The history of a largely forgotten American dessert, and a recipe for it from 1829

More on the history of pumpkins and their use in European cooking, and a 17th century recipe for a creamy pumpkin soup

The pre-Depression origins of water pie, and a delicious recipe from 1908

The life of Vlad Dracula, or Vlad the Impaler, and a 16th century Transylvanian sour cherry sauce that could have been mistaken for blood

The historical food from Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and a recipe for paprika hendl, or chicken paprikash, from five years before Dracula was published

How terrible was Ivan the Terrible, and a recipe for cabbage and onion piroshki that could have graced his 16th century table

The life and reign of Caligula, one of Rome’s most villainous emperors, and a recipe for pork belly that could have graced the tables of his lavish banquets

Myths surrounding the mooncake, and one of the oldest known recipes for them from 1792

Exploring the question of if ninja existed or not, and a survival food from a 17th century ninja text that takes 3 years to make

The apples of medieval England, and the first recorded recipe for apple pie from the 14th century

The rule of Ferdinand I of Austria, and a recipe from 1858 for dumplings that he loved so very much

The hard lives of Victorian bakers, and a recipe for a very interesting ginger loaf (not gingerbread) from 1857

The food and dining in Folsom Prison, and an early 20th century meal from a combination of the military cookbooks they used and a commissary report

The decline of food availability on the home front in World War 2 Japan, and a recipe for mock grilled eel from before things got truly dire

The disputed origins of the key lime pie, and one of the first recipes for it with graham cracker crust from 1933

The crimes and punishments of medieval pigs, and a 14th century recipe for marinated roast pork loin

Debunking the myth that people in the Middle Ages didn’t drink water, and a medieval recipe for barley water

The food and ceremonious dining of Kublai Khan, and a recipe written for him for invigorating mastic stew with lamb

The origins and spread of SPAM, and a recipe from a marketing campaign in 1951

The sad tale of Typhoid Mary, and a recipe for peach ice cream, one of her specialties that may have contributed to the spread of typhoid fever