Victory Kitchen
Episodes
43 episodes
Episode 42 - Home of the Brave
Each 4th of July, the United States marks its birthday with parades, festivities, food, and fireworks. But how do you mark such a joyful occasion in the midst of war? In honor of America's 250th birthday, Sarah explores how Americans celebrated...
Episode 41 - S.P.A.M.
Luncheon meat was all the rage during WWII. Convenient and economical, this tinned protein was both beloved on the home front and the loathed enemy of U.S. soldiers everywhere. In this episode, Sarah examines Spam and its counterparts to see wh...
Episode 40 - 80th Anniversary of V-E Day
To commemorate the 80th anniversary of V-E day, we turn to the American home front to see how they celebrated while keeping in mind the war wasn't quite finished yet. Sarah shares a special cake to honor Mother's Day and we hear words o...
Episode 39 - Feeding Fido on the Homefront
Wartime meat rationing didn't just affect humans, it directly impacted their dogs and cats too. In this episode, Sarah explores how pets were fed pre-war and how pet owners got creative when the meat they relied on became scarce. Guest Kels...
Episode 38 - Halloween Hijinks
In early 20th century America, Halloween was a time for unruly tricks, delicious treats and all sorts of "hijinks" in between. In this spooky episode, Sarah dives into how folks celebrated this anticipated (and dreaded!) holiday in a unique war...
Episode 37 - The Spirits of War
In 1942, the luxury of alcohol became a casualty of war to make way for industrial alcohol for war purposes. This left American drinkers high and (sometimes) dry.In this episode, Sarah examines the tangled web of alcohol rationing and ho...
Episode 36 - Food Rationing 101
Misconceptions surrounding American WWII food rationing are swirling around on the internet. Were eggs rationed? What about wheatless days? Milk was rationed too, right? In this episode, Sarah sits down for an experimental ChatGBT sesh t...
Episode 35 - Wartime Homemaking Q&A
Homemaking during wartime presented its own special challenges. Join Sarah as she interviews Corina of The Hopewell Homestead, vintage homemaking extraordi...
Episode 34 - Wax the Way to Victory
Two of the busiest workers on the homefront were honeybees and beekeepers! In this episode, Sarah talks about the insect/human dynamic duo and their important contribution to the war effort along with challenges they faced and solutions for tho...
Episode 33 - Deck the Halls
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 ...
Episode 32 - Frozen Assets
Canning wasn't the only way to preserve food in the 1940s! In this final episode of Season 4, Sarah highlights the old community staple of freezer locker plants, how they served their community and why freezing was maybe more patriotic than...
Episode 31 - Hospital Harvest
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 vag...
Episode 30 - Look What the Stork Dropped In
War goods weren't the only thing that "rolled off the production line" during WWII. Babies swelled the U.S. population creating bottle necks for all sorts of goods from baby bottles to safety pins. In this episode, Sarah discusses not just baby...
Episode 29 - A Wartime Thanksgiving
**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-tr...
Episode 28 - The First Lick Goes To Uncle Sam
Soda Fountains were at the core of American identity in wartime, representing so much of what we were trying to protect in our way of life: a sense of home, community, a place to relax & unwind, not to mention they were the dispensaries of ...
Episode 27 - Dinner in the Diner
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 li...
Episode 26 - Three Cheers for Trailer Town!
Wartime housing shortages led Americans resorting to live wherever and however they could while following lucrative defense factory jobs. Many of these places were not ideal. In this episode, Sarah discusses what the government did to address t...
Episode 25 - By Rod, Gun, & Steel
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 salt...
Episode 24 - Captives: Part 2 - Japanese American Internees & POWs
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 high...
Episode 23 - Captives: Part 1 - Conscientious Objectors
Not much is commonly known about the important role conscientious objectors played in World War II except for maybe one Hollywood movie. In this episode, Sarah brings to light not only how conscientious objectors helped bring in the crops, but ...
Episode 22 - Americans All/Americanos Todos
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 ...
Episode 21 - Who's Vital for Victory? Veterinarians!
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....
Episode 20 - Homefront Commandos: 4-H Enlists
If there was ever a youth club tailor-made to be "Homefront Commandos", then the 4-H Club was it. In this episode, Sarah takes a look at this popular agricultural youth club - what they stood for, the amazing things they did for the war effort,...
Episode 19 - AWLA: 3 Million Women Fight in the Fields
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 ...
Episode 18 - Oh, Canada!
Happy Canada Day! For this special "Road Trip Edition"* first episode of Season 3, Sarah and her guest, Saskatchewan school teacher Kelsie Lonie, discuss the significant food relationship between the United States and Canada during World War II...
