The Splendid Table: Conversations & Recipes For Curious Cooks & Eaters

Latest Episodes:

794: Holiday Cheer with Nik Sharma, Claire Saffitz, & Toni Tipton-Martin Dec 27, 2024

Show notes

This week, we have just what you need to prepare for this holiday season. First, award-winning author and food scientist Nik Sharma shares his favorite holiday traditions and food pairings that will make your vegetables shine at the table. He is the author of Veg-Table, Recipes, Techniques and Plant Science for Big-Flavored, Vegetable-Focused Meals, and he left us with his recipe for Stuffed Cabbage Rolls. Then, the internet’s most beloved cooking star, Claire Saffitz, brings us her top holiday dessert ideas. She covers everything from citrus desserts, like her Souffleed Lemon Bread Pudding, to her holiday cookies, like the Chewy Molasses Spice Cookie, and what to make for New Year's. Her latest book is What’s for Dessert, Simple Recipes for Dessert People. Then, award-winning author Toni Tipton–Martin, talks about historical cocktail recipes and their modern interpretations. Her latest book is Juke Joints, Jazz Clubs and Juice: Cocktails From Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks. And she left us with her recipefor Pomegranate Demerara Rum Punch.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

December 22, 2023 (originally aired)
December 27, 2024 (rebroadcast)

Your support is a special ingredient in helping to make The Splendid Table. Donate today

793: The Secret of Cooking with Bee Wilson and Cassoulet Confessions with Sylvie Bigar Dec 13, 2024

Show notes

This week, we’re all about discovering the secret of cooking—and exploring an iconic French Dish. First, Award-winning food historian Bee Wilson talks to us about her latest book, The Secret of Cooking: Recipes for an Easier Life in the Kitchen. She talks about how to find the joy in cooking with real-world advice, from embracing your favorite kitchen tool to considering cooking as a remedy. She left us with her recipe for Magic Pasta with Mushrooms, Garlic Cream, and Wine. Then, food writer Sylvie Bigar takes us through an amazing culinary journey, exploring the history and culture of cassoulet and why she became so obsessed with the iconic French dish. Her book is Cassoulet Confessions: Food, France, Family and the Stew That Saved My Soul, and she left us with her recipe for Gateway Cassoulet.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

December 8, 2023 (originally aired)
December 13, 2024 (rebroadcast)

Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

791: Fall Cookbook Roundup Nov 29, 2024

Show notes

It’s our favorite time of year – Fall Cookbook season! We’re joined by baker Samantha Seneviratne, author of Bake Smart, who tells us about her favorite baking techniques, including a butter trick that creates the creamy texture in her Gooey Cranberry Crumb Cake. Then, chef and content creator Jon Kung talks about his debut cookbook, Kung Food: Chinese American Recipes from a Third-Culture Kitchen. He tells us about his cultural identity as a “third-culture kid,” how he experienced multiple cultures at once while growing up, and how he applies that experience to his fusion cooking. He shares a recipe for reimagined Hong Kong Style Chicken and Waffles. Then, Rose Previte, author of the new book Maydan: Recipes from Lebanon and Beyond, talks about travels and her cultural background that influenced her award-winning restaurant and her interest in dishes cooked over fire like Omani Grilled Shrimp Kebabs.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

November 3, 2023 (originally aired)
November 29, 2024 (rebroadcast)

Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

Turkey Confidential 2024 Nov 28, 2024

Show notes

Join us for Turkey Confidential, our must-listen-to annual Thanksgiving Day broadcast! This year’s guests are Andrea Nguyen author of Ever Green Vietnamese, Super Fresh Recipes Starring Plants from Land and Sea, Dallas-based chef Tiffany Derry of Roots Southern Table and The Great American Recipe on PBS, Washington Post Food Editor and author of Mastering the Art of Plant-Based Cooking, Joe Yonan and pastry chef Paola Velez author of Bodega Bakes, Recipes for Sweets and Treats Inspired by My Corner Store. And, of course, our charming Francis!

Broadcast dates for this episode:

November 28, 2024

792: A Chef’s Thanksgiving with Amy Thielen, Eric Ripert, and Pierre Thiam Nov 15, 2024

Show notes

This week, we are all about getting you ready for your Thanksgiving feast! First, cookbook author Amy Thielen sets us up with tips on keeping the holiday stress-free and enjoyable. She shares her remarkable thinking around “turkey secrets,” talks us through some of her favorite techniques for stuffing and starters, and leaves us with her amazing alternative to mashed potatoes, Fun House Baked Potatoes. Her latest book is Company: The Radically Casual Art of Cooking for Others. Then, Chef Eric Ripert talks us through simple seafood dishes to stand -in or accompany your turkey, like his Salmon Rillettes, a signature dish from Le Bernardin. His latest book is Seafood Simple. Then Chef Pierre Thiam brings West African flavors to the table with reimagined sidedish options like his Coconut Collard Greens with Butternut Squash. His latest book is Simply West African, Easy Joyful Recipes for Every Kitchen.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

November 17, 2023 (originally aired)
November 15, 2024 (rebroadcast)

Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

727: Cooking by Feel with Vivian Howard & Nik Sharma Nov 01, 2024

Show notes

When it comes to cooking, do you follow a recipe to a T, or do you do a little improv? This week, we learn a lot about cooking by feel with the star of the Peabody and Emmy-award-winning show A Chef’s Life, Vivian Howard. She talks to Francis about how she “deprogrammed’ herself from precision cooking and started thinking outside of a written recipe. Plus, she sticks around to help answer your cooking questions. Vivian’s latest book isThis Will Make It Taste Good. Then, we take advice from the scientist-turned-cook Nik Sharma, author of The Flavor Equation, on how to be intuitive with our food.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

January 22, 2021 (originally aired)
January 28, 2022 (rebroadcast)
November 1, 2024 (rebroadcast)

When you shop using our links, we earn a small commission. It’s a great way to support public media at no extra cost to you!

Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

790: An Hour With Dorie Greenspan Oct 18, 2024

Show notes

This week, we dedicate the hour to the fabulous Dorie Greenspan. We talk about her start in food, from burning her kitchen down when she was a pre-teen to her love for project baking early in her career and becoming the iconic writer and cookbook author we know today. She shares stories about meeting Julia Child, working alongside high-level pastry chefs, including France’s Pierre Hermé, and her highly- creative process for writing recipes. Dorie is the author of 14 Cookbooks, including the best-selling Baking with Dorie, Everyday Dorie, Dorie’s Cookies, and Around My French Table. Check out our collection of Dorie interviews and recipes here.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

October 20, 2023 (originally aired)
October 18, 2024 (rebroadcast)

Your support is a special ingredient in helping to make The Splendid Table. Donate today

789: World of Spices with Sana Javeri Kadri and Ethan Frisch Oct 04, 2024

Show notes

This week, we dive into the new spice trade, its history, and two specific companies' commitment to their farmers and direct trade. First, we talk to Sana Javeri Kadri, founder of Diaspora Co. She talks about herresearch on what the spice trade should look like today and what inspired her to base her business on the stories of spice farmers worldwide. Check out this recipe for Almond Turmeric Potatoes to put your turmeric to work. Then, we talked to Ethan Frisch, Co-Founder of the direct trade spice company Burlap & Barrel. He walks us through a spice tasting of peppercorns, cinnamon, and cumin for a lesson in evaluating aroma and flavor and a gentle reminder of the qualities we should be thinking about when we buy spices. After hearing the conversation about cinnamon, you'll want to give it a go with this recipe for Cinnamon-Toast Graham Crackers.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

October 6, 2023 (originally aired)
October 4, 2024 (rebroadcast)

Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

Check Out: Food Network Obsessed Sep 25, 2024

Show notes

This week we’re sharing an episode of Food Network Obsessed, the official podcast of Food Network. On each episode, host Jaymee Sire welcomes your favorite chefs, food influencers and Food Network personalities to talk about how they started their food careers, who inspires them and what it’s like to cook on Food Network.
On this episode, Jaymee is joined by Food Network Star winner and Outrageous Pumpkins personality, Damaris Phillips. She talks about her Kentucky upbringing in a family of home-chefs, the labor-of-love attitude at the heart of Southern hospitality, and introduces us to the iconic food and fanfare of the Kentucky Derby: the masks, the bourbon, everything! Plus, get inside details about how she developed her close friendship with her Food Network Star mentor, Bobby Flay and hear about the new challenges that will spice up this season of Outrageous Pumpkins.

743: Baking with Dorie Greenspan and Everything Grains with Abra Berens Sep 20, 2024

Show notes

We sit down with Dorie Greenspan to talk about her newest book, Baking with Dorie. She tells us about her "sweetheart" recipe collection, how she stays inspired after publishing 14 books, and how she dared makeover her famous World Peace Cookies. She left us with a delicious Caramel Apple Crisp recipe, perfect for the season and sticks around to answer your cooking questions. Later, our dear friend Abra Berens joins us to talk about her new book Grist: A Practical Guide to Cooking Grains, Beans, Seeds and Legumes. Soak or not to soak? Water or stock? And the last word on how to cook rice!

Broadcast dates for this episode: