Smy Goodness Podcast : Food History & Food Art

"Marine Style" flask with octopus, Aegean Civilisation of Crete, the Late Minoan Bronze Age from c. 1500-1450 BC Throughout the world and throughout time, people and cultures have both revered and feared this eight-limbed, legendary Cephalopod - the octopus. We'll look at the mythology and folklore of the octopus, their physiology and behaviour; which all strengthen their reputation as symbols of strength, intelligence and mystery. We'll look at artworks by Japanese master Hokusai, resin artist Keng Lye, potter Tammy Garcia and illustrator Esther Van Hulsen. Plus I make takoyaki - round octopus pancake balls! Show Notes: 00:00-01:45 Intros 01:45-06:30 Octopus background history, myths, characteristics, origins, ancient history, 06:30-16:00 art, late minoan marine style flask, tammy garcia, Hokusai, Esther Van Hulsen, Keng Lye 16:00-19:15 Intelligence of the octopus, Octopolis, Octlantis, escape artists, anatomy, physiology, sex lives and child rearing 19:15-20:40 Jean Painleve octopus short films 20:40-25.25 Takoyaki and Michiru!!! 25:25-27:25 Closing 27:25-28:07 Cringey jingle

Blackware pottery with octopus motifs by potter Tammy Garcia

A block print depicting the folklore tale of Akkorokamui from Hokkiado, Japan, date and artist unknown Hokusai's 1814 shunga print, its Japanese title is Tako to Ama, translated to English as Girl Diver and Octopuses and also widely known in English as Dream of the Fisherman's Wife from Shingu Gallery

retouched singular image of Hokusai's 1814 shunga print, Tako to Ama

Octopuses as depicted by artist Utagawa Kuniyoshi from the story of Princess Tamatori and the Dragon King.

Illustration by Esther van Hulsen made with ink extracted from a 95 million year old octopus fossil by paleontologist Jørn Hurum. The piece is exhibited together with the fossil in the Natural History Museum in Oslo, Norway.

95 million year old octopus fossil found in 2009 and it's ink, extracted by paleontologist Jørn Hurum and then . The piece is exhibited together with the fossil in the Natural History Museum in Oslo, Norway. ink as used in Esther Van Hulsen's octopus illustration as seen above.

Singapore based artist Keng Lye's resin and acrylic 3-D octopus on an enamel plate

Takoyaki ingredients

Cooked octopus

Takoyaki - first batch I used the Japan Centre recipe for Takoyaki: Ingredients batter: 200g flour, 2 eggs , 450ml water, pinch of dashi stock fillings: 100g fresh boiled octopus, chopped , 1 bunch spring onion, chopped red pickled ginger , tempura flakes toppings: takoyaki sauce, japanese mayonnaise , aosa powdered seaweed (or aonori) , katsuobushi, bonito flakes How To Prepare 1. Start by creating the batter. Grab a large bowl and mix together 2 eggs, 200g of flour, 450ml of water and a little dashi stock. Set this aside. If you have the ready-made okonomiyaki flour, follow the directions for making the batter and you're good to go. 2. Place your takoyaki plate on the gas stove on medium heat and heat up a small amount of oil in each hole. 3. Cut up your octopus into small pieces. Place a piece of octopus in each of the semi-circular holes, and then fill up each hole to the top with the batter mix. You can even overflow the batter out of the hole to make it easier to flip them later. 4. Now you can add the chopped spring onion, red pickled ginger and tempura flakes to each hole. The amount you add is up to you, but only a small amount of each will give enough flavour. 5. Once the takoyaki are about half cooked, about 1-2 minutes, you will need to flip them over. The best way to do this is to use a small wooden skewer to poke the outside of the batter and flip it over within the hole. This takes a bit of practice to get done smoothly so keep trying if you are making a mess. 6. You can usually only flip each takoyaki about three quarters of the way round so allow it to cook a little more before flipping it again. By now, all your takoyaki should be round so keep rotating them in the holes to make sure that they cook evenly on all sides. This will take about 3-4 minutes until golden brown on the outside. 7. Place a few takoyaki on a plate and smother them with loads of takoyaki sauce and Japanese mayonnaise. Then sprinkle a bit of powdered seaweed and some bonito flakes on top and enjoy. Allow to cool slightly and enjoy hot.

Takoyaki - second batch

Liguria Polpo salad

Greco Octopus salad

Orso Tosco, author of Aspettando i Naufraghi

This episode it's the zucchini aka the courgette and their stunningly beautiful flowers. As my guest was Orso Tosco, the Italian author who has just published his novel, Aspettando I Naufraghi. For his topic Orso chose fiori di zucca or courgette/zucchini flowers as they feature in his novel and are one of his favourite dishes. As we will see there is a strong link between Italy and courgette flowers which will play out in our chat, the artwork covered in this episode and their interesting history. So listen above to find out about Orso's book, his process, food thoughts and memories; their earned reputation as symbols of the sensual and erotic, artwork from Arcimboldo, Giovanni de Udine, Georgia O'Keeffe and find out where courgette/zucchini come from, their travels around the world, how we get their beautiful flowers, and the myriad of ways that we can use them.

Auntie Chrissie's courgette and flower

Mercury, Giovanni da Udine from the Villa Farnesina, 1517.

Mercury (detail), Giovanni da Udine from the Villa Farnesina, 1517.

Estate, Guiseppe Arcimboldo, 1573.

Vertumnus, Guiseppe Arcimboldo, 1590-1591

Squash Blossoms I, Georgia O'Keeffe, 1925

Squash Blossoms II, Georgia O'Keeffe, 1925

Squash Blossoms III, Georgia O'Keeffe, 1925

Fiori di zucca di ripieni made by Cristina Busnelli if Sanremo

A few years back I decided to bundle all my interests together and rebrand from Smy Chutney to Smy Goodness so that all my preserves, crafts, products and workshops could live together in one place. My own podcast seemed a suitable place to uncover, understand and enjoy things related to food, art, history and design. Please do share your stories, knowledge, questions and suggestions. In the Smy Goodness.com podcast section you will find the podcasts and all the items that we are discussing and will have ongoing discussions about each week.

SmyGoodness - Instagram SmyGoodness - Twitter SmyGoodness - Facebook SmyGoodness - Tumblr

Thank you for listening.

This episode looks at where rhubarb came from and how it traveled the world. I look at the changes from how rhubarb was first used by humans to how it is enjoyed today. We'll learn about the etymology of rhubarb, the need for albarelli drug jars and then there's the utterly interesting link between rhubarb and the Zoroastrian creation myth. I'll share why the culinary tradition of Forced Rhubarb fully deserves its PDO status. Go to SmyGoodness.com to see the artworks I was inspired by including:

Nikolai Astrup, Rubarb

Mary Fedden, Still Life with Rhubarb Elizabeth Johnson, Elizabeth Johnson Art Glass LLC - www.elizabethjohnson.com I share some of the ways that I use rhubarb in my cookery and preserves, food photography and patterns. Smy Goodness Meringues with roasted rhubarb, rhubarb & strawberry print, jars of pickled rhubarb

At Christmas-time and New Year we drink more of it than ever and it seems perfectly acceptable to be cracking open bottles of bubbly before noon or anytime you have guests round. It's also the perfect gift to bring round, a ribbon tied round the iconic bottle. Bubbly is a great aperitif, can finish off a meal, be paired with liqueurs or drank on its own. Those bubbles can go straight to ones head…and what starts as giddiness…quickly moves into tipsiness…which is sure to end in headache if one too many glasses are enjoyed.

• We have the Romans to thank for planting vineyards in the Champagne region of France.
• The roots of champagne being linked to big celebrations were when the first King of France, the warrior, Clovis was baptised and crowned in Reims Cathedral on Christmas day 496 AD and with Reims being in the province of Champagne it flowed freely to celebrate the coronation and from 898 onwards, all French kings were crowned in Reims.
• With their botanical gardens at hand and the focus and time to dedicate towards their efforts we have monks to thank for many world renowned gastric delights. These include cheeses, confectionaries, cordials and champagnes. For example Dom Perignon, one of the most famous champagne in the world, was started in the 17th century by monks.
• Marquis de Saint-Évremond brought and elevated champagne to London society whilst he was exiled there in 1661. Bubbles and champagne are synonymous now but it was after became popular in London that the bubbles would eventually become fixed. Up to then, the bubbles had sometimes appeared… and were more likely to appear in bottles that had been shipped to England and had had the fermentation process halted and started with changes in temperature which led to left over sugars which caused carbon dioxide gas to build and would cause the wine to bubble once opened.
• Once it was established how to ensure the bubbles in each and every bottle champagne really took off in popularity in the 18th c. and with the help and power of French champagne houses still familiar to us today such as Moët & Chandon, Louis Roederer, Piper-Heidsieck and Taittinger they established a product that would symbolise luxury, style and celebration throughout the world with the help of the Parisian artistic, creative and literary elite who were lapping up champagne and depicting it in their works and lifestyles.

• In the 20th c. the champagne houses took these fashionable associations and created marketing campaigns that revived drinking champagne as a must have for all celebrations, with a focus on Christmas and New Years Eve.
• Champagne is obviously protected as an item produced only in Champagne but there are other 'bubbly alternatives at generally a lower price point such as Cava from Spain, Prosecco from Italy and sparkling wine from anywhere. Generally champagne is often described as yeasty and sweet with biscuit or brioche notes whole Cava can have earther tones and prosecco has descriptors of sweet and crisp.
• Prosecco is now taking over the bubbly game with everyone wanting to get in on sharing bottles with each other on nights out, get togethers, parties, pubs and certainly at Christmas and New Years. Prosecco is cheaper than champagne, more fashionable than cava and on the path to continue it's rise in sales an popularity.
• This is the last episode of this first series of the Smy Goodness Podcast which will be back for a second series in March. In the meantime you can follow me on Instagram, Twitter or my website smygoodness.com. Happy New Year and thanks for listening.

A few years back I decided to bundle all my interests together and rebrand from Smy Chutney to Smy Goodness so that all my preserves, crafts, products and workshops could live together in one place. My own podcast seemed a suitable place to uncover, understand and enjoy things related to food, art, history and design. Please do share your stories, knowledge, questions and suggestions. In the Smy Goodness.com podcast section you will find the podcasts and all the items that we are discussing and will have ongoing discussions about each week.

You can also follow Smy Goodness on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. I'd like to thank Ashley Palmer for use of his Roland R-09 and Matteo Borea for creating the music. Thank you for listening.

This mini-episode is just a little taster, chocolate will get a FULL ON episode in the future, here we are just focusing on Christmas chocolates such as chocolate coins, chocolate tins and trays. From its roots in South and Central America cacao has created joy and good tidings everywhere it has gone and we love to gift it, share it and gorge on it at Christmas.

• yougov.uk did a really snazzy poll this year to find out which chocolates were the favourites from the Roses, Quality Street, Celebrations and Heroes Christmas tubs. Comments unanimously denounced the size and quality of the sweets, the plastic tub which has replaced the tins, the moment that Cadbury's succumbed to Kraft, the fallen sweets of yesteryear which have been retired and my favourite comment from 1984again - "Anyone who likes chocolate would not eat any of this stuff. It's not chocolate anymore."
• Milk chocolate was invented in 1876.
• Chocolate is made from the seeds of the cacao plant native to Central and South America and was vital to the Maya and Aztec who used a raw bitter cacao drink ceremoniously in wedding, battle and burial rituals. It was not consumed by all but reserved by the elite.
• From the cacao tree we get the seeds or nuts which result in raw cacao power when the cocoa beans are un-roasted and cold-pressed. Cocoa powder has been roasted under high heat.
• Raw cacao powder is full of antioxidants,contains protein, calcium, carotene, thiamin, riboflavin, magnesium, and sulfur. high in valuable enzymes, can reduce blood pressure and chances of cardiovascular disease, can raise serotonin levels.
• Spanish Explorer Cortez brought back a recipe and the necessary equipment and had experimented with adding heat to the mixture to make it more palatable.
• Cacao was not an immediate success when it was introduced to Spain in the early 16th century… but once sugar was added to cocoa powder and served warm, it really took off and its benefits and its status as a drink of the wealthy and specifically a drink of Spain.
• Eventually warm cocoa spread to France and the rest of Europe and took over as a predecessor to tea and coffee-houses with wealthy men enjoying the custom of drinking hot cocoa at specific cafe-like houses where thy would discuss politics and current events.
• The industrial revolution improved grinding process and introduced additives which brought down the cost of cocoa and widened the audience of those who would enjoy it.
• In 1847 the world saw it's first chocolate bar as chocolate went from being a drink to an edible food.
• Chocolate shaped like coins, wrapped in gold foil given to children and put in stockings at Christmas and given to children during Chanukah. This tradition also has links to the tradition of St Nicholas gifting gold to the poor as told in the Twelve Foods of Christmas orange episode.
• Chocolate manufacturers soon found an opportunity in Christmas chocolate selections that they could sell high price offerings that were popular amongst families who they would provide with an array of chocolates.

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It's the mid point between Christmas and New Year…we might benefit from a break from the excesses. We can't go cold-turkey from the excesses of non-stop food and drink so a gin and tonic or a bit of sloe gin is a welcome comfort. The Sloe, or wild Plum, is the fruit of the Blackthorn found in the hedgerows. By autumn these small fruits are oval, blue-black and their sourness makes them perfect to cover with sugar and gin which by Christmas has formed into a perfectly luxurious holiday tipple, sloe gin.

Cicely Mary Barker, The Sloe Fairy, Flower Fairy series c. 1927

• The Sloe, or wild Plum, is the fruit of the Blackthorn found in the hedgerows. By autumn these small fruits are oval, blue-black and their sourness makes them perfect to cover with sugar and gin which by Christmas will have formed into a perfectly luxurious holiday tipple, sloe gin.
• Gin was invented in Holland around 1650 and it made it's way to England not long after. Distilled from grain, it gets its name from the crushed juniper berries it passes through which are called genever in Dutch.
• Juniper berries have long been used medicinally with their cordials being renowned for their astringent, restorative and sustaining properties.
• They were even thrown on the floors of medieval homes so that when guests walked upon them the cracked juniper berries would emit their fragrant spice...a sort of applied pot pouri.
• Less than a hundred years from when it was invented, England found itself in the midst of an all-out gin craze.
• Gin was the first spirit produced in the industrial age and gin was incredibly inexpensive due to the fact that the government did not tax grain OR distillation.
• Sloe gin was known as the poor mans port' and adding sloes helped to cover the many unfortunate ingredients being added to it to make it even cheaper.
• The Gin acts changed legislation to try to curb the 'gin craze.' Charles Dickens loved gin and punches and there are many legends connecting his literary works and social habits and excursions.

A few years back I decided to bundle all my interests together and rebrand from Smy Chutney to Smy Goodness so that all my preserves, crafts, products and workshops could live together in one place. My own podcast seemed a suitable place to uncover, understand and enjoy things related to food, art, history and design. Please do share your stories, knowledge, questions and suggestions. In the Smy Goodness.com podcast section you will find the podcasts and all the items that we are discussing and will have ongoing discussions about each week.

You can also follow Smy Goodness on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. I'd like to thank Ashley Palmer for use of his Roland R-09 and Matteo Borea for creating the music. Thank you for listening.

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How do you eat your chutney? What is your favourite cheese and chutney combination?

Today's Christmas food is chutney. Since the last 12 Foods of Christmas episode featured cheese, it would seem only fitting that we follow that up with chutney. I have often been asked by Spanish or Italian friends or customers what a chutney is. Chutney originated in India and has now become a staple condiment that has no standard recipe. Discoveries, capitalism and colonialism all contributed to chutneys and pickles making their way back to the UK and once here they were adapted and reproduced with local ingredients and over time a distinctly British chutney has emerged that is related to yet slightly different to the chutneys produced in India which are all so different and varied as the countless regional varieties existing now and throughout their culinary history.

Mango chutneys were first imported from India to England and France in ceramic pots in the late 1600s. Recipes for "mangoed" fruits or vegetables began appearing in western cookbooks not long after their introduction. The love of chutneys and pickles soon spread across England with them quickly becoming part of the national foodscape. It's loose recipe consists of capturing seasonal fruit and/or vegetables and preserving them with sweet and sour ingredients plus spices. Mango chutney is one of the most eaten preserves across the world.

Chutney is about sustainability, preservation techniques, avoiding wastage and having access to the flavours of seasonal ingredients throughout the year. There is no set recipe and even if there was batches would often yield different results as fruits and vegetables vary widely from season to season based on the conditions they faced through out their growing season. Chutney has long been a pantry staple and in those pantries you were likely to find a wide variety of chutney from different crops, with different spicing and probably from different makers. Gifting chutney is a great way to show you care, share flavour combinations and also a way to get rid of the 25+ jars of pear chutney that this years glut has provided. Christmas is also a great time to enjoy chutney because it falls 3-5 months after so may fruits and vegetables have been in season, that's 3-5 months for them to be infused with their spices so that they make that perfect accompaniment to meat, cheese and more.

These foods that are shared and adapted and reinvented...this is exactly what I am trying to capture with Smy Goodness and this podcast. Just as ingredients, flavours, recipes and dishes have been adapted and adopted throughout time - this is still happening ALL OVER THE WORLD.

It's a perfect symphony of seasonality. Many cheeses that we enjoy at Christmas have been made in the summer and are just coming in to peak maturity around the holidays. What's your cheese? British classics or continental cheeses? Are you someone who goes for the cheese board rather than a pudding? Luckily at Christmas you can sample ALL the cheeses and all the puddings! It's a perfectly delicious puzzle when choosing ones post Christmas dinner plate of cheeses and pairing them with chutneys, crackers, sweet wines and ports.

Floris van Dyck (c. 1575–1651) Still Life with Cheeses, c. 1615

Medieval illustration of cheese makers

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In the 5 or 6 weeks prior to Christmas is when clementines, satsumas, manderins and tangerines come into season and join forces to dominate the fruit bowl. Their flavours and essences appear throughout our food, drink and traditions throughout Christmas. Find out about the roots and origins of oranges and the differences between the easy-peelers. We'll learn about St. Nicholas and why we put oranges in stockings with help of Gentile da Fabriano and his painting, Three Gold Balls.

Three Gold Balls, Gentile da Fabriano's ,1425. San Niccolo, Florence From the predella of the Quaratesi triptych

Still Life with Oranges and Goblet of Wine (c. 1880-1890s, John Frederick Peto (1854 - 1907)

It has lots of the familiar spices we associate with Christmas infused together in warmed wine, spirits, fruit and sugar. Walk in to a party from the cold and serving mulled wine and you'll know instantly as it saturates your sense of smell and warms you up as it fills your belly. Since pre-history we have found ways to drink fermented beverages and we owe thanks to the Greeks and the Romans for specifically bringing mulled wine to Northern Europe and throughout the world. We'll discuss Circe, her role in the Odyssey and with Odysseus will be discussed as well as her appearance in Gioacchino Assereto's painting Circe Mulling Wine. I share my own tips and recipe for mulled wine and more.