I adore Megan's video in which she demonstrates how easy it is to bake a cake today, compared with the time consuming methods that her grandmother used. 

http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1

This summer, Steve canned his own sauerkraut. As he sliced up the cabbage and stored it away in a dark corner in a cabinet, he gave me a long lecture on why ancient German hordes probably made this and what methods they used and what nutrients they got from the sauerkraut and all that lovely history trivia that usually makes my eyes glaze over. He was so cute and so full of info that I tried to convince him that we should write a history and cooking book. He declined. He prefers to give private kitchen lectures to his semi-interested wife. 

Check out Megan's column, too.