As early as October of 1775, the Continental Congress voted to authorize its first naval vessels[1], and as these ships were outfitted and crewed, the crews needed to be fed. Reconstructing the diet on board involves a certain amount of detective work, as accounts of the early Navy are focused less on the routine, and […]
It’s the time of year when Americans are musing over favorite recipes for Thanksgiving meals. Everyone has a favorite dish and there are countless family traditions, but the undisputed king of the holiday table is the turkey. This tasty fowl is also a cook’s challenge, because whole turkeys are seldom served in the home at […]
We’ve all had to “eat humble pie” at one time or another, a saying that hearkens back to the medieval period, when the term meant that one was eating a dish made with the scrap meat from a successful hunt or slaughter[i]. Where the master of the house might get a fine roast, the servants […]
These articles have, to this point, focused on reproducing the meals of our Revolutionary-era forefathers with all of the conveniences of the modern kitchen. However, it is important to remember that the cooks of those days prepared all of these wonderful foods using wood fires and cast iron. When Daniel O’Neil, Executive Director of the […]
Although often overlooked, New Orleans, as a Spanish colonial city, was the site of pivotal events in the war for American independence from Great Britain. As detailed in an earlier article published in the Journal of the American Revolution, it was here that Bernardo de Galvéz vaulted onto the scene. He rose from his role […]
Most of us learned the song “Yankee Doodle Dandy” as schoolchildren, and many of us puzzled over the reference to macaroni in its lyrics. How could one confuse a feather for pasta, and did they even have macaroni back then? The short answer is, “yes,” but short answers are rarely as interesting as long ones. […]
