Pressure Cooker

Get ready: This week, we’re talking about everybody’s favorite, totally NOT cringe-inducing or awkward topic: puberty. Because kids today--and girls, in particular--are going through it earlier than they used to. Why is it happening? And what, if anything, do the hormones in milk and meat have to do with it? On this episode, Jand and Liz talk with Dr. Louise Greenspan, who led one of the landmark studies about the timing of puberty in girls and co-authored a popular book about it called The New Puberty. The answer may surprise you. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Mother's Day. And like a lot of other moms, we're rebelling against the ideals of the "good mother." So we're bringing back a Pressure Cooker classic. In this episode, Jane and Liz challenge the idea that society’s ills can be solved by each of us spending more time in the kitchen, sing the praises of convenience food, and talk to the authors of the 2019 book Pressure Cooker: Why Home Cooking Won’t Solve Our Problems, and What We Can Do About It. We close out the show by sharing the dinner shortcuts we love.  As promised, here are Pressure Cooker’s picks for time-savers you can feel good about. Heat and Eat  Talia Di Napoli Frozen Pizza: Crust that tastes like a wood-burning pizza joint and sauce that tastes like sunshine. Available retail and online; $13 to $15 per pizza.  Trader Joe’s Cheese and Green Chili Tamale: Made for the microwave and not too spicy for the kids. $3.79 for two. Trader Joe’s Black Bean and Jack Cheese Burrito: The antithesis of the sad desk lunch burrito. Perfect from the toaster oven and big enough for two small kids.  $3.99  Jaju Pierogis: The Polish know kids. Dough + potatoes and cheese is a hit. Add some raw veg and you’re done. $10 for 12. Pasta Sauce  Rao’s Marinara Sauce: Yes, it’s cheaper to make your own but this is better and fast. Look for it at Costco or Aldi for a price break, from 5.99 for 24 ounces.  Good and Gather Organic Marinara Sauce, Target’s affordable no-sugar option, $2.79 for 24 ounces. Dump & Stir  OmSom: Think of these packets as authentically spiced flavor bombs, allowing you to make restaurant-quality Asian dishes in 15 minutes, Available online or retail; three packets (six servings) for $12.  Maya Kaimal: There are a zillion simmer sauces but Maya Kaimal’s are the OG. Most kids will dig the mild creamy Butter Masala. $5.  Haven’s Kitchen: Great flavors in resealable squeezy pouches. We love the golden turmeric tahini and the chimichurri. $6.99 per 5-ounce pouch. Rice, Noodles, Dumplings Birdsye Frozen Rice: The fastest way to get a healthy grain on the table. $2.50 per 10-ounce bag.  Momofuku Ramen: An upgrade on the dorm-room fave with air-dried noodles and a tasty spice packet.  5-pack starting at $12. MìLà (formerly Xio Chi Jie) Pork Soup Dumplings: As good as a restaurant. Seriously! And so fun for kids. $40 for 50 dumplings.   Trader Joe’s Pork and Ginger Soup Dumplings: Affordable and delicious is possible. $6 for $3.79. What are your faves? Let us know @pressurecook_fm Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Half of all parents of young children say they have at least one picky eater in their household: a state of affairs that strikes many moms and dads stuck serving up the same half dozen foods on repeat as highly unnatural. With the help of Jennifer Traig, the author of Act Natural: A Cultural History of Misadventures in Parenting, Jane and Liz explore when, and why, picky eating emerged as a common trait among children – and what you can do to stop it.  #pickyeating #feedingkids #parenting  Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christina Tosi is the chef and creative force behind Milk Bar: a dessert brand that she launched in 2008 in Manhattan’s East Village, and has grown to include almost a dozen shops, a brisk mail order business, and a line of cookies, ice creams, and other treats for sale at grocery stores nationwide. In addition to being a successful entrepreneur, and the host of the Netflix show Bake Squad, Christina is also a mom of two. In this episode, Jane and Liz talk with Christina about all things Milk Bar, motherhood, and what it means to strike a healthy balance when it comes to sweets. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dan Pashman is host of the insanely popular podcast, The Sporkful, inventor of a primo pasta shape, cascatelli, and author of a new cookbook, Anything’s Pastable, a book that makes a persuasive case for eating pasta for dinner every night of the week. And as if that isn’t enough to tune in, Dan’s also a dad of two who has successfully found ways to weave the pleasures of food into family life.  Interested in his new cookbook, you can pre-order at the link above. The Sporkful is also running a fascinating five-part series on the making of the cookbook. Find it here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kathryn Jezer-Morton is a pHd sociologist and the brains behind The Cut’s popular parenting newsletter, Brooding: Deep Thoughts on Modern Family Life. Brooding is not an advice column; it’s a collection of smart, funny, topical essays that interrogate what it means to be a parent today, and how we got this way. In this episode of Pressure Cooker, Jane and Liz chat with Jezer-Morton about some of their favorite Brooding essays, hitting on topics like vacation food rules, snack drawers, and “pouch culture” (IYKYK) along the way. Brooding columns discussed in this episode: Are Helicopter Parents Actually Lazy? Why Are We Always On Call For Our Kids? Is Going Camel Mode Inevitable For Parents?  Now Is the Time For Treats  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peanut butter sandwiches were once the go-to brown bag lunch. But since the 1990s, food allergies in children have tripled. Jane and Liz plunge into the research that explains (finally) why this is happening and talk to Dr. Ruchi Gupta of Northwestern University about new recommendations for how to help prevent allergies in our kids. Additional resources The Center for Food Allergy and Asthma Research: Dr. Gupta’s center with links to a ton of peer-reviewed articles and advice Food Allergy and Research Education: Education and Advocacy Resource Center The LEAP Study: Which changed our view of how to introduce peanuts to kidsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What can any one person do to fight climate change? Paul Greenberg, author of The Climate Diet: 50 Simple Ways To Trim Your Carbon Footprint, joins Liz and Jane to home in on achievable ways that you can make a difference in your kitchen.   Further Reading: Rowan Jacobsen’s great piece on the fantasy of plastic recycling Liz’s Wall Street Journal GREAT piece on reducing food waste  Jane’s Washington Post interview with Dana Gunders, author of the Waste-Free Kitchen Handbook Bill McKibben: The UN Announces its Hottest Year: The Climate Heated Up But Clean Energy Did Too See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Intuitive eating, the popular new anti-diet philosophy, recommends serving candy with dinner and letting kids eat whenever and whatever they want. Is this hands-off approach the best way to escape toxic diet culture? Or … is intuitive eating just another food fad?  Guests:  Dr. Janet Lydecker, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine. She’s a researcher but also works directly with adolescents suffering from eating disorders.  Emily Hohman, an assistant research professor at the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at Penn State University. Elyse Resch, one of the two American nutritionists who coined the phrase "intuitive eating." Mentioned in this episode:  Virginia Sole Smith and her book Fat Talk Amee Seversen and Sumner Brooks, authors of a book called How to Raise an Intuitive Eater. The report from the National Health Examination Survey that shows children ages 2 to 19 get  67% of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods.  The infamous Clara Davis study that we've talked about several times on this podcast.  The extraordinary science of addictive junk food, including the story behind Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper.  The Dunkin Donuts Pumpkin Swirl Frozen Coffee which has 930 calories and 167 grams of added sugars.  You can find us on instagram @pressurecook_fm. Or for a full archive of past episodes, recipes, and more, visit pressurecooker.fm See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you don’t know Melissa Clark, have we got a treat for you. She’s a food columnist for the New York Times and the author of 48 (!!) cookbooks, including one made for this show: “Kid in the Kitchen.” On this episode, Melissa joins Jane and Liz to talk about respecting kids’ tastes, when to give up control, and the secret to her viral lentil soup recipe. Books featured in this episode:  Kid In The Kitchen by Melissa Clark Dinner in an Instant by Melissa Clark Recipes featured in this episode: Easy Red Lentil Soup Fudgy Bourbon BallsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kids can be cruel, the old saying goes. And there is no time that is more true than when they dismiss or all out reject your carefully chosen holiday gift. And so … here’s Pressure Cooker to the rescue with a winning collection of stories and food-themed holiday gifts for kids of all ages. Links to our favorites below: For Reading:  Who Ate What: A Historical Guessing Game for Food Lovers  What Happens When You Eat Madame Pamplemousse and her Incredible Edibles For Cooking: American Girl: Around the World Cookbook  The Dynamite Shop Cookbook Kai Little Chef Club Children’s Knife Cavatelli Pasta Maker Hedley & Bennett Kids Apron ($$$) or Pottery Barn Kids Apron ($$) For Stocking Stuffers: Play-Doh Little Chef Starter Kit Dandelion Hot Chocolate Tattly Farmer’s Market Temporary Tattoos Jewish Food Memory Game Printable Food Memory Game See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Candy, cookies, cake galore…welcome to the holidays! If you find yourself struggling with where to draw the line on sweets during the festive season, you are not alone. To help out, we’re reupping an old episode we love: an interview all about kids and sugar with Dr. David Katz, a specialist in preventive and lifestyle medicine. Listen in to find out whether you really need to worry about holiday sugar benders, and what you can do to sensibly manage your little ones’ sugar intake all year round. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Just in time for the holiday season, we’re resurfacing one of our favorite episodes about all the conflicts that bubble up when other people get involved in feeding our kids. Jane and Liz enlist the help of Carolyn Hax, the Washington Post’s legendary advice columnist, to help solve listeners’ issues with interfering, overbearing, and lackadaisical relatives who make feeding our kids more stressful than it should be. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Caroline Chambers is a guru to parents trying to get dinner on the table. And now, Caroline joins Pressure Cooker to troubleshoot the ultimate (and most exhausting) meal of the year: Thanksgiving.  On this episode, she offers essential “dos” like “edit the meal to no more than five dishes” and a lot of sanity-saving “don’ts” to keep you in the holiday spirit.   Plus, Caro gave us her recs for truly great recipes to try this year. Enjoy:  TURKEY: Cover in salt, smoked paprika, and brown sugar. Leave it uncovered in the fridge for 48 hours. Roast at 325 degrees F for 15 minutes per pound. It’s done when it’s 160 degrees F when you stick a thermometer in the thigh and breast.  STUFFING: Ina Garten’s mushroom and leek bread pudding  MAKE-AHEAD GRAVY: The secret here is Better Than Bouillon; use this recipe as a template, but use turkey and beef flavors. Or follow Jane’s cheat,  reduced cider-stock make-head from Gourmet circa 2004. GREEN BEANS: Charred beans and some peanuts elevate this otherwise tired side dish.  PUMPKIN MAC AND CHEESE: A seasonal version of the dish kids can’t refuse. ROASTED CARROTS: Thank you Ottolenghi for this easy and amazing carrot dish. Note: You can skip the tahini yogurt, throw any leftover thyme inside your turkey. CRANBERRY LIME PIE: A sweet dessert with just enough tang to stand out on your buffet.   Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Turns out the secret of cooking has nothing to do with hacks and recipes. It is, according to British author Bee Wilson, about overcoming all the parts of daily life that get in the way of making it pleasurable. Bee joins Jane and Liz to discuss her new book, The Secret of Cooking, and her pioneering research on how to successfully convince children to try and like new foods.   Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When it comes to feeding infants their first foods, American parents are divided into two camps: those who favor spoon feed their infants purées and those who adhere to “baby led weaning,” which encourages babies to feed themselves.  If this doesn’t seem all that complicated or controversial…think again. Who’s right? Liz and Jane talk to Amy Bentley, a professor at NYU about how we have fed babies through the ages, and to Dr. Krupa Playforth about the latest science to understand why it has come to this and how parents can make the best decision for their babies.  Want to know more? Check out Amy Bentley’s book: Inventing Baby Food: Taste, Health and the Industrialization of the American Diet.  Dr. Playforth, aka The Pediatrician Mom, has more resources to help: 101 Before One offers a printed guide, recipe book and digital platform which teaches parents how to introduce solids to their baby, with info on intuitive eating, nutrition and allergens. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Influencer dietitians are all over social media – and their advice about feeding kids isn't always as impartial as you might think. On this week’s episode, Liz and Jane talk to Ananad O’Connor, the lead reporter on a newly released investigation by the Washington Post into the surprising financial ties between Big Food and registered dietitians on Instagram and TikTok. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Artificial intelligence can write term papers and computer code. It helped someone win the lottery. But could it succeed at the ultimate task: Meal planning for demanding children? Pressure Cooker takes on the challenge with the help of a special guest. Want to try this at home? We have a cheat sheet for how to create customized, easy dinners with ChatGPT. Plus, a Pressure Cooker-tested ChatGPT written recipe that your kids will love: Lettuce Wraps with Sesame-Ginger Pork.  Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome new listeners. We’re highlighting one or our favorite episodes: The Great American Food System makes chicken nuggets that look like hearts, dinosaurs even Baby Yoda. And why not? Last year, American families spent more than $200 million on frozen nuggets in novelty shapes. In this episode, Jane and Liz talk to Scott Friedman, whose family invented the dinosaur chicken nugget, and explore why dino nuggets—and all sorts of fun-shaped foods—might deserve a little more respect. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen in on a live podcasting event on the future of motherhood, coproduced by Future of Women. This week, Jane is joined by the Better Life Lab’s Brigid Schulte, journalists Helena Dyer Andrews, Julianna Goldman and Daniella Senior of the Colada Shop to discuss what’s not working for moms in America today and how we can work together to make change.  If you’re fired up after the conversation, here are a few organizations to follow or get involved with: Moms Rising, the Better Life Lab, the Center for American Progress, the National Women’s Law Center, Moms First. Sales and distribution by Lemonada MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.