Karen Katz is a veteran executive TV producer and writer with over 1500 hours of television programming to her credit. Her illustrious career includes producing for networks such as Food Network, Discovery Networks, HBO Family, and more. She has worked on competition, lifestyle, documentary, reality, children's TV, and music/variety programming both domestically and internationally. Karen was the executive producer of Emeril Live during its pinnacle, and experienced firsthand the whirlwind of excitement, chaos, and creativity that unfolded behind the scenes. Karen’s new memoir, "Getting Sauced: How I Learned Everything I Know About Food From Working in TV is a backstage pass into the enthralling world of early food television, seasoned with humor, heart, and a dash of culinary magic. I loved this book! Karen's upbringing in Long Island, where Lipton Soup Mix and orange juice reigned supreme in the kitchen, laid the foundation for her flavorful adventures. From humble beginnings to haute cuisine, her narrative charts a course from Mrs. Paul's Fish Sticks to Michelin-starred delicacies, offering readers a taste of the glutton-to-glamour transformation that defined her culinary evolution. Let’s have a listen to Karen Katz!
Our guest today is Lisa Ekus, founder of The Ekus Group, a literary agency specializing in “representing a world of culinary talent.” She has over 40 years of experience representing a wide selection of food personalities, writers, cookbooks, restaurants, and food products. The agency she founded represents more than 350 authors and works with numerous leading publishers worldwide. A sought after expert and agent, Lisa’s media training, which was featured on NPR’s “All Things Considered,” helps culinary professionals improve their media presentation, video, and interviewing skills, traveling globally to present seminars, workshops, and panels. She has hosted everyone from Julia Child to Emeril Lagasse in her kitchen and at her table. Lisa sees food as the common denominator that brings family and friends together, and she sits down for dinner as often as possible with her family, friends, and clients. Last, but not least, she also is the proud owner of more than 7,000 cookbooks. The Guinness Book of World Records just awarded Lisa the honor of holding the largest personal cookbook collection in the world. A Kochleffel of the first order! Let’s have a listen.
We are thrilled that our very first guest on Kochleffel is none other than Joan Nathan, the doyenne, the epicenter of Jewish cooking. Joan is a frequent contributor to The New York Times and other publications. She is the author of twelve books, including Jewish Cooking in America and The New American Cooking, both of which won both the James Beard Award and the IACP Award, and King Solomon’s Table, which won an IACP Award and a Gourmand World Cookbook Award. She shares her time between Washington, DC, and Martha's Vineyard. We spoke with her as she was on book tour with her new memoir, My Life in Recipes. And what a life it is! We are so proud to call her a Kochleffel!
Welcome to Kochleffel, a special series about the remarkable contributions of Jewish women to the world of food.
New England lost one of the greats recently, Jasper White; chef, author, mentor, and trailblazer. He re-invented and re-invigorated New England cuisine and made it into a style of cooking that was a lot more than chowda' and lobster rolls. At 69, it was too soon to lose him. With great love and respect, and quite a bit of sadness, we re-broadcast a story he shared with us a few years back. Let’s have a listen to the great Jasper White!Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Writer, chef, and mega blogger Phoebe Lapine’s new book CARBIVORE is a paean to the joys and the nerdy science of carbs. She trashes the no-carb revolution and replaces it with easy-to-digest science -- and wonderful to ingest -- recipes that work whether you are a yes-on-carb or no-on-carbs freak. After her own challenging health issues, Phoebe studied herself and how her diet affected her body, her moods, and her well-being. Who knew normal people would wear a continuous glucose monitor just for fun? It’s a fascinating conversation with a very smart woman.Photo courtesy of Haley Hunt Davis.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Some people – rare people – have the knack of seeing the curves of the future and inviting the rest of us on the journey. Greg Drescher, the senior advisor for Strategic Initiatives at the CIA, Culinary Institute of America, is one of those people. A more insightful job title would be culinary visionary. Our conversation was fascinating as he traces his career arc from one insightful peak to another. You’ll enjoy the journey. Let’s have a listen.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Our guest today is Scott Grabau, CEO of Tanimura & Antle, one of the world’s largest produce growers. I know, the phrase “large produce” stops you, passionate as you are about buying local and supporting Farmer’s Markets. But what if it turns out that large “Legacy Agriculture” has deep expertise to share? And what if a company that farms thousands of acres, ships to across the US as well as Asia and Europe––is also passionate about maintaining sustainable farming practices, and laser-focused on innovating and investing in what’s next to come in agriculture? Let’s have a listen to Tanimura & Antle’s CEO Scott Grabau, and how he educates us about Legacy Farming, or maybe just rattles a few of our prejudices. Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Mary Ann Esposito is a legend. She is the star of Ciao Italia, a PBS show she produces in New Hampshire. Syndicated nationally for 31 years, it's the longest running cooking show in America. She has written over a dozen books focused on Italian regional cooking, and at 81, she still leads cooking tours to Italy. Fascinating, feisty, and down-to-earth, I just love her. Let's have a listen.Photo courtesy of John W. Hession.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Michael Crupain is an MD, an MPH, a passionate wellness advocate, and a terrific cook. When we first met, Michael was at Consumer Reports, which he then left to become the medical director of the Dr. Oz show (wow!). And now after 7 years there, he's writing fabulous cookbooks!Photo courtesy of Michael Crupain.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Our guest today is Corky White, Professor of Anthropology at Boston University. Although her focus is on Japan, Corky has a deep and fascinating focus on food – both as an academic pursuit and as globe-trotting food lover. Today’s episode is just that. A global trot through Corky’s life, food, culture, and the impact of her own heritage on why food is so fascinating. Her newest book, written with her son, historian Ben Wurgaft, is "Ways of Eating." We’ll get to that too – and stay tuned to learn about her grandmother’s rolling pin! Let’s have a listen!Photo courtesy of Corky White.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Our guest today is one of my favorite members of the culinary elite: Martha Rose Shulman, an award-winning author of more than twenty-five cookbooks, including The Simple Art of Vegetarian Cooking, The Very Best of Recipes for Health, Mediterranean Harvest: Vegetarian Recipes from the World’s Healthiest Cuisine (named one of the 6 best vegetarian cookbooks of the last 25 years by Cooking Light Magazine), Mediterranean Light, Provençal Light, and Entertaining Light. For eight years she wrote the feature entitled Recipes for Health for the New York Times. She has over 1,500 recipes featured on the NY Times Cooking website. Her food combines pleasure and health, drawing largely from the cuisines of the Mediterranean, inherently healthy cuisines with big flavors.Photo courtesy of Martha Rose Schulman.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
We talk -- or mostly listen -- to the remarkable Barton Seaver; recovering chef, prodigious advocate of all things seafood, TED talk alum, author of landmark books on American seafood (my favorite is For Cod & Country), and quite possibly the most eloquent speaker we've ever met!Photo courtesy of Barton Seaver.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
A 14 year old Minnesota boy wanted a motorcycle. He got a job as a dishwasher and it launched a stellar culinary career. We talked with Mark about himself, his outlook on the future of restaurants, and where the CIA is headed next.Photo courtesy of Mark Erickson.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Have you ever wondered how a food delivery business gets going? All the logistics, and the headaches and uncertainty of matching farmers to food and the fresh food to your home? Erin Baumgartner is the CEO and Founder of The Family Dinner. While working as the Assistant Director of the Senseable City Lab at MIT, she left her job after a drink with her husband in a local bar made her believe that her back-of-the-cocktail napkin idea was worth betting on. Since then, she has received so many accolades and awards -- and is the presenter of an inspiring Ted Talk!Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Paul Sellew is the Founder and CEO of Little Leaf Farms. His "farm" occupies massive greenhouses in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania and he expects that by 2026, he'll have 100 acres "under glass" and be able to offer sustainable crisp salad greens to over 50% of the American salad eating world. We'll all be crushing on Little Leaf's hydroponic and sunshine nourished salad greens. He's not the only one who believes in his success: Superstar Bono and his RISE Fund recently made a $300 million dollar investment in the company. That's a lot of arugula! Let's have a listen to Paul Sellew!Photo courtesy of Adam De Tour for Little Leaf Farms.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
A Conversation with Frank Lowenstein of RARE. Rare is the largest non-profit you've never heard of, and for 50 years it has been focused on using Behavioral Change to nudge people towards Sustainability all over the world. Now, RARE comes to the US. Frank, a lifelong environmentalist, talks about what we can do at the individual level to mitigate climate change.Photo courtesy of Frank Lowenstein.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Joanna James is a filmmaker, non-profit founder, mom of three girls, and the daughter of Val James, who against all odds created a successful restaurant company. Joanna’s film entitled "A Fine Line" documents her mother’s struggles, and those of other well-known female chef-owners in the restaurant industry. It tells the story of the barriers, financial and personal, that women face in the food business. When I first saw the film, I understood it as a love letter to her mom. The film created shock waves, generating a lot of buzz upon release. Joanna is also the founder of MAPP Impact, a non-profit focused on mentorship and policy advocacy for women in the food & beverage industry.Photo courtesy of Joanna James.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
Thea Engst is a seasoned author, a bartender, and a serious student of Tarot. In her fourth book, Spirits of the Tarot, Thea develops a cocktail recipe to match each Tarot card. It's fun stuff. Especially for true believers. We spoke with her about Tarot and how a bartender goes about developing signature cocktails.Photo courtesy of Thea Engst.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.
If you have a wall of cookbooks (like I do) but only ever crack open a few–help is at hand. Jane Kelly is the founder of Eat Your Books, a service that lets you search your own library to find the perfect recipe. She was an executive in the music and TV world in the UK, and then, she had an idea....Photo courtesy of Eat Your Books.Let’s Talk About Food is Powered by Simplecast.