Your Last Meal with Rachel Belle

Latest Episodes:

J. Ryan Stradal: Shakshuka at Barbary Fig Jul 11, 2024

Show notes

The New York Times bestselling novelist J. Ryan Stradel tells host Rachel Belle it was “totally weird to be a teenage foodie in the 1990s.”

He couldn’t wait to get his driver’s license so he could drive into the Twin Cities and eat at restaurants serving mysterious, flavorful, global food — a complete contrast to the bland dishes his parents cooked at home.

Food plays a role in all three of Stradal’s novels, all set in his home state of Minnesota: Kitchens of the Great Midwest, The Lager Queen of Minnesota and Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club — supper clubs being a uniquely Midwestern throwback institution. Rachel chats with the owners of two multigenerational supper clubs, Lehman’s and Ettlin’s Ranchero, about what sets them apart from other restaurants.

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The Leftovers with G. Love Jul 04, 2024

Show notes

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from G. Love, frontman for G. Love & Special Sauce! The band is celebrating 30 years since releasing their self-titled first album, featuring beloved bangers like Baby’s Got Sauce and Cold Beverage.

G. Love tells host Rachel Belle about his big backyard garden, where he grows both edibles and smokables, and shares how he turned his “special sauce” into a tangible product.

When it comes to sugary kid’s cereals, you most likely know the mascots and slogans even if you've never taken a single bite. We learn the stories behind mascots like Cap’n Crunch and Tony the Tiger with Tim Hollis, author of “Part of a Complete Breakfast: Cereal Characters of the Baby Boom Era.”

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G. Love: Confit de Canard Jun 27, 2024

Show notes

It has been 30 years (!) since G. Love & Special Sauce put out their first album, and in that time G. Love has written a whole lotta food and drink lyrics. He tells host Rachel Belle the origin stories behind songs like Milk & Cereal, Cold Beverage and his album Lemonade.

Lemonade has special meaning to G. Love, so Rachel chats with Gastro Obscura editor Anne Ewbank about the history of the sweet, puckery drink, the different ways it's prepared around the world and why American children have taken on the responsibility of selling it!

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The Leftovers with Geraldine DeRuiter Jun 20, 2024

Show notes

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Geraldine DeRuiter, author of the new book If You Can't Take the Heat & James Beard Award winning writer.

Geraldine tells host Rachel Belle about her dream Costco sample, shares her perfect birthday cake and, perhaps the most fun part of the episode, the long string of blooper cuts after the credits run!

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Geraldine DeRuiter: Her Husband's Carbonara Jun 13, 2024

Show notes

In her latest book, If You Can’t Take the Heat, Geraldine DeRuiter uses food, humor and her own (often ridiculous!) life to explore the topic of feminism.

Geraldine has a way of, as she puts it, “going bonkers viral.” Millions of people read her James Beard Award-winning blog post, “I Made the Pizza Cinnamon Rolls from Mario Batali’s Sexual Misconduct Apology Letter,”and her essay about a bizarre experience at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Italy inspired a front-page New York Times article.

Over the course of two interviews (host Rachel Belle forgot to ask Geraldine a very important question the first time around), Geraldine and Rachel bond over the strange (read: disgusting) things they ate as children and the absolute best way to make and eat popcorn, plus Geraldine shares her last meal, which is almost entirely cooked by her husband.

Romans take their carbonara very seriously and insist it be cooked using “traditional” ingredients. But Rome-based culinary guide and cookbook author Katie Parla says modern-day Italian carbonara is not as authentic as passionate locals think it is.

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Thanks to Visit Kitsap for sponsoring this episode!

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The Leftovers with Dan Pashman Jun 06, 2024

Show notes

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Dan Pashman, host of The Sporkful podcast, inventor of the cascatelli pasta shape, and author of the new cookbook Anything’s Pastable.

Dan was a guest on Your Last Meal in 2017, so host Rachel Belle checks in to see if his last meal has changed over the past seven years.

Then, a speed round! Dan talks about the biggest challenge of writing a cookbook, his carb-on-carb recipe for pasta pizza, and his dream birthday cake.

Order Rachel's favorite tortillas!

Watch Rachel's Cascade PBS TV show The Nosh with Rachel Belle!

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Thanks to Visit Kitsap for sponsoring this episode!

Support Cascade PBS: https://secure.cascadepublicmedia.org/page/133995/donate/1/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dan Pashman & his new book "Anything's Pastable" May 30, 2024

Show notes

Award winning The Sporkful podcast host, Dan Pashman, invented a new pasta shape in 2021. Cascatelli was released with great fanfare -- Time magazine declared the pasta one of 2021’s best inventions and it was covered everywhere from The New York Times to Access Hollywood.

But when fans started tagging Dan on Instagram, eager to show off their cascatelli creations, he realized everyone was bathing their pasta in the same three sauces! Eager to move beyond marinara and mac & cheese, Dan wrote his first cookbook, Anything’s Pastable: 81 Inventive Pasta Recipes for Saucy People.

On his recent book tour, Dan popped by host Rachel Belle’s Seattle home studio to talk about the cookbook’s innovative, international recipes; the best place in the house to eat when you don’t want to share food with your children; and why he thinks spaghetti is an inferior pasta shape.

Then host Rachel Belle blindfolded Dan and fed him pasta to see how many shapes he could identify by mouthfeel alone! Watch the video here!

Dan was on YLM to talk about his last meal back in 2017 -- you can listen here!

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Thanks to Visit Kitsap Peninsula for sponsoring this episode!

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The Leftovers with Kathleen Hanna & Food Not Bombs May 23, 2024

Show notes

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Kathleen Hanna, frontwoman for the groundbreaking feminist punk bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre and author of the new memoir Rebel Girl. Last week, on Your Last Meal, Kathleen talked about meals she’s eaten that were so good, they made her cry. Like, really cry.

Today she tells us about her major, if accidental, contribution to a Nirvana record, what it means to be punk-rock while living a comfortable adult life and what it was like working at McDonald’s as a teenager.

Then host Rachel Belle meets the co-founder of Food Not Bombs, a global movement to end hunger.

Watch Rachel's Cascade PBS TV show The Nosh with Rachel Belle!
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Thanks to Visit Kitsap for sponsoring this episode!

Support Cascade PBS: https://secure.cascadepublicmedia.org/page/133995/donate/1/

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Kathleen Hanna: A Giant Buffalo Chicken Eggroll May 16, 2024

Show notes

The legendary riot grrrl and punk rock singer for Bikini Kill and Le Tigre has a reputation for crying over a delicious meal. As far as we know, she's shed tears over sushi, birthday cake, and gelato. Why does food make her so emotional? She breaks it down (but doesn’t break down!) for host Rachel Belle.

Kathleen, who got her start in the punk scene in Olympia, WA in the early 90s, is best known for being an outspoken feminist and activist; at her early shows she’d speak out about domestic violence and sexual violence between songs.

While Kathleen took her rage to the stage, cookbook author and James Beard Award winning journalist Kathy Gunst, released her outrage through flour, sugar, butter, fruit, and chocolate. We talk about her cookbook, Rage Baking: The Transformative Power of Flour, Fury, and Women's Voices.

Pick up Kathleen's new memoir Rebel Girl!

Follow along on Instagram!

Watch Rachel's new Cascade PBS TV show The Nosh with Rachel Belle!
Thanks to Visit Kitsap Peninsula for sponsoring this episode!

Support Cascade PBS: https://secure.cascadepublicmedia.org/page/133995/donate/1/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Leftovers with Jesse Tyler Ferguson May 09, 2024

Show notes

Today on The Leftovers, a speed round with Jesse Tyler Ferguson; Modern Family star and Tony Award winning Broadway actor. Jesse reveals his bougiest, most cliche LA indulgence and creates a menu for a hypothetical dinner party with Barbra Streisand.

If you missed last week’s full interview with Jesse, listen here!

Thanks to Visit Kitsap Peninsula for sponsoring this episode!

Watch Rachel's new TV show, The Nosh, on Cascade PBS!

Follow Rachel Belle on Instagram!

Support Cascade PBS: https://secure.cascadepublicmedia.org/page/133995/donate/1/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.