Gag Reflects

Just our little contribution to the war effort: it's not a pandemic if you can't drink shitty wine and listener, we have the crossover episode to help heal your isolated soul.  Forget about the world falling apart for a little bit and learn about the crazy history of Manischewitz, the little matzoh company that became a household name and synonymous with horrifying wine.  Let us take you away from the horrors of COVID and envelope you in a gefilte fish blanket of joy.  Not all heroes wear capes.  

It's time to gather your jade eggs, kale shakes and moon lotion as your aunties Naama and Jessi tell you the story of a time long before Gwyneth Paltrow was telling us to pay into her wellness industrial complex.  This is a tale as old as ancient grains...this is the story of John Harvey Kellogg and his militant veganism and search for a nutriment-filled and racially cleansed new world.  Join us as we discuss The Hygenic Cookbook and learn about enemas, soy milk, and the American Antiquarian Society.  

It's the Cookbook that started it all for us: The 1987 Jill St. John Cookbook.  The first American to play a Bond girl, the first celebrity to publish a "lifestyle" cookbook and the first wife of Robert Wagner to escape a watery grave, Jill St John is an American pioneer.  Come join us as we talk 80s fashion, murder theories, and Jill's internalized anti-semitism.

Like the microwave itself, this episode is quick and dirty.  There's also some sort of echo happening but just pretend you're listening to it inside a microwave and make it an immersive experience!

Listener, you really haven't lived until you've had an old white man tell you how to cook escargot in the microwave.  And let the congregation say, AMEN.

Listener, welcome to the bullion cube thunderdome!  Jessi and Naama create some truly beige-tasting dishes like evanessence of lettuce and piano wire rosettes.  Plus, we celebrate our Jill St. Johneversary!

So much trauma, we couldn't fit it into just one episode.  Naama and Jessi take a deep dive into the life and times of Weight Watcher matriarch, Jean Nidetch and her trail of food crimes on her way to thinness.

We're back, Queens!  And what a doozy we have for you.  From Jean Neiditch to Oprah, join us as we discuss the history of Weight Watchers.  Make sure you have extra room in your trunk because listener, there is some BAGGAGE here!

If a can of deviled ham is opened in a forest and no one is there to smell it, does it make Jessi wretch? This episode proves that Gag Reflects is the PERFECT name for this podcast.

It's Joey Tribbiani's favorite episode and the one you've been waiting for: SANDWICHES! Listener, there are some things that aren't meant to go between two slices of bread. And Naama and Jessi discuss the 4th of July, patriotism, and our favorite firework shapes!

It's a Battle Royale between cinnamon-flavored placenta and corned beef dog food. Which salad will reign supreme and will there be any survivors?!?!?!?

Barry Manilow is on the turntable, 2 pots of cheese are bubbling away on the sterno and all our friends are gathered round, skewers in hand. What could possibly go wrong?

The prophet Homer Simpson once said, "you don't win friends with salad," and gaggle, we couldn't agree more. This episode covers a 450-page cookbook dedicated to salads of all forms: green, gelatinized and they even try to mess with our beloved potato salad. NONE OF THIS IS OKAY! NONE...OF...IT.

Welcome to Season 2, Gaggle! We're thrilled you came back and are celebrating your return with a fondue party. This episode covers Saveur Magazine's 1970, Fondue: The Fine Art of Fondue, Chinese Wok and Chafing Dish Cooking. Of course, it wouldn't be Gag Reflects without a nefarious twist and a visit to the World's Fair. Buckle up, gaggle, it's going to be a cheesy ride.

WELCOME TO THE JELL-O THUNDERDOME. All the children sing, "We don't need another Jell-O!!!" Join Naama, Jessi, and two very special guests as we wrap up season 1 with a jiggly, wiggly BANG!

It wouldn't be a true podcast about Vintage Cookbooks without discussing the mother of all gags: J E L L -O. We have a Jell-O hat trick for you, listener--the 1937 classic, Jack and Mary's Jello Recipe Book, the 1962 book, Joys of Jell-O, and the newcomer on the scene and 1993 sequel: More Joys of Jell-O From its ancient aristocratic beginnings to 3-course meals enshrined in wiggly, jiggly, lemony goodness, Naama and Jessi address the jellophant in the room. You'll wanna listen on an empty stomach, gaggle.

Hey, hey, gaggle! Today Jessi sits in the bathroom, eating her Grey Gardens pâté on the toilet seat while Naama envelopes herself in a hotdog fruit cocktail stew. As Jessi is not recording at her own home, please excuse the sound but know, we are doing our own penance by having to eat these monstrosities!

Take our hand as we journey down a dark road of intrigue and lies, nestled in a kosher casing: Nathan's Hotdog Cookbook. We cannot confirm that this book, written by Nathan's son, led to his downfall but we can confirm that the recipes within are as much a sin as not toasting a hotdog bun!

Bottom's Up, listener. On this very special episode of Gag Reflects, Naama and Jessi have cocktail hour with a canned soup theme. We really wish we were kidding.

STOP! Campbell's Time. Listener, you won't believe what the Campbell's Soup Company is calling an actual "recipe." Settle in as Naama and Jessi discuss the problematic history of the Campbell's Soup Company and their even more problematic 1974 cookbook.