The Splendid Table

It may occur in 1 in 200 people, it runs in families, women have it more than men, and those with it probably have a superior memory. It's synesthesia, and research neurologist Dr. Richard Cytowic will explain this fascinating peculiarity in the brain that results in the involuntary joining of two or more senses. If you think a slice of apple pie tastes like an octagon, tune in for some explanatio...

For some of us, a bit of fine, luxurious chocolate can soothe our stress or brighten a dreary day. But how many of us know that our Godiva bar started out as a goopy white substance from the insides of an ugly cacao pod? Maricel Presilla, author of The New Taste of Chocolate: A Cultural and Natural History of Cacao, shares some history and cultural lore about our antidote of choice and leaves us w...

This week we're looking at where our health and nutrition information comes from with Dr. Marion Nestle, professor and chair of New York University's Department of Nutrition and Food Studies. Dr. Nestle has served as nutrition advisor to the USDA and the FDA and is the author of Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health. She suggests some Internet sites that offer help i...

This week it's an antidote to the dog days of summer from Raghavan Iyer, a native of Bombay and author of The Turmeric Trail: Recipes and Memories from an Indian Childhood. Raghavan knows it's all about what you eat. He'll share a cooling menu that includes Corn with Roasted Chiles and Coconut Milk, Chaat, and Green Papaya Salad, all inspired by Bombay street food. Jane and Michael Stern have a bi...

This week Jayne Hurley, co-author of Restaurant Confidential and senior nutritionist at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, joins us for talk about the best and the worst fast-food picks. We'll learn why Burger King is out and Wendy's is in when it comes to healthy choices for eating on the run. And let's face it: Many of us occasionally do the drive-through. Jane and Michael Stern are...

Film director, novelist, and playwright Nora Ephron, whose latest book is Crazy Salad, is a woman who loves to cook and have friends in to eat. Everyone has a great time at her house and her dinner parties are legendary. She'll tell us how she stopped worrying, broke a bunch of rules, and learned to enjoy entertaining. It's mini hot dogs, not lobster, for Jane and Michael Stern at Flo's on the coa...

Lynne talks with Dr. Andrew Weil, the maverick medical doctor who's become a renowned authority on integrated healing. He shares three simple things we can all do to be healthier, along with a recipe for Mexican Chicken Soup from his latest book, The Healthy Kitchen: Recipes for a Better Body, Life and Spirit. For balance, Jane and Michael Stern tuck into chicken fried steak and scones at Mom's Ca...

  This week it's a saga of money, ecology and a struggle to survive on the South Dakota prairie. Dan O'Brien, author of the autobiographical Buffalo for the Broken Heart, is a cattle rancher who asked some difficult questions and found some unexpected answers. One led to the restoration of life to his Black Hills ranch. Jane and Michael Stern recently returned from South Dakota where they found ir...

French chef-turned-barbecue expert Steven Raichlen is back with some off-the-wall grilling techniques from his new book Beer-Can Chicken. Whether it's in a leaf or in the coals, on a stick or under a brick, Steve inspires us to fire up the grill and start cooking. His recipe for Basic Beer-Can Chicken gets us started. Jane and Michael Stern tell of the sublime hand-formed biscuits at Mamie's in Co...

Broadcast dates for this episode: May 10, 2003

Elizabeth Schneider, a woman who knows vegetables from the seed to the plate, joins us this week with simple ideas for good, healthy eating from her new book Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini: The Essential Reference. Elizabeth has given over the past decade to gathering every shred of information on produce—the best varieties to buy and the best ways to cook them. Her recipes for Baked Scented...

Dr. Kelly Brownell, director of the Yale Center for Eating and Weight Disorders, joins us this week for a look at how TV commercials shape our eating habits. His take on how advertising may be affecting our health raises all sorts of questions. Should junk food be controlled like alcohol and tobacco ads? On the opposite side of the health issue, Jane and Michael Stern are eating Butter Burgers at...

Coffee buyer and master roaster Kevin Knox, co-author of Coffee Basics, joins us with a guide to roasts and brewing methods, tells us what the pros are drinking now, and reveals a few surprises, too. To top it off, Lynne's decadent Espresso-Ricotta Cream with Chocolate Espresso Sauce is the perfect partner for a rich cup of joe. Jane and Michael Stern muse about religion and barbecue at Harold's i...

This week it's a look at why we prefer some foods more than others with Dr. Julie Menella of the Monell Chemical Senses Center. Dr. Menella studies taste preferences in infants and explains why one kid won't eat broccoli and another hates carrots. Jane and Michael Stern return to Keaton's, one of Jane's top five road food favorites, for the outrageous fried chicken and southern-style side dishes....

We're eating Appalachian this week with food writers Ted and Matt Lee, two brothers who rented a pickup truck and headed for the back roads of Eastern Kentucky in search of the elusive pawpaw fruit. Along the way, they discovered that good food is more about human ingenuity than rich resources. Read more about their adventure in the article, "On the Appalachian Trail" in the March 2002 issue of Fo...

Can you be addicted to sugar? We'll find out when Robin Edelman joins us on this week's show. Robin is the nutrition editor for Eating Well magazine and author of the article "Sweet Addiction" in the Fall 2002 issue. The always original Jane and Michael Stern are dining inside a longhorn skull in Amado, Arizona. Wine wizard Joshua Wesson has the scoop on Argentina's Malbec. Is it the next big red?...

This week Lynne talks with Paul Draper, CEO of Ridge Vineyards, and the winemaker who elevated California Zinfandel to world-class status by shunning market-driven, high-tech methods in favor of ancient techniques. The resulting wines are simply the essence of refinement, intensity, and complexity. Jane and Michael Stern are eating in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, at the Wolf Lodge Inn, and our hungry rep...

Art historian Carolin Young, author of Apples of Gold, Settings of Silver, takes us back to 1753 and a seduction supper with Casanova himself. In those days, romantic dinners were an art form, and this one has an interesting twist. It's all about who is seducing whom. Jane and Michael Stern have found romance and old-style Italian food at Gargiulo's on Coney Island. Sally Schneider tells us what's...

Restaurant critic John Heckathorn takes us to Honolulu, one of Lynne's favorite food cities, for an insider's dine-around and guide to eating like a local. In a town notorious for high prices, John's advice and restaurant picks guarantee great eating for little money. Jane and Michael Stern investigate the Frontier restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where the legendary cinnamon rolls are a foo...

We'll take a look at small-batch bourbons with Kentucky bourbon maker Frederick Booker Noe, the grandson of Jim Beam and one of the pioneers in this new take on American whiskey. Forget bourbon and soda—this is stuff you'll want to leisurely swirl and sniff before taking a sip. Some experts claim these whiskeys are right up there with the great brandies and single-malt scotches. Texans take their...

Chef and author Anthony Bourdain described his first book, Kitchen Confidential, as an "obnoxious and over-testosteroned" account of his life in the restaurant business. Still, the book remained on the New York Timesbestseller list for weeks. Now the food world's outrageous bad boy is at it again with his new book, A Cook's Tour, the chronicle of his planet-circling jaunt in search of the ultimate...

This week we're off to a region of Italy only 20 minutes outside Venice—yet known and visited by few. The wonderful cuisine here could be called a fusion of "Northern Italian Soul" meets the Arabian Knights. The greatest varieties of wines in all of Italy come from the area, and the scenery is pretty good too. It's Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and our guide is none other than culinary explorer Fred Plot...

This week it's talk of life, food, and Christmas dinner with television food star Nigella Lawson. Her show Nigella Bites (which also happens to be the title of her latest book,) is all about the sheer lustiness of food. Get ready to be a guest at your own party with holiday eats from Nigella. It's the perfect menu for entertaining, because everything is made in advance! The Sterns suggest we spend...

If a dinner party place setting with more than a knife and fork causes angst, this week's show brings relief. Judith Martin, the high priestess of etiquette known as Miss Manners, has tips for maneuvering smoothly through the minefield of dining and entertaining at this most social of seasons. Her new book, Star Spangled Manners, defends American etiquette and takes a look at what sets it apart. J...

Our guest this week is Kermit Lynch, a wine pioneer who's been bucking trends since he began importing wine from France in the 1970s. He's devoted his career to seeking out the small and unique in a world of big and uniform. His book, Adventures on the Wine Route, chronicles his life in wine. Jane and Michael Stern are checking out the goods in Calgary, that eater's paradise up north. Steve Jenkin...