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

Latest Episodes:

Let Them Eat (Simple) Cake Jun 18, 2019

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Ahhh, cake! That sweet four-lettered word that conjures images of comfort and celebration. But for non-bakers, the thought of making a cake usually ends up with a trip to the bakery or supermarket to pick up a store-bought version. That’s where Odette Williams comes in. She has written a book called Simple Cake. The premise is that cake making doesn’t have to be a laborious, complicated and overly fussy thing – in fact, it can be quite simple. Contributor Melissa Clark recently met up with Odette Williams in New York - to talk cake. Odette kindly shared her recipes for Versatile Coconut Cake and Madeleines.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

June 18, 2019

Barbacoa, Boniato, and Ceviche Jun 07, 2019

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This week we talk to chef Martin Morales about his book Andina: The Heart of Peruvian Food. While many people know Peruvian cuisine for its seafood and coastal influence, Morales says to get to the soul of the country's food, you need to head for the mountains. We also visit with Keith Dresser from Cook's Illustrated and America’s Test Kitchen to learn how to make Peruvian fish ceviche. Francis Lam goes to El Compadre in Philadelphia, a restaurant famous for its barbacoa and its immigrant rights driven chef Cristina Martinez. And our friend Doc Willoughby tells about cooking with boniatos, one the most popular potatoes in the Caribbean and South America. Plus, Francis talks with listeners about using plantains and jícama in the kitchen, how to make tough goat meat more tender, and he takes a Twitter question about deep-frying at home.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

June 15, 2018 (originally aired)
June 7, 2019 (rebroadcast)

The Way We Eat Now Jun 04, 2019

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Do you scroll through your Instagram feed, looking all of these gorgeous, perfect food photos, and instead of feeling inspired, you start to feel bad? Like what you're eating that day doesn't quite stack up? Take comfort! You are not alone. The British food writer, journalist and historian Bee Wilson says one of life’s greatest joys –- food and eating -- have become fraught with anxiety and confusion. She has a new book called, The Way We Eat Now: How the Food Revolution Has Transformed Our Lives, Our Bodies and our World. Contributor Shauna Sever recently talked with her from London.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

June 4, 2019

One Cook's Trash... May 31, 2019

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We’re looking at trash from all different angles. Chef Abra Berens, author of Ruffage, rifles through Francis's kitchen to show him the missed opportunities. Visit with Homa Dashtaki of The White Moustache, a yogurt company based in Brooklyn. Homa is determined to turn her yogurt-making waste, whey, into the next kombucha. We discover why the French can’t quite grasp the doggie bag. And, America’s Test Kitchen recommends their favorite reusable items including storage bags, kitchen wrap, and more.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

May 31, 2019

Cooking with Maple Syrup May 21, 2019

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Maple syrup is not just for pancakes and French toast. More and more people turn to it when they want to sweeten something without using refined white sugar. Beth Dooley and Mette Nielsen cowrote the book, Sweet Nature: A Cook’s Guide to Using Honey and Maple Syrup, in which they revel in maple syrup’s magical way of completely transforming a dish. Our contributor Shauna Sever talked with them about simple ways we can all get a little bit of that magic.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

May 21, 2019

Food & Mental Health May 17, 2019

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May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and this week we’re devoting the entire hour to personal stories about how food and the food industry can impact our mental health. Restaurateur David McMillan, of Joe Beef in Montreal, talks candidly about his challenge with sobriety in the restaurant world and how it changed the way his restaurants function. Playwright and screenwriter Stephanie Covington Armstrong, author of Not All Black Girls Know How to Eat, tells us her powerful story about eating disorders and the dissonance it has as a black woman. And, body image activist Virgie Tovar talks about the mental health implications of fatphobia, fat discrimination, and the diet culture; her latest book is You Have the Right to Remain Fat.

If you are in need of mental health resources or help, see the links on our page splendidtable.org/mentalhealth.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

May 17, 2019

At the Intersection of Food and Mental Health May 07, 2019

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So often, conversations regarding healthy eating go straight to health matters below the neck - things like weight management, heart health, managing cholesterol and diabetes. But some doctors believe that we should be focused on feeding what’s above the neck – our brains. Dr. Drew Ramsey calls himself a nutritional psychiatrist. He’s an avid researcher of the connection between food, brain function, and mental health at Columbia University – and, he’s a farmer. Contributor Shauna Sever spoke to Dr. Ramsey about his work and how we can work more brain-boosting foods into our diet.

This story is part of a larger collaborative partnership with our colleagues at Call To Mind, an initiative from American Public Media to foster new conversations about mental health, for Mental Health Awareness Month. Listen to our full episode Food & Mental Health, in which we spend the entire hour exploring issues around food and mental health. The show features a conversation with Chef David McMillan about substance use disorder and recovery in the restaurant world. Activist Virgie Tovar talks to us about fat discrimination, shame and body image. And, we hear from playwright and screenwriter Stephanie Covington Armstrong about her very personal experience with an eating disorder.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

May 7, 2019

The Philly Special Apr 26, 2019

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The food scene in Philadelphia is booming and we’re taking you there for an event recorded live at WHYY. Francis Lam talks to three of the people at the forefront of the culinary scene in Philly: award-winning chef and writer Michael Solomonov of Zahav, chef Eli Kulp from Fork and High Street on Market, and Malaysian chef Ange Branca of the James Beard Award-nominated Saté Kampar. And, because who can resist a controversy? America’s Test Kitchen takes a stand on what sandwich is really the sandwich of Philadelphia!

Broadcast dates for this episode:

May 4, 2018 (originally aired)
April 26, 2019 (rebroadcast)

Chetna's Healthy Indian Apr 23, 2019

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Chetna Makan is a trained fashion designer, who was born in Jabalpur, India. As a contestant on The Great British Bake Off, she baked her way right into the semifinals and charmed the world with her enthusiastic approach to Indian baking and cooking. The latest of her three cookbooks is called Chetna’s Healthy Indian: Everyday Meals Effortlessly Good For You. In an interview with contributor Melissa Clark, Chetna explains that most Indian food is healthy by nature and there's an never-ending variety of what you can do with ingredients like lentils, vegetables, chilies and spices. She shared with us her recipes for Mango & Mint Salad, Black Lentils with Red Kidney Beans, Masala Black Chickpeas, and Spicy Chicken & Chickpeas Curry Bake.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

April 23, 2019

Kwame Onwuachi - Notes from a Young Black Chef Apr 19, 2019

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We’re spending the hour with one of America’s rising chefs, Kwame Onwuachi of Washington DC’s Kith/Kin. His new memoir is Notes From a Young Black Chef. Francis Lam and Kwame talk about growing up and exploring food from all over the world, cutting his culinary teeth on an oil spill responder ship, and the layers of joy and frustration he experienced -- and what he learned -- from opening and closing the highly-anticipated The Shaw Bijou. Sally Swift also talks with Dan Souza from America’s Test Kitchen to learn about two ‘chef-y’ techniques for your kitchen: nitro cold-brew coffee, and cooking with koji.

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