The Food For ThoughtCast: Call Me Chef

Hey there food fans! After a short hiatus, I am glad to bring you more of The Food For ThoughtCast. Thank you so much for listening and for following on social media. I am joined today for Episode 157 by Wayne Swanson Jr. He is the Founder and CEO of Swanson Family Farm, a Black-owned, multi-generational farm dedicated to producing premium, pasture-raised meats while advancing sustainable agricult...

In quite possibly the most "Seinfeld" episode ever of The Food For ThoughtCast, Steve and Melissa take a soft glance at random pasta shapes, talk briefly about pasta sauces, go on rabbit trails galore, and explore lots of other tangents about absolutely nothing. Sometimes we need a break from the hard-hitting journalism to just catch up. Jimmy Dean waffles ain't it. Welcome back to the pod, food f...

After a bit more shenanigans than usual, we're back for Episode 155 of The Food For ThoughtCast. Melissa returns from a trip to Atlanta and surrounding areas, visiting a couple of dear friends, and tells Steve all about it. If you're around the area, be sure to check out Marietta Fish Market, Rocket Fizz, Dough In A Box, Rumi's Kitchen, Douceur de France, Piedmont Provisions, Bottega Italian Marke...

Hey there food fans, we have a special guest returning for his third time on The Food For ThoughtCast- Chef Dominic Hawkes! You may remember him from such favorites as Episodes 67 and 100. He's the incredible culinary educator , all around food hero, a master chef of Great Britain, and foodie extraordinaire. Not to mention, he's a super nice dude. There were stories, there were tangents, there wer...

Did you think we forgot about you today, food fans?! Fear not, Episode 153 is here- hot off the presses and better late than never! That's right, if it's a Thursday, it's time for The Food For ThoughtCast, so don't you worry. Today's episode is a travel recap of Steve's Memorial Day weekend in Chicago. He did his best to eat his way through the entire city, and did a pretty amazing job! From El Id...

Hey there food fans! Episode 152 of The Food For ThoughtCast is shaping up to be mighty tasty, because our guest today is a master of flavors! We're talking to Blackwell Smith, he is a Southern cook who believes in honest flavor and hands-on practices, always grounded in real kitchens and real food. He is currently launching the No BS Cookbook series, including the latest No BS Holiday Cookbook an...

The allure of the 90s is back, baby! In snack form, that is. It's that time again- The Food For ThoughtCast is kicking off Episode 151 by welcoming Yousuf Ahmed to the show. Yousuf is dedicated to infusing joy back into snacking. B-SIDES crafts allergen-free , accidentally vegan, protein puffs using upcycled ingredients, prioritizing taste and experience above all else. Their vibrant and whimsical...

Hey there food fans! It's time to eat your veggies. Today on Episode 150 we are talking to Heidi Herman, author of The Hidden Vegetables Cookbook: 90 Tasty Recipes for Veggie-Averse Adults. Heidi takes us on her cooking and literary journey and we talk all about the ways we love to use vegetables to add nutrition and fiber to everyday items. Rather than urging readers to learn to love spinach or z...

Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, food fans! Today on Episode 149, we are joined by Brian Baumal, a registered psychotherapist who specializes in food addiction. This is a bit of a different episode, really focusing on the "thought" part of the "cast." We explore diet culture, the stories we tell ourselves about food, the mindsets that determine how and why we eat, and Brian helps us under...

Nothing better than a back-up plan, right? Sometimes the pivot is the ultimate consolation prize! Melissa had a trip to Virginia planned, but had to cancel at the last minute so she took full advantage of being a tourist in her own town instead. Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, it's time for Episode 148. Sit back , grab a tasty snack, and be completely jealous of all the amazing things sh...

Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, where everything is made up and the tangents don't matter. Stephen and Melissa start out trying to do a comedy bit and then ease ourselves into Episode 147. Today we're catching up about life in general, the amazing things we ate, and tackling a variety of topics from tuna poke, Trader Joe's kimbap, toddler food jags, foods we used to hate, and so much mor...

Hey there food fans! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast. In Episode 146, Stephen and Melissa are checking in with each other. We discuss being a tourist in your own town, upcoming travel and eating, foods we wish we knew more about, and what we've been cooking and eating. We talk about a few texture icks, shopping stories, and food memories. We like a little bit of a more chill conversation...

Are you living intentionally? Cooking with love? Gathering with purpose?! This week's guest Jeannie Jacobs is here to share the secret to doing just that. Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, it's time for Episode 145. Melissa here. Stephen and I had an incredible time talking to Jeannie about her inspiring journey from physician to people gatherer. Jeannie is on track to be the next Martha S...

Alternative titles to this episode could have also been "Get Your Shrimp Off My Barbie" or "A Tim-Tam is Not A Hat". Join us for cherry ripe, sausage sizzle, witchety grubs, fairy bread, and lots of laughs-- today's guest is an OG listener to The Food For ThoughtCast, and he also just happens to be our Australian Culinary Ambassador. I'm not sure if he knew he earned the title before he came on to...

Today we're getting saucy, but only in spirit! That joke works on two different levels. Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, where beverages are top of mind for today's episode. Melissa and Steve are joined for Episode 143 by guests James and Alena Mahoney of Madame Mocktail, a young but thriving mocktail brand that is staking a claim for the sober beverage game in Pittsburgh with four exciti...

Hey there food fans! Today we are joined by Sam Citro Alexander. As CEO and co-founder of FoodHealth Co., Sam is the talented and quirky voice behind the FoodHealth Score, a simple 1 to 100 rating changing how people and companies understand what's actually healthy in the grocery aisle. After her time in the beauty industry, Sam shifted her focus to nutrition, frustrated by confusing food labels a...

Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast! You're just in time for episode 141, which just happens to be the premiere of Season 4. Whether you're listening for the first time, or have been with us since the beginning, we are so glad you are here.  Food fans, buckle up- because today you're going to learn that Milwaukee is a serious food city. Join us as we talk to Chef Gregory León, from Amilinda....

Hey there food fans! What better from your favorite original food podcast than a conversation about "The Originals"??- the first and original PBJ! The first ever pancakes! The first fried chicken sandwich! Melissa and Steve are back for Episode 140 of The Food For ThoughtCast. We catch up about our Valentine's and Presidents' Days, what we've been eating and cooking, and how we've been living life...

It's time for Episode 138 of The Food For ThoughtCast- Welcome back food fans! Melissa and Steve catch up a little about what they are cooking and eating and then dive right into this week's topic-- favorite cereals, custom builds, and forgotten favorites. We take a look at 11 forgotten cereals that vanished from supermarket shelves. Some of these we are old enough to remember and some are way bef...

Hey there food fans! Welcome back to the Food For ThoughtCast-- you're just in time to talk about the foods of the early settlers, the time of the revolutionary war, and a few of the colonies. It's time for episode 138! Melissa and Steve are all over the place and all over the map, literally, in today's quick look at some of the most commonly eaten foods and cooking techniques used during this mon...

Sometimes sauces can be a real mother... Hey there food fans, welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast! It's time for Episode 137. Today we are talking about the five mother sauces of classical cooking. We take a look at each one and explain how to make them and how they are used, and we give our favorite riffs and variations. These sauces are a great foundation for your cooking journey. Whether y...

Hey there, food fans! We had an absolute blast talking to Lisa Parda, and we know you will love her too! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast. You're just in time for Episode 136. We're talking all things SteakUmms, real cheesecake, and potlucks. Lisa is the founder of RealtyScape and the cohost of Lisa and Robyn on The Mic. Lisa shares her journey to cooking, her philosophy on entertaining, a...

Hey there food fans! It's time for Episode 135. It's a solo snack! Sometimes Stephen and Melissa cannot make the stars align to record together, but we dare not deprive you of the tasty content that you've grown to know and love- so today, you get Melissa. I'm talking about fried chicken! We'll go on a global tour of some of the notable types, talk about what makes them different, and then a littl...

New Year, New Us! Hey there food fans, it's time for Episode 134 of The Food For ThoughtCast! Not to fear, it's the same old us that you've grown to love, and today we're catching up about all the New Year's cooking and eating. After we get that out of the way, Melissa needs to celebrates Steve's new hairdo with a one-time-only segment called "Just A Little Off The Top"- we take a look today at fo...

Food For ThoughtCast Fam, are you ready for 2026?! Happy New Year to our listeners and food fans, whether you've been here since the beginning or just found us recently,  we are so glad that you are here with us. Today's episode was our official Christmas episode- and Christmas week ended up being so busy, that we pushed it to today. Enjoy listening to Episode 133 of The Food For ThoughtCast as yo...