Episode 260: Tuna Melts, Homemade Toffee, and Homecoming Eats

In food news this week, we are devastated by the loss of Capogiro Gelato. Thankfully, we both got our last scoops.

In our “What’s for Dinner” segment, we’re talking about a classic: Tuna melts.

In our “How’d You Make That” segment, Marisa explains her famous homemade toffee that she gives as gifts over the holiday.

We also discussed what we eat, and what we want to eat, when we get home from a trip.

In “What We’re Loving,” this week, it’s cloverleaf rolls, specifically the ones from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.

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Episode 253: Chicken Ricotta Meatballs, Broccoli Tabbouleh, and Pasta Shapes

In food news this week, Brian Wansink of Cornell, known for media-friendly studies showing that people eat more out of larger bowls among other things, is out of a job.

In What’s for Dinner, we’re talking chicken ricotta meatballs.

In How’d You Make That? we discuss broccoli tabouleh.

What are your favorite pasta shapes? We share ours in this episode. Tell us yours in the comments.

And in what we’re loving, it’s fancy honey. Especially Old Blue Raw Honey.

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Episode 231: Homemade Burritos, Flatbread Pizza, Ireland

Flatbread aka “Cheaters” Pizza

In food news this week, Eater Philly compiled a list of iconic Philadelphia dishes. Joy and Marisa discuss.

In our What’s for Dinner segment, we return to the important topic of homemade burritos.

Also for dinner recently: Flatbread pizza. It sounds better than saying “cheaters pizza,” which is what you could call it when you substitute packaged naan for a homemade dough but it still tastes good.

Marisa has just returned from a vacation to Ireland, and she shares some of her many glorious food highlights from the trip.

What are we loving this week? Mary Berry’s Classics.

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Episode 211: Winter Greens, Homemade Hummus, Reverse Engineering Restaurant Dishes

The latest version of Joy’s homemade hummus

 

If you are a regular listener, you know we love Melissa Clark’s recipes, both in the NY Times and in her many, many cookbooks. The Cut gave readers the inside scoop on how she makes it happen. (Spoiler alert: she has a dedicated recipe tester.)

Joy has been experimenting with different (read: easier) ways to make the incredible, smooth, creamy, dreamy hummus from the Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking cookbook. Her latest tweak involves the Instant Pot.

As the cold weather descends (which it did very suddenly in Philadelphia), local salad greens typically become a memory. But some local farms are usual greenhouses to produce wonderful, salad friendly produce well into the off season. Joy and Marisa tell you where you can find it at our local markets.

How do you reverse engineer a restaurant dish? Joy and Marisa share their typical process.

In the What We’re Loving segment: Mini whisks.

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Episode 209: Instant Pot Chicken, What Makes a Meal, Miss Rachel’s Pantry

What does a meal have to have to count as “dinner”?

 

This week in food news, we take a look Bloomberg News’ recent story and infographic about how American food preferences have changed over the decades. One interesting tidbit is that coffee consumption peaked in the 1960s and never rebounded. Check the whole thing out right here.

What’s for dinner this week? Whole chicken in the Instant Pot. We love this method that leaves you with juicy flavorful meat (perfect for soups, stews, sandwiches and salads) and, even better, the richest chicken stock we’ve ever made. (If you want more of our Instant Pot tips and tricks check out special episode 172.)

We ask ourselves a big question–what makes something dinner? Is a sandwich dinner? What about sushi? How many elements do you need for something to be dinner? Is dinner for yourself different than what you’d consider dinner to serve to a guest?

Recently Joy and Marisa took a vegan cheese making class at Miss Rachel’s Pantry. We learned how to make dairy-free chevre, mozzarella, and an astonishingly simple (but delicious) ricotta. Not only did we have the chance to learn and practice new cooking skills, we had so much fun at Miss Rachel’s charming cooking and eating space.

What are we loving this week? Tempeh. It featured prominently in the Joy of Cooking recipe Joy made for the recent potluck, and she’s been enamored of it ever since.

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Episode 200: Local Mouthful Turns 2

This week, it’s our 100th episode and our second podcast birthday so we’re celebrating with a look back.

We cover what has changed in the last two years of our home cooking and what has stayed the same, our most used cookbooks, and review and update some of our most memorable segments.

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194: Dinner Derailed, Better without Booze, Joan Nathan

In food news this week, we talked about the recent scandal over horse meat that went down in Pittsburgh.

You know how much we love home cooking, but sometimes dinner gets derailed for us, too. We talked a little about why and how this happens and how to get back on track.

Regular listeners might remember that Joy took the month of January off from drinking alcohol. Well, she never went back. Feeling secure in her new identity as a nondrinker, she launched a new project: Better without Booze.

Cookbook maven extraordinaire Joan Nathan has a new release: King Solomon’s Table. This is an ambitious cookbook that anyone who loves food will want to get their hands on. Marisa and Joy had the chance to meet Joan and to taste some of the recipes in the book at a recent dinner to celebrate the book at Abe Fisher and we tell you all about it.

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Episode 192: Miso-glazed Salmon, Smoothie Season, Corn Tortillas

A terrific new cookbook by Melissa Clark. Try the miso-glazed salmon!

In food news this week, we discuss a recent study published in the Journal of Positive Psychology that found people who frequently take a turn at small, creative projects (like cooking and baking!) report feeling more relaxed and happier in their everyday lives.

In our What’s for Dinner segment, we talk about a dynamite recipe for Miso-Glazed Salmon from the new cookbook, Dinner: Changing the Game.

It’s smoothie time! We talk about our favorite combos for this warm-weather staple.

Joy took at class about tortillas from South Philly Barbarco chefs, and she fills Marisa in on how they make their amazing tortillas from local corn.

At the market this week, we’re buying hot house tomatoes!

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Episode 191: Black Rice, Why Names Matter, Cooking Videos

Hummus, according to Marisa

In food news this week, we high five over the fact that Philadelphia chefs and restaurants finally won their fair share of James Beard awards this year. Congrats Stephen Starr, Michael Solomonov, Greg Vernick, and Sam Calagione!

What’s on our dinner tables this week? In Joy’s house, it’s black rice. Here’s a recipe she especially likes that would be a good introduction if you haven’t made it before.

When is a bowl of hummus not hummus? When it doesn’t contain even a single chickpea, at least according to Marisa. Here’s the admittedly tasty sounding not-hummus recipe that got us talking about this.

Do you watch all those short cooking videos on facebook? We do. The thing is, a lot of them just don’t work.

And finally, at the market we are buying pea shoots. So spring-y, fresh, and delicious!

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Episode 186: Unrestricted Dinners, Bagel Thursdays at Essen Bakery, and Baby Kale

Smoked salmon, cream cheese, red onion, and capers on a fresh bagel at Essen Bakery

In food news this week, we discuss a recent NPR’s The Salt piece that addresses the difficulty of shopping for sustainable seafood, even with the help of all those guides.

Next up: Dinner, unrestricted. As Marisa’s husband shifts away from a low-carb eating style, she is free to add some grains glorious grains to their shared dinners.

Joy shares one of her current obsessions: Bagel Thursday at Essen Bakery in South Philly.

We also talk about meatloaf–there’s a new meatloaf cookbook, A Meatloaf in Every Pot, and a whole lot of opinions on the subject of this humble foodstuff. (Here’s a link to Joy’s favorite meatloaf recipe.)

At the market this week, we are buying some baby kale.

If you like what you hear, make sure to subscribe! Bonus points if you rate us or leave a review. Follow us on twitter @localmouthful and help us spread the word about the show.