Your Last Meal with Rachel Belle

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from comedian Paula Poundstone! If you listened to last week's episode of Your Last Meal , you know Paula has a serious sweet tooth, from the Ring Dings she wants for her last meal to the sugar packets she used to eat for dessert.  Same holds true in this episode where Paula shares her perfect birthday cake, the same one she's adored since child...

Veteran comedian Paula Poundstone loves Ring Dings, her favorite little chocolate snack cakes only sold in a handful of East Coast states. She once told a very skeptical Michael Pollan, on NPR's Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! , that they are her reason for living.  So host Rachel Belle interviews the pastry chef/owner of The Ring Ding Bar in New York City, a bakery that’s recreated the confection with...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Ani DiFranco, singer/songwriter, activist and feminist icon. Ani started her own record company in 1989, put out her first record in 1990 and just released her 23rd album. But what do her two school-aged children think about her music? She will discuss! Plus she shares her family’s boozy holiday traditions, and reveals what is no longer on...

If you listened to the Grammy-winning singer/songwriter in the ’90s, she wants you to know she’s still making music: Ani DiFranco just released her 23rd album! Ani is known for lyrics that explore politics, social justice and feminism, but in real life she is smiley, friendly and down-to-earth – not the “angry feminist” she was often mislabeled as. Ani grew up in Buffalo, New York, where she was t...

Host Rachel Belle celebrated the launch of Open Sesame at Book Larder, Seattle's only dedicated cookbook store. The event sold out, but you can listen in! Rachel is usually the one asking the questions, but on November 13 the tables were turned! She was in conversation with Becky Selengut , a beloved Seattle cookbook author, cooking instructor, podcast host and chef.  Rachel tells the magical stor...

This week on  The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Jonathan Van Ness and Tan France, two of the stars of the popular Netflix show Queer Eye.   Last week on Your Last Meal , Tan said his love language is cooking for the people he loves. So just imagine the fight that breaks out in this episode when Tan tells JVN he’ll bring him take-out instead of a homecooked meal!  Tan and JVN reveal thei...

Queer Eye Season 9 just dropped on Netflix, and Jonathan Van Ness (beauty expert), Tan France (fashion expert) and the rest of The Fab Five are back to make over folks who have big hearts but need lots of help in the self-care department.  This episode is chock full of big energy and big personalities – so much so that host Rachel Belle hardly had to lift a finger as the buddies interviewed, compl...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Al Roker, longtime weather presenter and co-anchor of NBC’s Today . Al and his chef daughter Courtney Roker Laga just released a cookbook called Al Roker’s Recipes to Live By – Easy, Memory-Making Family Dishes for Every Occasion . Al tells me about the strangest recipe in the cookbook (hint: It involves fish + breakfast cereal), which of h...

Longtime Today show weatherman and anchor, Al Roker, just released a cookbook of family recipes with his chef daughter called Al Roker’s Recipes to Live By ... but it took some convincing. When Courtney Roker Laga asked her dad if he wanted to write a cookbook together, he knew his answer immediately: No thanks! Fifty years into a busy career, Al wrote a couple cookbooks years ago and knows how mu...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Portland, Oregon, novelist Chuck Palahniuk, author of Fight Club and nearly 20 other books, including his new novel Shock Induction.   Chuck tells host Rachel Belle about his family’s favorite processed food gimmicks from the ’70s, who his dream dinner party guests are, and his favorite Portland restaurant. Spoiler: He says the food is terr...

Chuck Palahniuk is best known for his novel-turned-cult-classic-film Fight Club , but the prolific author has published a book nearly every year for the past two decades. His newest is called Shock Induction.  Chuck tells host Rachel Belle about the recipes fans have sent him from prison (and which he’s made!), why he can hardly look at a peach, let alone eat one, and why his mouth waters at the m...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Ken Burns, the prolific, award-winning filmmaker who has been making historical documentary films for PBS for more than 40 years.  Ken lost his mother when he was just 11 years old, a tragic event that has shaped both his personal life and career; in last week’s episode of Your Last Meal he said his mother’s death is what led him to filmmak...

For the past 50 years, Ken Burns has written, directed and produced historical films on a wide variety of topics, from country music and baseball to the Vietnam War and the Brooklyn Bridge. His brand-new film investigates the life of Leonardo da Vinci who, very appropriately for this show, painted The Last Supper! So host Rachel Belle consults an Italian archaeologist about what Jesus and the 12 a...

Food can play a significant role in a presidential race as candidates attempt to show how relatable they are through the dishes they eat and the restaurants they visit. Not only do Vice President Kamala Harris and presidential hopeful Donald Trump have different politics, they have extremely different tastes in food.  In this special election episode of Your Last Meal , award-winning New York Time...

This week on The Leftovers , never-before-heard audio from Tim Heidecker, one half of the sketch comedy duo Tim & Eric, actor and musician.  Eric shares a very controversial opinion about pizza (that host Rachel Belle does not agree with!) and, a big baseball fan, he talks about what he likes to eat at the ballpark.  Listen to last week's YLM episode with Tim! Subscribe to Your Last Meal on Ap...

Tim Heidecker , one half of the Tim & E ric comedy duo, is best known for sketch comedy and acting, but he’s also a musician – he just released his eighth album, Slipping Away.    One thing Tim isn't? A foodie. He would take a hoagie from Wawa over a fancy meal any day. Tim is from Pennsylvania, which is also the birthplace of Wawa, a convenience store/gas station chain with a cult following....

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from astrologer Tali Edut, one half of the Astro Twins. Tali and her twin sister are longtime astrologers for Elle magazine, matchmakers on the Amazon Prime show Cosmic Love and best-selling authors.  Tali grew up in Michigan but spent a long time living in New York City, so host Rachel Belle challenges her to debate which pizza is better: a Det...

Tali Edut and her twin sister Ophira are the Astro Twins : longtime astrologers for Elle magazine, matchmakers on the Amazon Prime show  Cosmic Love and best-selling authors; their new book is  The Astrology Advantage: Use Your Horoscope for Personal and Professional  Success . Tali grew up in a multicultural household eating lots of classic Middle Eastern dishes. When she eventually moved to New...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from comedian and actor John Early! John grew up eating Southern staples like pimento cheese sandwiches and cheesy grits, but since making his home in Los Angeles, his cooking style is drastically different. He tells host Rachel Belle about his most cliche and stereotypical LA eats.   When John was a kid, he was such a big fan of the Australian...

Growing up in Nashville with two ministers for parents, John Early ’s ( Search Party, John Early: Now More Than Eve r) formative food memories are linked with church, where the sermons were boring but the donuts were plentiful. Plenty of people go out for breakfast after church on Sundays, but not many know that one of America’s most beloved brunch foods descended from the wafers placed on tongues...

Your Last Meal is celebrating 200 episodes (er, belatedly – this is technically episode 203!) with a replay of the podcast’s 100th episode – a very special show where host Rachel Belle interviewed three spectacular 100-year-old Seattle women about their careers, favorite food memories and, of course, their fantasy last meals. Many of the last meals shared on the podcast are rooted in nostalgia – a...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from Tamron Hall & Lish Steiling, authors of the new cookbook, A Confident Cook . These buddies met on the set of The Today Show , where Tamron was in front of the camera, and Lish worked behind the scenes as a food stylist for the cooking segments.   Close friends, Lish and Tamron have shared many meals and holidays together with their frie...

When Emmy Award-winning journalist and talk show host, Tamron Hall, and James Beard Award and Emmy Award–winning culinary producer, Lish Steiling, became fast friends working at The Today Show, they never would have predicted they'd write a cookbook together. But they just rele ased A Confident Cook , a collection of recipes inspired by Tamron’s and Lish’s backgrounds, plus lots of basic technique...

This week on The Leftovers, never-before-heard audio from musicians Aly and AJ, who landed their first record deal as teenagers in 2005, and are still singing for their suppers!  Aly and AJ are bandmates and sisters who give off big BFF energy, and when it comes to food and fashion, they have a lot in common. So host Rachel Belle quizzes them to see just how much they know about each other’s culin...

Aly and AJ signed their first record deal when they were just 13 and 15 years old, and nearly 20 years later they’re still singing for their supper. Literally! The sisters love to eat and keep a running list of their favorite restaurants at tour destinations around the world.    One of their favorite spots in the U.S. is Marfa Burritos, a hole-in-the-wall, family-run Texas burrito joint with a cul...