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Food Friends: Home Cooking Made Easy

Food Friends: Home Cooking Made Easy

Written by: Food Friends
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Do you love home cooking but hunger for better recipes that help you deliver quick and delicious meals to your dinner table? Two former personal chefs turned best friends share their expertise with each other and you! Kari and Sonya have been inspiring each other in the kitchen for over 15 years by swapping recipes, tips, and trade secrets in the pursuit of better home cooking. FOOD FRIENDS is a bi-weekly podcast inspiring home cooks to try new dishes in the kitchen by sharing trusted recipes, tips, and friendship. Every Tuesday, each host delivers 3 unique solutions to seasonal home cooking, like: how to make craveable soups with your farmers market haul, the easiest one-pot meals for busy nights, or what to do with leftover rotisserie chicken. On Thursdays, we serve up a pint-sized chat about our “Best Bite” of the week, pantry essentials we can’t live without, and more. Previous guests include Seth & Lauren Rogen, actor Randall Park & writer/director Evan Goldberg, recipe developer Justine Doiron, #1 Food & Beverage Substacker Caroline Chambers, and more. If you’re looking for a boost of fun in the kitchen by discovering recipes that will make mealtime easier and more delicious with a healthy dose of laughter, then you’ll want to dig in with FOOD FRIENDS! First-time listener? Tune into Episode 2: Don’t send flowers, send soup! and Episode 4: What do you bring to a potluck?Food Friends Podcast 2022 Art Cooking Food & Wine
Episodes
  • What’s Your Ideal Brownie? + A Classic French Dish & A NYC Food Tour | Our Best Bites of the Week

    What’s Your Ideal Brownie? + A Classic French Dish & A NYC Food Tour | Our Best Bites of the Week
    Jun 11 2026

    How do you get a perfectly fudgy brownie with a glossy top without using a box mix?

    In this bite-sized episode, we share the best things we ate this week to inspire each other — and you!

    By the end of this episode, you’ll want to bake a batch of triple-chocolate brownies that are beginner-friendly, deeply fudgy, and achieve that coveted glossy crust. You’ll also discover a simple sole meunière recipe that’s buttery, lemony, and easy enough for a weeknight dinner.

    Tune in for a quick dose of home cooking inspiration!

    ***

    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!

    ***

    Links:

    Seriously fudgy brownies from Sally’s Baking Addiction, Sonya also talked about the recipe in Sally McKenna’s book: Sally’s Baking 101 (which is different from the online version)

    More brownies we love:

    Alice Medrich’s best cocoa brownies

    Sonya’s flourless chocolate tahini brownies

    Fudgy brownies from Inspired Taste blog

    Glossy fudge brownies from Bravetart

    Sole Meuniere by Martha Stewart

    Secret Food Tours: NYC – Chinatown & Little Italy

    Kari’s best bite: pineapple pork bun at Mei Lai Wah Bakery

    And the Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, whose logo was designed by the children at a local public school

    Join Sonya on a Portland farmers’ market tour through Airbnb Experiences!

    ***

    Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084

    For more recipes and cooking inspiration, sign up for our Substack here.
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    18 mins
  • Summer Berries! Cakes, Cobblers, No-Bake Treats & More

    Summer Berries! Cakes, Cobblers, No-Bake Treats & More
    Jun 9 2026
    Have a fridge full of summer berries and no idea what to make before they're past their prime?If you're standing in front of gorgeous summer berries at the farmers market but feel stuck making the same old recipes, this week we're sharing our favorite ways to make the most of berry season.By the end of this episode, you’ll discover:Easy berry desserts that require minimal effort, including kid-friendly frozen yogurt pops and a British classic: Eton messBaking recipes that let peak-season berries shine, from snacking cakes to rustic cobblersNo-bake berry desserts for hot summer days, including one of our favorite recipes from Ina GartenPress play now and walk away with a full season’s worth of berry dessert recipes that will help you turn every pint of fresh summer berries into something memorable.***This episode is brought to you by: Little Sesame HummusWe’ve both been longtime store-bought hummus skeptics… until Little Sesame. Their hummus is unbelievably smooth, bright, and it was created by passionate chefs, they use regeneratively farmed chickpeas, and it's clean label certified.And now, Little Sesame has launched snacking options available at Targets nationwide. The lineup includes: a hummus snacker with pretzel pita chips, protein hummus with 10g of protein per pack, and hummus for kids — a grab-and-go pack perfect for lunch boxes and long car rides.Find Little Sesame at Targets nationwide or visit eatlittlesesame.com to find a store near you. Use code SNACKING10 for 10% off!***Links: Strawberry Brown Sugar Sour Cream Eton Mess by Sonya Raspberry Spuma by David Tanis for NYT CookingBlueberry galette from Sonya’s Substack, Dream Kitchens Strawberry hand pies by Zoe BakesHuckleberry cake by James BeardFrozen yogurt and fruit pops by Riley Wofford for Martha StewartSmitten Kitchen Flag CakeStrawberry sheet cake with passionfruit buttercream by Zoe BakesBlackberry cobbler by Stella Parks for Serious Eats Frozen berries with hot white chocolate by Ina Garten For more berry inspiration, check out our previous episodes:Strawberries with Melissa Clark’s double strawberry shortcakes and a giant strawberry tart made with store-bought puff pastry No-Bake Desserts with Sonya’s recipes for strawberry tiramisu and raspberry mocha icebox cake “Year-Around Fruit Desserts includes an easy raspberry fool and a no-bake cheesecake ****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!Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084For more recipes and cooking inspiration, sign up for our Substack here.Are you a local to Portland or planning a visit? You can now book a private farmers’ market tour with Sonya through Airbnb Experiences! Or order Sonya's cookbook Braids for more Food Friends recipes!
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins
  • Two Hosting Menus: A Small Dinner Party + Feeding a Crowd | Our Best Home Cooking Bites of the Week

    Two Hosting Menus: A Small Dinner Party + Feeding a Crowd | Our Best Home Cooking Bites of the Week
    Jun 4 2026
    What’s the secret to hosting a dinner party without spending the whole night stressed in the kitchen?In this bite-sized episode, we share the best things we ate this week to inspire each other—and you.By the end of this episode, you’ll have two go-to entertaining menus: one for a smaller dinner party and one for feeding a bigger group. We’re sharing the dishes, strategies, and make-ahead elements that help hosting feel more relaxed and enjoyable.You’ll also discover prep-friendly mains and salads, a summery dip that disappears quickly, and two desserts built around sweet, jammy strawberries and tart rhubarb.Tune in for a quick dose of home cooking inspiration!***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!***Links:Sonya’s Hosting at Home MenuChicken schnitzel, like this one from Smitten KitchenCrispy Tofu Schnitzel from Live Eat Learn Charred asparagus and snap peasMarinated beets, dilly cucumber salad (both can be found in her cookbook Braids )Samin Nosrat’s labneh dipMichael Solomonov’s 5-minute hummus recipeNicole Rucker’s Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Recipe from Amateur GourmetKari’s Picnic- Style Menu Spinach corn dip by Hetty Lui McKinnon for NYT Cooking from Episode 282 Picnics + PotlucksCruditesChevre swirled with Calabrian chili sauce and topped with honeycomb (or drizzled with honey)Hailee Catalano’s Mean Green Turkey Sandwich on pretzel rolls + vegetarian version on ciabatta rollsBig green salad with tons of dill and avocado with lemony orange-marmalade vinaigretteStrawberry rhubarb bars from Food Friends’ Substack****Got a cooking question? Leave us a message on our hotline at: 323-452-9084For more recipes and cooking inspiration, sign up for our Substack here.Are you a local to Portland or planning a visit? You can now book a private farmers’ market tour with Sonya through Airbnb Experiences! Or order Sonya's cookbook Braids for more Food Friends recipes!
    Show More Show Less
    15 mins
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