Radio Cherry Bombe

Today’s guest is Ham El-Waylly—chef, recipe developer, restaurateur, and author of the new cookbook “Hello, Home Cooking: Doable Dishes for Every Day.” Ham is also the co-founder of the Brooklyn restaurant Strange Delight and part of an NYC culinary power couple with his wife, Sohla El-Waylly.

Ham joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about growing up in Doha, watching “Yan Can Cook” on repeat, meeting Sohla at the Culinary Institute of America, being a girl dad, and his restaurant life. He also shares the story behind some of his favorite “Hello, Home Cooking” recipes, including a nostalgic Brazilian-inspired dessert, a viral-ready date fudge, and a silky tahini-tofu dip. (Click here for the tahini-tofu dip recipe.) 

This interview was recorded at Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center. 

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More on Ham: Instagram, Strange Delight, "Hello, Home Cooking" cookbook

Today’s guest is Ruthie Rogers, the legendary chef and restaurateur behind The River Cafe in London, and she joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about her latest book, “Table 4 at The River Cafe.” Inspired by her popular podcast, “Ruthie’s Table 4,” the book features conversations with the likes of Nigella Lawson, Tina Fey, Greta Gerwig, Alice Waters, Tracey Emin, and dozens of other forces from the worlds of art, music, film, and food. 

Ruthie shares the story of how The River Cafe began as a humble sandwich shop and evolved into a global culinary institution, the lessons she’s learned from nearly 40 years of running a restaurant, and why curiosity and kindness matter when hiring and mentoring the next generation of cooks. She also reflects on the power of food memories, what she’s discovered after more than 200 podcast interviews, and why so many people talk about their grandmothers when discussing the meals that shaped them.

Plus, Ruthie reveals her comfort food (spoiler: it involves tomatoes, pasta, and butter), the River Cafe dishes that will never leave the menu, and the food world hero she’d want with her on a desert island.

Click here for the Rigatoni With Cavolo Nero & Olive Oil recipe from The River Cafe London.

Thank you to Peter Som’s “Family Style” cookbook for supporting our show. 

This interview was recorded at Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center. 

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More on Ruthie: Instagram, The River Cafe, “Table 4 at The River Cafe” book

Today’s guests are Lydia Keating and Max Baroni—content creators whose worlds span storytelling, cooking, and social media. Lydia is the founder of the Goodstory run club and is known for her thoughtful approach to online life and community-building. Max is a chef and author of the Hot Side Substack, where he shares approachable recipes and kitchen know-how.

Lydia and Max join host Kerry Diamond to share the story of how they met (during Lydia’s not-so-successful tryout at the Michelin-starred Four Horsemen in Brooklyn). They also talk about their unconventional paths—Lydia’s journey from rowing at Yale and Hollywood comedy hopeful to marathon runner and creator, and Max’s route from sandwich shop cook to Substack and social media—plus, Lydia’s time at the legendary Ballymaloe Cookery School, and Max’s decision to bypass a formal culinary education.

Thank you to Kerrygold and Peter Som’s “Family Style” cookbook for supporting our show. 

This interview was recorded at Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center. 

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More on Lydia: Instagram, Goodstory 

Today’s guest is JR Ryall, head pastry chef of the legendary Ballymaloe House in County Cork, Ireland. JR has been part of the Ballymaloe family since he was a teenager and has spent more than two decades helping carry forward the restaurant’s extraordinary culinary legacy. He’s also the author of the beautiful cookbook, “Ballymaloe Desserts: Iconic Recipes and Stories from Ireland.”

JR joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about his favorite legendary women, including Diana Kennedy and Myrtle Allen, meeting Irish icon Darina Allen for the first time, his recent pop-up at King restaurant, the power of a poached egg, and the importance of doing things that make you–and others–happy. He also shares his thoughts on the current Irish cultural renaissance. 

Click here for JR’s Chocolate Éclair recipe

Listen to our past episodes with Darina Allen on Radio Cherry Bombe and JR Ryall on She’s My Cherry Pie
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More on JR: Instagram, Ballymaloe House, “Ballymaloe Desserts” cookbook

Today’s guest is Sana Javeri Kadri, the founder of Diaspora Spice Co. and author of The Diaspora Spice Co. Cookbook. Sana and her team spent six years working on the book, and she joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about the care that went into collecting 85 recipes from Diaspora Co.’s farm partners over the course of a four-month tour, and translating them into home cook-friendly versions. The result is a beautiful book that pays tribute to the farmers and the spices for which Diaspora is known and loved. 

They also talk about Sana getting her start as a baby gay in the Bay Area, the business lessons she’s learned along the way, and what’s made a big difference to her mental health. 

Click here for Sana’s Singju (Manipuri Cabbage Salad) recipe from "The Diaspora Spice Co. Cookbook"

GoFundMe for There/There, the new bar in the former Friends and Family space

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More on Sana: Instagram, Diaspora Spice Co., "The Diaspora Spice Co. Cookbook"

Today’s guest is Britton Smith—Broadway actor, Tony Award winner, activist, and frontman of the band Britton & The Sting. Britton is a founding member of the Broadway Advocacy Coalition, the arts-and-activism organization that received a Special Tony Award in 2020. Onstage, he’s appeared in shows like “Shuffle Along,” “After Midnight,” and “Be More Chill.” Offstage, he’s building something entirely his own.

Britton joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about growing up in Texas, moving to New York at 18, and the path that led him to a Tony Award for advocacy. They also dive into Britton’s music career and his group, Britton & The Sting, which was born after a mysterious taxi driver told him, “You need to start a band.” Britton & The Sting’s new album, “Return to Mama,” explores water as teacher, spirit, and guide.

Visit here for tickets to their free World Water Day Concert on Friday, March 27th

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More on Britton: Instagram, Britton & The Sting, Broadway Advocacy Coalition

Today’s guest is Padma Lakshmi—TV host, executive producer, bestselling cookbook author, and longtime friend of Cherry Bombe. Padma has a brand new show debuting Wednesday on CBS—“America’s Culinary Cup.” Not only is she the host, but she’s also the creator and executive producer of what she hopes will become America’s most prestigious culinary competition. One talented chef contestant will not only take home bragging rights, but a $1 million prize and a gleaming gold trophy.

Padma joins host Kerry Diamond to discuss her return to culinary competitions after 19 seasons of “Top Chef,” the unique touches that make “America’s Culinary Cup” distinctive, how she chose judges Michael Cimarusti and Wylie Dufresne, and why you won’t see her on “Survivor” any time soon. 

Click here for Padma’s Tagine-Inspired Chicken recipe from her new cookbook, “Padma’s All American.”

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More on Padma: Instagram, "America's Culinary Cup", “Padma’s All American” cookbook 

Today’s guest is Ella Quittner, journalist, mom-to-be, and the author of the wildly inventive cookbook “Obsessed With the Best: 100+ Methodically Perfected Recipes Based on 20+ Head-to-Head Tests.” Ella is known for her rigorous (some might say obsessive) recipe testing and her sharp, funny writing, which has appeared everywhere from The New York Times and New York Magazine to Food52, where her “absolute best” tests first gained a cult following.

Ella joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about leaving a high-powered Wall Street career for food media, why arguing about the “best” way to make something is actually a gift to curious cooks everywhere, and how her brilliant and quirky cookbook came together. 

Ella also shares about writing screenplays, working in a TV writers’ room, growing up with journalist parents, her lifelong tendency toward obsession, and the joyful chaos of promoting a debut cookbook while expecting her first baby. 

Ella’s Braised Tomato-Butter Cabbage recipe
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More on Ella: Instagram, “Obsessed With The Best” cookbook

Today, we’re re-airing one of our favorite Radio Cherry Bombe episodes. Ina Garten joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about her memoir, “Be Ready When The Luck Happens.” Ina shares what she learned about herself while writing the memoir, why she included stories about her unhappy childhood, overcoming hardships with her husband Jeffrey, and their decision not to have children. She also talks about her “leap before you look” philosophy, how Oprah Winfrey inspired the title of the book, the early Barefoot Contessa days in the Hamptons, and why she’s “the worst kind of childless cat lady.”

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More on Ina: Instagram, website, “Be Ready When The Luck Happens” memoir
More on Kerry: Instagram, “So You Want To Open A Restaurant” essay

Today’s guest is Alyse Whitney, the author of “Big Dip Energy,” a celebration of dips for parties, dinner, dessert, and everyday life, and a host and judge on food TV shows including “Easy-Bake Battle,” “Pressure Cooker,” and “Chopped.” Alyse joins host Kerry Diamond to talk about her path from entertainment journalism to food media and how her love of hosting and feeding people became the foundation for her career. 

They also discovered on air that they both went to the State University of New York (SUNY) at Plattsburgh (go, Cardinals!), and they reminisce about college life near the Canadian border, Montréal adventures, and, of course, poutine. Alyse shares the story behind her cookbook, what it was like working on Chrissy Teigen’s Cravings, her signature joyful style, and her approach to entertaining that’s all about fun, flavor, and not taking things too seriously.

In the second half of the episode, we’re sharing Alyse’s powerful solo talk from Cherry Bombe’s first-ever Jubilee conference in Los Angeles, where she opens up about identity, perception, fatphobia, and what it means to take up space—on the page, on TV, and in real life—exactly as you are.

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More on Alyse: Instagram, “Big Dip Energy” cookbook
More on Kerry: Instagram, “So You Want To Open A Restaurant” essay