Community cookbooks—you know, those spiral bound collections with each contributor credited--began as a way for women to come together and share recipes and to support a common cause be it a local church, school, club, or other fundraising goal. The concept became so popular and spread rapidly throughout the nation that more than 3,000 charity cookbooks were published between 1864 and 1922, according to Feeding America, an historic cookbook project of Michigan State University. Antiquarian bookseller, collector and food historian Don Lindgren shares his insights into this movement from charitable funding to the breaking of gender limits.

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Have you ever marveled at the delicately complex beauty of a plate of Japanese food? A dish is considered well-harmonized in Japanese when it is peaceful to look at. This arrangement of food on the plates in Japan or at Japanese restaurants is largely dictated by the rules of moritsuké, or serving arrangement. These are a set of styles that draw on the ideas of balance and contrast established centuries ago. Elizabeth Andoh, an authority on Japanese food and culture, TasteofCulture.com, explains the art and philosopy behind the saying, "Japanese eat with their eyes."

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The prosperity of the 1950's kicked off the revolution in technology and design that transformed the American kitchen from scullery to the central great room of the modern home. Modern pastel colored appliances and kitchen products made by companies whose names became household synonyms for convenience were representative of the era. Writer and design curator Sarah Archer has documented this movement in her new book, The Midcentury Kitchen, and joins Linda to talk about it.

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New York City-based Senegalese chef Pierre Thiam has heightened the profile of West African cuisine in the United States with his restaurants and award-winning cookbooks Yolélé and Senegal. His new mission is to popularize the ancient supergrain FONIO in the U.S. and help farmers across the drought-prone Sahel region.

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The cuisine of the Italian south has been called the soul of Italian cuisine and bedrock in the history of Italian cooking. In her new book, Food of the Italian South, food journalist and historian Katie Parla explores the cuisine, region by region, and discovers that many of the dishes are disappearing or are lost and remain as vague memories by later generations. Katie shares her insights into the history and culture of the southern regions that shaped the country’s soulful cuisine.

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The Basque region of Spain is a food lover's mecca. From the endless variety of pintxos--the small bites offered at hundreds of bars--to rustic ciderhouse dinners; and from over 20 Michelin-starred restaurants to private gastronomic clubs, there is clearly a strong culture of food and dining. San Sebastián, once a humble fishing village, is at the center of all this gastronomy. San Sebastian native and culinary tour guide Lourdes Erquicia shares the history of the region and its food traditions.

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For centuries, in the small town of Cetara on the Amalfi Coast of Italy, anchovies have been gathered and fermented into the piquant sauce "colatura di alici," a local specialty. Until the 1990s, colatura di alici had never been bottled or sold. People clamored for the artisanal product and asked for more. Now the town is embroiled in a "be careful what you wish for" scenario. Culinary history scholar Claire Alsup spent several months in Cetara examining the history and process, and was thrust into the middle of the town's debate.

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It's been 30 years since Irish cooking personality Darina Allen started SIMPLY DELICIOUS, her original television program and cookbook series. Today she looks back over that period of time and talks about the tried and true Irish dishes that she has gathered for her newest book, Simply Delicious: The Classic Collection. She reflects on how the cuisine has evolved over the years and descibes the traditional Irish recipes that have endured.

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Author Crystal King’s newest historical novel, “The Chef’s Secret,” is a fictional story based on a true character, Bartolomeo Scappi, who served as the Vatican chef during the 16th century Italian Renaissance. From Scappi’s original cookbooks and her extensive research on the popes and cardinals for whom he worked, King recreates and fabricates the missing pieces of the first ""celebrity chef's"" life.

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When Sukey and John Jamison purchased an old farmhouse over 40 years ago they had no idea they would they would become game-changing farmers, let alone being named Conservaton Farmers of the Year for 2017. As sheep farmers they learned techniques that harked back to historic methods which have roots in pre-industrial and European farming. Their lamb gained traction and was declared the best in the country by some of the top chefs and their customer list became a veritable who's who of the food world. They join Linda on this episode to talk about their experiences, stories, and recipes which they have written down in a new book that humbly declares that they achieved sustainable farming due to "pure survival techniques.

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