Mindfull Eating

On Season 1, Episode 4 of the Mindfull Eating Podcast, we sprinkle a little sweetness in conversation with baker Cheryl Day. She, along with her husband Griffith Day, owned the fabled Back in the Day Bakery for 22 years at the corner of Bull and 40th streets, anchoring what is now a vibrant arts and entertainment district known as Starland in midtown Savannah.   During those years of building a corner shop around biscones, baby cakes, and buttery breads, Cheryl and Griff penned the award-winning and New York Times-bestselling Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook (Artisan 2012) and Back in the Day Bakery Made with Love (Artisan 2015). They were also married during a lunch rush by a frequent judge who like Super Chicken sandwiches, and they were shortlisted for the James Beard Foundation’s award in baking. She followed those books with the monumental JBF-nominated Cheryl Day’s Treasury of Southern Baking (Artisan 2021), a valentine to the women in her family and a tribute to their grit and gift for the sweet life. Her forthcoming cookbook celebrates the untold contributions and recipes of Black cake ladies to American culture.    Over tea and a slice of her Old-Fashioned Vanilla Cake—replete with sprinkles—Cheryl and host Amy Paige Condon talk about working on that first cookbook together and creating a third space that helped a community flourish. They muse how a recipe can also serve as a biography, and how baking a cake for someone can be a form of ministry to weary souls.   Grab a fork and enjoy every bite.    You can find the link to these recipes and more through The Tasty Bits newsletter by signing up here: The Tasty Bits newsletter.   Learn More About Cheryl Day Cheryl Day Bakes — Savannah, Georgia Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook — Cookbook by Cheryl Day and Griffith Day Back in the Day Bakery Made with Love — Cookbook by Cheryl Day and Griffith Day Cheryl Day’s Treasury of Southern Baking — Cookbook by Cheryl Day Follow Cheryl Day: Cheryl Day on Instagram Cheryl Day on Facebook Cheryl Day on LinkedIn Cheryl Day on 177 Milk Street Cheryl Day on Hachette Book Group   Each new episode of Mindfull Eating drops every other Thursday. On the following Sundays, the Tasty Bits newsletter takes you behind the scenes with recipes, images, pieces of conversation that didn’t make the cut, and five takeaways.   EPISODES OF MINDFULL EATING ARE SPONSORED BY: The Refinery Writing Studio The Literary Salon Russell Feed and Supply Picker Joe's Antique Mall and Marketplace MINDFULL EATING IS PROUDLY PRODUCED BY: DEE DANIELS MEDIA, Storytelling with a Purpose   FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE: 00:00 Food as Southern Memory 00:50 Meet Cheryl Day 01:53 First Bite of Nostalgia 04:02 Cake and Coffee Chat 05:26 Learning to Bake at Home 08:33 Great Migration Story 12:18 First Cakes and Pies 16:13 Becoming a Sugar Knot 18:29 Cookbook Deal Origins 21:27 Publishing Crunch Time 24:10 Treasury of Southern Baking 28:02 Ancestry and Enslaved Records 30:56 Teaching History Through Food 33:07 Cake Lady and Community Power 37:41 Cookbooks As Story 38:16 Beloved Cookbook Finds 39:45 Migration Foodways 41:50 Reviving Daffodil Cake 42:59 Cookbook Marginalia 44:05 Carnegie Library Collection 46:22 Bakery Memories 49:09 Life After Bakery 49:41 Leigh Initiative Grants 52:39 Teaching In France 55:59 Travel Plans Ahead 57:50 Proust Food Questions 58:26 Perfect Meal And Pet Peeves 01:01:12 Kitchen Skills And Heroes 01:04:44 Food World Virtues 01:08:32 Favorite Food Smells 01:10:12 Pearly Gates Meal 01:11:23 Literary Salon Community 01:13:36 Vintage Market Sponsor 01:14:00 Writing Studio Sponsor 01:15:25 Final Thanks And Farewell  

In Season 1, Episode 3 of the Mindfull Eating podcast, host Amy Paige Condon celebrates Oktoberfest with Kevin Ryan, a West Point graduate and military veteran, and his partner in business and life, Meredith Anne Sutton, a jewelry designer and creative director. Together, they are the founders of Service Brewing Co., a Savannah craft brewery built on creativity, community, and a commitment to serving others.   What began as a Valentine's Day gift from Meredith to Kevin in 2012—a homebrew kit—grew into a shared passion for researching and developing inventive beer flavors. In 2014, Kevin and Meredith turned that passion into a thriving local business, launching Service Brewing Co. with the support of investors that included 19 fellow military veterans. Housed in a sprawling red-brick warehouse at the corner of Fahm and Indian streets in Savannah, the brewery has become a welcoming third space for musicians, artists, foodies, and budding entrepreneurs to gather. And there's always room for four-legged friends, too!   Service Brewing's mission extends well beyond craft beer. The company dedicates a portion of its proceeds to helping veterans access housing and health services while also supporting first responders. Every visitor who walks through the brewery's doors encounters a wall bearing a simple but powerful question: "How do you serve?" It's an invitation to reflect on how each of us can make a difference in our communities.   Inspired by Service Brewing's craft beers, Amy's menu features Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup and Beer Bread, both made with the brewery's Rally Point Pilsner. For dessert, she prepares Nigella Lawson's Chocolate Guinness Cake using Gunner's Daughter Milk Stout from a Maine craft brewery—not a Service Brewing offering—which she discovered at White Whale Ales on Bull Street.   Get recipes and more through The Tasty Bits newsletter.   Learn More About Service Brewing Co. Service Brewing Co. — Savannah, Georgia Follow Service Brewing Co., Kevin Ryan, and Meredith Anne Sutton: Service Brewing Co. on Instagram Meredith Anne Sutton on Instagram Service Brewing Co. on Facebook Kevin Ryan on Facebook Meredith Anne Sutton on Facebook Meredith Sutton on LinkedIn Kevin Ryan on LinkedIn   Each new episode of Mindfull Eating drops every other Thursday. On the following Sundays, the Tasty Bits newsletter takes you behind the scenes with recipes, images, pieces of conversation that didn’t make the cut, and five takeaways.   EPISODES OF MINDFULL EATING ARE SPONSORED BY: The Refinery Writing Studio Russell Feed and Supply Picker Joe's Antique Mall and Marketplace The Literary Salon MINDFULL EATING IS PROUDLY PRODUCED BY: DEE DANIELS MEDIA, Storytelling with a Purpose   FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE: 00:00 Southern Food Stories 00:51 Meet Service Brewing 01:07 Beer Cheese Menu 01:41 How They Started 02:46 Sponsor Break 04:23 Valentines Brew Kit 08:27 First Homebrew Batch 09:44 From Army To Beer 13:29 Learning And Business Plan 16:47 Finding The Perfect Space 18:53 Veteran Roots And Design 21:54 Neighborhood Growth 23:43 Art In The Brewery 26:39 R And D Beer Collabs 32:13 Seasonals And Beer Trends 36:14 Georgia Law Changes 39:41 Evolving The Taproom 42:56 Events And Brewside Studios 44:16 Future Food Plans 45:08 Restaurant Concept Reveal 45:59 Artist Studios Filling Up 47:05 Meet the Studio Artists 47:53 How Studio Visits Work 50:02 Community and Collaboration 50:53 Designing the Perfect Studios 53:17 Brewery Updates and Merch 55:30 Cake and Food Collabs 58:21 Beer Pairings and Events 01:00:05 Valentines and Cooking Love 01:01:55 Going Mostly Vegan 01:05:27 Beverage Indulgences 01:08:43 Proust Questionnaire Fun 01:12:15 Root Vegetables Wisdom 01:13:19 Cheese Soup and Farewell 01:15:35 Literary Salon Community 01:17:47 Sponsor Antique Market 01:18:12 Refinery Writing Studio 01:19:37 Podcast Closing Credits

In Season 1, Episode 2 of the Mindfull Eating podcast, host Amy Paige Condon sits down with Indigenous Food Warrior Crystal Wahpepah, a registered member of the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma. Crystal is the force of nature behind Wahpepah's Kitchen, the first Native American woman-owned restaurant in North California. Located in Oakland's Fruitvale neighborhood, not far from where Crystal spent most of her childhood, the restaurant serves dishes that honor the city's intertribal community, where more than 200 Native American tribes are represented--the largest indigenous urban population in the United States.   Growing up amid the city's activist Native American community, Crystal often wondered why the foods she grew up with--berries, wild turkey, venison, cracked corn and other dishes indicative of a pre-colonial diet--were never served in restaurants. She became an avid heirloom seed saver, working with the Cultural Conservancy's Heron Shadow farm to grow traditional corn, squash, beans, chilies, berries, and greens that she serves in her restaurant.    In 2022, she was a national finalist for the James Beard Foundation's Emerging Chef award. Crystal has competed on the Food Network's Beat Bobby Flay, Alex vs. America, and was the first Indigenous chef on Chopped. Each one of these milestones has allowed her to talk about food sovereignty, food as medicine, and to ask, whose land are we on?   Her debut cookbook, "A Feather and a Fork: 125 Intertribal Recipes from an Indigenous Food Warrior" was released by Penguin Random House in March 2026. Crystal's close friend Julia Sabory, the community development and engagement manager for the San Francisco Planning Department, joined us for dinner and conversation.   Get recipes and more through The Tasty Bits newsletter.   Learn More About Crystal Wahpepah Wahpepah's Kitchen — Oakland, California 39 Restaurant at the First Americans Museum — Oklahoma City, Oklahoma A Feather and a Fork — Cookbook by Crystal Wahpepah with Amy Paige Condon Follow Crystal Wahpepah and Wahpepah's Kitchen: Crystal Wahpepah on Instagram Wahpepah's Kitchen on Instagram Crystal Wahpepah on Facebook Wahpepah's Kitchen on Facebook Penguin Random House on Instagram Harmony Rodale Convergent on Instagram   Each new episode of Mindfull Eating drops every other Thursday. On the following Sundays, the Tasty Bits newsletter takes you behind the scenes with recipes, images, pieces of conversation that didn’t make the cut, and five takeaways.   EPISODES OF MINDFULL EATING ARE SPONSORED BY: The Refinery Writing Studio Russell Feed and Supply Picker Joe's Antique Mall and Marketplace MINDFULL EATING IS PROUDLY PRODUCED BY: DEE DANIELS MEDIA, Storytelling with a Purpose   FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE: 00:00 Southern Food Stories 00:49 Meet Crystal Wahpepah 02:08 Today’s Menu 02:50 Local Sponsor Break 04:14 Where Are Our Foods 05:59 Alcatraz Activism 08:17 Two Homes Oklahoma 10:10 Berries And Belonging 12:21 Nature As Medicine 13:46 Corn Soup Traditions 16:37 Foraging With Respect 20:23 Urban Disconnection 24:47 Becoming A Native Chef 28:40 Catering Origins 31:50 La Cocina And Branding 34:57 Tech Catering Training 37:38 Food Network Breakthrough 39:15 Making It On Chopped 39:51 Behind The Scenes Stress 40:52 Other Competition Shows 42:24 COVID Pivot To Wild Rice Bars 46:11 Letters Food As Medicine 49:44 Taking Over Reems Space 50:37 Designing The Restaurant Art 56:06 Opening Day Tears 01:00:52 Seed Saving On Display 01:03:10 Herons Shadow Land Back Farm 01:07:04 Food Sovereignty Lab Research 01:10:51 Healing Beyond Food Policy 01:13:31 Manaki at The Village 01:14:24 Teaching Kitchen Vision 01:16:08 Food as Foundation 01:18:44 Food Justice as Right 01:19:56 Whose Land Are We On 01:21:29 Rapid Fire Food Questions 01:25:20 Kitchen Skills and Heroes 01:27:53 Extravagances and Smells 01:32:22 Final Meal and Farewell 01:33:51 Sponsor Messages 01:35:42 Podcast Closing Credits

Amy Paige Condon hosts the Mindfull Eating podcast. In Season 1, Episode 1, she interviews husband-and-wife chefs and farmers, Matthew and Tia Raiford. Matthew Raiford grew up near Brunswick, Georgia, not far from the farm that his great-great-great-great grandfather Jupiter Gilliard bought more than 150 years ago after being freed from enslavement. Matthew left soon after graduating high school when he joined the military, vowing he would never return to the South. But his Nana knew better and turned over the deed to the farm to Matthew and his sister Althea in 2010, making them the sixth generation of their Gullah Geechee family to turn this soil.   After leaving the military, Matthew attended the Culinary Institute of America, where he first met Tia, a Philadelphia native who riffs on recipes like her uncle and father did on jazz albums. They remained friends and culinary collaborators until they married in 2021. Tia now serves as a senior corporate chef for the Hormel Culinary Collective. Together, they have started a series of spice blends and hot sauces and host dinners on their farm.    In 2018, Matthew and Amy collaborated on Matthew's debut cookbook, "Bress 'n' Nyam: Gullah Geechee Recipes from a Sixth-Generation Farmer," which was published by Countryman Press in May 2021.   For this episode of Mindfull Eating, Amy served Grandma Florine's Salmon Cakes on Pepper Rice, Cowpea Salad, Curried Vegetable Galette, and Nana's Sweet Potato Pie--all recipes from Matthew's cookbook that brought back the taste of home for him. In this episode, Matthew, Tia and Amy discuss their roads to the kitchen; what it means to return home, especially as a Black man to the South; the way the Great Migration influenced foods in places like Philly and Chicago; and their mission to spread the gospel of heritage and regenerative farming.   Get recipes and more through The Tasty Bits newsletter. Each new episode of Mindfull Eating drops every other Thursday. On the following Sundays, the Tasty Bits newsletter takes you behind the scenes with recipes, images, pieces of conversation that didn’t make the cut, and five takeaways.    EPISODES OF MINDFULL EATING ARE SPONSORED BY: The Refinery Writing Studio Russell Feed and Supply Picker Joe's Antique Mall and Marketplace   MINDFULL EATING IS PROUDLY PRODUCED BY:  DEE DANIELS MEDIA, Storytelling with a Purpose

Mindfull Eating: Official Trailer In the South, food isn’t just fuel—it’s history, memory, and the way we show love. Join writer and Southern storyteller Amy Paige Condon for the launch of Mindfull Eating, a new podcast from the Dee Daniels Media Podcast Network. In this trailer, get a taste of the stories we’re serving up—from front porches to fish fries, cast iron to community cookbooks. We’re dishing out the people, places, and moments behind the meals that shape us. Whether you’re a chef, a home cook, or just someone who knows the kitchen is where the real stories live, there’s a seat at our table for you. Pull up a chair and let’s get full in every sense of the word. ___________________________________________________________________________   Keywords: Mindfull Eating, Mindful Eating, Southern Food, Food History, Storytelling, Amy Paige Condon, Dee Daniels Media.