Warm Lasagna

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Fried Bologna Sandwiches with Matt

2021-01-1741:34

A fried bologna sandwich, as delicious a comfort as it is, might seem like an unusual pick for a chef’s favorite food. For Matt, though, it was one of the first dishes he learned how to cook, and one which inspired him to eventually go on to culinary school. From the time he was a young boy and could barely reach the table, he was making biscuits with his grandmother and helping prepare meals for his family. “I love the science behind it,” he says ,and he can’t imagine himself doing any other...

Collards with Sasha

2021-01-1042:10

Sasha worked in restaurants most of her life, usually as a server or bartender, but she always longed to cook. When her mother died unexpectedly in 2019, Sasha’s grief caused her to question everything, including the direction her life was taking. As a way of honoring her mom, Sasha decided it was time to pursue her long-time dream of opening her own vegan food truck. She launched in early 2020, right as COVID was wreaking havoc on the food and beverage industry. Soul Miner’s Garden is a...

Stuffed Grape Leaves with Layla

2021-01-0338:43

“I equate food with togetherness.” Layla grew up watching her mother make stuffed grape leaves until she made them as an adult with her husband in their first house together. Her preferred way of making them is just like her mom’s - ground beef and rice served with a yogurt dipping sauce. Despite all the work that goes into these beauties, she makes them for nearly every gathering she hosts. Why? Because she loves them and they remind her of home. The entire process takes 4-6 hours; she ...

A Pot of Coffee with Robert

2020-12-2728:12

What a year it has been! Thank you to each and every one of you who have made this podcast possible for me - from guesting, to listening, to answering technology questions for me. I am eager to continue serving up hot episodes each week in 2021, so thank you for sticking with me. Working on this project to document my friends/family, and to learn more about the way food and community shape culture, has been so much fun! I look forward to digging in with you more in the coming year. The p...

Cut-Out Cookies with Katie

2020-12-2043:20

My Grandma Lupsor is an incredible woman. My mom has described her as “the perfect mother-in-law,” and she is known throughout our family for generosity, her compassion for others (she has received numerous awards for all of the volunteering she has done through the years), and, of course, her food. She has been a lifelong member of St. George Romanian Byzantine Catholic Church in Canton, Ohio, where she (and my grandpa, when he was living) helped organize numerous weddings, funerals, and eve...

Baked Macaroni with Mary

2020-12-1337:41

The very first place we learn about how to treat other people is our family of origin, and I am very fortunate to have a beautiful and loving family. This week on the podcast, we hear from my Grandma Mary. This is my mom’s mom and I have been told that she, my mother, and I have similar sounding voices - what do you think? Grandma Mary was a Depression-era baby, and her parents were Italian immigrants. This means two things: 1. She can make a killer baked macaroni and 2. She knows how to...

Party Mix with Jordan

2020-12-0635:49

Party mix is not a difficult thing to make, but it is an important annual holiday tradition for Jordan. “No one makes it like my mom. Your mom may make a good party mix, but it’s not like my mom’s.” Jordan’s mom, Vicki, is sweet enough to pay attention to what everyone in the family likes in the mix; she even makes separate batches for them (Jordan’s favorite are the Cheese Its). This attention to detail is only one of many ways Jordan has felt loved and supported by her mom through the years...

Chitlins with Fred

2020-11-2943:46

Pig intestines are an integral part of cuisine across the globe, however they have a special significance in African-American culture, albeit extremely divisive. Fred remembers the annual holiday debate about whether chitlins would be featured on their family’s Thanksgiving menu. He remembers the multi-day process of preparing chitlins for consumption, including the stench that would take over the entire house, the care with which his mother cleaned and stewed them, and various relatives’ rea...

Blackberry Sonker with Carrie

2020-11-2241:34

My dear friend and mentor, Carrie, is a yoga educator and life coach in Charlotte, NC. She is the co-creator of Explore and Expand, where she leads specially curated travel retreats in exciting locations across the globe (she co-hosts a highly entertaining podcast, too, by the way!) “Basically I feel like that’s why we’re here: to connect, and to let people know that they matter” Sonker is a baking traditional dish at the intersection of pie, cobbler, and crumble, which is unique to Surr...

Cajun Stir Fry with Leah and Whitney

2020-11-1539:55

Leah is the best coworker anyone could ask for: she is supportive during tough times, she has a great sense of humor, and she loves to take walks/eat lunch outside to break up the day. Even during COVID-era, Leah still leaves treats on my desk on the days she’s in the office! She is so, so thoughtful, intensely creative, and a wonderful friend. In this episode, her son, Whitney, joined us to talk about their family memories and traditions around eating and cooking. Whitney was home, studying ...

Spaghetti Dinner with Lindsay

2020-11-0840:39

If you want to treat somebody special, make them this meal: Spaghetti with a sauce that takes all day to make, garlic bread, a veggie on the side, and chocolate eclairs for dessert. This is what Lindsay’s mom taught her about how to show love through food. Lindsay is a beautiful human and dear friend of mine from graduate school. Those of us lucky enough to know her IRL (in real life) know her for her themed parties, her love of all things vintage and antique, her two calico cats, and he...

Cappuccino with Shari

2020-11-0141:22

“Food connects people at the heart, at our most primal level.”At 19, my cousin Shari left her home in northeast Ohio and moved to Italy. After adjusting to some cultural differences there, Shari realized just how similar life was to some of the traditions she grew up with. It confirmed her own Italian heritage, which was not something she had deeply considered until this time. It was there she learned to appreciate the family focus, communal eating, cooking with fresh ingredients, and the pre...

Chow Chow with Kelly

2020-10-2530:02

This week we were fortunate to sit down with my father-in-law, Kelly, to talk about his family's tradition of Chow Chow. If you grew up in the South, you might even have an open jar of chow chow on the shelf in the fridge. It is a sweet relish made from the last crops of the summer, right as the temps are beginning to drop and the tomato vines stop ripening. I was lucky enough to marry into a family with many traditions related to cooking food and eating in community. Kelly's father's chow ch...

Lasagna Love with Rhiannon

2020-10-1849:25

Rhiannon has loved to cook since she was a young girl. In this episode, she shared about her family tradition of making stollen Christmas bread every year, and the importance of passing her passion for cooking on to her own children. She has been blogging for years about motherhood, nutritious eating, and wellness at Good to Mama. And then in 2020, when a global pandemic hit, Rhiannon decided to use her skills for the good of her community. And that's where Lasagna Love started. Lasagna...

Horseradish Encrusted Salmon with Jeffrey

2020-10-1137:37

Dolly Parton says, "Find out who you are and do it on purpose," and our guest this week, Jeffrey, demonstrates this sentiment beautifully. Jeffrey is a body worker and yoga therapist living in Charlotte, NC. He is one of my favorite teachers (of yoga, and of life) and in this episode, Jeffrey shared lots of wisdom with us. He shared about food, yes, but also about the human form, about sitting with difficult emotions, and about staying grounded through a global pandemic. When it comes to food...

Roast Chicken and Potatoes with Amy

2020-10-0427:54

“Get into the kitchen, find out what your comfort level is, and feed your soul.” I love things that come in trucks. Food trucks. Ice cream trucks. Did you know that there is such a thing as a dog treat truck?? There is! And my friend, Amy, owns one! Amy is so wonderfully thoughtful and wise. She is a dog magnet. She is my sole-sister (run group friend) and our Sunday hiking ritual is one of the main things that has gotten me through this challenging year. In this episode, Amy a...

Mac and Cheese with Sarah

2020-09-2744:53

This week’s guest is a celebrity - at least in our household! She is the type of friend you call by her first and last name because we’re just waiting for her to get discovered by the Food Network so we can tell everyone we know her way back when. Sarah is very skilled in the kitchen. She's a bit of a high achiever and gives everything 110%. For example, on the Saturday we recorded this, Sarah arrived right on time, wearing a stylish cheddar yellow dress with a warm pan of photo-worthy m...

Sauteed Okra and Tomatoes with Carey

2020-09-2045:24

Earlier this year, Carey let me bring my tomato plants by his place to give me a few pointers on the ins and outs of container gardening. Carey was patient and did not judge me, even though my poor plants were clearly lacking the water and nutrients they needed. Instead, he helped me re-pot my plants and gave me an overview on tomato care basics. Not only did he save my tomato plants from the brink of death but he also gave me a lesson on what it means to care for a living thing. Watching the...

Hamburger Casserole with Sheena

2020-09-1330:53

"I love to host, I love having people over. I feel that just being a therapist - a sense of community and a sense of belonging is really important. It’s something you need to achieve in your hierarchy of needs. When you bring people together to share a meal you get a sense of belonging. People are authentic when they’re eating; when you’re eating you feel safe. So for me, it’s safety and communion. " Sheena joins us this week to talk about all things casserole! She shares about her experience...

Tomato Tart with Chase

2020-09-0631:03

“Community and food are very closely tied, and I think it is a holy experience when you can sit around with friends and loved ones and share a meal. Break bread. Drink some wine.” This week, Chase joins us to share about one of Emily's favorite summer dishes: Tomato Tart! Chase is an incredibly hardworking woman - a minister's wife, a mother of 3 boys, and a PA. In this episode, she shares a lot of practical tips about how to cook dairy free treats at home on a budget. She talks about h...

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