Food Friends: Home Cooking Made Easy

What if baking isn’t about perfection — but about paying attention?
In this week’s episode, we sit down with the brilliant Victoria Granof to talk about baking as ritual, instinct, creativity, and care.
From working alongside Anthony Bourdain and Snoop Dogg to cooking for Ruth Reichl in her home, Victoria brings a lifetime of wisdom and experience as a culinary creative, legendary food stylist, mentor, and coach.
A James Beard Award finalist and one of Cherry Bombe’s 100 most inspiring women in food, Victoria shares how baking can be both grounding and transformative, whether you’re baking as an act of service for those in need or making shortbread cookies in your home kitchen.
In this episode, you’ll discover:
The influences and cookbooks that have shaped Victoria’s culinary life
How ritual, full moons, and community come together in her monthly Substack gathering, Be Kneady
What decades of food styling have taught her about risk and instinct

If you’ve ever wanted to bake with more confidence, more curiosity, and more meaning, this conversation will change the way you think about what happens in your oven.
Press play now and rediscover the joy of baking at home!
(Photo of Victoria Granof by Louise Hagger)
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Looking to connect with avid fellow home cooks?
Join us on our live monthly calls by becoming a paid subscriber to our Substack here!
Or sign up for free to receive recipes and roundups straight to your inbox.
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Links:
Victoria Granof’s Substack: Delicious Tangents, where she hosts her “Be Kneady” monthly gatherings, you can also follow her on Instagram, and find more about her here, or sign up to work with her 1:1.
Check out Victoria’s gorgeous book: Sicily, My Sweet – Love Notes to an Island, with Recipes for Cakes, Cookies, Puddings, and Preserves.
Cookbooks Victoria referenced: Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, The Joy of Cooking, Maida Heatter’s cookbooks, Rose Levy Berenbaum’s baking books, and Carol Field’s The Italian Baker.
Silver dollar pancake recipe from Betty Crocker (the recipe Victoria originally used was from The Betty Crocker Cookbook for Boys and Girls.
Victoria’s grandmother’s simple braided cookies with sesame seeds can be found in her book, Sicily My Sweet
Some of Victoria’s food styling: her Belgian food shoot with Kenji Toma, and the dripping ice cream cone for Bon Appetit Magazine
Lady M Crepe Cakes
Pretzel shortbread cookie recipe from Host The Toast. In Victoria’s words: “I discovered from the label of the Lost Bread pretzel shortbread that they use breadcrumbs (wheat, rye,barley), which I guessed were crumbs from their wheat, rye and barley sourdough bread, so I made dried breadcrumbs from that exact bread and whirred them in the food processor to the consistency of whole grain flour, and subbed them measure for measure for the pretzel crumbs and EUREKA!!! The pretzel flavor comes from the lye bath and pretzel salt.”
The new Gourmet Magazine.
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Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084
Order Sonya's cookbook Braids for more Food Friends recipes!
We love hearing from you — follow us on Instagram @foodfriendspod, or drop us a line at [email protected]!

What if one simple technique could change how you make roast chicken forever?
In this bite-sized episode, we share delicious moments about the best things we ate this week to inspire each other – and you!
By the end of this episode, you’ll discover why the Zuni Café Cookbook is a timeless classic for home cooks – including why the roast chicken and bread salad is still its most famous recipe!
You’ll also want to make our favorite nachos layered with veggies, beans, and meat. Discover how to construct it so each layer is perfectly cheesy and flavorful, and it might just become your new favorite weeknight meal.
Tune in for a quick dose of home cooking inspiration!
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Join us on our live monthly calls by becoming a paid subscriber to our Substack here! Or sign up for free to receive roundups and recipes straight to your inbox.
We can’t wait to gather in community and swap recipes + tips with fellow curious home cooks!
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Links:
Zuni Cafe Cookbook, by Judy Rodgers
A simplified version of the famous roasted chicken and bread salad from Smitten Kitchen
Pasta with spicy cauliflower from Amateur Gourmet (the original uses a mix of broccoli and cauliflower, which he mentions)
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Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084
Order Sonya's cookbook Braids for more Food Friends recipes!

Ever wonder what two former personal chefs actually eat in a day?
If you’re constantly asking, “What’s for breakfast, lunch, or dinner?” This episode is packed with easy meal ideas and real-life recipes to reduce that feeling of overwhelm, and deliver practical inspiration you can use all week.
In this episode, you’ll learn how to:
Upgrade your breakfast with a simple Turkish-inspired egg dish or a skillet pancake that brings joy to any morning
Make lunchtime easier with smart leftover transformations and a few make-ahead, deli-style salads
Discover two flavorful sheetpan dinners, and a one-pot meatless main we're making on repeat

Tune in now, peek inside our kitchens, and leave with fresh ideas for the week ahead!
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For more recipes and cooking inspiration, sign up for our free Substack here. And join us on our live monthly calls by upgrading your subscription to paid!
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Links:
Day 1
Sonya:
Breakfast – Yogurt bowl with homemade granola, flax, kiwi, blueberries, goji berries and homemade granola.
Kari’s granola recipe is from Sony’as cookbook, Braids, and David Leibovitz has a a really good loaded tahini granola recipe
Lunch – Golden egg salad, black sesame rice crackers, tangerine, carrots, sauerkraut, radishes, grapes, pickled kohlrabi
Dinner – Tomato lentil stew with crispy potatoes, by Hetty Lui McKinnon for NYT Cooking (unlocked)
Kari:
Breakfast – Dutch Baby recipe by Florence Fabricant from NYT Cooking (unlocked), made with Einkorn flour and inspired by the recipe in Einkorn Made Easy by Adrian J.S. Hale
Lunch – Huevos Rancheros by Kay Chun for NYT Cooking (unlocked), made with leftover refried beans and salsa from takeout
Dinner – Roasted Cauliflower with Feta & Dates Sheet Pan Salad by Kendra Vaculin for Bon Appetit (radicchio and shredded cabbage was subbed for the arugula, and hazelnuts were swapped for pistachios )
Day 2
Sonya:
Breakfast – Turkish-inspired eggs, but instead of poached eggs, they were fried in butter spiced with smoked paprika and aleppo pepper, once cooked placed on yogurt with added dill and pepper, served with toast
Lunch – Herby tuna salad, winter citrus, pomegranate, mint salad, celery and kohlrabi salad with date and almond
Dinner – Shawarma chicken thighs by Sam Sifton for NYT Cooking (unlocked) (using this shawarma spiced blend, and bone-in skin-on thighs), served with roasted thyme carrots and parsnips from Food Network (honey is optional)
Kari:
Breakfast – Peanut Butter & Honey Cereal Bars from our Substack, using a combination of Grape Nuts and Rice Krispies, Kari froze the bites in individual snack bags, served with a smoothie with banana, dates, blood oranges, kohlrabi leaves, ice and full-fat Greek yogurt
Lunch: Saucy chickpeas with sour cream in a tortilla with cabbage on top (coming soon to our Substack!)
Dinner – Leftover pizza from Prime Pizza with radicchio salad topped with crispy panko breadcrumbs, toasted hazelnuts, and balsamic vinaigrette
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Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084
Order Sonya's cookbook Braids for more Food Friends recipes!
We love hearing from you — follow us on Instagram @foodfriendspod, or drop us a line at [email protected]!

What if your best bite of the week came from beans… or a conversation at the butcher counter?
In this bite-sized episode, we share delicious moments about the best things we ate this week to inspire each other – and you!
By the end of this episode, you’ll want to make our favorite crispy-topped “pizza beans” that are hearty, cheesy, and ideal for a meatless dinner. You’ll also discover how a local butcher inspired our new favorite collagen-rich braised meat sauce.
Tune in for a quick dose of home cooking inspiration!
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For more recipes and cooking inspiration, sign up for our free Substack here. And join us on our live monthly calls by upgrading your subscription to paid!
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Links:
Smitten Kitchen’s pizza beans
Sausage Ragu by Sara Jenkins and Nancy Harmon Jenkins, adapted by Julia Moskin for NYT Cooking (unlocked)
Pennsylvania-Dutch scrapple from Food Network
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Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084
Order Sonya's cookbook Braids for more Food Friends recipes!
We love hearing from you — follow us on Instagram @foodfriendspod, or drop us a line at [email protected]!

Are your weeknight pasta nights starting to feel predictable…even though you know pasta has so much more potential?
When you’re tired and hungry, it’s easy to reach for the same jar of sauce and the same box of noodles. In this episode, we’re showing you how to turn pantry staples and simple techniques into pasta dinners that feel comforting, craveable, and completely new.
By the end of this episode, you’ll:
Learn the secrets to a crispy-topped, gooey baked pasta that’s worth turning on the oven
Expand your rotation with dishes built around seasonal greens, wild mushrooms, and bright citrus
Discover how to harness your pantry to build bold, flavor-packed sauces—including a Samin Nosrat recipe we can’t stop making

Press play and make pasta night the best night of the week.

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Links
Six Seasons of Pasta by Joshua McFadden and Martha Holmber, for all the best ways to make a baked pasta dish
Baked Ziti from All Recipes – Sonya made a version with Cavatapi pasta and swapped sausage for blanched broccoli rabe
Cheesy baked pasta with Sausage and Ricotta by Melissa Clark for NYT Cooking
Baked gnocchi alla Sorrentina from Wishbone Kitchen
River Cafe Walnut Tagliatelle from The Guardian (we skip adding oil to our pasta water)
Sausage ragu by Sara Jenkins and Nancy Harmon Jenkins, adapted by Julia Moskin for NYT Cooking (unlocked)
Bucatini with Swiss Chard, Raisins and Parm by Joshua McFadden by way of Nigella Lawson by way of Amateur Gourmet
Creamy Mushroom Pasta with Garlic Miso Butter by Chandra Ram for Food & Wine
Nigella Lawson’s famous lemon linguine
Chicken Piccata pasta by Anna Theoktisto for Food & Wine
Samin Nosrat’s spicy tuna pantry pasta from Food and Wine