This week, we’re all about mindfulness in our kitchens. First, we explore a whole new meaning of fancy with author and recipe developer Jerrelle Guy. She shares her unusual thinking and creative recipes that can transform your everyday eating. The little extras that can make a dish a bit more celebratory. Jerrelle Guy’s latest book is We Fancy: Simple Recipes to Make the Everyday Special, and she left us with her recipe for Olive Oil Brownie Pudding. Then we talk with Bee Wilson about the surprisingly sentimental nature of kitchen objects. In Bee’s latest memoir, The Heart Shaped Tin, she dives deep into the emotional relationships many people have with their kitchen tools, from a mother’s rice cooker to learning to eat off the best china rather than saving it. She shares her personal relationship to her most cherished kitchen items with stories of people who share the connection. Bee Wilson’s latest book is The Heart-Shaped Tin: Love, Loss, and Kitchen Objects.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

February 13, 2026 (originally aired)

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This week, food columnist for The New York Times Magazine, Lisa Donovan, joins us to talk about what she's been cooking up recently and help answer our listeners' kitchen conundrums, from making the best tomato paste despite out-of-season tomatoes to using unsweetened chocolate in baking recipes. Lisa is the author of the memoir Our Lady of Perpetual Hunger, and she leaves us with a recipe for a lovely Tarte Tatin to add to our repertoire. Then, we head over to Philadelphia, where we meet the founder and owner of Down North Pizza, Muhammad Abdul-Hadi. Muhammad tells us about his mission-driven restaurant dedicated to helping formerly incarcerated people rebuild their lives. Muhammad's new cookbook is We The Pizza: Slangin’ Pies, and Savin’ Lives and he leaves us with his signature pizza sauce recipe, Norf Sauce.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

• February 7, 2025 (originally aired)
• February 6, 2026 (rebroadcast)

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This week, we explore flavors and techniques with two incredible guests. First, James Beard award-winning author Henrietta Lovell, aka the Tea Lady, takes us on her tea journey. From discovering the art of tea in China and countries beyond, to teaching us how to taste the nuanced flavor profiles and appreciate the craftsmanship. She left us with a recipe for Cold Brew Iced Teas that can be enjoyed like a fine wine.  Henrietta is the author of Infused – Adventures in Tea and founder of the Rare Tea Company. Then, we talk to our favorite food scientist, Nik Sharma, about his latest video series, Flavor Forward with America’s Test Kitchen. He shares tips and tricks for the home cook on elevating your dinners. Like the Tandoori Salmon, Braised Lemon Chicken with Couscous, and Calabrian Chile White Beans with Almond Romesco. Nik Sharma is the author of Veg Table, The Flavor Equation, and the forthcoming Fundamentals of Flavor (Sept. 2026)

Broadcast dates for this episode:

January 30, 2026 (originally aired)

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We took the show on the road for a live event at the Hawaii Theatre Center in Honolulu. First, we spoke to Hawaii Public Radio’s Culture and Arts reporter Jayna Omaye and Chef Sheldon Simeon of Tin Roof Maui about Hawaiian cuisine’s unique mix of cultures. Then, James Beard award-winning chef Robynne Maii of Fête in Chinatown, Honolulu, and chef-owner of Mud Hen Water, Ed Kenney, explained how native Hawaiian traditions influence their cooking. And then, we talked to three legacy business owners about the importance of beloved local institutions in the food scene: Chris Kanemura, co-owner of Fujiya Hawai’i, Emma Bello, goat and dairy farmer at Sweet Land Farm, and Kevin Yim of Zippy’s. 

The live event at Hawaii Theatre was co-presented by Hawai‘i Public Radio and the Culinary Institute of the Pacific at Kapi‘olani Community College and sponsored by Hawaiian Airlines, Alohilani Resorts, and FarmLovers Markets.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

• February 3, 2023 (originally aired)
• February 2, 2024 (rebroadcast)
• January 23, 2026 (rebroadcast)

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This week, it's the final show of our 30th anniversary celebration, recorded from the stage of The Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, MN, where it all began. Francis is joined onstage by some of the best chefs in Minnesota, including American Oglala Lakota Sioux chef, Sean Sherman, Somali-American chef, Jamal Hashi, Karyn Tomlinson of Myriel the winner of the 2025 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Midwest and 6-time James Beard Nominee, Diana Moua of Diane's Place to talk about their culinary journeys and the importance of community and culture in food. We’re then joined on stage by a very special guest, Lynne Rossetto Kasper. 

Head to our YouTube channel and watch this extended cut of our Live Show. Subscribe so you don’t miss anything!

Broadcast dates for this episode:

January 16, 2026 (originally aired)

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This week, we’re spending the hour with the charming and beloved Irish cooking teacher and writer Darina Allen.  It’s a spirited conversation about growing up in a country kitchen, her love of eating, and the single moment she decided to pursue her career in cooking. She tells us about her organic farm at the Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland,  shares her unusual and brilliant teaching style,  and explains why learning to cook and connect to nature is one of the greatest life skills anyone can achieve. She leaves us with a recipe for an Irish classic, Spotted Dog Railway Cake. Darina is the author of many best-selling books, including The Forgotten Skills of Cooking: 700 Recipes Showing You Why the Time-Honored Ways Are the Best.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

• January 10, 2025 (originally aired)

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We’ve got the most exciting cookbooks to gift this holiday season. Chef Chris Scott talks to us about his latest, Amish Soul Food and pays homage to the food of his Pennsylvanian German ancestors, and talks us through traditional recipes like chow chow, biscuits, and scrapple. He leaves us with his recipe for Okra Chow-Chow. Cynthia Shanmugalingam takes us on a deep dive into the seductive, cuisine of Sri Lanka. Her book is Rambutan: Recipes from Sri Lanka. Then, Ben Mervis, author of The British Cookbook, talks about the many food regions of Britain and the influences that have inspired them. His Yorkshire Parkin recipe is a must-try for this holiday season. Then, we get a lesson in home-made vinegar making with Pascal Baudar, author of Wildcrafted Vinegars. He leaves with a lot of inspiration and a recipe for Seaweed-Infused Vinegar.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

• December 16, 2022 (originally aired)
• December 15, 2023 (rebroadcast)

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This week, we’re all about community and coming together for the holidays. First, we talk to Lisa Kyung Gross, founder of The League of Kitchens, a unique cooking school where women from all over the world,  welcome you into their homes and teach you how to make one of their family recipes. She talks about the delicious recipes she has collected in her new book, The League of Kitchens Cookbook: Brilliant Tips, Secret Methods & Favorite Family Recipes from Around the World.  She leaves us with an Afghan recipe for Cake Jawari, a delicious yellow cake with rosewater and cardamom. Then, The New Yorker’s food writer Helen Rosner stops by the studio with treats and ideas for your last-minute gifts.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

• December 20, 2024 (originally aired)

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This week, we’re celebrating the holidays by looking beyond, into global stories that shape the season. First, we talk with Hetty Lui McKinnon about her new book, Linger: Salads, Sweets and Stories to Savor, and what the holidays look like in Australia, where Christmas is hot and the seafood markets buzz at midnight. Hetty reflects on the vegetable forward meals that defined her Chinese Australian upbringing and leaves us with her recipe for Coronation Cauliflower and Chickpeas. Then, we turn to writer Yasmin Khan for a deeper look at Yalda Night, the Persian winter solstice celebration that reminds us of the return of the sun, after the longest night of the year. Her latest cookbook, Sabzi: Vibrant Vegetarian Recipes, explores vibrant vegetarian cooking rooted in Persian culture. Yasmin shares how Yalda brings people together through poetry, pomegranates, and seasonal comforts, and leaves us with her recipe for Eggplant Fesenjan.

Broadcast dates for this episode: 

• December 19, 2025 (originally aired)

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It’s the holiday season, and we’re kicking it off this week with some sweet treats. First, food editor and recipe developer Ben Mims joins us with his latest project, covering over 300 cookie recipes from Asia to the Levant to Scandinavia to the Caribbean. The varieties are astonishing.  We get into cookie styles, the fascinating ingredients in regional cookies, and the hundreds of flavor combinations. Ben is the author of Crumbs: Cookies and Sweets from Around the World. And he left us with a recipe for Guava-Filled Butter Cookies from Brazil. Then, we step into the world of wild chocolate with Rowan Jacobsen. We hear about the new breed of cacao farmers and the amazing flavor profiles found in wild chocolate and meet some of the farmers who are making it. Rowan is the author of Wild Chocolate: Across the Americas in Search of Cacao’s Soul.

Broadcast dates for this episode:

• December 6, 2024 (originally aired)
• December 12, 2025 (rebroadcast)

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Your support is a special ingredient in helping to make The Splendid Table. Donate today.