The Food For ThoughtCast: Call Me Chef

Donuts and hoagies and kibbeh, oh my! It's time for a recap of Chef Stephen's recent trip back to Philly. Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast- it's Episode 82- A Return to Reading Terminal! We are talking all things saganaki, Thanksgiving sandwiches, and Steve celebrates crabfries! Today's episode is a personal victory for Melissa as Steve finds crinkle fries he actually likes, and truffle fl...

Melissa and Steve are reminiscing about birthday meals past, present, and future today! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast. It's Episode 81! We kick things off by hearing about the amazing meal that Steve recently made for his lovely better half's birthday. We ponder the many ways to cook chuck ribs, how to make friends without salad, and how to make people feel special on their birthday. Wh...

Hey there food fans!! Arguably this is just as important as the ingredients-- sometimes it all comes down to the gagdets and tools we use to make all of the tasty things. Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast- episode 80. This week finds Steve and Melissa chatting about gadgets, gizmos, tools, and appliances today. We find that we are often asked what our favorite brands or recommendations are...

Welcome back food fans! We missed you all week but today's the day. It's a big first for The Food For ThoughtCast, join us on episode 79 as we welcome one of our fans, Angela Standafer, to the show! We're calling this a Fan Feature! Melissa, Steve, and Angela discover the allure of lutefisk, the stress of The Bear, the best ways to prepare octopus, what makes a food Norwegian, and so much more! Th...

Welcome back to the Food For ThoughtCast, today we are talking all about food trucks. When did they start? What are our favorites? On episode 78, Steve is sticking to his sandwich shop, but this time fantasizing about it being on wheels- while Melissa wonders if anybody is doing frozen donuts yet. We are discussing the most popular for us, what's nearby, and the ones that (maybe) don't exist yet....

Hey there food fans! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, episode 77! Sometimes we just need to tell you what we ate. It's not just one amazing thing in a week, sometimes it's an entire trip or even a food crawl - both near and far. Steve is back from his trip to Pensacola and Melissa is busy being a tourist in her new town. We're talking about amazing sandwiches, seafood, Italian, desserts,...

I scream , you scream, we all scream......for AT&T to figure out their WiFi. Oh! And ice cream! Today we bring you episode 76 of The Food For ThoughtCast. Welcome back! We've missed you. This is the episode that nearly never happened, due to audio and internet issues but we soldiered through to bring you the podcast content that you know and love. This week we are talking about ice cream. As usual...

What does it take to be great? We're about to find out! Welcome back to episode 75 of The Food For ThoughtCast. Today Melissa and Steve are talking about wind-powered brisket (and other delicious meats) with Jim Lenzen from Jimmy L's in Sidney, Nebraska. Join us on the journey to learn how Jimmy L's came to be and get to know the man and the team that make it a success. They travel across Colorado...

What's better than checking in with a friend? This is our Seinfeld, the literal episode about nothing ( and everything!). The chefs are playing catch-up with each other today about the food they've been eating, the food they want to eat, and everything in between. Melissa figures out the quintessential things she must try in North Carolina, at least, according to the Internet. We talk about chili...

Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast- Episode 73! Today we are joined by Gerardo Rodriguez, the owner of Decasa Pizza in Midland, Texas. You're in for a treat. We start out with some small talk about pizza toppings and the most amazing things we ate- but then, move on to the big stuff! This is an awesome story of faith and food all the way from the oil field to the food truck to their very own...

You've heard us hype his sauce and dry rubs for ages now, in countless references and episodes---- Today it's finally time for Episode 72 of The Food For ThoughtCast, featuring none other than Chris Finch! Chris Finch is the owner and founder of Finch BBQ and we are talking to him today all about the journey and some amazing things happening in his world- including a story about the World Series,...

Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast- today is Episode 71! We've got a return guest today- David Page. David is a two-time Emmy award winning Executive Producer whose credits include: Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Beer Geeks, and Tailgate Warriors. David is also the author of Food Americana and pretty soon, will release his food podcast- Culinary Characters Unlocked. Steve and Melissa had an a...

Today we are joined on The Food For ThoughtCast by friend of the show Jonathan Hile, a foodie and adventure coordinator for Pirate and Mermaid Vacations. It's episode 70!  Random rabbit trails abound as we discuss the various foods of Pennsylvania, cold pizza toppings, and gas station sandwiches. Melissa's facial expressions cannot be excused and Stephen's dislike of cumin begins to wane but the s...

Hey there food fans! It's time for episode 69 of The Food For ThoughtCast. Today we are talking about sushi. What is maki? Where did sushi come from? When did it become popular? Steve and Melissa basically obsess over sushi, as we both love it. We give some fun facts and also some cooked "starter" options if you're new to it. Also, if you never eat it or don't plan to try it, that's ok- more for u...

Today, we're dishing up hot takes with a side of super distracted silly conversation.  Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, it's time for episode 68! Steve and Melissa are giving their takes on some classic food debates in today's episode. We discuss all sorts of things from pizza ( to fold or not to fold), to peanut butter and jelly, all the way to the right way to pronounce "pecan." It's ob...

That's right, it's a Friday episode drop of your sort-of favorite food podcast because honestly, calendars are hard. Food is so much easier. We are joined by none other than Chef Dominic Hawkes- a pretty amazing guy we found somewhere on the internet! That's not quite the story, but it's still a meat-cute. See what we did there? Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast Episode 67! I'm not sure wha...

Don't know your salami from your salumi? Boy are we glad you stopped by! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast- it's time for episode 66! Tonight we're talking about charcuterie, from 'chair cuit'- French for 'cooked meat'. We cover all of the things that you can pile onto a board- and plenty that you maybe shouldn't.  Steve is being a calf's liver apologist, as per usual. But it's delicious. M...

Today we're going on a road trip! Kind of. We each already did. Separately. With food! Ok now I'm confused.  Hey but anyway-- Welcome back to Episode 65 of The Food For ThoughtCast. Today Melissa and Steve are talking about all of our favorite road trip snacks. Chips, trail mix, gas station coffee, jerky- you name it, anything you can eat in a passenger seat or driver's seat is obviously fair game...

Fresh off of a storm-induced power outage and finding our way back to very questionable Wifi, it is Melissa and Steve in rare form. Welcome back to Episode 64 of The Food For ThoughtCast! Today we are talking about what to cook when you've got no electricity, which foods don't need to be refrigerated, and the tragedy of folks that don't know how to use a manual can-opener. Now that we have power m...

"Boil 'em, mash' em, stick' em in a stew" - pommes Anna, scalloped, au gratin, potato pave, mashed, smashed, chips, and fries. Nothing is off limits when this potato episode pops off! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, it is time for Episode 63! Steve unfortunately hates ketchup, because #rude. Melissa still doesn't like truffles. But they can both agree on The Fisher Price Steakhouse. This...

We ask each other at the top of every episode: "What is the most amazing thing you ate this week?" This week, though, there was too much to choose from. So many amazing things, in fact, that it became its own episode. Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast, it's time for Episode 62! Steve just got back from the Florida Keys, and Melissa did what she does every week--- tried to find all the right...

Hey there food fans, yes that is a Lion King reference. But anyway, it's time to talk about meal prep. Steve and Melissa are back with some ideas, tips, tricks, and of course : opinions galore. What do you like to eat during the week? Do you plan ahead? Do you eat breakfast on the go? What is your go-to meal prep strategy or do you just wing it every week? Welcome back to The Food For Thoughtcast-...

Let's give 'em something to taco 'bout! I know you see what we did there, and we hope after that atrocious play on words, you'll still hunger for this podcast. Also, puns! Welcome back to the Food For ThoughtCast- it's Episode 60! If it is of the tortilla persuasion- we're talking about it! Steve and Melissa chat it up about all things al pastor, puffy, choco, and fish. We gab and dish about we th...

Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast! Episode 59 has got Melissa and Steve pondering all the types of take-out, learning which type of take-out is the most ordered across the US, and finally : going completely off the rails as per usual. Find us in all the podcast places. Don't forget to watch us on YouTube! If you're new to the show or have been a Food Fan since the beginning- we're thankful...

Steve has mentioned it a couple of times that his dream is to open a sandwich shop. Today's episode takes us on a journey of both bread and cheese, meat and condiments, yes...... Reubens and recipes....for flavor , that is! Welcome back to The Food For ThoughtCast. In Episode 58 we talk about all things sandwiches-- including our favorites, and what Steve would have on his menu. First we start wit...