A Taste of the Past

In his book Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll, Andrew Friedman takes us back in time to witness the remarkable changes in the American dining scene and evolution of the American restaurant chef in the 1970s and '80s. Using oral histories told primarily in the words of the people who lived it Friedman writes about the pioneers behind Chez Panisse, Spago, River Cafe and other landmarks as well as many of the the young cooks like Jonathan Waxman, Tom Colicchio, and Mario Batali who went on to become household names. Friedman shares those stories with Linda on this informative episode. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

African Americans have worked in presidential food service as chefs, personal cooks, butlers, stewards, and servers for every First Family since George and Martha Washington. Award-winning author and food historian Adrian Miller explores the lives of these men and women in his book, The President’s Kitchen Cabinet: The Story of the African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families from the Washingtons to the Obamas (UNC Press, 2017). Miller gives us a glimpse of what life was like for these culinary artists, and he incorporates their White House experiences into the larger history of African American foodways, American foodways, and its cultural impact both at the White House and nationwide. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Just about every culture has some form of noodles. But when and where did noodles first appear? Food historian Ken Albala joins Linda to untangle the noodle's history. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What is most commonly known about the food and dining of Ancient Rome comes from vivid—and often fictional—descriptions of exotic foods of lavish banquets of the wealthy. But further study reveals an approachable cuisine of the Mediterranean in ancient times. Farrell Monaco describes how she combines her background in archaeology to study and recreate many of those dishes. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Good news to David Shields is that the Speckled Whippoorwill Cowpea, Jimmy Red whisky corn, or the Sicilian Timilia strain of durum wheat has been located, identified, and successfully grown and harvested. And further success means that many of these formerly lost seeds are added to the Ark of Taste, Slow Food's global register of the most flavorful, historically resonant, and imperiled foods. David sat down with Linda to discuss some of the recent searches for seeds and why they are important in the final flavors of regional dishes. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Who were the Acadians? What was their food culture and cuisine? Food writer and journalist Simon Thibault, talks about exploring his Acadian roots and reacquainting himself with the food and recipes from his family’s past which he documented in his new book, Pantry and Palate: Remembering and Rediscovering Acadian Food. It’s a cookbook filled with old food traditions, recipes and anecdotes “seasoned with history.” A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Culinarians are and were intellectually curious, aesthetically experimental, and gastronomically evangelical. In his new book, The Culinarians: Lives and Careers from the First Age of American Fine Dining, Dr. David Shields traces the stories of 175 lives and careers of chefs, caterers, and restaurateurs who raised the profession of cooking and fine dining in America to an art form. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Unlike many Italian cookbooks, Autentico goes far beyond pasta. In a world where culinary shortcuts, adulteration, misleading labeling, and mass production of seemingly “authentic” food rule, culinary archaeologist, innovator and cooking teacher Rolando Beramendi has kept centuries-old culinary traditions alive. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The American South is a diverse region with its own vocabulary, peculiarities, and complexities. Even Southerners can't always agree on all things Southern. A new book by the editors of Garden & Gun Magazine is a good source for answers. S is for Southern is an encyclopedia of Southern life, culture, and history, covering age-old traditions and current zeitgeists. Executive managing editor Phillip Rhodes, born and bred in the south, talks about the fun facts. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Following WWII, France--particularly Paris--became the world's most stylish tourist destination and capital of fine dining. Americans were smitten. Justin Spring follows the lives of six American writers-adventurers who adopted Paris as their home, and tells how they transformed the way Americans talk and think about food and the way they eat. A Taste of the Past is powered by SimplecastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.