Christmas in 1940s America conjures up a healthy dose of nostalgia for a lot of people even today. For this special holiday episode, Sarah peeks into traditions celebrated and wartime shortages folks experienced on the homefront from Christmas trees to chocolate. Hanukkah is given a special highlight and adorable children's letters to Santa bring plenty of cheer! Join me on Substack for supplemental posts featuring images, research, and recipes! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/victorykitchenpodcast/support ..read more

Canning wasn't the only way to preserve food in the 1940s! In this episode, Sarah highlights the old community staple of freezer locker plants, how they served their community and why freezing was more maybe patriotic than canning. She tries out a meatloaf recipe enshrined in bacon and shares an amusing freezer story back when frozen food was still a novelty! This podcast needs YOUR support! Become a Patron! Your generosity not only gives Sarah warm fuzzies of joy, it also helps her source the very best research materials to make each episode the best it can be. To share your love for her wor ..read more

Hospitals in wartime not only provided vital medical treatments and short- and long-term care for their patients, they fed them as well – but where did they get their food, especially in a time of war? In this episode, Sarah delves into the vague and a completely unexplored aspect of American wartime food rationing: hospital farms. She looks at what they were, how they served the hospitals they were attached to and how World War II impacted them. Finally, she tries two unhealthy, but delicious recipes from a "healthy" ration cookbook written by a doctor. This podcast needs YOUR support! Becom ..read more

**It's a special Thanksgiving episode!** With the world at war, America's typical Thanksgiving feast was a lot more subdued, if not more patriotic. In this episode, Sarah explores Thanksgiving attitudes from WWII, the heartfelt and the guilt-trippy. She gets the details behind turkeys, rationing and their price tags, and delights over the birth of our iconic cranberry jelly "log". This podcast needs YOUR support! Become a Patron! Your generosity not only gives Sarah warm fuzzies of joy, it also helps her source the very best research materials to make each episode the best it can be. To share ..read more

Eating away from home was a fact of life for busy people in WWII, and that was especially true for people traveling by rail. Dining cars were an essential part of feeding these people, but railroads were affected by wartime restrictions just like everyone else. In this episode, Sarah digs into this little researched topic to find out how railroads struggled with rationing, how civilians and the military ate aboard trains, and who made all that food while getting it done in the tiniest of kitchen spaces. She discovers a revelatory military chocolate ice cream recipe and honors the legacy of Cha ..read more

Season 4 is kicking off its first episode in honor of this year's National Wildlife Week (April 5th - 9th) talking about hunting, fishing, and trapping in wartime! Sarah answers some pressing questions about ammunition rationing, goes over saltwater fishing rules, and discusses some hot wildlife conservation topics of the day fresh from WWII. She also highlights the hilarious, but very irresponsible, wartime cookbook by Lawrence A. Keating where ration-mindedness is thrown out the window. This podcast needs YOUR support! Become a Patron! Your generosity not only gives Sarah warm fuzzies of joy ..read more

Much like the wartime conscientious objectors, not a lot is commonly known about the vital work that German and Italian POWs and the Japanese American Internees participated in to save our nation's crops during WWII. In this episode, Sarah highlights the Japanese agricultural heritage in our country, contemplates the conflicted relationship our communities had with enemy prisoners of war, and examines just how complicated the intersection where society and agriculture meet during wartime can be. Sarah tries a delicious Raspberry Turnover recipe and interviews Roger Roop, the grandson of a loca ..read more

Early in WWII, with much of the field labor being sucked into the military, defense or factory jobs, the farmers were in a really tough position for getting their crops harvested. In this episode, Sarah looks at the pros and cons of one of the most impactful agricultural programs ever implemented in the United States to help struggling farmers, the Bracero Program, which brought thousands of Mexican laborers to American fields. She tries a unique Aztec style casserole from 1944, and we hear about one Mexican-American woman's memories growing up as a teenager during the war.   For suppleme ..read more

A small, hard-working army of people stood between the American citizens and military troops and the U.S.'s success in the war when it came to food. Who were these people? Veterinarians! In this episode, Sarah and special guest veterinarian Dr. Amy Gulick, talk about the vital role veterinarians and the Army Veterinary Corps played in protecting the nation's food supply during WWII. Both Sarah and Amy try some unique, autumn-friendly meat recipes, and Amy shares a special wartime story about her grandmother.  To see all the extra goodies related to this episode including recipes, head on ..read more

It's time for Rosie the Riveter to share the limelight, because the women of the American Women's Land Army are flexing their muscles in this episode! These millions of women made a huge contribution to agriculture during WWII that has largely gone underappreciated and unknown. Sarah answers some big questions about the AWLA such as who they were, what kind of work they did, and what kind of prejudices they had to overcome. Sarah also tries some unconventional bread rolls and highlights some wartime harvester menus.  To see all the extra goodies related to this episode including recipes ..read more