Radio Cherry Bombe

Chef Millie Peartree has a simple code that she lives by: “If you can do something to help someone else, you do it,” she says. Millie is a chef, restaurateur, and recipe developer, but most importantly, she’s a humanitarian who’s spent the past several months making sure others don’t go hungry. This summer, Millie’s been working on her Full Heart Full Bellies initiative to provide thousands of mea...

“I just want to tell you how I feel about baking in case you don't know,” says Dorie Greenspan. “I feel that baking is magic.” Bake your day with this episode from the Radio Cherry Bombe archives. Tune in to hear beloved cookbook authors Dorie Greenspan and Joy Wilson AKA Joy The Baker chat about life, Julia Child, birthday cakes, and more from last year’s Jubilee NYC. It’s a conversation you don’...

Pooja Bavishi knew she wanted to be in the dessert business, but she never envisioned herself as an ice cream entrepreneur. Then one year, during her annual Friendsgiving celebration, she broke out an ice cream maker her parents had given her and made two ice creams: ginger and star anise. Her friends raved and Pooja knew it was her a-ha moment. Fast forward: Pooja’s Malai ice cream is a growing b...

Don’t miss this wise, warm, and wonderful conversation between Madhur Jaffrey and Padma Lakshmi. As Padma put it at this year’s Cherry Bombe Jubilee Conference, Madhur “is the greatest living writer on Indian food—ever.” Padma, the star of Top Chef and Taste the Nation and a best-selling author, interviewed Madhur at Jubilee and it was a riveting exchange that touched on a wide range of topics: pr...

“When I think about the movements that Black women have given us and have sustained just in this generation, I have to wonder why is it that people don’t listen to and follow Black women?” asked FoodLab Detroit Executive Director and co-founder of FoodLab Sydney Devita Davison, citing Black Lives Matter, Black Girl Magic, Free Our Girls, Say Her Name, Me Too, misogynoir, self-care, and intersectio...

“I’m an immigrant, a dancer, and a dreamer,” says Dominique Crenn, the world-renowned chef behind Atelier Crenn in San Francisco and author of the brand new memoir, Rebel Chef: In Search of What Matters. Dominique shares her journey from scrappy tomboy to holder of three Michelin stars, to her breast cancer diagnosis last year and the love story that helped her through it. Dominique also talks abo...

“Food became more and more a revolutionary tool, opposed to what I just put in my body,” says activist Qiana Mickie, the special projects consultant for Just Food, the New York City-based pioneering food justice organization focused on community-driven solutions to inequities in the system. Qiana, who was most recently executive director of the organization, views food as a driver of enterprise, i...

“I’ve been incredibly surprised by where my career has taken me,” says Amanda Cohen, chef/owner of the vegetable-focused Dirt Candy restaurant in New York City. “I never would have expected it would take me to Congress.” Earlier this week, Amanda testified before the Small Business Committee of the House of Representatives on behalf of the Independent Restaurant Coalition. Amanda is part of the le...

“I have for a very long time seen that the world was unjust,” said Ianne Fields Stewart, actor, activist, and founder of The Okra Project. “To me, the solutions seem simple.” Ianne, a Black queer nonbinary transfeminine New York-based storyteller, wanted to do something about Black Trans People experiencing a lack of community, family, and food insecurity. The result was The Okra Project, a collec...

Award-winning pastry chefs around the country have been furloughed or let go from their positions as restaurants struggle to deal with the ramifications of the coronavirus. “It doesn’t matter if you won a James Beard Award. It doesn’t matter if you are the most visible figure on a restaurant staff,” says Natasha Pickowicz. “At the end of the day, I think pastry in restaurants and fine dining resta...

Welcome to the first episode of the Afros + Knives mini-series on Radio Cherry Bombe, hosted by Chef Tiffani Rozier. Afros + Knives is a weekly podcast and media platform created by Tiffani that features Black women who work and lead in food, beverage, hospitality, food justice, and food media. “I launched Afros + Knives because I wanted to hear the stories of women who worked in food and look lik...

Catina Smith was looking to create a sisterhood of Black chefs in Baltimore when she had the idea to launch a calendar to raise money and awareness. The photographer came up with the name and a movement was born. Today, Just Call Me Chef is a close-knit group that highlights and uplifts Black women chefs through professional networking, mentorship, and more. We sat down with JCMC founder Cat to he...

Top Chef recently crowned Melissa King the winner of Season 17 after an epic showdown in Italy. As a returning finalist from Season 12, Melissa competed among the fiercest group of All Stars yet. She snagged both the $250,000 prize and the Fan Favorite award. It was a powerful moment for Melissa, a freelance chef and proud representative of both the LGBTQ+ and Asian-American communities. Melissa j...

The restaurant industry almost broke Pastry Chef Paola Velez during the early days of her career, but her passion, drive, and sense of self worth have won out time and time again. Over the past two weeks, Paola, on furlough from her job at Kith/Kin in Washington, D.C., has channeled her energy and optimism into a project called Bakers Against Racism. This humble bake sale, founded by Paola, Pastry...

Today, we’re celebrating Cha McCoy, Cherry Bombe’s new Beverage Director. We’re dipping into the archives for Cha’s two appearances on Radio Cherry Bombe. First, you’ll hear her powerful talk from our 2019 Jubilee conference, titled “I Am More Than Moscato,” which covers discrimination in the hospitality and beverage industry. For the second half of the show, we’re revisiting her 2018 Radio Cherry...

We’re not airing an episode of Radio Cherry Bombe today. Instead, we’d like you to take the time you spend listening to our show and seek out new voices, in particular food podcasts by Black women. Some suggestions: Afros + Knives by Tiffani Rozier, The Food Truck Scholar by Ariel Smith, the Pro Food Maker Podcast by Mercedes Gosby, A Hungry Society by Korsha Wilson, and Dinner for One by Sutanya...

“I know that when I go back to ‘working normally,’ I will not live the same way that I used to,” said Kristen Kish, reflecting on the past few months. “I’ve learned an incredible amount… just by being still.” Kristen is the winner of Top Chef Season 10, author of Kristen Kish Cooking: Recipes and Techniques , and the executive chef at Arlo Grey in The Line Hotel in Austin, Texas. Radio Cherry Bomb...

Marissa Mullen loves cheese plates so much that she quit her job with Stephen Colbert and dedicated herself to sharing her enthusiasm for all things fromage with the world. Her brand new book, That Cheese Plate Will Change Your Life, was just published and it shows how you can create a gorgeous cheese plate or board using Marissa’s Cheese By Numbers method. Marissa chats with host Kerry Diamond ab...

“Being in the present has totally changed so much of my perspective,” says Jocelyn Delk Adams, founder of the Grandbaby Cakes blog and author of the cookbook Grandbaby Cakes: Modern Recipes, Vintage Charm, Soulful Memories and several e-cookbooks. The busy entrepreneur has stayed focused through the current crisis by reminding herself what she’s thankful for, taking care of her young daughter, and...

“When I see these perfect pantries, I’m like… ‘This isn’t how real people live,’” laughs Deb Perelman. “This is a real-life overstuffed kitchen.” Deb is the cook, writer, and photographer behind the much-loved Smitten Kitchen blog and the two companion cookbooks. Tune in to hear what this down-to-earth personality is up to and why she’s loving things cooked low and slow right now, from sweet potat...

“If you don’t see representation of someone who looks like you, it’s difficult to see yourself in that position,” said Emma Walker, the master blender responsible for Jane Walker by Johnnie Walker and a panelist at the Craftswomen event hosted by the spirits powerhouse Diageo earlier this year to celebrate the makers behind some of the world’s best spirits. We’re bringing you the panel, recorded l...

Meet Amanda Nguyen, the owner and baker behind Butter&, the San Francisco bakery that’s become famous for its Quarantine Cakes. Amanda came up with the idea for these mini cakes decorated with a PSA out of necessity. Her custom cake business relied on weddings, birthdays, and other celebrations, and all of her orders were canceled almost overnight due to the COVID-19 crisis. Tune in to hear how Am...

Karen Akunowicz, the chef/owner of Fox & the Knife in Boston and a James Beard award winner, has been dealing with a lot of highs and lows as of late. She’s a contestant on the current season of Top Chef All-Star s, but at the same time, was forced to furlough most of her restaurant team due to the current crisis. Karen quickly pivoted to takeout and delivery and has focused her offerings on homem...

When you support restaurants with takeout or pickup, are you putting restaurant workers at risk? Tejal Rao, the California restaurant critic for The New York Times, asked this question in a recent column and it struck a chord with many of her readers. Tejal calls in from Los Angeles to talk about this issue, as well as what it means to be a restaurant critic during a global pandemic. Thank you to...

It’s a double dose of Ruth Reichl! We dipped into the Cherry Bombe Jubilee archive to bring you two great moments with the legendary editor and author. First up, Ruth reads from her most recent book, Save Me The Plums , a memoir of her time at the helm of Gourmet Magazine . In the second half of the show, Ruth talks to Chef Ruth Rogers of the iconic River Cafe in London, as well as head chef Sian...