Tag: podcast

[Episode 100] The Meta of Food – All About Food Besides Eating It!

Jason is back on the podcast for one last, final episode! Yes, Thoughts on the Table ends today as it hits its 100th episode with the biggest topic we could think of: the meta of food, i.e. anything that has to do with food besides the physical sensations of actually eating it. Join us in our journey through this fascinating subject as we touch on the concept of authenticity and on how culture influences our appreciation of flavor.

Conversely, in the second part of the episode, Jason and I discuss some cooking trends that affect the flavor of food. These include the tendency to finish cooking pasta in its sauce and to alter traditional recipes to make them visually pleasing for sharing on social media, more so than with our guests!

Special Thanks

I’d like to thank all of you who have been listening and the 65 amazing guests that I had the pleasure of interviewing and collaborating with. I’d like to make a special mention to those who have bought into the project and really helped drive it, starting with Jason, and including Gino De Blasio, Manu, Frank Fariello, Diana Zahuranec, Raffaella De Amici, Rick Zullo, David Scott Allen, Nick Zingale, Mark Preston, Simon Pagotto, Melinda King, Tina Prestia, Sim Salis, Eva, Diana Pinto – who also contributed to this last episode with her precious research and insight.

Episode References

Carbonaragate

Cookbooks

  • Marcella Cucina, by Marcella Hazan, William Morrow Cookbooks, 1997
  • Millericette, by Erina Gavotti, A.Vallardi, 1995
  • Mangiare e Bere all’Italiana, by Luigi Carnacina and Luigi Veronelli, Garzanti, 1962
  • Recipes and Memories, by Sophia Loren, GT Publishing Corporation, 2000
  • Le Quattro Stagioni in Cucina, by Lisa Biondi, AMZ Editrice, 1981
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[Thoughts on the Table – 99] Taste and Flavor Flashbacks with Jason and Paolo

As Thoughts on the Table approaches 100 episodes, I chose to dedicate episode 99 to the series’ beginnings, dating back to August 2013. I was an avid podcast listener and, inspired by great productions like This American Life and Stuff You Should Know, I involved my friend and then-coworker, Jason, and branched off from my blog to try the more colloquial format of a podcast.

Today’s issue contains extracts from the first six episodes where Jason and I discuss taste and flavor, as well as cultural differences between Italy, North America, and Japan. Among other topics, we touched on why as an Italian I would never try to put salt on pasta, whether eating spicy food can damage our taste buds, the reason why desserts tend to end the meal, why many people learn to appreciate “spoiled” foods like Gorgonzola and Nattō, what exactly astringency is, and the path to appreciating subtle flavors. To wrap up the selection, I couldn’t help but include extracts from episode seven, a recording that took place right in the center of Milan on Jason’s impressions from visiting Italy for the first time.

After these seven episodes, Jason could no longer continue as a co-host. So I started looking for a new podcast partner by enlisting some of my dearest blogger friends as collaborators. This eventually gave me the idea to turn the podcast towards the format of the interview. I enjoyed it a lot. With practice, I learned to connect with my guests in a way that would capture their spontaneity in entertaining and informative chats, and I made many lasting connections as a result, for which I’m grateful. My guests included food bloggers, writers, cookbook authors, chefs, food professionals, food photographers, event organizers, cooking instructors, and fellow podcasters. Overall, in nearly nine years of activity, Thoughts on the Table saw a total of 65 collaborators for a combined playback time of 39 hours, 19 minutes, and 13 seconds.

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Eleven years of blogging, eight of podcasting

Another year! The good news is that this blog is still active and luckily keeps being found by those searching for Italian specialties like pizzoccheri or canederli or Italian misconceptions like my 6 Italian myths. The bad news of course is that I haven’t posted any new articles or recipes this year. I know, it’s terrible – but it’s also okay, given that social media has taken the place of blogging in many ways.

But I did resume podcasting (yay!) and produced 16 new episodes with as many guests and collaborations this past year! This continues to be a lot of fun for me and I’ve already started to work on a new round of episodes to hopefully reach my dream milestone of 100 episodes very soon!

Here is a list of the episodes this year. Thanks again to all of my wonderful guests!

On a personal level, we keep well here in southern England, still working from home and enjoying plenty of homecooked food. We pretty much spend our time planning meals, cooking, cleaning the kitchen, and being grateful for having a dishwasher. As the government lifted all social distancing measures exactly two weeks ago, we are far from back to normal, unfortunately. Traveling is still not really possible, including to and from Italy which of course breaks our hearts. But we enjoy our area, which is wonderfully green after a very wet summer, and spending time with our cat Rascal, who just turned 19, overall doing great and still a great source of comfort and inspiration to us both.

I hope you’re all well, wherever you are, and please get in touch for collaborations, to be on the podcast, or just to say hi – I’d love that 🙂

[Thoughts on the Table – 94] Podcast Recording, Editing, and Production, with Sound Designer Geoff Devine

This episode’s guest is sound designer, musician, podcast editor, and producer, Geoff Devine.

When I chatted with Becca and Sarah from Dietetics After Dark, we talked about sound design and about the amazing work that Geoff Devine has been doing for their podcast, both with the audio editing and with the soundtrack. As an amateur audio editor myself, I invited Geoff to be my guest on the show. He accepted enthusiastically and was very kind to answer all of my questions and give me a glimpse into the fascinating world of professional audio production.

You can hear Geoff sound design and original music in amazing podcasts such as:

You can learn more about Geoff’s work on his website Earworm Radio and follow him on Instagram @ewradio as well as on Linked In.

The music used for demonstrative purposes in the episode is by www.purple-planet.com.

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[Thoughts on the Table – 93] Introducing Becca and Sarah from Unsavory Podcast

This episode’s guests are podcasters Becca and Sarah from Unsavory (formerly Dietetics After Dark), a highly trending podcast on food-related scandals, misconduct, fraud, and drama.

In the episode, we learn more about Becca and Sarah, how Unsavory came to be, and how it’s made behind the scenes.

You can find Unsavory anywhere you listen to podcasts and on unsavorypodcast.com. You can follow Becca and Sarah on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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[Thoughts on the Table – 92] The Quest for Authentic & Original Recipes, with Diana Pinto

Thoughts on the Table is back with a new guest, Diana Pinto, and a very special episode. As she describes it, Diana became interested in noting recipe variations across different cookbooks. Incidentally and unexpectedly, this brought her to challenge the concept of authenticity or at least the implication that there’s one true way to cook traditional Italian dishes, a claim that we see so frequently on social media and that risks having a deeply damaging effect.

Diana mentions several cookbooks and authors (though she doesn’t endorse them all necessarily!) Here is a written list for your reference, in order of “appearance”.

  • The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
  • Anna del Conte
  • La Scienza in Cucina e l’Arte di Mangiar Bene by Pellegrino Artusi
  • Il Talismano della Felicita` by Ada Boni
  • Il Cucchiaio d’Argento / The Silver Spoon
  • Sauces and Shapes by Oretta Zanini de Vita
  • Popes, Peasants, and Shepherds by Oretta Zanini de Vita
  • The Italian Baker by Carol Field
  • Le Ricette Regionali Italiane by Anna Gosetti della Salda

During the show, we also mention bloggers Frank Fariello (Memorie di Angelina) and Tina Prestia (Tina’s Table) who were previous podcast guests and also touched on the theme of authenticity:

You can follow Diana Pinto on Instagram @cremafrangipane and on YouTube.

The music in the episode is by www.purple-planet.com.

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[Thoughts on the Table – 84] Introducing Christine from Italian Dish Podcast

My guest today is Christine from Italian Dish Podcast, a fantastic audio project featuring one recipe per episode from Christine’s point of view of an American in Florence. With that as a premise, Christine’s charming storytelling, fueled by her love for food and her fascination with cooking, brings each dish to life via an uncut chronicle of the cooking process, with digressions on the ingredients and the traditions that surround the dish.

During our chat, Christine and I compare our experiences fitting in into the culture of our adoptive homes and how we found it important to try to master the language, but also the local cuisine. Christine also reflects on how talking-while-cooking helps her be her real self and connect with her audience. Finally, we digress on the difficult task of cooking Italian food for native Italians, with the high bars set by their nonnas and with the brutal honesty they are known for!

You can listen to Christine’s Italian Dish Podcast on italiandishpodcast.com as well as stream or download it on any podcast client, such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher. You can connect with Christine on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

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[Thoughts on the Table – 82] Dissecting Ragù alla Bolognese with Tina Prestia

In this episode, Bologna-based, food instructor and blogger Tina Prestia talks about Ragù alla Bolognese, arguably the most famous and misunderstood Italian sauce.

Join us to hear Tina Prestia break down Ragù alla Bolognese after she analyzed 50+ recipes and directly tested several of them. What ingredients are non-negotiables? What ingredients can be optional? What are most definitely a no-no?

The episode is largely based on Tina’s great post: Ragù Bolognese – An Analysis, with recipes, tips & resources, and it refers to a few cities and regions of Italy. See the map below for a visual reference!

ragu` regions
Based on blank map by TUBS (Wikimedia Commons). License: CC BY-SA

You can follow Tina on her blog and also on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. You can hear Tina’s interview on episode 76.

The music in the episode is by www.purple-planet.com.

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[Thoughts on the Table – 81] Questions Italians in North America Can’t Help But Wonder About

In this episode, Thoughts on the Table goes back to its quintessential nature: investigate the difference in food and food culture between Italy and North America.

My new partner in this journey is the multi-talented Sim Salis (radio host, writer, voice actor, video and podcast producer.)

Join the conversation to hear us dissect some of the most pressing questions Italians living in North America ask themselves, including why does fresh milk last three weeks? What is the difference between ice cream and gelato? How do Italians feel about the stereotypes associated with them? Why does Japanese food taste so good?

You can follow Sim on the web @ sim.show and through his podcast.

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