You asked, and we’re answering—again! Ask Gastropod returns to answer some of our listeners’ most pressing culinary queries: how did elaborate, expensive cakes become the standard dessert for weddings? Did the deep fried cornmeal blobs known as “hush puppies” get their name from Confederate soldiers or racist stories from the plantation-era South? And could a trendy "new" variety of milk (that's actually ancient) allow the dairy-intolerant to snarf down cheese and ice cream without digestive consequences? This episode, we’re diving deep on the science, dispelling some myths, and correcting the historical record with the help of a team of experts. Listen in now!

Episode Notes

Robert Moss

Journalist Robert Moss covers food, drink, and travel from Charleston, South Carolina. His most recent book is The Lost Southern Chefs: A History of Commercial Dining in the Nineteenth-Century South.

A selection of clips from South Carolina newspapers about Romeo Govan and his famous "red horse bread"—which seems to be the precursor to hush puppies—including a clip from his obituary from December 1915, bottom right.

Carol Wilson

Carol Wilson is a food writer based in the UK. She's the author of the recent book Regional Cooking of England: A Culinary Tour with More Than 280 Traditional Recipes.

The cake created for the marriage of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1840, which set the trend for elaborate (and expensive!) wedding cakes. The cake weighed more than 300 pounds and was covered in ornate sugar sculptures, including figures of the bride and groom in Roman garb. (Image Credit: The Royal Family)

Dennis Savaiano

Dennis Savaiano is a researcher at Purdue University's Department of Nutrition Science. His work focuses on lactose digestion and tolerance, as well as whether A2 milk causes less discomfort to dairy drinkers.

The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics

This episode of Gastropod was supported in part by a generous grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics. Check out the other books, movies, shows, podcasts, and more that they support here.

Transcript

Click here for a transcript of the show. Please note that the transcript is provided as a courtesy and may contain errors.