exceptions, I felt that Black food historians were not getting their due in the food sphere. 

2. Food History Happy Hour: Beef Fizz (1960s?)
​
This is the only Food History Happy Hour post on the list, which is kind of sad considering how many of them I did! But no one could deny the lure of the beef fizz craze that made the rounds of the internet, thanks to a Reddit post. I still haven't tracked down where the original recipe came from, so if anyone has an idea, let me know!

3. Food and the "Flu": Spanish Flu of 1918
The coronavirus pandemic was on everyone's mind earlier this spring, and since comparisons abounded to the Spanish Influenza epidemic of 1918 (which lasted well into 1919), I thought I would see what I could dig up on the food history of the "flu." 

4. The Real Story Behind the "Gross" Black and Orange Halloween Taffy
Moral of the story here is apparently I need to hop on more random internet trends. This one was inspired by another meme making the rounds of social media and it was fun to dig into the real history. 

5. Lydia Maria Child's Pumpkin Pie (1832)
The timeliness of this post, which I put up the day before Thanksgiving, probably had a lot to do with its popularity, but it was also my first cooking demo video! So that was also fun. 

6. World War Wednesdays: Gospel of the Clean Plate
This short and sweet blog was one of the first of the year - discussing the issue of food waste and food conservation during WWI. Why it got so popular I have no idea, but there you go!

7. Celebrating Indigenous Foods
Another one I managed to publish "on time" for Native American Heritage Month, it also came at a time of reckoning with American mythology around the pending Thanksgiving season. It was fun to research - there were a few foods on the list that even I didn't realize were indigenous to the Americas. 

8. One Year Later - The Food That Built America
I have to tell you - I STILL get people, old friends, acquaintances, and even occasionally strangers, who excitedly tell me - I saw you on TV!!! :D I'm just glad the show turned out so nicely and (spoiler alert) keep your eyes peeled for yours truly on at least one, possibly two more shows in 2021. 

9. Scratch Chicken & Dumpling Soup (1942)
The colder weather and the still-raging pandemic must have meant that folks wanted to stay in and be cozy. And this dumpling recipe from Ida Bailey Allen hit the spot. 

10. Virginia Apple Pecan Election Cake
Another timely one, this time posted ON election day. Although it's not a "real" election cake in terms of historical association with election day, it was still delicious and much easier than the yeast-based real deal. 

And that, my dears, is that. Did you have a favorite blog post from 2020? If you missed the earlier ones, you can always peruse the month-by-month listings on the blog (at right) or by category. You can also use the search box at the bottom of every page of the website. 

​Here's to seeing 2020 quickly out the door, and hopefully welcoming in a kinder, more sane, more truthful 2021. 
Picture
Because nothing is more appropriate to ring OUT the crazy year that was 2020 than this vintage Happy New Year postcard with a giant beetle holding what appears to be a sprig of gooseberries, but is maybe supposed to be mistletoe? 2020 has certainly felt like kissing a beetle. Lol.

The Food Historian blog is supported by patrons on Patreon! Join us for awesome members-only content like free digitized cookbooks from my personal collection, e-newsletter, and even snail mail from time to time!
Become a Patron!
Join Today

0 Comments

Be it Resolved

1/1/2020

3 Comments

 
Picture
Longtime followers of this blog may have noticed that I keep moving the goalposts on book publication. That's because life, as it often does, has intervened in the past few years. So poor "Preserve or Perish" gets neglected, and I feel guilty about it.

I'm hoping that 2020 will bring more stability, less stress, and more routine and free time. So of course, the book is at the top of the list!

My primary goals for 2020 are thus:

Write.

My book, "Preserve or Perish," on food in New York State during WWI is nearly complete. Peer reviewers wanted more context, my editor wanted a chapter on propaganda, and I wanted to add recipes and make the academic text a little more approachable to the lay reader. But editing, an essential part of the writing process, is HARD. Especially when adding context means you have to go back and read (and take notes on) and condense and cite even more secondary source books. I am, however, probably most of the way there. I'm not sure what the final book will look like, as this one is ending up longer than expected, but I know that the finished product will be better for the time and attention. Setting a completion deadline for myself also usually works to kick in my "oh no I have a deadline let me work furiously and extremely efficiently to meet it" generally works. So fingers crossed.

I also want to post more in this blog. Thank goodness for the scheduling function, so I can sit down and write a few posts at a time. But I also want to branch out in topics. I've loved the World War Wednesday series, but I want more time for historic recipes and cookbooks, too. 

Teach.

I know a LOT about food history. I've been studying it, on a fairly regular basis, for over 15 years. And I want to share what I know, but the traditional college course is not really for me (also, adjuncts are treated terribly in academia). Which is why I'm in the process of developing a couple of online courses.

I also want to get back into podcasting and/or make a few YouTube videos. Part of the online course process is creating online videos, so why not make a few shorts to post on YouTube? 

Organize.

In the past few years I've acquired a LOT of vintage cookbooks. I've managed to organize some of them, but I have it on good authority that more are coming in 2020. So, that not only means organizing my library (again), but also cataloging what I have and digitizing a few gems to share. 

Community.

This is a bonus resolution, in part because I think it will be so much fun. We've got a great group over on Facebook and my Patreon patrons delight me in more ways than I can say. But I'd like to develop a place for all us like-minded folks to be able to better communicate and spend time together.

SO! To that end, I'd like your feedback! What do you think of these goals? I've made a little survey for you to take (only 4 questions long!) and help shape the future of The Food Historian. 
Take the Survey

How About You?

Do you have any 2020 goals related to food, history, or food history? Share in the comments!
3 Comments
    Picture

    Author

    Sarah Wassberg Johnson has an MA in Public History from the University at Albany and studies early 20th century food history.

    Become a Patron!

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    December 2018
    April 2018
    October 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015

    Categories

    All
    16th Century
    17th Century
    18th Century
    1920s
    1930s
    19th Century
    20th Century
    Abolitionists
    Advertising
    African American
    African-American
    Agricultural History Journal
    Agriculture
    Alcohol
    American Red Cross
    American Southwest
    Apples
    Armistice
    Autumn
    Avocado
    Beverages
    Birthdays
    Black History Month
    Book Review
    Breakfast
    Breakfast Cereals
    Cake
    Camping
    Candy
    Canning
    Celery
    Chilis
    Chocolate
    Christmas
    Citrus
    Civil Rights
    Cocktails
    Cold Weather Cooking
    Colonialism
    Columbian Exchange
    Community Cookbooks
    Consomme
    Cookbook Authors
    Cookbooks
    Corn
    Coronavirus
    Cranberries
    Dairy
    Dessert
    Dinner And A Movie
    Documentary Film
    Election Day
    Farm Cadets
    Farmerettes
    Farm Labor
    Fast Food
    Florida
    Flowers
    Food History Books
    Food History Happy Hour
    Food History Roundup
    Food Library
    Food Preservation
    Food Waste
    Gardening
    Gingerbread
    Grape Nuts
    Hal And Edith Fullerton
    Halloween
    Halloween Candy
    Hard Cider
    Heirloom Fruit
    Heirloom Vegetables
    Historic Menus
    History-bites-podcast
    History Channel
    Holiday
    Hollywood
    Home Economics
    Hot Chocolate
    Hot Cocoa
    Hot Dogs
    Ice Cream Soda
    Ice Harvest
    Ida Bailey Allen
    Indigenous
    Indigenous People's Day
    Interstate Highways
    Invalid Cookery
    Italian Food
    Kitchens
    Laura Ingalls Wilder
    Lecture
    Long Island
    Meat
    Meatless Mondays
    Medieval
    Melon
    Mexican
    Mexican Food
    Military
    Milkshakes
    National War Garden Commission
    Native Foods
    New England
    New Year's Eve
    New Year's Resolutions
    North American
    Parties
    Patreon Perks
    Peanut Butter
    Picnics
    Podcasts
    Political Cartoon
    Polynesia
    Pork
    Potatoes
    Preserve Or Perish
    President's Day
    Prohibition
    Propaganda
    Propaganda Poster
    Pumpkin
    Pumpkin Pie
    Pure Food And Drug Act
    Quick Breads
    Racism
    Radio
    Rationing
    Recipes
    Refrigeration
    Riots
    Road Food
    Root Beer
    Salads
    Saratoga Chips
    Sauces
    Shopping
    Soda
    Soda Fountains
    Soup
    South American
    Soviet
    Spanish Flu
    Speaking Engagement
    Special Offer
    Spice Islands
    Spices
    Sugar
    Summer
    Thanksgiving
    Theodore Roosevelt
    Tomatoes
    USDA
    Valentine's Day
    Vegan
    Vegetarian
    Weddings
    White Christmas
    Wild Rice
    Women's Suffrage
    World War I
    World War II
    World War Wednesdays
    Writing
    WWII
    Year In Review

    RSS Feed

Home
About
Blog
Resources
Events
Contact
Membership
The Food Historian is an Amazon.com and Bookshop.org affiliate. That means that if you purchase anything from any Amazon or Bookshop links on this website, or from the Food Historian Bookshop, you are helping to support The Food Historian! Thank you!
Become a Patron!