Family Tree Food Stories

Nancy May & Sylvia Lovely
  • 5.0 (3)
  • PERSONAL JOURNALS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Family Tree, Food & Stories podcast is where your hosts, Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely, take you on a mouthwatering journey through generations of flavor! We're digging up and sharing the juiciest family secrets, hilarious dinner table disasters, and the heartwarming moments that make your favorite foods, meals, and relationships unforgettable. From Great-Grandma's legendary cheese crust apple pie to that questionable casserole your Uncle Bob swears by. With Family Tree, Food, and Stories, we're serving a feast of laughter, tears, and everything in between. So, are you ready to uncover and share those unforgettable stories behind every bite and create some new memories along the way? Join our growing family of food enthusiasts and storytellers as we Eat, laugh, relive the past, and learn how to create new memories together because. . . every recipe has a story, and every story is a feast.

  1. Chinese New Year 2026: Year of the Horse Food Traditions, Meanings, and Cultural Symbols

    4D AGO

    Chinese New Year 2026: Year of the Horse Food Traditions, Meanings, and Cultural Symbols

    Chinese New Year 2026 offers something rare: a second chance to begin again!In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely explore the Year of the Horse and the powerful role food plays in balance, momentum, and renewal in our lives during this Chinese Lunar New Year. Instead of focusing on recipes alone, this episode uncovers the meaning behind Chinese New Year food traditions—why noodles are left unbroken, why dumplings require time and teamwork, why leftovers matter, and why food rituals are designed to guide behavior, not just celebration. You'll also learn some foods play an important part of the horse spirit and reflect endurance, restraint, prosperity, and community, and how these traditions translate easily into modern kitchens. From whole fish and dumplings to long noodles, grounding root vegetables, and shared meals, food becomes a language of hope, intention, and togetherness. This episode and others in the Family Tree Food & Stories lineup remind us that the most meaningful fresh starts don’t begin with discipline—instead, they more often begin at the table. Key Takeaways: Food tools to help you manage risk and balance: the year of the horse is about managing momentum.How your kitchen (or mom’s) helps you build more independence and confidence: Hint - it’s about cooking together rather than being perfect.Why leaving food behind (but not wasting it) is considered good fortune.Importance of unbroken noodles in the New Year of the Horse. This episode of Family Tree Food & Stories isn’t about Chinese New Year foods — it’s about using food as a language, and a tool for hope, structure, and community. 🎧 Listen now if you’re craving food that has meaning. Share it with friends, family, or neighbors—and start a new tradition together that will create a lasting and shareable story for years to come. The Year of the Horse moves faster, as we will, together with you, our listener, too! Because Every Meal Has a Story and Every Story is a Feast! Additional Links ❤️ Book: My Family Tree, Food & Stories Journal...

    25 min
  2. What Ketchup Teaches Us About Patience, Power, and Taste

    JAN 29

    What Ketchup Teaches Us About Patience, Power, and Taste

    The Hidden History, Psychology, Power Struggle, and Cultural Story Behind America’s Most Ubiquitous Condiment.What if the most powerful lesson about patience, power, trust, and human behavior was sitting on your table your entire life? Would you want to know more? Well, you’ve probably stared at it in mild frustration. But no one ever told you why you felt that way! In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely crack the cap on the real story behind ketchup—not as a condiment, but as a cultural force that quietly trained generations of Americans how to wait, what to trust, and what “normal” tastes like. 🔴 This isn’t about trite food trivia! It’s behavioral psychology. It’s marketing genius at its best. It’s memory, habit, and family tradition—hidden in plain sight. If you’ve ever wondered how ketchup came about, why bottles behave the way they do… why that familiar taste feels comforting… or why one brand became untouchable while others disappeared—this episode is the answer to your YES! And once you hear it, you’ll never look at that bottle of ketchup in your pantry the same way again. ⭐ Key Takeaways (That Make You Want the Full Story) 1. Ketchup Was Designed to Make You Wait—On Purpose: The slow pour isn’t accidental. It conditions anticipation, desire, and control. There's an entire psychological reason behind getting it out of the bottle 2. Ketchup Didn’t Start as a Tomato Sauce: Its real origins will surprise you—and it might even make you think again about how your own family food traditions are created and replayed time and time again. 3. The “57” Isn’t What You Think: It’s not a recipe. It’s not a fact. It’s a persuasive ploy printed on the bottle on purpose. And it worked better than anyone ever could have imagined. To the tune of $8 billion per year! 4. Why Ketchup Triggers Memory Like Few Other Foods: From your childhood dinners to family rituals, ketchup acts as a shortcut straight to your emotions and true sense of comfort and belonging. Additional Links ❤️ Episode: Food as Medicine - The Healing Power of the KitchenBook: My Family Tree, Food & Stories Journal Awarded #1 New Release on AmazonInstagram Story...

    33 min
  3. Iconic Food Brands: How Betty Crocker, Sara Lee, and Duncan Hines Built Trust in American Homes

    JAN 22

    Iconic Food Brands: How Betty Crocker, Sara Lee, and Duncan Hines Built Trust in American Homes

    What makes a food brand iconic—and why do we trust it like family?In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely pull back the curtain on the legendary food brands and characters that quietly shaped American kitchens, childhoods, and consumer trust for generations. From Betty Crocker, a fictional woman who became one of the most trusted voices in American homes, to Little Debbie, whose real face turned five-cent cakes into a Depression-era survival story, and more, you’ll learn how powerhouse food icons weren’t built in boardrooms—they were born in kitchens, war years, roadside bakeries, and moments of need. You’ll also learn about the origin stories of Famous Amos, Chef Boyardee, Sara Lee, and Duncan Hines, and how immigration, World War rationing, celebrity culture, and early influencer marketing turned simple everyday food into icons of the day and symbols of comfort and credibility. In a world of influencers and AI, what makes us trust a brand today? This episode of Family Tree Food & Stories is a recipe of food history, cultural insight, and personal memory—showing why so many childhood brands endured, why authenticity eventually replaced polish, and how the stories behind our food still shape what we buy, cook, and our beliefs even today as adults Key takeaways: We buy trust – not just food: Iconic food brands didn’t win because of better recipes alone. They won because they created a human connection: familiar faces, reassuring stories, and consistency during uncertain times. Trust, once earned at the kitchen table, lasts for generationsThe strongest brands are built on real human stories, not AI perfection. From products with simple starts to those that were created out of a need for survival, the ones in this episode weren’t fancy or polished - they were relatable. Authenticity, struggle, and storytelling mattered more than slick marketing, and well before the word “branding” became a big deal.Food icons were the original influencers—and they still influence what and how we make food choices today: Long before social media, characters like Betty Crocker and brands like Duncan Hines influenced how Americans cooked, celebrated, and felt confident in the kitchen. The episode reveals why those early influencer strategies still work—and what modern creators can learn from them. Additional Links ❤️ University of Michigan Study on how Peanut Butter can add to your life.Lavender Tallow hand and body moisturizer by our friends at Sincore Homestead.Book: a...

    32 min
  4. Food as Medicine: Old Wives’ Tales, Family Remedies, and the Healing Power of the Kitchen

    JAN 15

    Food as Medicine: Old Wives’ Tales, Family Remedies, and the Healing Power of the Kitchen

    Natural Remedies, Healing Foods, and the Traditions Families Trust.As cold and flu season always seems to creep up on us soon after the New Year. In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, the question we ask is: Can food be medicine? Join Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely as they merge family remedies with old and new science and unpack how everyday foods make us feel better. Learn how chicken soup, honey, ginger, garlic, cabbage, peanut butter, and whiskey have been standby home remedies used by many of our parents and grandparents. These comfort foods have been used through the generations to help heal and restore everything from a sore throat to an upset stomach and aching body and spirit. This episode does not offer medical advice (please consult your physician if you’re ill), it investigates some of the whys behind food remedies: how taste, smell, ritual, and care influence well-being, especially during illness, grief, aging, and emotional stress. 🌿 Key Takeaways How some foods can heal more than the body: Taste, smell, and ritual can lift spirits, restore appetite, and create emotional comfort during illness, grief, and stress.Old wives’ tales that offer wisdom: Remedies involving ginger, garlic, honey, bone broth, cabbage, and fermented foods reflect generations of observation and are now being used and tested in current research.Food's role in aging care health, too: Enhancing flavor and texture can help older adults and chemotherapy patients maintain nutrition, dignity, and enjoyment of eating.Cooking and baking for mental health: Baking, soup-making, and bread-making calm the mind, foster purpose, and allow people to care for others while healing themselves. 🎧 Listen now and rediscover the foods, stories, and traditions that made you feel cared for and loved just a bit more. Then share this episode with someone who might need a bowl of homemade chicken soup to make them feel better, or with someone who might just need an extra hug. 💬 We’d love to hear from you: send us a note here. What food always made you feel better in your family—and why? Additional Links ❤️ University of Michigan Study on how Peanut Butter can add to your life.Lavender Tallow hand and body moisturizer by our friends at Sincore Homestead.Book: a...

    33 min
  5. Untold Pizza History Stories: How Your Favorite Became an American Obsession.

    JAN 8

    Untold Pizza History Stories: How Your Favorite Became an American Obsession.

    Pizza wasn’t always welcome at the table—And it certainly wasn’t always American. So how did a seemingly simple immigrant street food become the most shared, argued-over, and emotionally loaded meal in the country? In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely uncover some surprising facts about the history of pizza in America, tracing its journey from Italian and ancient Mediterranean roots to our neighborhood pizza parlors, family tables, and regional loyalties that still divide and challenge us today. This episode of Family Tree Food & Stories shares how pizza (the “slice”) became portable fuel for working families, how New York, Chicago, Detroit, and New Haven shaped distinct styles (and the pizza wars), and why pizza shows up at our most personal moments—birthdays, late nights, celebrations, and comfort meals. It’s not about toppings. It’s about memory, migration, and why pizza became one of America’s favorite tabletop foods. 🍕 Key Takeaways How pizza evolved into an American food staple: from early immigrants to all-out national pizza wars and modern rivals today.Weird and delicious regional differences: from New England to Chicago and elsewhere, the differences are often stark, very personal.Pizza parlors shaped many early communities: they were family-owned establishments that brought back memories from when we were kids.American reinvented pizza before it was exported worldwide: global pizza as we know it today might exist because of its American evolution. What do you think? 🎧 Listen now and rediscover how pizza memories you didn’t realize shaped your own childhood and life today. Then share this episode with someone who still argues about what city or restaurant has the best slice—or remembers when pizza wasn’t “real food” in their house. Leave a review, follow the show, and tell us: What did pizza mean at your table? Because every meal has a story—and this one built America. Additional Links ❤️ Book: My Family Tree, Food & Stories Journal Awarded #1 New Release on AmazonInstagram Story updates 📸a...

    27 min
  6. How to Turn Leftovers into Fancy New Year’s Meals 2026

    JAN 1

    How to Turn Leftovers into Fancy New Year’s Meals 2026

    New Year’s Leftovers: What to Toss, What to Transform, and Why It MattersWhat stays, what goes, and what gets reinvented with style and taste? In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, your award-winning hosts Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely take on the post-holiday refrigerator—one container at a time, with how-to ideas and a recipe that will turn your holiday leftovers into a fancy homespun “gotta have.” This episode isn’t just about food—it’s a look at what leftovers say about the way we live, how they reflect culture (in the US and elsewhere), resourcefulness, and a way to embrace tradition and move forward. From stuffing and cranberry sauce to black-eyed peas, collard greens, mashed potatoes, and bacon gravy, and even what to do with leftover champagne, Nancy and Sylvia share old and new strategies for recreating new foods from “old”after the holiday glitter is packed up and put away. In this episode of Family Tree Food and Stories, you’ll also get practical ideas for how to save food, stretch your grocery budget, and reuse ingredients in ways that still taste good on day five. Providing they’re not fuzzy. If you're aiming to start the new year with less waste, smarter meals, and better habits in the kitchen, then dig in and enjoy the show! 🔑 Key Takeaways: Most families throw out 30–40% of holiday food: learn what to do with leftovers that make them taste even better than the first time around.What’s in your fridge can help with New Year's financial management: Did you know that the price of groceries has increased nearly 28% over the last five years? This episode shares tips and ideas that even your mom would be proud to serve.Leftovers have global traditions too: From Kentucky Bergue to Italian Arancini Balls and even French Toast, every culture has creative and delicious tips and tricks for making your holiday leftovers extra special and even more delicious. Additional Links ❤️ Recipe for How to Make Champagne Vinaigrette made with leftover Champagne Book: My Family Tree, Food & Stories Journal Awarded #1 New Release on Amazona...

    28 min
  7. Why We Leave Cookies for Santa: and Other Christmas Food Traditions

    12/25/2025

    Why We Leave Cookies for Santa: and Other Christmas Food Traditions

    Why do families leave cookies for Santa?What do people in other countries leave for Santa on Christmas Eve, and why have those foods become part of the holiday? In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, Mrs. Claus and Rudolph step in for Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely to examine the origins of Christmas treats and food traditions around the world. How have history, economics, and cultural storytelling shaped what we now consider “traditional” holiday foods? Mrs. Claus and Rudolph share their stories and examples of such treats as milk and cookies in the United States, fried chicken and strawberry cake in Japan, buñuelos in Mexico, rice cakes in the Philippines, and oat-based Haggis cookies in Scotland. Rather than just recipes, you'll learn at the forces behind some of the best Christmas traditions—wartime scarcity, post-war rebuilding, marketing influence, and the role of myth in preserving rituals across generations. These two also share how meals and simple food customs help families mark time, reinforce memory, and maintain continuity during the holidays across the generations. This episode offers historical context, global perspective, and practical insight into why food traditions persist—and how understanding their origins changes the way we experience them today. Join us: If this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories made you think differently about the food on your holiday table, share it with someone who values tradition, history, or a good story. Subscribe to Family Tree Food & Stories on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred platform, and leave a review—it helps these stories reach new listeners. And if you want a place to record the meals and memories that matter in your own family, explore My Family Tree Food & Stories, available on Amazon. Because food isn’t just what we eat—it’s how we remember. Additional Links ❤️ Recipe for Santa's Secret Flying Sauce (and story)Book: My Family Tree, Food & Stories Journal Awarded #1 New Release on Amazona href="https://www.instagram.com/familytreefoodstories/"...

    22 min
  8. The Best Christmas Food Gifts Ever — Funny, Nostalgic, Unforgettable

    12/18/2025

    The Best Christmas Food Gifts Ever — Funny, Nostalgic, Unforgettable

    Best Christmas food gifts, explained and shared.What makes a Christmas food gift unforgettable? In this episode of Family Tree Food & Stories, Nancy and Sylvia explore the best Christmas food gifts, sharing true stories behind fruitcake traditions, Hickory Farms boxes, homemade holiday drinks, and regional favorites that turn simple food into lasting memories. What regional holiday traditions, family favorites, and even strange corporate food gifts have become long-running stories? Have you ever heard of Traveling Jack? Or received a food gift so simple—like a can of soup or an orange in a stocking—that you never forgot it (nor did anyone else)? These are often the gifts that become legends and stay with us year after year. This episode also explains why food gifts matter more than other presents. They are personal and often connected to family history or a story. Whether it’s a homemade holiday drink, a box of sausage and cheese that arrives every year, or a shared dessert at the table, food gifts connect us to culture, memory, and each other. If you’re looking for Christmas food gift ideas, want to understand holiday traditions, or enjoy stories about food and family, this episode shows why the best gifts are thoughtful, simple, and meant to be shared. ⭐ 5 Key Takeaways from the EpisodeFood Gifts Always Tell a Story: Whether it’s fruitcake, soup, wine, a cheese box, or homemade cookies, they often last longer than that sweater you got and will only wear once.Traditions Are Hidden in Holiday Food Treats: From the Feast of the Seven Fishes to Southern Hoppin’ John and German stollen, where you’re from often what foods you gift—and why.Funny Food Gifts Become Great Stories: Giant chocolate boxes, traveling wine containers, and accidental potatoes prove to be the stories you'll likely never forget.Homemade Gifts Feel (And Taste) Extra Special: Recipes like homemade holiday drinks or baked goods add a personal touch that store-bought gifts just can't replicate.Simple Can Be Powerful: Did you ever get an orange in a stocking or a loaf of bread? It reminds us that thoughtful food gifts don’t need to be fancy to be special. 🎧 Sharing and Caring:If you’re searching for Christmas food gift ideas, love holiday traditions, or love sharing stories that mix humor with heart, listen in and share Family Tree Food & Stories on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Facebook, or wherever you get your podcasts—and don't forget to share it with someone with your friends and family. Because every meal has a story… and every story deserves a feast. (TM) Additional Links ❤️ Recipe for Santa's Secret Flying Sauce (and story)Book: a...

    32 min
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5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Family Tree, Food & Stories podcast is where your hosts, Nancy May and Sylvia Lovely, take you on a mouthwatering journey through generations of flavor! We're digging up and sharing the juiciest family secrets, hilarious dinner table disasters, and the heartwarming moments that make your favorite foods, meals, and relationships unforgettable. From Great-Grandma's legendary cheese crust apple pie to that questionable casserole your Uncle Bob swears by. With Family Tree, Food, and Stories, we're serving a feast of laughter, tears, and everything in between. So, are you ready to uncover and share those unforgettable stories behind every bite and create some new memories along the way? Join our growing family of food enthusiasts and storytellers as we Eat, laugh, relive the past, and learn how to create new memories together because. . . every recipe has a story, and every story is a feast.

Information

  • Creator
    Nancy May & Sylvia Lovely
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    71
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Nancy May & Sylvia Lovely
  • Show Website
    Family Tree Food Stories