Latest / Family Tree Food Stories / Father's Day Gifts for the Dad Who Says He Wants Nothing.

Transcript

Father's Day Gifts for the Dad Who Says He Wants Nothing. · Family Tree Food Stories

• 0:07
  nancy may: Why does Dad say he wants nothing for Father's Day,
• 0:10
  then spends an hour looking at new grill gadgets at Home Depot?
• 0:13
  What do you get when Father's Day, Peaches and Cream Day, and the
• 0:17
  longest day of the year collide?
• 0:19
  Forget the tie.
• 0:20
  This Sunday, give Dad a hot fire, a bowl of sweet peaches to share that
• 0:24
  tall tale about the one that got away.
• 0:27
  It's a peach of a show because it's Father's Day.
• 0:30
  Stay tuned.
• 0:35
  Hey there, food lovers and history buffs.
• 0:37
  Welcome to Family Tree Food and Stories.
• 0:39
  sylvia france: Pull up your chair to the table and get ready to dig
• 0:42
  in as we take you on a wild ride through generations of flavors.
• 0:45
  nancy may: That's right, we're dishing up the juiciest family history secrets,
• 0:49
  some epic dinner disasters, and intriguing taste behind your favorite dishes.
• 0:54
  sylvia france: From Grandma's legendary cheese-crust apple pie-
• 0:56
  nancy may: To Uncle Bob's questionable casserole-
• 0:59
  sylvia france: There's a lot more going on at that table than you might realize
• 1:02
  nancy may: So join us as we eat, laugh, relive the past, and create
• 1:06
  new mealtime memories together.
• 1:07
  sylvia france: Because every meal has a story, and every story is a feast.
• 1:11
  Let's dig into the show
• 1:19
  nancy may: Hello, everybody.
• 1:20
  It's Nancy May and Sylvia France once again with another Family
• 1:24
  Tree Food and Stories episode.
• 1:27
  Before we start, please go to the top of our page at Podcast.FamilyTreeFoodStories.
• 1:32
  Like, share, and subscribe to the show, just so that you don't miss a bite at our
• 1:37
  table, because we want you there with us.
• 1:40
  And we hope that you realize that every meal has a story and every story is a
• 1:45
  feast, including your own, not just ours, because we have a lot to share today.
• 1:50
  And what are we talking about here today, Sylvia?
• 1:53
  sylvia france: And today, we're gonna do something a little bit different.
• 1:56
  We're celebrating three things at once; Father's Day, the summer solstice,
• 2:01
  and I'm not really making this up, it's National Peaches and Cream Day.
• 2:04
  And I will throw in there, it was also the due date for my oldest child.
• 2:08
  And no, I'm not gonna tell how old he is.
• 2:11
  nancy may: Well, I won't ask, okay?
• 2:13
  sylvia france: Like a fine wine, I just get better with age.
• 2:15
  nancy may: I think that's a good one.
• 2:16
  I'll drink to that.
• 2:17
  How's that?
• 2:18
  Perfect.
• 2:18
  Or uncork the bottle.
• 2:21
  Either way, the same day, all are on the same day, June 21st, which
• 2:25
  means that somewhere out there, a dad is grilling, squinting at the sky
• 2:28
  thinking, "When is this day gonna stop?
• 2:30
  I am so tired of grilling.
• 2:32
  Too much work." And it's Father's Day, after all.
• 2:35
  He's probably looking for that scotch and hoping that the ice doesn't melt,
• 2:39
  and that, what is he gonna do with those peaches that he's just handed a
• 2:42
  bowl of peaches and figuring out, "What the heck do I do with these things?"
• 2:45
  sylvia france: I can hear him say already, "I don't need all of this."
• 2:49
  nancy may: Yeah, right.
• 2:50
  And that's the central point of what we're talking about today because…
• 2:55
  sylvia france: Oh, Dad always says he doesn't want anything for Father's Day.
• 2:59
  nancy may: Yeah, that's a lie.
• 3:00
  That's a lie.
• 3:01
  sylvia france: Oh, he absolutely wants something.
• 3:03
  He just can't always say what it is, and neither can we, so we buy him a
• 3:07
  meat thermometer and hope for the best.
• 3:10
  nancy may: Yeah, or the novelty apron, the one that has the six-pack abs,
• 3:13
  or the socks that say, "I'm sexy."
• 3:15
  sylvia france: Oh, wow, I like the I'm sexy one.
• 3:18
  nancy may: But that's for a different episode.
• 3:20
  Let's start with the whole idea of where Father's Day actually came from.
• 3:25
  sylvia france: Which is?
• 3:26
  nancy may: Well, Father's Day was not started by a greeting card company.
• 3:28
  Surprise, surprise, although I thought it did.
• 3:30
  sylvia france: That's quite a moment.
• 3:32
  It wasn't invented by Hallmark?
• 3:33
  nancy may: Nope.
• 3:34
  sylvia france: I thought it was.
• 3:35
  nancy may: Nope, it wasn't.
• 3:35
  Same as Mother's Day.
• 3:36
  I thought it was, too.
• 3:37
  But it was started by a daughter, which yay, yay, go daughters,
• 3:42
  since we're daughters here, right?
• 3:43
  sylvia france: Amen.
• 3:44
  nancy may: My dad had two daughters, so he's a lucky duck.
• 3:47
  sylvia france: My dad thought one was enough, so need I say more?
• 3:50
  nancy may: But anyway, so Father's Day was started in 1910 by a woman named
• 3:55
  Sonora Smart Dodd in Spokane, Washington.
• 3:59
  Her father, William Smart, was a widowed Civil War vet who raised six
• 4:03
  kids on his own, and she thought that guy deserved a special day, her dad.
• 4:09
  sylvia france: Oh, I would absolutely agree.
• 4:10
  I had three, and that was totally enough.
• 4:12
  But that really changes everything about the holiday.
• 4:15
  It wasn't commerce, it wasn't love, it was actually a daughter at her father
• 4:20
  saying, "This world should know what a great man he is and what he did."
• 4:25
  nancy may: Like I said, the first celebration was in
• 4:27
  2010, but here's the kicker.
• 4:29
  It took a few years later, till 1972, until Richard Nixon made
• 4:34
  it an official federal holiday.
• 4:37
  sylvia france: It took America 62 years to say, "Fine, Dad.
• 4:43
  nancy may: We need a day too"?
• 4:43
  I know.
• 4:43
  Yeah, meanwhile, dads were just out there mowing the lawn, just
• 4:46
  kinda hanging out, doing what dads do, and waiting for some kind of
• 4:50
  recognition, which I think is kinda sad.
• 4:53
  sylvia france: I think it took longer than- … the Reconstruction The man who
• 4:56
  raised six kids alone after the Civil War waited 62 years for recognition.
• 5:02
  This is very on brand for how we treat the quiet ones.
• 5:06
  nancy may: I agree.
• 5:07
  I agree.
• 5:07
  Dad needs a little bit more recognition than that.
• 5:10
  But the holiday still also carries an even stranger mix because some
• 5:15
  dads are gone, and there's a more complicated story to that one, which
• 5:19
  we'll get to a little later on.
• 5:21
  But I thought that the idea of what do you get for Dad is a little,
• 5:25
  you know, how do you do that?
• 5:26
  And what do you do?
• 5:27
  It's a grill.
• 5:28
  It, it's the socks and, well, usually we make him work over the grill.
• 5:32
  sylvia france: So now we've established the real history.
• 5:35
  Let's talk about what Father's Day actually looks like in 2026.
• 5:39
  nancy may: Dad's either grilling or adjacent to the grill, and
• 5:41
  Dad talking about the grill, or s- maybe the one that got away.
• 5:45
  sylvia france: Is it the grill that he's had for 11 years that he will
• 5:48
  absolutely not replace because he think it's, works fine, even though it's
• 5:52
  falling apart and losing two knobs?
• 5:54
  nancy may: Right.
• 5:55
  Yeah.
• 5:55
  That's, that's Bob, and he's not a dad, although he's a dog dad.
• 5:58
  People keep reminding me that.
• 6:00
  Well, we're dog parents, but that's okay.
• 6:02
  But Father's Day, this probably explains exactly why Father's Day has hit the
• 6:06
  record $24 billion in sales in 2025.
• 6:10
  Can you believe that?
• 6:11
  sylvia france: Which means America's still trying to figure, to solve
• 6:15
  the fatherhood with stainless steel.
• 6:17
  nancy may: Yeah, expensive ones at that.
• 6:20
  But the grill never just gets old.
• 6:22
  It's just where dads get more useful and territorial and slightly
• 6:26
  performative occasionally over the wrong kind of chicken, whether it's
• 6:30
  done or not or… Oh, I've got stories about that with my father-in-law.
• 6:35
  sylvia france: I'm sure you have.
• 6:36
  But, you know, my gra- grandmother always said you could tell everything
• 6:40
  about a man by what he did near fire.
• 6:43
  nancy may: Yeah.
• 6:44
  That's a loaded thing to say.
• 6:46
  sylvia france: She was a very wise woman, especially since he was
• 6:49
  in this sideshow of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
• 6:53
  nancy may: I think that's pretty cool.
• 6:54
  Talk about fire.
• 6:55
  He's probably flame throwing along the way.
• 6:57
  sylvia france: Actually, it was knives.
• 6:58
  nancy may: Oh, okay.
• 6:59
  Right.
• 7:00
  Well, we have to do that on another story because-
• 7:03
  sylvia france: Maybe we can do a circus food story.
• 7:04
  That would be
• 7:05
  nancy may: fun … I think we'll have to do that one.
• 7:07
  But I have a, my dad was not a griller, but I have a story
• 7:10
  about my dad and a grill.
• 7:11
  Can I share that one with you?
• 7:13
  sylvia france: Oh, how big are you talking?
• 7:14
  nancy may: No, we're talking a big grill.
• 7:16
  It was an oil drum grill.
• 7:18
  You know the kind that I, literally like an oil drum.
• 7:21
  And my dad had a factory, so he got his factory foreman or manager who was
• 7:27
  really good with, what do they call the torches that, that cut things in, in half?
• 7:31
  I'm drawing a blank on what they call them.
• 7:32
  sylvia france: Yeah.
• 7:33
  I know what you're talking about.
• 7:34
  Right.
• 7:34
  It's kind of like a welder's gun that-
• 7:36
  nancy may: Yeah, that cuts metal.
• 7:37
  So he cut, he cut the metal, the drill in half, and they soldered legs on it.
• 7:42
  Dad told them where to solder it, and the guy who knew how to
• 7:46
  solder actually put it together.
• 7:47
  Yes.
• 7:47
  And then we got a grill top and put it in our backyard for a picnic that they
• 7:51
  had for all the factory workers, and Dad shucked- Hundreds, and I would say
• 7:56
  literally probably hundreds of clams.
• 7:58
  You know, the little small-
• 7:59
  sylvia france: Oh, yeah
• 7:59
  … nancy may: tiny half shell clams, and put bacon on them, and we
• 8:02
  grilled clams casino on them.
• 8:04
  They were so good.
• 8:05
  sylvia france: Oh, wow.
• 8:06
  There's nothing better than linguine with clam sauce.
• 8:09
  I only can imagine how awesome that was.
• 8:12
  nancy may: I don't think we had linguine, but it was definitely bacon on clams, and
• 8:15
  just eating that right hot off the grill.
• 8:17
  Be careful you don't burn your lips on the shells.
• 8:19
  sylvia france: Sounds like you have experience.
• 8:21
  nancy may: Yeah, I do have experience on that one, but I think you've got
• 8:23
  a couple of grill stories with your dad, or fire stories with your dad.
• 8:27
  sylvia france: Well, more campfire stories.
• 8:28
  nancy may: Okay.
• 8:29
  sylvia france: Yeah, my dad was not a griller, so his claim to fame
• 8:32
  was actually we would go camping.
• 8:34
  And so he had the Coleman stove, but what he had is this, like, flat top grill.
• 8:40
  And so his thing was to make breakfast.
• 8:43
  nancy may: Ooh.
• 8:43
  sylvia france: So he loves biscuits.
• 8:45
  You know, it's a Southern thing.
• 8:47
  So he would make these Jiffy Mix or Bisquick biscuits.
• 8:51
  And so he would do drop biscuits, but he would actually try to bake them
• 8:56
  on the grill top, which kind of made them like I've heard Hardtack before.
• 9:00
  You know, it's like you would break a tooth if you would try to
• 9:03
  eat them, especially after they've been sitting out for six hours.
• 9:06
  But he thought he was the connoisseur, so we said, "Yes, Dad, they're lovely.
• 9:10
  Um, yum." And instead of eating them, we would kind of like throw them on
• 9:14
  the ground since you were camping.
• 9:15
  nancy may: Oh, well isn't that hard tack, the where you sort of dip it
• 9:18
  in something to make it soggy or-
• 9:19
  sylvia france: I know, but I wasn't old enough to have-
• 9:22
  nancy may: Know better.
• 9:22
  sylvia france: No, well, I didn't have coffee.
• 9:24
  They wouldn't let me dr- get- Ah … until I was in coffee, so you
• 9:26
  know, orange juice and a biscuit.
• 9:28
  It was, it was just better to say, "Great, Dad," and kind of, you
• 9:31
  know, subtly throw it in the bushes.
• 9:33
  nancy may: Sorry, Dad.
• 9:34
  sylvia france: No, he never knew.
• 9:35
  Hopefully
• 9:35
  nancy may: he knew
• 9:35
  sylvia france: better.
• 9:36
  He, he never knew unless he listens to the podcast, so hopefully he won't.
• 9:39
  He's-
• 9:40
  nancy may: Grills create all sorts of good things and delicious food along the way,
• 9:43
  and, you know, there's the Big Green Egg and there's so many other things that are
• 9:47
  out there right now, which is, explains the 24, let's say $24 million or whatever
• 9:51
  the number was, but that's ridiculous.
• 9:52
  sylvia france: So I have a question.
• 9:53
  You know, I used to work at the Home Depot, their corporate support center,
• 9:56
  so I know all about grills and how- Oh … expensive they can be and all
• 10:00
  the d- Yeah … diddly doodads and, you know, cast iron grills versus
• 10:04
  metal grills and the whole nine yards.
• 10:06
  So I have a question for you, though.
• 10:08
  nancy may: Mm-hmm.
• 10:09
  sylvia france: So what do you think dads actually want?
• 10:11
  Because I think, you know, we overthink this 'cause we see all
• 10:14
  the commercials on television.
• 10:15
  nancy may: You know, I think dads actually want the simple things:
• 10:19
  good food, a good time, maybe some quiet time away from the kids,
• 10:23
  especially if you've got six and you're raising them all by yourself, right?
• 10:26
  sylvia france: Or the wife.
• 10:27
  nancy may: And maybe 10 consecutive minutes without some kid s- screaming,
• 10:31
  sylvia france: "Are we there yet?" Well, I think that's the last one.
• 10:34
  They would just like peace and quiet, and they can actually just do what they
• 10:37
  want, rather than having to cook for the masses or navigate fights in the backseat.
• 10:42
  nancy may: Right, yeah, and maybe a card or two.
• 10:45
  I used to get my dad, when he was older and we were taking care of
• 10:48
  him long distance and, you know, Mom and Dad were… Uh, they had their
• 10:51
  aides, but I would get them cards.
• 10:53
  And I know of course everybody gets a dad's card, right?
• 10:56
  But not just one card.
• 10:57
  I made sure that he had, like, 10 cards being delivered, which was kind of fun.
• 11:03
  sylvia france: Well, I mean, how did it make him feel?
• 11:05
  I'm sure he was at the same time overjoyed, but I think at the
• 11:08
  same time he would probably be sad that you weren't there with him.
• 11:11
  nancy may: I think he was, and occasionally, well, I made it
• 11:14
  down for at least one or two Father's Day, and he would always
• 11:17
  say, "Oh, don't get me anything."
• 11:18
  He literally said just like, "Oh, no, no, no, no, no. Don't get me anything.
• 11:21
  I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine." And then you get him the gift- And he looks at it.
• 11:25
  He wouldn't scowl, but he would sort of like create a wr- like a wrinkle
• 11:29
  right between your eyes, you know, that kind of like looking a little scowly.
• 11:32
  And then he would give it to him, and he'd unwrap it, and then
• 11:35
  he'd open it up, and he'd always have this big smile on his face.
• 11:38
  It was always something useful, too, of course.
• 11:41
  sylvia france: Well, they would always like to hide their emotions.
• 11:43
  Yeah.
• 11:43
  I, I think it's kind of like a manly thing, you know?
• 11:45
  Yeah.
• 11:46
  Oh, my gosh, if, you know, we can't cry, we can't be happy.
• 11:49
  We just have to take it and bear it.
• 11:51
  nancy may: Yeah.
• 11:51
  Well, my dad got a little bit more emotional over those later years,
• 11:55
  which made me feel kind of good.
• 11:56
  But he'd always go, his words were, "Oh, geez. Oh, geez." Yeah.
• 12:01
  He's happy.
• 12:01
  Oh, geez.
• 12:02
  He- So yeah, we knew he was, uh, we knew he was really happy and
• 12:05
  excited and thrilled when, "Oh, geez," it was a special gift.
• 12:09
  sylvia france: You sound like an amazing daughter.
• 12:11
  nancy may: Aw.
• 12:11
  Well, I think you, too.
• 12:12
  So you're taking care of your dad right now, but you're going
• 12:15
  through what I did, however.
• 12:17
  sylvia france: Yes, the challenges and opportunities-
• 12:19
  Yeah … of the parental units.
• 12:20
  nancy may: Yeah, the parental units.
• 12:21
  So
• 12:22
  sylvia france: I would like, can you tell me… You know, I was really
• 12:23
  curious 'cause, you know, when we started out this, we talked about peaches.
• 12:26
  So can you tell me a little bit more about the history of peaches?
• 12:30
  nancy may: So June 21st is National Peaches and Cream Day,
• 12:33
  and before you say, "What does that have to do with Father's Day?"
• 12:36
  let me connect it for you.
• 12:38
  sylvia france: I'm listening.
• 12:39
  nancy may: So Dad grilling, summer doesn't end, and a peach half brushed with butter,
• 12:44
  a little sugar honey on it, and then caramelized over a grill is so, so good.
• 12:51
  And since you spend time in Georgia, I know that you're aware of that one.
• 12:55
  sylvia france: Oh, yes.
• 12:56
  They would take away your Atlanta card if you didn't drink Coke and grill peaches.
• 13:01
  nancy may: Really?
• 13:02
  Well, I probably would've been kicked out of Atlanta, but let me just share
• 13:06
  a little bit of the history of the peach, or the origin of the peach.
• 13:10
  The peach was found or discovered, I guess you can say discovered, over
• 13:13
  4,000 years ago in ancient China, and it was traditionally considered a
• 13:19
  symbol of longevity and immortality, which also makes it the perfect
• 13:24
  Father's Day fruit because we want our dads to live forever, right?
• 13:28
  sylvia france: Yeah.
• 13:28
  I understand didn't it travel through Persia, which is why the
• 13:31
  Latin name is Prunus persica.
• 13:34
  nancy may: Yes.
• 13:34
  sylvia france: Even though it's not officially Persian,
• 13:36
  Persia was the pit stop.
• 13:38
  By the Renaissance, the peach had become associated with romance,
• 13:42
  fertility, and sensuality.
• 13:44
  nancy may: Excuse me, that's what every dad wants to be, hot, right?
• 13:48
  sylvia france: Remember those sexy socks.
• 13:50
  nancy may: That's right.
• 13:50
  sylvia france: Think about it.
• 13:51
  It's so soft, fragrant, sweet, impossibly juicy when it's ripe.
• 13:56
  Kind of heart-shaped.
• 13:58
  nancy may: Yeah, I never thought of a peach being heart-shaped, but
• 14:01
  do you remember the Steve Miller Band in the '70s and their song?
• 14:05
  sylvia france: Really?
• 14:06
  Love your peaches and wanna shake your tree.
• 14:09
  nancy may: Ooh.
• 14:10
  Context is everything.
• 14:12
  But the Spanish brought the peaches over to America in the 1500s,
• 14:15
  and newer research from Penn State shows the peach didn't just
• 14:19
  travel with the European settlers.
• 14:21
  It was the indigenous trade networks that carried them widely across
• 14:25
  the Southeast long before the colonialists arrived in most areas.
• 14:29
  And the peach became American not by conquest, but by relationship.
• 14:34
  sylvia france: In the American South, the peach became a cultural bedrock.
• 14:36
  Of course, Georgia, they identify as the Peach State.
• 14:39
  It's inseparable from the agricultural heritage.
• 14:42
  Though California actually produces more peaches today, which Georgians
• 14:47
  regard as a personal insult, and also South Carolina as well.
• 14:52
  nancy may: I can see.
• 14:53
  Georgia peach.
• 14:54
  Yeah.
• 14:54
  All those Southern belles having a snit along the way.
• 14:57
  sylvia france: Absolutely.
• 14:58
  nancy may: And here's one other thing that you may not know, or even dads
• 15:01
  may not know, that yellow peaches and white peaches grill differently.
• 15:06
  Did you know that?
• 15:07
  sylvia france: Actually, for, living in Georgia for 10
• 15:08
  years, you had to learn that.
• 15:09
  nancy may: Okay.
• 15:10
  sylvia france: Again, that Georgia card.
• 15:12
  nancy may: Yep, Georgia card.
• 15:13
  So the yellow peaches, for those who don't understand or don't know,
• 15:16
  the, there's a difference between a yellow peach and white peach.
• 15:19
  And if you haven't seen a white peach, it really has a white, a very white flesh.
• 15:24
  And the yellow peaches hold their structure on the heat better
• 15:27
  and they caramelize better, so they're better for grilling.
• 15:30
  And the white peach is best eaten because it's juicy and just,
• 15:34
  that juice drips down your chin.
• 15:35
  You have to kind of eat it over the sink.
• 15:38
  Before we go on, I wanna take a quick break and we'll be right back
• 15:41
  because we have a lot to talk about peaches and the sweetness of peaches.
• 15:47
  Can you smell that meal that your grandmother, mom, or even dad made
• 15:51
  at every special family celebration?
• 15:53
  The one that you can still taste with your eyes closed?
• 15:56
  Sylvia and I created My Family Tree Food and Stories book because we kept hearing
• 16:00
  your heartbreaking stories of favorite foods and family meal memories lost.
• 16:05
  This isn't just a cookbook.
• 16:07
  It's a specially designed type of journal where you can relive and
• 16:11
  share your family recipes and stories.
• 16:14
  Honestly, most people think of a plate of food as just that.
• 16:17
  But when paired with a good story, each bite becomes a banquet of joy,
• 16:22
  laughter, maybe even a few tears, and memories that never go stale.
• 16:26
  To get more details, go to Podcast.FamilyTreeFoodStories.com and
• 16:31
  select book at the top of the page.
• 16:33
  We've got a lot more fun and a lot more to come down the
• 16:36
  road and to put on your plate.
• 16:38
  But for now, let's get back to the rest of this My Family Tree Food Stories.
• 16:44
  sylvia france: So now we need to talk about the most glamorous thing
• 16:47
  that ever happened to a peach.
• 16:49
  nancy may: I think I'm gonna be completely unprepared for this.
• 16:51
  sylvia france: Let's see, Peach Melba, created by the French chef, Auguste
• 16:56
  Escoffier, at the Savoy Hotel in London for an opera singer, Nellie Melba.
• 17:02
  Peaches, raspberry sauce, vanilla ice cream.
• 17:06
  nancy may: So wait a second, my dad's been grilling in the backyard over a
• 17:08
  barrel, and the next minute it's named for a soprano in a five-star hotel?
• 17:13
  It's okay, Dad.
• 17:15
  Chill out.
• 17:16
  sylvia france: Well, you know, that's the full range of a
• 17:18
  peach, porch to opera house.
• 17:20
  nancy may: Yeah.
• 17:21
  Well, and the cobbler, are you familiar with the story of the peach cobbler?
• 17:25
  sylvia france: No, please do tell.
• 17:26
  nancy may: So there is the Peach Melba and all sorts of fancy things, especially
• 17:30
  that you had just mentioned, but the peach cobbler, the first recipe was
• 17:34
  published in 1839, and it became a staple because proper pie-making tools
• 17:40
  were required for the actual peach pie and other things, and they weren't
• 17:43
  always available, especially on the back alleys or more rustic frontiers
• 17:49
  where plantation kitchen tools weren't always available, I mean, the fancy
• 17:54
  kitchen tools, like rolling things out.
• 17:56
  And they used biscuit batter over the fruit in a cast iron pot.
• 18:00
  sylvia france: I would love that, the biscuit.
• 18:02
  The cobbler is democratized genius.
• 18:04
  The Melba is aspirational genius.
• 18:06
  Both involve a peach, and they both work.
• 18:09
  nancy may: There's one more peach thing that we have to address because-
• 18:12
  sylvia france: Uh-oh
• 18:13
  … nancy may: Sylvia, you have a fact that I may not have been prepared for.
• 18:17
  sylvia france: Is it the pit?
• 18:18
  nancy may: It is the pit.
• 18:19
  sylvia france: Peach contains amigdalin.
• 18:21
  I can slaughter that, I'm from the South.
• 18:24
  A compound that can break down into cyanide when digested.
• 18:28
  It goes nowhere.
• 18:30
  A lot is a problem.
• 18:31
  There is not a reason to panic, but it is a reason not to eat the
• 18:35
  pit, which I wouldn't do anyway, which in fairness no one was doing.
• 18:40
  nancy may: Right, yeah, unless you were in the 1970s, and that is an incredible
• 18:43
  story because talk about pure stupidity.
• 18:47
  So there's this scandal, I'm gonna call it the Laetrile scandal, where a
• 18:51
  chemist in 1950s extracted amigdalin.
• 18:56
  sylvia france: You didn't say it much better than-
• 18:57
  nancy may: Right.
• 18:57
  Well- … I'm now in the South, so I can pretend.
• 19:00
  And that is in the peach pit, the actual soft part of the pit, which
• 19:04
  they called B17, vitamin B17, which is a completely invented vitamin, ha ha.
• 19:12
  And they claimed it would cure cancer.
• 19:15
  sylvia france: Cure cancer?
• 19:16
  B17, not a real vitamin- No … just a ma- name that was made up.
• 19:20
  Hmm.
• 19:21
  nancy may: Absolutely, and well, the whole vitamin industry is not rec- necessarily
• 19:25
  regulated by the FDA, but eventually they, uh, decided that the FDA had to ban it
• 19:30
  because peaches are dangerous in the pits.
• 19:33
  And someone looked into this, but these researchers claimed that it
• 19:37
  cured cancer, so people were coming up with all sorts of reactions to it.
• 19:41
  They turned blue.
• 19:42
  They were getting sick.
• 19:43
  They were getting poisoned, like a cyanide poisoning.
• 19:46
  So it became a fruit scandal.
• 19:50
  sylvia france: And that's why we cannot have nice things, I guess.
• 19:52
  nancy may: I guess so.
• 19:53
  Speaking of nice things, one of the really nice things on June 21st
• 19:57
  is that we have summer solstice and the longest day of the year.
• 20:00
  And in 2026, that's this year, this weekend, the exact moment that
• 20:05
  the longest day starts is at 4:22
• 20:10
  sylvia france: AM Eastern Time.
• 20:10
  Which mean if Dad is already up making coffee at 4:24 AM, which my dad
• 20:15
  always makes coffee for my mom, he has technically experienced the official start
• 20:20
  of summer at the maximum wakefulness.
• 20:23
  nancy may: Yeah, I love that.
• 20:26
  And he's not out there grilling at the time, so I think that's
• 20:28
  particularly im- important.
• 20:30
  But maybe he's at the midnight grill later on, where the day be- gets a little longer
• 20:34
  and Dad's out there flipping one thing or another thing long before bedtime.
• 20:38
  sylvia france: But there's something I love about Father's
• 20:40
  Day landing on the solstice.
• 20:41
  It gives him, the day, a frame.
• 20:43
  It lasts longer, the evening stretches, and the grill stays lit.
• 20:48
  nancy may: It does.
• 20:48
  It does.
• 20:49
  It actually gives us a little bit more time together, which is even better
• 20:54
  sylvia france: More time, more evening, more standing
• 20:56
  around something warm together
• 20:58
  nancy may: And because the grill gives you just a little bit more light, it
• 21:02
  actually gives Dad a little bit more time standing there with his scotch
• 21:05
  or his beer in his hand at the same time just before he goes to bed.
• 21:09
  They've earned it, right?
• 21:11
  sylvia france: Oh, they've actually l- earned this day in
• 21:13
  spades in one way or another.
• 21:15
  nancy may: So yeah, there's a sad part to Father's Day, and not
• 21:19
  all of us have our dads around.
• 21:20
  Some of us have been lucky enough to have fabulous dads, and some of us have sadly
• 21:24
  got to celebrate the passing of our dads.
• 21:26
  So we wanna honor this empty chair just a little bit because Father's
• 21:31
  Day can be joyful, but it also can be complicated, and it can be painful.
• 21:35
  So before you have your cup- first cup of coffee, say something
• 21:38
  nice and remember your dad.
• 21:40
  sylvia france: For a lot of our listeners, their dad is no longer
• 21:42
  here, or the la- relationship was hard.
• 21:46
  They're honoring their father figure or grandfather or someone who
• 21:49
  played that role without the title.
• 21:51
  nancy may: And food gives us so many ways to actually honor those that
• 21:54
  we've loved and made it special, so-
• 21:57
  sylvia france: Can you tell us more about your story?
• 21:58
  nancy may: I can.
• 21:59
  So when my dad passed, there's a couple of things.
• 22:02
  When he passed, we did the gun salute, and I collected all the little…
• 22:07
  He's buried in Veterans' Memorial Cemetery, and I took all the little
• 22:11
  shells from the honor guard or the gun guards and had them taken to a
• 22:15
  jeweler, dipped in silver and gold.
• 22:17
  And each one I had engraved a saying that my dad used that was very simple.
• 22:22
  One was, "Love you lots." I always signed letters to him, and he always
• 22:25
  signed letters to me, "Love you lots."
• 22:27
  And another one that he said to my sister and to the aides was, "Just keep smiling."
• 22:32
  So each one of the aides and my sister got a shell, a shot shell, and I took
• 22:37
  one, too, that either says, "Love you lots," or, "Keep smiling," and his birth
• 22:41
  and death date so that… And I just put them on chains, and we all wear them as
• 22:44
  necklaces, a special piece of jewelry.
• 22:46
  Keep close to my heart.
• 22:47
  sylvia france: I know it doesn't bring him back, but I'm sure he is with you always.
• 22:50
  nancy may: Especially when I wear that, yep.
• 22:52
  sylvia france: And the most beautiful thing and so fitting because he said
• 22:55
  those words so many times, and now they're literal objects that you
• 22:59
  can hold, feel, touch, and remember.
• 23:01
  nancy may: That and his bowl that says, "Stu's ice cream bowl," which I have.
• 23:04
  sylvia france: I have a question for you.
• 23:06
  My grandmother always had ice cream at night.
• 23:09
  That was her, like, snitch thing.
• 23:10
  Mm-hmm.
• 23:10
  So did he… When did he like ice cream, or did he have a special time?
• 23:13
  nancy may: Oh, he could eat ice cream breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
• 23:16
  sylvia france: For her, it was every night.
• 23:18
  nancy may: Yeah.
• 23:18
  sylvia france: She would always have ice cream, but she lived to 99, so
• 23:21
  I guess it can't do, be too bad.
• 23:22
  nancy may: Yeah.
• 23:23
  So what's the one thing that your dad taught you that you could say
• 23:27
  without even trying to remember it?
• 23:29
  sylvia france: Even when I was little, he would always put his hand on my back.
• 23:33
  nancy may: Aw.
• 23:34
  sylvia france: So we were in a social situation, and when he put his hand on
• 23:38
  my back, he would introduce himself, but he would make me introduce myself
• 23:43
  So he was always trying to give me the confidence to s- have a voice, speak
• 23:48
  up for myself, and to be independent.
• 23:50
  nancy may: I love that.
• 23:51
  Dad gave you the extra strength that you needed to keep pushing forward.
• 23:54
  sylvia france: Well, it's just one of those things that, you know, when you're
• 23:56
  little you don't think about it, but it taught me a good lesson, is a way to
• 24:02
  put it, is, you know, don't hesitate.
• 24:04
  When you go into a room and somebody's talking and everybody's having a
• 24:07
  conversation, I don't mind stepping in and saying, "Hello, my name is Sylvia Franz."
• 24:12
  nancy may: I know you do that very well.
• 24:13
  So before we go, there's a food promise that we had that we were gonna deliver,
• 24:18
  and, uh, we're talking about grilled peaches, which we did earlier, and
• 24:21
  National Peaches and Cream Day, and a little bit about the summer solstice.
• 24:25
  But there's one more thing that we want to share is the grilled
• 24:29
  peaches and how to do that.
• 24:30
  sylvia france: Well, I always like the deliver story because, you know,
• 24:33
  it can't be done by Uber or DoorDash.
• 24:34
  Mm-hmm.
• 24:36
  When I grill them in Atlanta, you use ripe but firm peaches.
• 24:39
  They hold up the heat.
• 24:40
  Yellow peaches are the best bet, 'cause the white ones are too juicy.
• 24:45
  You halve them, you remove the pit, brush the outside with melted butter
• 24:49
  or a neutral oil, you lay them cut side down on a medium hot grill, and you
• 24:54
  leave them for four to five minutes.
• 24:56
  You flip them once, one minute on either side, done, and
• 24:59
  they're fabulous over chicken.
• 25:01
  nancy may: Ooh, that sounds really good.
• 25:03
  sylvia france: Yeah.
• 25:03
  What you're looking for is a golden brown caramelization where the flesh hits the
• 25:08
  grates, a light softening, a fragrance that makes everyone in the yard stop
• 25:13
  talking and start finding their fork.
• 25:15
  nancy may: Yeah.
• 25:15
  You have vanilla, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, which is a little
• 25:19
  bit more summery, but the whipped cream kind of melts in it, and you've
• 25:22
  got whipped ricotta with honey.
• 25:23
  If you haven't tried that, that is delicious.
• 25:26
  I suggest it.
• 25:27
  Yeah.
• 25:27
  sylvia france: I have.
• 25:27
  It's fabulous.
• 25:28
  I second
• 25:29
  nancy may: that.
• 25:29
  It's, it's really good.
• 25:30
  Uh, mascarpone, raspberry sauce.
• 25:33
  Well, I think raspberry and peaches they're, they're okay, but just
• 25:37
  why would you hide the peach?
• 25:39
  And bourbon caramel sauce, which, yeah, Dad earned it, right?
• 25:43
  sylvia france: I really like that boozy upgrade.
• 25:45
  You know, you soak-
• 25:46
  nancy may: Yeah, for sure.
• 25:48
  sylvia france: You soak the peach halves in a mix of bourbon, honey, and a pinch of
• 25:51
  cinnamon for 20 minutes before grilling.
• 25:54
  The bourbon caramelizes, the honey deepens, the cinnamon does
• 25:57
  something mysterious and wonderful.
• 25:59
  Serve this and then watch Dad's face.
• 26:03
  nancy may: I think he's gonna smile from ear to ear.
• 26:06
  We also have a couple of extra notes on hot honey peach margarita.
• 26:10
  We'll put some recipes in the show notes so you've got those, as
• 26:13
  well as honey peach bourbon smash.
• 26:16
  No, don't get too smashed on that.
• 26:18
  And bourbon-soaked grilled peaches with cream.
• 26:21
  So we'll put those in the show notes, or there'll be an additional hook
• 26:24
  where you can get those in attachment.
• 26:26
  So in closing, Father's Day 2026, summer solstice, National Peach,
• 26:31
  uh, Peaches and Cream Day, and yes, of course, Father's Day.
• 26:34
  Those are three special things to celebrate this weekend.
• 26:37
  sylvia france: Yes, it's on one long, beautiful evening.
• 26:40
  nancy may: And somewhere in the middle of it, a dad is standing at a grill
• 26:43
  pretending he doesn't want anything, wearing an apron that's probably got
• 26:47
  six-pack abs on it, and socks that say, "I think I'm sexy," or, "I know I'm sexy."
• 26:52
  Surrounded by people giving him a bowl of peaches, and he's thinking, "What next?"
• 26:58
  sylvia france: So here's what we, I want for people to take away from this episode.
• 27:02
  Father's Day isn't about finding the perfect gift for the man
• 27:05
  who says he wants nothing.
• 27:07
  nancy may: Nope.
• 27:07
  It's about noticing what he gave us, the rituals, the recipes, the
• 27:10
  ridiculous rules sometimes, the fireside t- tended treats that happen.
• 27:16
  Think marshmallows and charcoaled a little bit more.
• 27:20
  And the things that he taught us without even saying them out loud, like your
• 27:24
  dad's putting his hand on your back.
• 27:26
  sylvia france: So ask the story, make the food, toss him out if
• 27:29
  necessary, let the evening go long.
• 27:32
  nancy may: And grill a peach in honor of Dad.
• 27:35
  sylvia france: If Dad says, "You don't have to do all this"…
• 27:38
  nancy may: Of course you do
• 27:39
  … sylvia france: what it means is please do it again next year.
• 27:42
  nancy may: Absolutely.
• 27:43
  Remember, we're Family Tree Food Stories.
• 27:45
  Go to podcast.familytreefoodstories.
• 27:48
  Because every meal has a story, and every story is a feast.
• 27:52
  And please remember to like, share, and tell us your stories.
• 27:57
  sylvia france: Next time we're going into the recipes people carry only in
• 28:00
  their heads, the ones that were never written down, the ones that live in
• 28:03
  muscle memory, instinct, and love.
• 28:06
  nancy may: Until next time, keep cooking something.
• 28:08
  Maybe let Dad stand away from the grill so you can do it for him.
• 28:12
  And tell us your stories.
• 28:14
  Or better yet, listen to Dad's stories, because I guarantee they'll
• 28:18
  be ones that'll be carrying with you for a long time, whether at the
• 28:21
  dinner table or out at the fire pit.
• 28:24
  sylvia france: Bye, you guys.
• 28:25
  nancy may: We'll see you later.
• 28:26
  Take care, and happy Father's Day.
• 28:27
  sylvia france: Happy Father's Day
• 28:30
  nancy may: Sylvia and I hope that you've loved this episode
• 28:32
  of Family Tree Food and Stories.
• 28:34
  If there's a family recipe or a story that's been passed down at your table,
• 28:38
  or even just something that happened yesterday, we'd love to hear it.
• 28:42
  Maybe your special dish or family moment could be featured on
• 28:45
  one of our upcoming episodes.
• 28:47
  You can share it by just heading over to Podcast.FamilyTreeFoodStories.com
• 28:53
  to submit your story or recipe.
• 28:55
  And before you go, make sure to subscribe so you'll never miss an episode full of
• 28:59
  delicious ideas and heartfelt ways to make every meal a memorable experience.
• 29:04
  It's easier than you think.
• 29:05
  We'll help you, too.
• 29:07
  So put those phones aside, unless you're listening, switch off the
• 29:10
  television, and turn off your laptop, and we'll show you how to turn everyday
• 29:15
  meals into something more special.
• 29:17
  Lastly, you can join us by going on over to Facebook and Instagram at
• 29:21
  Family Tree Food Stories to keep up with the fun, the stories, and the ideas.
• 29:26
  Let's continue to celebrate the joy of food, family, and gathering
• 29:29
  with friends that we love.
• 29:31
  Thanks for listening.
• 29:32
  Until next time, happy eating, happy storytelling, and ciao.
• 29:36
  Bye-bye