Eat Your Words

Cathy is joined in the studio by Rachel Wharton, a James Beard Award-winning food writer and veteran co-author of cookbooks. Having co-written cookbooks from local chefs like Sohui Kim on her recent "Korean Home Cooking," to Action Bronson's and Freddie Prinze, Jr.'s cookbooks. Rachel divulges what it's like to be behind the scenes of cookbooks, what skills and tasks it entails, and what makes, overall, a great cookbook. She also shares tidbits about the upcoming book of her own, on American food. Photo courtesy of Amazon Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

Today, Cathy is joined on the phone with Karen Babine, an award-winning author and the editor of Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies. Her new book, All the Wild Hungers, is a collection of narrative essays on food, family, and her mother's struggle with cancer. Karen shares insights on cooking with her niblings (nephews and nieces), breaking a cast-iron pot, potatoes, and how food always tells a story—full of political history as well as personal. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.

For the season finale of Eat Your Words, Cathy welcomes back to the show Julia Turshen to talk about her latest, acclaimed cookbook Now & Again: Go-To Recipes, Inspired Menus + Endless Ideas for Reinventing Leftovers. Julia offers her view on what makes a good cookbook, and how she has evolved as a cookbook writer. She shares her philosophy on cooking everyday meals, as well as tips on reusing leftovers without letting any go to waste. And they dive into the menu-oriented recipes and how they can be re-fashioned depending on your mood or preferences to create endless meals that tell a different story every time. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

This week, Cathy dials up Leslie Jonath, editor of Feed Your People: Big-Batch, Big-Hearted Cooking and Recipes to Gather Around. As a longtime cookbook editor, Leslie decided to write this book to celebrate communal dishes and included recipes from dozens of chefs who contributed their favorite big-batch recipe for it. Leslie shares practical tips on cooking for a large crowd, inside stories behind the making of the book and working with the chef-contributors, and also her mom's go-to latke recipe. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

This week, Cathy is joined in the studio by chef Anita Lo to discuss her latest cookbook, Solo: A Modern Cookbook For A Party of One. They discuss Anita's approach to cooking throughout her career as a chef, with her restaurant, Anissa, and her first cookbook, Cooking Without Borders. Anita shares her thoughts on how all American food is really a fusion cuisine, but that there could be more recognition of and sensitivity towards great immigrant cuisines in the US. Also, they discuss some of Anita's favorite go-to recipes for cooking for one, one of her favorite condiments, Lao Gan Ma, and some tips on holiday cooking for a small crowd. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

Cathy is joined in the station by food writer Georgia Freedman, author of Cooking South of the Clouds: Recipes and Stories from China's Yunnan Province. She shares why she was so enthralled by Yunnan province while studying in Beijing that several years later, she and her husband moved there to research its fascinating food culture, resulting in this book as well as her blog, ChinaSouthoftheClouds.com. With a population that includes dozens of minority groups and a mountainous terrain, Yunnan is home to a multi-faceted cuisine that is unlike that of anywhere else. From mashed potatoes to rice noodle soups, pea soup to pineapple rice, Georgia talks about some of her favorite dishes and insights. Powered by Simplecast

A packed house in the station! Cathy is joined by the co-authors of The Culinary History of Taipei, Katy Hui-wen Hung and Steven Crook, as well as the owners of the nearby Taiwanese American restaurant, Win Son, Josh Ku and Trigg Brown, to discuss the fascinating evolution of Taiwanese food. Katy and Steven explain why they decided to write this history book and what they learned along the way. We also dive into the oft-asked question of just "What is Taiwanese food?" Katy and Steven share the history behind two iconic Taiwanese dishes: its Beef Noodle Soup and Pineapple Cake. And the group discusses how the cuisine has been surprisingly influenced by the US over the decades. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

Award-winning British food writer Diana Henry returns to Eat Your Words to discuss her latest cookbook, How to Eat A Peach, and much more. Hear Diana and Cathy talk about how fun it is to create a menu for a dinner, even if it only exists in your head. And hear Diana share what food writers have inspired her the most, and how food writing was her second career. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

This week, Cathy chats with Lindsay-Jean Hard, author of Cooking With Scraps: Turn Your Peels, Cores, Rinds, and Stems into Delicious Meals. Lindsay-Jean shares how she began writing a column on the same topic for Food52, and how, before that, she was inspired to use all parts of vegetables after joining a CSA while living in Japan. Lindsay-Jean shares some incredible cooking advice for everyday scraps like banana peels, broccoli stems, cheese rinds, and much more. Powered by Simplecast [1]https://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Scraps-Peels-Cores-Delicious/dp/0761193030 [2]https://www.workman.com/products/cooking-with-scraps-1 [3]https://www.eventbrite.com/e/author-demo-with-lindsay-jean-hardcooking-with-scraps-tickets-49442908069

This week, Cathy dials out to Norway to talk to Nevada Berg, author of the Norwegian cookbook, North Wild Kitchen, and the award winning blog of the same name. Nevada talks about what makes Norwegian food unique, why it's important - and fun - to preserve age-old food traditions today, and how she has adapted some of them in new ways, such as making an ice cream flavor from traditional sour cream porridge, Rommegrot. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast 1http://www.northwildkitchen.com/about/ [2]http://www.northwildkitchen.com/

In today's episode, Cathy speaks with Allie Rowbottom, the author of the harrowing memoir, Jell-O Girls: A Family History. As an heir to the Jell-O fortune, Allie writes about her family's unique story as well as the cultural history of an iconic American product, and how it has shaped the lives of women in her family as well as America as a whole. Allie tells us about the history of Jell-O, from an elite European dessert to a democratizing, inexpensive product sold to American housewives and children. And she tells us why she thought it was important to take up the job that her mother began in telling her family's story.

On today's episode, Cathy calls Nik Sharma, the award-winning blogger of A Brown Table, to talk about his first cookbook, Season. Nik shares his story on how he began writing about and photographing food, and why he named his blog A Brown Table. He also encourages readers and home cooks to not be afraid to try new flavors and techniques in their everyday cooking, because you'll only learn from every failure. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.

This week Cathy catches up with Danielle Nierenberg, founder & president of Food Tank, a nonprofit organization focused on building a healthy, safe, global food system, and the book she edited Nourished Planet: Sustainability in the Global Food System. She talks about how farmers in North America can learn from the valuable solutions being applied to agriculture in developing countries. And also, how food waste is one low-hanging fruit issue that everyone can join the fight to solve. Hear Danielle offer more examples from experts around the world who've contributed to this book. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.

Tasmania comes to Brooklyn this week, as Cathy is joined in the studio by Sarah Glover and Luisa Brimble, the author and photographer of Wild Adventure Cookbook. Glover is a chef based in Tasmania who, after becoming frustrated working indoors, has made it her forte to cook in the wild—at beaches, forests, and anywhere outdoors, using simple ingredients and tools found in the wild. She teamed up with photographer Luisa Brimble for this cookbook, which was shot entirely outside, capturing the authentic dishes and scenery of the project as they were made, sans photo-shoot crew. Hear why cooking with the unexpected factors of the wild makes everything taste much more delicious. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.

This week Cathy is joined by Mayada Anjari, author of The Bread and Salt Between Us: Recipes and Stories from a Syrian Refugee's Kitchen, and the book's coauthor Jenn Sit and interpreter Dalia El-Newehy. Mayada shares her family's journey from Syria to Jordan to, finally, the United States, due to the Syrian Civil War. She also tells how cooking for fundraiser dinners at her sponsor church in Jersey City led to the idea for this cookbook. Hear how she makes Kibbeh, or meat-filled torpedo-shaped dumplings; stuffed vegetables; and simple weeknight meals with lots of fresh salad. Find out why cooking Mayada's style of Syrian cuisine is so authentic to her family yet so accessible to anyone's. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.

Cathy is joined in-studio by veteran food writer Joe DiStefano and food photographer Clay Williams for the first episode of the fall '18 season. Their new book, 111 Places in Queens That You Must Not Miss, is a guide to the diverse delights of the borough, including a dizzying plethora of food that has made its 7 subway line known colloquially as the "International Express." From Tibetan momos to 4am Thai street hawker food, Uzbek kosher bakeries and Romanian charcuteries, hear why Queens has so much food from so many places, it's unlike any other place in the world. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

It's a wild world out there—for food. An avid forager, home cook, and garden designer, Marie has enjoyed gathering edibles from the wild since her childhood in South Africa. Incorporating wild herbs, berries and greens from the field was a natural extension of everyday cooking, as she was taught by her mother. Now, Marie has become an expert on foraging in the US, writing articles on the topic and publishing her second book, a comprehensive manual on commonly found wild edibles and recipes to use with them. From creating your own blend of herbs for vermouth to making a simple salad of purslane, she shares her homespun secrets and advice for both novices and experienced foragers. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

This week, Cathy talks with Camas Davis, the founder of Portland Meat Collective, about her new memoir, Killing It. Camas discusses her decision to learn about the traditions of animal butchery in Southern France after losing her job as a food reporter, and becoming a teacher in whole animal butchery to better connect consumers & eaters with their food system. Camas says that her book is written precisely for those who are "faint of heart," and shares her transformation from a feminist vegetarian to an advocate for whole animal butchery. and eating meat with greater awareness and respect. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast

This week, hear from Lillian Li, author of the critically-acclaimed debut novel, Number One Chinese Restaurant. Centered around a multi-generational cast of characters in a Chinese restaurant in America, the novel weaves plots about family, love, and loss. Lillian tells Cathy about why it's exciting to be publishing a book about a topic that's such a fertile ground for narrative but hasn't been explored much yet - and why it's always important to see a Chinese waiter as human. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.

This week, Cathy talks with Eddie Hernandez, Executive Chef and co-owner of Taqueria Del Sol restaurants in the South, on his unique take on Mexican and Southern food. Eddie talks about his experience as an immigrant, working his way up from a dishwasher to line cook and learning English, and how his recipes reflect his open attitude toward learning and incorporating from cultures. He also shares some suggestions for low-cost menus perfect for summer parties. Eat Your Words is powered by Simplecast.