The David Ian Howe Show

by David Ian Howe

TDIHS#15 | Donnie Dodson (@eatshistory) | Bringing History to Life Through Ancient Recipes

In this episode of The David Ian Howe Show, I sit down with Donnie from @eatshistory. a wide-ranging conversation about ancient recipes, Roman cookbooks, and how he turned a passion for history into a career...as a highly successful social media chef. We cover everything—from recreating Babylonian desserts and Roman legionary rations, to exploring Indigenous pemmican, Napoleon’s last meal, and Britain’s most diabolical pie. Donnie opens up about how The History of Rome and Hardcore History Podcasts inspired him, his journey from amateur cook to internet food historian, and the challenges of turning ancient texts into modern recipes people can actually try. Along the way, we talk about editing styles borrowed from cooking channels, the power of food as cultural storytelling, why honey was the sweetener of the gods, and what it means to share meals across time. Whether you’re a history nerd, foodie, or aspiring creator, this conversation is packed with insight, humor, and fascinating dishes you’ve never heard of. Also, Donnie was a fantastic interviewee! Topics include: - How Donnie Dodson started Eatshistory & his early inspirations - Roman recipes, cookbooks, and legionary diets - Ancient Mesopotamian & Babylonian food traditions - Ethiopian, Mongolian, and Indigenous North American dishes - Napoleon’s last meal & Chicken Marengo - The most “diabolical” dish in British history (Stargazy Pie) - Cooking for content: editing, YouTube, and storytelling - What food means to humanity across time _______________________ Connect with Eatshistory: Instagram: @eatshistory TikTok: Eatshistory YouTube: Eatshistory Website & Blog: eatshistory.com ________________________ In this video: Timecodes: 0:00 Teaser and Intro 2:00 How the Channel Started/ Cooking Meets History 4:30 Falling in Love with History 5:40 Influences: History of Rome & Hardcore History 17:20 Mersu – Babylonian Dessert of Dates & Nuts 19:37 Dulcia Domestica – Roman Stuffed Dates 22:43 Apicius – Rome’s First Cookbook 25:00 Cato the Elder’s Cheesecake (Libum) 30:38 Airag – Fermented Mare’s Milk 32:35 Bantan – Mongolian Hangover Soup 33:41 Papanași – Romanian Donuts 34:34 Napoleon’s Last Meal – Rustic French Breakfast 35:32 Doro Wat & Injera – Ethiopian Stew 38:01 Ancient Nettle Pudding – Prehistoric Britain 40:47 Pemmican – Indigenous Survival Food 43:33 America & Corn in Presidential Dishes 44:54 Thomas Jefferson, Archaeology & Macaroni 48:00 WWII Ice Cream Ship – The BRL Barge 51:26 Stargazy Pie & the Tom Bawcock Festival 57:11 Roman Colosseum & Hygiene 57:59 What Would You Not Try? 1:01:10 SOS Dish – “Sh*t on a Shingle” 1:02:04 Chicken Marengo – Napoleon’s Battlefield Meal 1:02:28 Persian Pomegranate Lamb Skewers 1:05:05 Roman Soldier Diet & Legionary Rations 1:08:46 Content Creation & Editing Style 1:12:30 Shoutouts: @anasofiafehn & @Jose.elCook 1:21:24 Closing Question – What Does Food Mean to You? ______________________________ The David Ian Howe Show is brought to you by Howe and Why Productions, LLC Director: David Ian Howe Video Editor: Emma Bonham and David Ian Howe Music: KNOWMADIC Intro Animations: Ilene German

E15

Sep 11, 2025

1:21:15

TDIHS #13 | Stone and Bone Poke Tattooing with Totemic Tattoo (Danny Riday) ft. Aaron Deter-Wolf

In this episode of The David Ian Howe Show, I sit down (well, lay down, really) with Danny Riday — owner of Totemic Tattoo and a machine-free traditional tattoo artist. Danny and I have been Instagram friends for years, often chatting about archaeology, dogs, and the lives of ancient people. When I first met him, he was living in New Zealand, and later he moved to France — so I never thought I’d get the chance to meet him in person. But, funny enough, he messaged me one day saying he’d be in Nashville visiting Aaron Deter-Wolf (author of Ancient Ink), and we finally got to connect. At the time, I had just lost my dog, Strider. Danny designed an incredible memorial piece for him and tattooed it on my arm. While he worked, I set up a camera and mic and interviewed him about his life, tattooing, and what it means to be human. I have to say, this was one of the coolest experiences of my life. The tattoo was hand-poked with metal, then accented with deer bone and French flint. Danny is a true artist, and it was surreal getting to know him over the course of this nearly 8-hour session. Please enjoy the interview — and feel free to leave comments or questions for Danny below! Follow Danny: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/totemic_tat...⁠ Follow Aaron: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/archaeology...⁠ Check out Aaron's Book: ⁠https://a.co/d/a10W9WK⁠

E13

Sep 12, 2025

2:03:20

TDIHS #14 | History with Kayleigh: From Dropout to Full-Time YouTuber

E13

Aug 10, 2025

1:59:34

TDIHS #12 | An Interview with North02 : Aztec Swords, Old Copper Culture, Human Evolution, and much more.

In this episode of TDIHS, I sit down with archaeology and anthropology content creator North 02! After months of trying to make it happen, North and I finally got the chance to connect and dive deep into all things archaeology, anthropology, and ancient history. We've been friends on Instagram for years, and this conversation was long overdue. ______________________________________________________ We cover a wide range of topics, including: -The Old Copper Culture and North American metallurgy -The spread of pseudoscience in archaeology -Aztec obsidian swords and Mesoamerican warfare -Mixed martial arts -1492 and the Spanish arrival in the Americas -Indigenous copper-working cultures encountered by European explorers -North's academic background, future projects, and upcoming fieldwork -Audience-submitted questions about archaeology and history If you’re into ancient technology, historical mysteries, or the intersection of pop culture and archaeology, this episode is for you. Got a question for North’s next appearance? Drop it in the comments below! Follow ⁠⁠ @NORTH02 ⁠ here and on IG! https://www.instagram.com/north.o2/?hl=en ____________________________________ Chapters: 0:00 Intro 1:54 Weapon focus? 3:30 North's background 7:24 Making YouTube content 11:09 Stefan Milo and Trey 14:49 Minnesota / Fishing 17:43 Old Copper Culture 25:58 Flintknapping 31:33 Aztec swords 39:39 Corsetti and big archaeology / Flint Dibble 47:13 Seeing the light / Leaving pseudo / Randall Carlson 53:46 Boxing 57:35 School and future plans / How does fieldwork work? 1:02:29 People’s daily life in the past 1:07:28 Far Cry Primal 1:10:01 Other time periods you like? / Napoleon 1:12:57 Spanish in the New World 1:17:03 1492 1:22:14 Stoned ape theory 1:25:05 Who is someone you would love to work with? 1:28:50 Rogan 1:29:41 Biggest mystery in the spread of humans across the globe 1:31:52 Favorite archaeological site and why 1:32:46 Human kindness that moves you 1:35:15 Combating pseudoscience 1:39:49 AI / Misinformation 1:43:43 What’s next for you? 1:52:17 Favorite video

E12

Aug 10, 2025

1:59:48

TDIHS #11 Cosima Carnegie | Ancient Greek Myths, Travel, Content Creation, and how Cosi's Odyssey Brings History to Life.

Explicit

This episode of TDIHS is one of my favorites! I've known Cosi for a few years now through Instagram, but we'd never sat down and chatted like we did in this pod. I'm happy to call her a good friend now. Cosi is a classicist and historian specializing in the myths and cultures of of ancient Greece. She is best known for her social media brand "Cosi's Odyssey" and her more recent content on Substack, where she posts more longform content. All of which is written and designed to be accessible and engaging to the public. Where Cosi shines best is her talent for and ability to host in-person events such as dinners, themed parties, and events where the public and join and engage with ancient history in a way that you just cant through the internet. PLEASE enjoy this conversation that ranges everywhere from her recent trip to Jordan, to content creation, to hosting engaging events, to both of us discussing having a sibling on the autism spectrum. And of course, at the end, I ask her some rapid fire Q&A questions about her career, studies, and what it means to be human. FOLLOW COSI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cosisodyssey/?hl=en Substack: https://cosisodyssey.substack.com/

E11

Jun 19, 2025

1:52:07

TDIHS #10 Raven Todd DaSilva | Writing about the Other Ancient Civilizations

In this episode, I sit down with my friend @DigItWithRaven (Raven Todd DaSilva). Raven is an award-winning scholar, archaeologist and art conservator. She has worked on archaeological projects in Greece, Italy, North Macedonia, Oman and Turkey, and specializes in the Neolithic period of Southwest Asia. Holding multiple degrees in Classical and Near and Middle Eastern civilizations, heritage, and art conservation and restoration, she has dedicated her life to the study and dissemination of the ancient world. In 2017, Raven built an online platform entitled Dig it With Raven, dedicated to making the ancient past accessible for everyone. As a result of growing this community, she has had the privilege of being featured on and working with notable institutions such as English Heritage and National Geographic. Raven has also been an expert presenter at universities, and has appeared on television, multiple podcasts and science communication platforms. She currently resides in London. Raven's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/digitwithraven Raven's Book: https://a.co/d/6l28BG3

E10

Nov 6, 2024

1:52:48

TDIHS #9 | Dr. Flint Dibble | Archaeology, Animal Bones, and how Flint Dibble saved Archaeology

In this episode of the David Ian Howe Show, I sit down with Dr. Flint Dibble. Flint Dibble is an archaeologist and classicist best known for his work in zooarchaeology, his educational social media presence, and more recently… the first archaeology MMA match on the Joe Rogan Experience in which he debated Graham Hancock. Flint has been on a ton of podcasts and interviews since his appearance on JRE, so I wanted to be the first to interview Flint archaeologist to archaeologist. And I was stoked with how well this went. I’ve been pretty vocal about how I feel that constantly complaining about, ragging on, or even outright insulting Hancock’s character is just NOT the way to go. It’s a bad look for the field and discipline, and only helps him gain more of a controversial following. In my opinion, Hancock is a person with opinions and ideas that should be heard, and not vilified; it just becomes whining and is not constructive. But instead, (and I have been just as vocal about this) my opinion has been that we need to sit down and talk with people like Hancock; that is way more constructive. So, I was really excited to sit down and talk with Flint, as he is the person who did just that—and changed the game doing so. The debate and Hancock understandably take up much of the podcast if that’s what you’re wanting to hear. However, what I really wanted to talk to him about was his upbringing, his research, and his opinions on theory and archaeology. And of course, thoughts on animals, and what it means to be human. Please enjoy this episode, and Flint’s answers to these questions. ____________________________________ David Website: https://www.Davidianhowe.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/davidianhowe Store: https://www.davidianhowe.com/store Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ethnocynology Discord: https://discord.gg/WQSt39jHTg Flint YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FlintDibble Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/flintdibble Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flintdibble X: https://www.x.com/flintdibble _________

Oct 6, 2024

2:02:29

Dogs, Archaeology, History, Skits, YouTube Shorts, and more Dogs with Jonny Devaney | TDIHS #8

In this episode of the David Ian Howe Show, I interview my new friend Jonny Devaney (@jauncydev). Jonny is known for his viral skits about dogs, dog breeds, and him dressing up as God (making dogs). My dad actually first showed me Jonny's videos, and my Instagram followers send me them constantly. One day I noticed he followed me on IG, so I shot him a message and then bam, now we are chatting on the pod. Didn't really have a plan for this one...just wanted to get to know another funny dude on the internet, and had a lot of fun doing it. You can follow Jonny's YouTube: ⁠‪@jauncydev‬⁠ ⁠https://www.youtube.com/results?searc...⁠ As well as his Instagram ⁠‪@jauncydev‬⁠ ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jauncydev?u...

Oct 6, 2024

2:03:49

Science, Medicine, Mammoths, CRISPR, and NASA with Lt. Sean Jackewicz MD | TDIHS #7

Dr. Sean Jackewicz is a Lieutenant in the US Navy and currently works as a physician at Walter Reed in Washington D.C. As you'll hear in this episode, Sean had a very unorthodox way of getting into the world of medicine and went to several schools to become a Physician, where he also won awards for his scientific research. He also joined the US Navy and currently hold the rank of Lieutenant O3. We talk about his passion for science, his upbringing, living in Savannah, and what led him to his current job. We also discuss among many other things....cloning mammoths, de-extinction, space travel, CRISPR, and medicine in space. I will have Sean on again to discuss the cloning of dogs!

Aug 23, 2024

2:20:46

Archaeology, Genetics, and YouTube with Stefan Milo | DIH # 6

STEFAN MILO RETURNS Just kidding. This is his first appearance on my solo show, but Stefan has been on A Life in Ruins over 5 times. If you don’t already know, Stefan is a YouTuber, author, and overall awesome bloke. He has a YouTube page dedicated to making well-researched and really well-produced archaeology and anthropology videos. I met Stefan almost 5 years ago now through our artist, Ettore Mazza, and we’ve been friends ever since. We eventually shoot the breeze about the Bronze Age, Homo erectus, and get into modern genetic science. But mainly, I ask Stefan about his current success where he started. We talk about his childhood in the UK, his undergrad at Sheffield, and then his time abroad in Europe. We then discuss how he came to the US, Portland, and his time working IT at a credit union and how that led to YouTube. We talk about a lot more, but if you’re a fan of Stefan, I recommend listening to the whole episode because we cover a lot!

Aug 23, 2024

2:06:57

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