Imagine drinking a cup of Gun Powder Temple of Heaven or Curled Dragon Silver Tips! This week, it's Tea Authority Bill Waddington, a man who determines what kind of tea you'll like by the kind of apples you like to eat! The Stern's take us to Clark's Outpost in Texas for BBQ Brisket, and we check in with Wine Mogul Joshua Wesson about wine bargains in 1999.
America's beef has changed, so why hasn't our style of cooking? We go to Bruce Aidells, author of The Complete Meat Cookbook, for some guidance. Jane and Michael Stern take us to Sedona, Arizona, for apples and talking deer; we talk with Nora Pouillon, owner of Nora's in Washington D.C., Americas first certified organic restaurant; naturalist, and poet Diane Ackerman has a physiological view of the truffle, and grocery guru Al Sicherman conducts a peanut-butter tasting with Lynne.
The tables are setting up outside on the boulevards of Paris; it's time to start planning a spring trip! This week it's a guide to Paris Cafe Life with Daniel Young, author of The Paris Cafe Cookbook. Jane and Michael Stern are breakfasting in La Jolla, California (great breakfast and "long,tan legs" according to Michael), and wine wit Joshua Wesson has great wine bargains from South Africa.
We're finally putting the term "fusion cuisine" to bed this week with culinary anthropologist Elizabeth Rozin, author of Crossroads Cooking. Jane and Michael Stern take us to Nellie's Chili Parlour in Los Cruces, NM; minimalist cook Mark Bittman joins us with ideas for streamlining our evening meal, and kitchen designer Deborah Krasner critiques wood-fired ovens.
We have a fresh perspective on food and health with Nina Simons, author of A Spoonful of Ginger. She has some recipes for us with health-giving properties. Jane and Michael Stern introduce us to Charlie the Butcher in Buffalo, New York; the food maven Matthew Goodman explains egg creams, and award-winning cheesemaker Jonathan White tells us a tale of autumn milk.
Our favorite food scientist, Shirley Corriher, author of the bestselling book CookWise, joins us with new research on maximizing flavor. Try a little salt to bring out sweetness. Jane and Michael Stern discover the Big Timber Sundae in Montana, Mary Ewing Mulligan advises us on Muscadets, and tea expert Bill Waddington demystifies tisane.
We're talking with award-winning restauranteur Drew Nieporent about what it takes to run a successful restaurant and co-own a business with a celebrity. (Robert DeNiro is Drew's partner!) New York Times columnist Marian Burros talks about food in the '90s, Jane and Michael Stern take us to the Kansas City stockyards for great steak, and Master of Wine Mary Ewing Mulligan has returned from a visit to Scotland—Islay to be exact, with a wine lover's interpretation of Scotch.
Over the past decade Americans have become devotees of dim sum, those tasty little morsels that originated in the Chinese province of Canton during the Han dynasty. Evelyn Chau, author of Have Some Dim Sum, explains the ritual and etiquette surrounding this unique eating experience and offers tips on how and what to order from the carts offering a mind-boggling array of delights from which to choose. Jane and Michael Stern debunk the notion that good, inexpensive food cannot be had in California's trendy Napa Valley with their report from the Model Bakery in St. Helena. In the world of cheese, there are some irrefutable givens as Steve Jenkins reveals in his cheese precepts. Author and naturalist Diane Ackerman has some thoughts on food and thrill seeking, and Lynne shares her recipe for satay, a popular Malaysian street food. We'll have another trivia question and the phone lines will be open for your calls.
We've a conversation with the Queen of Tasteful Low-Fat Cuisine, Martha Rose Shulman, author of best-selling Mediterranean Light and her most recent—Light Basics Cookbook. Martha shares a summertime recipe for grilled marinated swordfish. The Sterns take us to Sholl's Colonial Cafe in Washington DC, and the Vinegar Man has opened a vinegar museum in South Dakota.
We're taking a road trip this week, to the Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School in Berkeley, California, home of the Edible Schoolyard. It's a program begun by Alice Waters of Chez Panisse fame, an effort to teach children about food, culture, and the earth, with a garden that was started in their schoolyard. Jane and Michael Stern take us to Quechee, Vermont, for stellar roast corn with a secret ingredient.