Watch someone follow an early American recipe using 19th-century technology

How to make an iconic Roman dish, with the help of a nonna

Searching for an eggplant parm recipe isn't hard, but finding one worth your time certainly is. Thankfully, this recipe puts you in the kitchen with an actual grandmother, who walks you through her signature dish in a short video explanation. Unlike other online recipes, there isn’t an onslaught of pop-up ads—you’ll just get what you need and the sweet instructions from a genuine nonna.

James Hemings, Jefferson's cook, popularized mac and cheese in the US

The statesman sent Hemings to France to sharpen his culinary skills where he picked up recipes of baked pasta with cheese and butter. The recipe Hemings likely dictated to Jefferson was later used in an 1802 White House dinner, the first major public dinner in the US to include the dish.

Emily Dickinson was a prolific baker

Dickinson scholars have collected her recipes for gingerbread, doughnuts, and more, noting that she often wrote poems on the backs of them. The Emily Dickinson Museum says that the kitchen "was a space of creative ferment for her, and that the writing of poetry mixed in her life with the making of delicate treats."

European colonists encountered barbecue by the 16th century

They called the food “barbacoa” and spread the technique throughout their territories, including the American colonies. The first recorded mention in English appeared in John Lederer’s travelogue of Virginia and the Carolinas in 1672.

James Beard completed his first cookbook in 1940

Beard began his culinary life as a caterer, but soon began compiling recipes for a cookbook that he published in 1940. Nine years later, he'd have his own cooking school.

Explore early Thanksgiving documents, from recipes to early proclamations

History buffs will love this trove of original documents related to the Pilgrims and Thanksgiving, including 18th-century recipes, one of Sarah Josepha Hale’s appeals to President Lincoln to establish the national holiday, and a copy of Abraham Lincoln’s original 1863 Thanksgiving Day Proclamation. You can also find illustrations and photos of historical Thanksgiving celebrations over the years.

'This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook—try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless and above all have fun.'

- Chef Julia Child (1912-2004)

How the Great Depression still shapes the way Americans eat

From fortified foods to nutrition labels, the legacy of an early financial crisis lives on in kitchens across the United States. Ethnic foods with their (supposedly) hunger-triggering spices were vilified and considered “stimulants” along the lines of caffeine and so, in their stead came prune puddings, canned-meat stews, and dairy-heavy vegetable casseroles featuring America’s first fortified foods. Read more here.

Explore a list of 12 recipes incorporating techniques from molecular gastronomy

The recipes include popcorn shooters that taste like liquid caramel corn, almost-instant soft serve made by blending frozen fruit with sugar and fromage blanc, a fusion of fried rice and pizza, and skewered fruit coated in a broiled, glossy meringue.

Fascinating evolution of the oven

From ancient wood-fired ovens in Rome and Egypt to modern microwaves, the oven’s evolution has shaped how we cook. Early ovens focused on heat retention, but breakthroughs like the gas stove in 1834, and the electric stove in 1892, brought precision. Then, in 1967, the microwave redefined convenience.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of young men ate standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—as part of government research to better understand food safety.

Le Crueset's France factory makes 10,000 of its $400 cast-iron pots each day

After nearly going bankrupt in the 1980s, the company expanded its color options and product line to boost sales—something that's also fueled the brand's fanaticism. The Le Crueset Dutch oven was among Julia Child's kitchen staples, and the 2009 hit "Julie & Julia" reintroduced Child's famous Dutch oven to a new generation, resulting in a sales boom.

Cook’s ‘Travellers Handbooks’ were precursors to the travel guide

Long before Rick Steves or Lonely Planet, Thomas Cook’s “Travellers Handbooks” offered maps, recommendations, and tips for 19th-century tourists in unfamiliar locations.

Read a 19th-century guide to writing a Valentine's Day card

Thomas Richardson's "London Fashionable Gentleman's Valentine Writer" offers readers romantic messages they can send to the objects of their eyes—along with some chippy kiss-offs for unwanted suitors. It might be sincere, or it might be satire. Either way, it's an entertaining read. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

Low-and-slow smoking transforms tough cuts into tender, flavorful cuisine

Cooking meats at low temperatures over many hours breaks down muscle proteins and collagen into gelatin, making the meat juicy and soft. Patience, gentle smoke, and moisture retention are needed to avoid dry or chewy results.

'This American Life' once tried to recreate the original recipe for Coca-Cola

Given that the Coca-Cola formula is one of the company's most closely-guarded secrets, the radio show's team was surprised to come across a 1979 newspaper article with what looked like the original recipe for Coke.

The Victorian queen of ice cream

Agnes Marshall invented "ices," the Victorian equivalent of ice cream, through her books and equipment, as shown in the pictures below. Her 1888 book also includes a recipe for "cornets with cream," an early version of the ice cream cone, which was a major advancement from the time period's most popular method for eating ice cream: licking it from a shared parlor dish.

Revolutionary ideas were brewed in 18th-century coffeehouses

After the Boston Tea Party (1773), colonists boycotted tea and turned to coffee, with coffeehouses becoming hubs for revolutionary discussions. The stimulating import from the Caribbean helped shape the nascent American taste.

Watch a performance of the influential ballet 'Appalachian Spring'

This performance of the American ballet—choreographed by Martha Graham, with music composed by Aaron Copland—about a small community in 19th-century Pennsylvania, aired in 1959 on Pittsburgh's WQED.

Ghost hunting in the 19th century

This 40-minute podcast explores what it meant to hunt ghosts during the 19th century, when studying the paranormal was considered a mainstream scientific field. In 1847, a pair of sisters reportedly communicated with the spirit of a dead man...

Medieval European winters were colder than ours, but peasants stayed warm

Medieval winters were colder than ours today while the continent was mired in the so-called Little Ice Age. Without modern technologies, peasants survived with simple, sometimes genius, solutions, including central, chimney-less fireplaces (vented by small, draftless vents) and decorative handwarmers.

Latkes, or fried potato pancakes, are eaten on Hanukkah to honor the miracle of the lasting oil

Deb Perelman, author of seminal food blog Smitten Kitchen, walks us through her foolproof recipe for classic potato pancakes. Among her tips: choose russet potatoes for a lighter latke, use a towel to wring the water out for extra crispiness, and add a sprinkle of baking powder for a little more lift.

Thomas and Anne Rogers were famous counterfeiters in 17th-century England

The pair used a practice called “coin clipping,” shaving the edges off silver coins to decrease their weight before sending them back into circulation. When banknotes rather than coins gained popularity, counterfeiting methods evolved—in the 1700s, an early banknote counterfeiter named Mary Butterworth created counterfeit paper money using starched cloth and a hot iron to transfer the pattern of a banknote onto paper.

After the Boston Tea Party, colonists switched to coffee, which became the main morning drink for revolutionaries.

Exploring the work of Frances Burney, one of Jane Austen's main influences

Jane Austen is often credited with pioneering the narrative technique of "free indirect discourse," in which a narrator embodies a character's style without using the first-person perspective. But this essay argues Burney is the real innovator and that Austen, a fan of Burney's, continued using the technique to more acclaim.

A 15th-century university student documented a surprisingly detailed fitness plan

Modern fitness stems from the revolution in the knowledge we have of the human body, its cardiovascular systems, how muscles work, and more. Nonetheless, people through the centuries have had fitness regimes—including one university student whose fitness plan was preserved in an obscure document found between a manuscript.

See what women's tennis looked like through history

Women playing tennis today wear athletic clothing tailored to the demands of the sport. But when tennis started in the late 1800s, women were expected to play wearing long, Victorian dresses. Using historic photos, this Bustle article explores how tennis was brought to the US, what it looked like at the 1900 Olympics, and how the sport has grown since its inception.

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

The 19th-century painters of the Hudson River School were among the first American romantics, with portraits that displayed the natural beauty of the young country.

The original copy of the Declaration of Independence is not a pristine document, and even features a smudged anonymous handprint in the bottom left corner.

Exploring the Larry Bird punch that almost changed March Madness

Before writing 'Walden,' transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau nearly burned down his hometown with a campfire that grew out of control.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

Explore the archaeological treasures of Pompeii, the city buried under volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE.

Sears sold DIY house kits starting at $600 in its famous catalog from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in roughly 10,000 'Sears and Roebuck houses' being built.

American short story writer Flannery O'Connor raised 40 peacocks, which became potent symbols for her fiction's elegant violence

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

The story of Dollree Mapp, whose legal challenge over her 1957 conviction for possessing "obscene material" led to a major strengthening of the Fourth Amendment

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

The concept of phantom limbs, the perception that amputated limbs are still present, dates back to a French military surgeon in the 16th century.

20,000 letters to the advice columnist 'Dear Abby' provide insight into prevailing sex, religion, and LGBTQ fears, anxieties, and concerns from the 1950s onward.

Watch a 1934 short film starring jazz legend Cab Calloway, a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance's music scene

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

Before the current East Wing ballroom project, only two White House renovations in the past 100 years cost more than $10M.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Explore a list of the 100 best novels of all time, compiled by some of the world's best living writers, including Salman Rushdie, Stephen King, and Jennifer Egan.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, but became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.