The Magic Eight

Happy Friday!

While we missed Patrick on this week's episode, not one but TWO special guests filled in the void to discuss the evolution of Native American cuisine with John. With all the talk of recipes and dishes, our mouths were watering after this one. And what about last week's livestream? Who knew United States Presidents had so many connections to fresh produce? From Washington's dentures on full display to John's Obama impression, it was truly a President's Day we won't forget soon.

Now on to our extra stories, which include some beans AND greens!

A Bean with a Story

In this week's episode, John and special guest Lois touched briefly on the Trail of Tears. But what exactly happened during this event and what did produce have to do with it?

In 1830, U.S. President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act. This law gave the federal government the power to exchange Native-held land east of the Mississippi for land to the west, in the "Indian colonization zone" (what is today Oklahoma) that the United States had acquired as part of the Louisiana Purchase. While the law did not permit the use of coercion against Native nations to give up their lands, the government often ignored this part of the law and forced Native Americans to vacate the lands that were their ancestral homes.

In 1831, the Choctaw became the first nation to be expelled from its land altogether. They made the journey to their new territory on foot and without any food, supplies or other assistance from the government. Thousands died during the march. As one Choctaw leader told an Alabama newspaper: it was a "trail of tears and death".

In 1838, the Cherokees became the last nation forced off their lands. As the Cherokees gathered their possessions some grabbed and put into their pockets shiny, jet-black pole beans which produce plentiful snap or dry beans in green-purple pods. These beans were grown in the Smoky Mountains by the Cherokee people for generations. The Cherokee knew these as the goose bean - perhaps due to its oddly shaped leaves, reminiscent of a bird's foot.

As the Cherokee marched away from their homes, they took a piece of home with them in the form of bean which became known as the Trail of Tears pole bean. In the 1970s, the seeds of this bean were shared by Dr. John Wyche with the seed company Seed Savers Exchange . Wyche collected the Trail of Tears seeds from his Native American ancestors. Today, you can purchase these seeds through several small-scale seed companies.

Mr. President, Eat More Greens!

During the last livestream, John and Patrick highlighted ten U.S. Presidents and their ties to fresh produce. One President we didn't get to hear about was our heaviest commander-in-chief: William Howard Taft!

Taft struggled to control hist weight and was often the subject of ridicule and humiliation from cartoonists. However, Taft was committed to tackling his obesity challenge. At age 48, Taft contacted Dr. Yorke-Davies - a famed weight-loss guru and author of popular diet books at the time. For the remaining 25 years of his life, Taft worked with Dr. Yorke-Davies and other physicians to control his weight.

Taft's doctor advised that he lose at least 60-80 pounds (at his peak, he was 350 pounds). How did the doctor plan to achieve this? Through eating more fruits and vegetables, of course! OK, that sounds fair but what exactly did Taft's diet look like before he talked to the doctor? A White House housekeeper known as Mrs. Jaffrey disclosed that President Taft generally tucked into a 12-ounce steak for breakfast each morning, along with two oranges (there's some fruit!), several pieces of buttered toast, with plenty of milk-and-sugar-fortified coffee. And if that wasn't enough, Taft would also regularly have steaks for lunch and dinner. That's right, he was a three-times-a-day steak eater.

So what exactly did the doctor-instructed diet look like? Taft was allowed to eat only small portions of lean meat or fish at every meal, gluten biscuits at breakfast, cooked vegetables at lunch and dinner (no butter), a plain salad and stewed or baked fruit (unsweetened) at dinner. To drink? Unsweetened tea or coffee at breakfast, a single glass of "unsweetened" wine at lunch.

Taft worked hard to adhere to this new diet and also employed a personal trainer, known at the time as "a physical culture man". Six months after he first wrote to Dr. Yorke-Davies, Taft had lost 60 pounds. Taft wrote his brother that “Everybody says I am looking very well, which indicates I suppose that I have a good color … but I am pretty continuously hungry”. Taft began to gain back the weight and stopped writing to the doctor. Three years later, by the time Taft was inaugurated as president in 1909, he had regained all that he had lost and then some (he weighed in at 354 pounds). But he never gave up. When he died in 1930, at age 73, he weighed 280 pounds.

Reading Produce History

Inspired to cook up some Native American cuisine after the last episode? You can order your very own copy of Seed To Plate by Lois Ellen Frank to taste firsthand the history of Native American tradition and culture.

History test

Have you listened to the latest HOFP episode? If yes, you may just know the answer to this week's trivia.

Click here to test your knowledge!

Livestream Event

Recover from your St. Patrick's Day festivities with us on our next livestream Monday, March 18th at 8pm EST!

You can join here: https://www.youtube.com/live/jBV23Eb4hI0?si=dIs85BX_zbL3nNO1

We hope you can join us!

Can't make it live? No problem. It'll be available afterwards on YouTube via the same link. You can listen back to it later in your podcast feed.

You can send your questions and comments in advance via email to [email protected].

DATES FOR YOUR CALENDARS

There's no shortage of stories to tell when it comes to fresh produce and history. Here's what's coming up over the next few weeks.

Tuesday, March 5th: Presidents and Produce (Livestream episode)

Tuesday, March 12th: The Sicilian Mafia's Sour Origins

Monday, March 18th: HOFP LIVESTREAM @ 8PM EST on YouTube

Tuesday, March 26th: "Veggie Loving" Vikings

Thanks for reading, and please drop us a line in the comments or email ([email protected]) to let us know what you think of the newsletter and all things HOFP.

-John, Patrick and The History of Fresh Produce team