Kitchen Adventures – Help Me Keep the Past Alive: Why I’m Asking for Your Support

 Give It Forth began as a passion project—a labor of love, memory, and legacy.

It was born from a shared dream between me and my mother. Before she passed, we had planned to interpret and cook through the recipes in Harl. MS 279, using the edition published in Thomas Austin’s Two Fifteenth Century Cookery Books. She bought that book for me, and we always imagined sitting down together to turn those cryptic medieval instructions into real, beautiful meals.

She didn’t get to finish that journey with me. But Give It Forth is how I carry that dream forward.

It’s how I honor her.

And it’s how I share the joy we both felt in exploring the past through food.

I’ve completed the first section of that project—the pottages—and I’m working to get them formatted, published, and available online to share with all of you. It’s just one small part of what I want to bring to life.

---

But here’s the truth behind the curtain:
I haven’t been blogging as much lately—not because I’ve lost interest, but because life’s demands keep pulling me away. My husband is partially disabled, and most of the financial burden falls on me. Between work, caregiving, and just trying to keep the bills paid, there’s little left over—for time, energy, or breathing room.

I always feel like I’m behind the ball—robbing Peter to pay Paul—and it’s hard to justify spending hours researching a 15th-century sauce when something urgent (and unpaid) is waiting.

But this work—the history, the food, the storytelling—it matters to me deeply. And I believe it matters to others too.

---

☕ So here’s where you come in:

If Give It Forth has ever made you smile, fed your curiosity, helped you plan a feast, or just made you feel more connected to the past—please consider supporting me on Ko-fi:
👉 https://ko-fi.com/giveitforth

You can:

• Leave a tip (every dollar helps more than you know)

• Download my historical recipe booklets

• Commission a custom dayboard or feast

• Subscribe monthly to support ongoing research and writing

Your support gives me the time and breathing room to keep doing this work—to finish the projects my mom and I started, and to keep bringing the past to life, one dish at a time.

With gratitude (and probably flour on my sleeves),

Yonnie
Give It Forth