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Listen to most pundits and you come to believe obesity is an exclusively American plague. But listen to certain researchers and you get a different story. This week's guest, Barry Popkin, claims obesity is a 21st century human problem. Mr. Popkin is the Carla Smith Chamblee Distinguished Professor of Global Nutrition at the University of North Carolina and director of the university's Interdisciplinary Obesity Center. He is the author of The World is Fat: The Fads, Trends, Policies, and Products That Are Fattening the Human Race.

Appropriately, The Sterns muse over the great North Jersey crumb cake at the B & W Bakery in Hackensack.

Sally Schneider, author of The Improvisational Cook, looks at dishes from every angle to bring new tastes into play. She talks flavor enhancers and shares a few of her favorites.

Debra Samuels, author of The Korean Table: From Barbecue to Bibimbap, joins us for a look at kimchi, that enhancer that's fiery, crunchy, sometimes stinky and always indispensible in Korean cuisine.

Lynne and Sally Swift, our managing producer and co-author of The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper, talk finessing pasta and reveal what the Italians know that we don't.

Finally, we'll hear how things are going for Poet Elizabeth Alexander, who made her debut at President Obama's inauguration.

Recipes

Salt-Roasted New Potatoes with Crème Fraïche and Cracked Coriander

New potatoes and fingerlings roasted in salt have an extraordinarily pure flavor and creamy interior. Get the full recipe

Cabbage Kimchi

This kimchi is delicious with or without the chives, and goes great with a bowl of hot rice. Get the full recipe

Sicilian Corkscrews with White Beans

This is a gem of a kid's pasta. And it has a sneaky side - they will eat beans without even thinking about it Get the full recipe

Features

Jane & Michael Stern: B & W Bakery, Hackensack, NJ

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True crumb cake could be called a regional thing or, more specifically, a New Jersey thing. It's huge there, and the best place to get it is B & W Bakery in Hackensack.

At B & W it's called "Heavy Crumb Cake" because it is. A thick layer of crunchy, crumbly streusel tops a thin pound-cake-like layer below. But that layer of cake is really just a crumb delivery mechanism; it's all about that streusel.

Michael says there's nothing in the world better than a piece of this cake with a cup or two of coffee. But be warned: when you ask for "a piece of crumb cake," you'll get a slab that's about 8 inches by 12 inches!

Expect a long line, especially on weekends.

B & W Bakery

614 Main Street

Hackensack, NJ

201-342-5577

Poet Elizabeth Alexander

Inaugural Poet Elizabeth Alexander read this poem for us on the air. Find poems and more by Elizabeth Alexander online at the Poetry Foundation.

"Butter" by Elizabeth Alexander, published 1996 in "Body of Life" by Tia Chucha Press, San Fernando, CA. All Rights Reserved.

You can find "Body of Life" and other books by Tia Chucha Press here.

The commemorative chapbook edition of Elizabeth Alexander's inaugural poem, "Praise Song for the Day," published by Graywolf Press, is available starting February 6, 2009.

You can find "Praise Song for the Day" and other books by Graywolf Press here.