Baking the Best of It

The unexpectedly complex history of the iconic and delicious bagel and our very expected experience of making our own and learning quite a lot firsthand! Leave us a review of the show and let us know your favorite kind of bagel and your bagel order!

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Announcement about our release schedule, addressing our recent absence, and a bonus in which we discuss 1973's Jesus Christ Superstar. Our patreon will have lots of this kind of content: more casual and off-the-cuff conversations about baking and non-baking topics! Thank you for listening, we're looking forward to sharing more with you both on the main feed and with bonus content.

Malinda Russell was the first Black American to publish a cookbook and is a fascinating historical figure, despite the little information we have about her. We also discuss the task of adapting 150-year-old recipes and bake two of Malinda's: one successfully and one slightly foolishly.

Support us on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/bakingthebestofit

Follow us on instagram: @bakingbestpod / bluesky: @bakingthebestofit.bsky.social

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This week we examine the somewhat divisive topic of frosting, particularly on cakes. Frosted cakes are a relatively modern convention. Despite their short history, many types of buttercream have evolved. Plus, we make two types of frosting: German buttercream and Ermine flour frosting. We want to hear from you where you stand on the frosting divide: is it your favorite part of a cake or is it just too sweet and in the way?

Support us on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/bakingthebestofit

Follow us on instagram: @bakingbestpod / bluesky: @bakingthebestofit.bsky.social

Sources

Why is brioche so good and how did it get like that? We dive into the science and history behind adding butter, eggs, and milk to bread to create tender, pillowy bready magic. Also, in case we're the first ones to tell you: no, Marie Antoinette never said that.

Support us on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/bakingthebestofit

Follow us on instagram: @bakingbestpod / bluesky: @bakingthebestofit.bsky.social

Welcome to Season 2!! We're in the last slog of winter, and what could be better to take us through it than savory pie? But first, we test you by presenting the somewhat challenging history of savory pies. Birds do not get enough credit for their role in the history of savory pies. Maybe you're thinking we mean, like, chicken. As an ingredient. While that's true, it's just the tip of the birds-and-savory-pies-iceberg

Support us on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/bakingthebestofit

Follow us on instagram: @bakingbestpod / bluesky: @bakingthebestofit.bsky.social

Sources:

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2011/11/17/142460593/for-the-origins-of-pie-look-to-the-humble-magpie#:~:text=Hourly%20News-,For%20The%20Origins%20Of%20Pie%2C%20Look%20To%20The%20Humble%20Magpie,assembled%20ingredients%20for%20their%20pies.

https://www.madisoniannews.com/community/cultural-history-pie

https://slate.com/human-interest/2015/03/history-of-pie-how-savory-meat-pies-evolved-into-americas-favorite-dessert.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humble_pie

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/d0orqm/why_did_savory_pie_culture_shepherds_pie_chicken/

Happy Holidays and Happy Season 1 Finale! We've officially brought our gingerbread house success rate up from 0% to 50%. In this episode, we share the history of gingerbread with each other and build a festive little house. We hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable winter holiday season, and we'll be back in 2025 for season 2! We've got a bonus episode coming on our patreon all about the Christmassy bakes in our families, and we'll have more bonus content and recipes coming in the new year.

Support us on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/bakingthebestofit

Follow us on instagram: @bakingbestpod

The food in fantasy fiction is so important, and Brian Jacques was among the most memorable fantasy authors to write great feasts. These books are beloved by Roxie, and Fiona is a newcomer to them, so we compare our perspectives and discuss the series as a whole and the food in particular. We bake one of Redwall Abbey's beloved nut breads and enjoy it with a cheese, apple, and sage terrine!

If you've been listening for a while, you've probably gathered that we are pie afficionados. So we've finally done The Pie Episode! We also developed a new pie recipe based on Potatoes and Molasses from Over the Garden Wall (yes). This pie episode is truly exhaustive enough that we go above and beyond to make a pie nobody asked for.

Roxie takes Fiona through some Halloween treat history before they bake a Charlotte Royale together! Come for the brain cake, stay for the hot takes about Halloween baking and style over substance. Happy Halloween!