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

This week, we talk about cuisines from opposite ends of the world. We start by diving into the first, traditionally-published cookbook about Salvadorian cuisine with Karla T. Vasquez. She collected traditional recipes and techniques while documenting stories from the hands that made the dishes. Karla is the author of The SalviSoul Cookbook: Salvadoran Recipes and the Women Who Preserve Them. She left us with her recipe for...

This week, we turn up the ovens and test our baking skills with two incredible bakers. First, we talk to LA-based cookbook author and star baker, Nicole Rucker, on why summer is peak pie season, the fruit and flavor combinations that elevate her pies (imagine toasted fig leaves!) and making the best out of her leftover cookies for pie crusts. Nicole's latest book is Fat and Flour: The Art of the Simple Bake, and she left u...

This week, we’ve got delicious cooking ideas to brighten your summer. First, author Jess Damuck talks to us about her vegetable-forward food inspired by the 1970s health-food culture. She talks about revamping 1970’s health-food classics and re-working recipes with a modern eye to make them taste great. She leaves us with her recipe for Lentil Loaf. Jess Damuck’s latest book is Health Nut: A Feel-Good Cookbook. Then, we he...

This week we’re sharing an episode from our friends at This Old House Radio:

Episode 19: Make Your Home Allergy Free + Fix Squeaky Wood Floors

This week on This Old House Radio Hour, we’re talking about something you can’t see but definitely feel: the air inside your home. Kenneth Mendez, president of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, shares the smartest, science-backed ways to improve indoor air qualit...

This week, we've got a show full of great ideas and terrific recipes for guesting…and hosting! First, Casey Elsass sits down with us to talk about how to guest like a pro, from tips on arriving prepared to great recipe ideas for sides, salads, appetizers, and desserts like his Mosaic Jell-O. Casey is the author of What Can I Bring: Recipes to Help You Live Your Guest Life. Then, renowned fashion designer and cookbook write...

Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora

This week, we talk about life and food in Southern France. First, we sit down with Steve Hoffman to talk about his latest memoir, A Season for That, about his journey from Minnesota to the South of France with his entire family to live a romanticized French life.  It turned out to be a complete culinary and culture shock that ended up inspiring ...

This week, it's all about keeping cool and carrying on in the kitchen. First up , chef, farmer, and cookbook author Abra Berens joins Francis to take your calls about how to best use our summer produce. She’s full of ideas for all that zucchini, btw! Abra is the author of three wonderful cookbooks, Ruffage, Grist, and Pulp, and you can find the recipe for the Summer Squash Escabeche she talked about here. Then, we head int...

This week, we're all about two summer traditions. First, we meet photojournalist and documentarian Kate Medley to talk about her decade-long project documenting gas stations all across the South.  She has stories about the amazing cast of characters, their diverse selection of foods, and their impact on their communities across the South. Kate Medley is the author of Thank You Please Come Again: How Gas Stations Feed &...

Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora

This week, we make our 30th anniversary tour stop in Tampa in partnership with WUSF, where we learn about what makes the food of South Florida so unique. First up, Dalia Colón, host of The Zest podcast and author of The Florida Vegetarian Cookbook, gives us an overview of the rich Tampa food scene. From its diverse cuisines to its old-school Sou...

This week, we look at modern food and culture from two popular cuisines. First, we sit down with acclaimed food writer Khushbu Shah to talk about her debut cookbook, which is all about Indian home-cooked dishes. She shares ingenious hacks and delicious Indian-inspired recipes that can come together in a pinch using everyday pantry items, and teaches Francis how to make her Chili Cheese Toast.  Khushbu Shah is the author of...

This week, we talk to two longtime restaurant critics from different parts of the country about what makes their work so interesting and what they're excited to eat. First, Bill Addison, restaurant critic for The Los Angeles Times, talks about his approach to critical writing, his favorite restaurant experiences, and the evolution of California cuisine. He just wrapped up one of the most ambitious projects of his career, t...

Have you ever wondered how June looks and tastes in different parts of the country? This week, we visit three different corners of the country to hear about their Junes. Gullah Geechee Chef-Farmer, Matthew Raiford in Coastal Georgia describes this time of year as “where the wild things are”. He tells us how his decision to come back to the south to become a farmer came to be and paints a picture of his favorite low country...

Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora
We're celebrating our 30th Anniversary on the road, and this week, we make our fourth stop in Iowa City in partnership with IPR. We talk to bakers, chefs, restaurateurs, and farmers about the food of the heartland. First up, Shae and Anna Pesek of Over the Moon Farm and T.D. Holub of The Garden Oasis Farm talk about their personal experiences wit...

When it comes to seafood, frozen is the new fresh. We talk to seafood industry expert, Jennifer Bushman about how technology has improved the quality of frozen fish and how to make the most of canned seafood from your local grocery store. Her latest project is Sea Pantry, how to keep your pantry stocked up with ingredients from the sea. Then, Senior Editor of New York Times Cooking, Genevieve Ko brings us her best at-home ...

This week, we spend the hour with Deborah Madison, one of the trailblazers in popularizing vegetarian cooking in America — even though she’s not a full-time vegetarian herself. We chat with her about how she came to be the founding chef of Greens, likely America's first high-end vegetarian restaurant, at a time when fine dining meant meat at the center of the plate, and her study of Buddhism and the food path it opened up ...

We're on the road celebrating our 30th Anniversary and this week, we bring you an eventful night in Seattle in partnership with KUOW. First up, Valerie Segrest, cofounder of Tahoma Peak Solutions, and Jeremy Thunderbird, owner of Native Soul Cuisine, about the diversity of indigenous food, carrying on traditional recipes, and food sovereignty. Then, Tan Vinh, host of KUOW's Seattle Eats podcast, and Melissa Miranda, chef-o...

This week, we’ve got suggestions to start your summer reading list. First, we sit down with bestselling author and poet  Aimee Nezhukumatathil to talk about her upbringing and the nature of her poetry. She writes about her parent’s gardens and their food, and how she carries her childhood experiences with her today.  Her latest book is Bite By Bite: Nourishments and Jamborees. Then, we learn about the life and legacy of th...

This week, we’re bringing you two guests that will get you excited about cooking and baking. First, New York Times food desk reporter Priya Krishna tells us about her food writing career, building connections through her stories and travels and her most recent book, Priya’s Kitchen Adventures: A Cookbook for Kids. In her book, she draws recipes from different cuisines worldwide and tells us what working with kids as recipe...

This week, we’re shining a light on the absolutely magical, life-changing, the world-changing thing that you already have in your kitchen. The refrigerator. Maybe nothing in your home has changed the world more. Historian Jonathan Rees author of Refrigeration Nation: A History of Ice, Appliances, and Enterprise in America talks about its origins and influence on cultures worldwide. Then, Editor in Chief of Cooks Illustrate...