Seeds of hope for our broken food system

Amid the loss and devastation, there is resilience and hope. We remember our friend Christine Moore, owner of Little Flower, who unexpectedly passed away this week. Leah Ferrazzani of Ferrazzani's Pasta & Market tells the tale of multiple fires, pointing out the disparities in how Altadena residents were affected. Teddy and Andy Leonard weigh in on the challenges of rebuilding the Reel Inn, their cherished coastline seafood shack, which was lost in the Palisades Fire. Elina Shatkin hangs out with the Altadena Dining Club, the brainchild of Brooke Iva Lohman, who gathers locals at struggling eateries for a weekly meal. Janek Schaller visits the Altadena Community Garden, where scientists and volunteers use bioremediation practices to clean up contaminated soil. LA Times restaurant critic Bill Addison reviews two Altadena restaurants — Miya, a Thai spot, and Betsy, a venture from Tyler Wells. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.

New year, new ideas. We revisit a conversation with Austin Frerick who shares the stories of seven agricultural titans, their rise to power, and the consequences for the rest of us.  Nancy Matsumoto celebrates the women who are fighting Big Food by building sustainable food systems. At Alma Backyard Farms in Compton, co-founder Erika Cuellar feeds the soil and the soul with programs targeting youth and people who were once incarcerated. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.

A year in the life of food.  Michael Shaikh tells the stories of people preserving their culinary traditions amid war and violence. Ted Genoways considers José Cuervo's colorful history, from eluding Pancho Villa's death threats to bringing tequila north of the Mexican border. Sarah Ahn's viral food videos of her mom have captivated millions of viewers with their behind-the-scenes look at Korean cooking and multigenerational life. Humberto Raygoza aka the Chori-Man links four generations using one chorizo recipe. Olivia Haver loves cheese so much, she has devoted her career to babysitting it. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.

Generational family recipes take center stage. Kathy Fang spent her childhood shaped by 24 square blocks of San Francisco, where her father manned a wok, feeding hungry customers at the House of Nanking. Forager Pascal Baudar hunts down wild seeds and grains. Jess Shadbolt helms the kitchen at King, the ingredient-focused New York City restaurant with an aesthetic of eating simply but lavishly. One of the world's foremost authorities on libations, former Shakespeare professor David Wondrich delivers the history of the cocktail in comic book form. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.  

A breakfast odyssey begins.  Food & Wine contributing editor Khushbu Shah shares where to grab the best stack of pancakes in Los Angeles.  Hetty Lui McKinnon puts salad at the center of the table for intimate gatherings.  Molecular biologist Nik Sharma tests taste buds with Sichuan peppercorns. Golden Delicious apples come to the Mar Vista Farmers Market. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.  

Fire up the oven and get creative with your holiday baking.  Kat Lieu offers 108 Asian cookie recipes that you can bring to your next cookie exchange. Maureen Abood unlocks memories as she finds inspiration in the Lebanese bakeries of Dearborn, Michigan. An American baker living in Berlin, Laurel Kratochvila dips into the Polish canon with black breads, bagels, sour rye breads studded with caraway, and challah.  Jūrgen Krauss, everyone's favorite trombone-playing Great British Bake Off contestant, prepares for the holidays with traditional German Christmas treats. LA Times restaurant critic Bill Addison visits Sora Craft Kitchen, a Turkish restaurant in DTLA. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.

It's a cookbook bonanza! Celia Sack of Omnivore Books on Food shares a roundup of the year's best cookbooks, including graphic novel memoirs and one of the only Cambodian cookbooks written in English. Bee Wilson explores how quotidian kitchen items become powerful symbols, representing friendship, grief, love, superstition, safety, and even political resistance. Design curator and writer Corinne Mynatt became fascinated with culinary objects she found at flea markets and began researching their history and function. New York Times reporter Rukmini Callimachi follows a Haviland china set that has graced the table of five generations of women. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.  

All the best food with people you actually like? We're in! We kickstart Thanksgiving with Nashville chef Arnold Myint, author of Family Thai, who joins Evan Kleiman to co-host a special Thanksgiving episode about chosen family. Although Minneapolis chef Yia Vang cooks Hmong food that's rooted in his family's refugee story, he treats tradition as something living and adaptable. Atlanta chef Deborah VanTrece, who has been transforming narratives about soul food, brings us a bunch of killer sides. Bar expert and cocktail consultant John deBary has just the thing for keeping your holiday libations fun, festive, and nonalcoholic. What better way to complete the Thanksgiving meal than a few unapologetically sweet desserts from pastry chef Justin Burke? Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack. 

Raw fish reaches its apex on a stretch of Ventura Blvd. that's home to the highest concentration of sushi restaurants in the US.  Brant Cox of The Infatuation surveys the sushi restaurants of Ventura Boulevard. Chef and TV host Andrew Zimmern imparts lessons from his time on the water to set up home cooks for seafood success. Ixta Belfrage creates recipes that embrace her multicultural lens and Brazil's layered cuisine. For nearly two decades Aldo Sohm has poured wine at Le Bernardin in New York City, creating harmony between what's in the glass and on the plate. Chef Michael Fiorelli of Fiorelli Pizza pairs Brussels sprouts with persimmons and pomegranates in a salad that screams autumn. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.  

Pull out that package of ramen and get ready to dress it up! Instant ramen is most frequently associated with tired clichés about quick dorm room eats but Peter J. Kim wants us to rethink the dried noodles. Beloved baker Dorie Greenspan takes the cake in a new collection of recipes. LA Times restaurant critic Bill Addison pays a visit to Cafe 2001. Fighting our food confusion with science, journalist Julia Belluz and scientist Dr. Kevin Hall attempt to answer, "Why do we eat the way we eat?" Chef Harry Posner of Tomat explores farmers market pomegranates. Connect with Good Food host Evan Kleiman on Substack.