The Splendid Table: Conversations & Recipes For Curious Cooks & Eaters

It's our annual Thanksgiving show and we're celebrating with one of America's most beloved authors: poet, novelist, and screenwriter Jim Harrison. You may remember him from Legends of the Fall. We'll be talking with Jim about food and its role in our lives, a subject he covers with passion and wit in his book, The Raw and the Cooked: Adventures of a Roving Gourmand.Jane and Michael Stern are eating seven sweets and seven sours at the Dutch Kitchen in Frackville, Pennsylvania. We'll hear about hard apple cider, an old-time American alternative to wine, from Steve Wood of Farnum Hill Ciders. British writer Jim Crace looks charity square in the eye in a story from his book The Devil's Larder. Gourmet magazine editor Ruth Reichl tells us what the holiday might be like in New York City this year, we have a guide to brining turkey from Cook's Illustrated magazine, and Lynne shares Thanksgiving cooking tips and her recipe for Moroccan-Inspired Turkey.Broadcast dates for this episode:November 17, 2001

This week we'll meet the family responsible for the modern-day espresso machine. Dr. Ernesto Illy, head of the family's coffee dynasty in Italy, explains Italy's coffee culture and tells us what a really fine cup of espresso should taste like.Jane and Michael Stern are in Milwaukee eating soul food at Mr. Perkin's Family Restaurant where the turnip bottoms are "better than any vegetable should be." To help us determine what kind of turkey to buy for the holidays Christopher Kimball, editor of Cook's Illustrated, stops by to report on the results of the magazine'sturkey taste test. We'll go to Ketchum, Idaho, for a Basque sheep festival, and from Appalachia we have a story of cornbread and biscuits. In the second half of the show Lynne takes your calls and gives us her recipes for Three-Generation Thanksgiving Turkey and Herman's Cornbread Stuffing.Broadcast dates for this episode:November 18, 2000 (originally aired)November 3, 2001 (rebroadcast)

We're traveling and eating in Spain this week with journalist Anya Von Bremzen. Anya says Spain is the most exciting place in Europe to eat these days. The chefs there are rethinking the very foundations of food and a culinary revolution is happening. Along the way we'll stop off in Bilbao to visit the new Guggenheim Museum, the site of an architectural revolution.Jane and Michael Stern are in the California desert eating apple pies at theJulian Pie Company. Jewish-food authority and writer Matthew Goodman is back to tell us of the surprising origins of fish and chips and leaves us with the recipe for Fish & Chips from London's Upper Street Fish Shop.Still have that old fondue pot from the 1970s lurking in the attic? Dust it off and get ready for a fondue lesson from Switzerland with our hungry reporter Scott Haas. We'll meet food sculptor Peter Anton, a man with a different take on the hungry artist theme, and the phone lines will be open for your calls.Broadcast dates for this episode:December 9, 2000 (originally aired)October 20, 2001 (rebroadcast)

This week we meet Bob Giraldi, producer and director of the new film Dinner Rush. This movie, about a night in a happening New York City restaurant of the moment, captures the frantic trendiness and atrocious pressure that drives so many places these days. It's no warm and fuzzy Babette's Feast. Bob leaves us with his mother Minnie's recipe for Baked Ziti with Ricotta, perfect for Sunday dinner.In contrast, Jane and Michael Stern are at laid-back El Gallito in Cathedral City, California, eating mole and buying second-hand Pucci dresses. Master of Wine Mary Ewing Mulligan talks decanting, and writer Jim Leff of Chowhound.com takes on the political side of dining out. Comedienne Cathryn Michon, author of The Grrl Genius Guide to Life, reports on competitive cooking at the Santa Barbara Fair and gives us her recipe forLow-Fat Technicolor Tater Salad. It's not the all-American classic. Lynne's trivia question has a medical theme, and she's finally agreed to put her recipe for Pork Steaks with Chile Orange Sauce into print!Broadcast dates for this episode:October 6, 2001

Do you ever wonder whom Lynne, Julia Child, and other pros in the food business turn to when they're stumped with a culinary question? They call our guest, food scientist Shirley Corriher, author of CookWise. Shirley's unique ability to translate complex food chemistry into simple language, combined with her natural warmth and sense of humor, make her a favorite with our listeners. Try her wonderful recipe for Mixed Greens with Walnuts—it's no ordinary salad.Jane and Michael Stern have the scoop on a great breaded steak sandwich, cheese maven Steve Jenkins talks great "melters," and kitchen designer Deborah Krasner opens her online address book to share sources for kitchen equipment on the Web.Broadcast dates for this episode:January 22, 2000 (originally aired)July 14, 2001 (rebroadcast)September 15, 2001 (rebroadcast)

We say, forget martinis—what we want now is a summery American vermouth, perfectly chilled, straight up and just right for lazy-day sipping. California winemaker Andrew Quady, one of the country's vermouth pioneers, introduces us to Vya Extra-Dry Vermouth, a fresh and vibrant wine, delicious solo or paired with spicy-sweet foods.Jane and Michael Stern tell of a former Pittsburgh "techy" turned biscotti maker, John Willoughby is back with the word on some extraordinary dried red peppers, and herb maven Jerry Traunfeld gives us his recipe for Scented Geranium Lemonade. We've another installment in the saga of life behind the restaurant kitchen door and Lynne will take your calls.Broadcast dates for this episode:July 15, 2000 (originally aired)September 1, 2001 (rebroadcast)

It's a bargain hunter's guide to the Napa Valley wine country this week with valley insider Antonia Allegra, author of Napa Valley: The Ultimate Winery Guide. Antonia assures us we don't have to cash in the IRA and take out a bank loan to visit this pricey destination. She takes us where the locals go for superb budget dining, to a winery offering free classes, and shares her sources for good wines at reasonable prices. Would you believe bottles for less than $7? Tune in and we'll tell you where to find them.Jane and Michael Stern are relishing Big Butts in Robertsdale, Alabama. Herb genius Jerry Traunfeld is back talking mint and sharing his recipe for Zucchini Strands with Mint. We'll find out how to banish house and garden pests with Slug Bread & Beheaded Thistles, and the phone lines will be open for your calls.Broadcast dates for this episode:August 19, 2000 (originally aired)August 11, 2001 (rebroadcast)

If you know the food scene in Washington State, you know about the wildly popular Herbfarm Restaurant. You also know that getting a reservation there is all about the luck of the draw. They open their phone lines only twice a year for bookings and within hours every space for the next six months is filled! The reason is executive chef Jerry Traunfeld's cooking. Chef Traunfeld, author of The Herbfarm Cookbook, unveils some new tricks for getting maximum flavor from herbs and flowers, some of which you've probably never heard of. His recipe for Lemon Verbena Sorbet showcases the herbal spin this talented chef gives his food.Jane and Michael Stern are eating stellar Italian sausages in West Virginia, of all places. Grilling guru John Willoughby (of License to Grill fame) is back with a recipe for Asian Spice Rub that supports his claim that sometimes it's better to rub than soak. Our food scientist Shirley Corriher, author of Cookwise, has the final word on flavored oils. Are they safe? We'll find out. We'll learn how a Cherokee farmer is bringing her people back to their food traditions, Lynne finds a great place to eat in New York, and she'll also take your calls.Broadcast dates for this episode:May 27, 2000 (originally aired)August 4, 2001 (rebroadcast)

The hot chef of the moment, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, tells us how he got there, while Chef Anthony Bourdain has tales of horrors in the restaurant kitchen (DON'T ORDER FISH ON MONDAYS!). The Sterns are tracking down stuffed quahogs, tea merchant Bill Waddington talks iced tea, and cheesemonger Steve Jenkins takes us back to France for one of his all-time favorites—gaparon.Broadcast dates for this episode:July 10, 1999 (originally aired)June 17, 2000 (rebroadcast)July 21, 2001 (rebroadcast)

Americans are crazy for olive oil. It's had a major impact on our cooking, but buying and enjoying it can be complex and confusing. Why does one bottle cost $6 while another costs $60? Peggy Knickerbocker, author of Olive Oil: From Tree to Table, has traveled the Mediterranean researching how olive oil is made and what makes a quality oil. She answers that question and more, names her favorite California oils, and gives us her recipe for Tattooed Potatoes With Rosemary.Jane and Michael Stern tell us where they found "turkey sandwich perfection" in Seattle. Cheesemonger Steve Jenkins explains the art of the affineur and has a trick or two up his sleeve that we can use at home to improve our own cheeses. Pickling season is here, so John Willoughby shares his delicious recipes for Easy Cucumber Pickles and Sweet and Hot Curried Zucchini Pickles. Finally, we ll learn secrets to shopping for East Indian foods with Linda Bladholm, author of The Indian Grocery Store Demystified.Broadcast dates for this episode:September 9, 2000 (originally aired)June 30, 2001 (rebroadcast)