Cooking the Books with Gilly Smith

Епизоде

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  Charlotte Wood: Love and Hunger 15.10.2026 30мин

  This week, we're with the award-winning Australian novelist, Charlotte Wood and her ode to cooking and food, Love and Hunger.To Charlotte, cooking is 'creativity in its purest form', but it’s taken nearly 15 years to capture the attention of British readers with this book. Thanks to Nigella Lawson writing the foreword for this UK edition, and raving about it on her socials, comparing its flavour to Laurie Colwin’s Home Cooking, she’s big in Britain. We chatted about the sensibility an award-winning novelist can bring to observations, confessions and memories through food, but she began by telling me how she was sprinkled by Nigella’s fairy dust.Pop over to my Substack for extra bites and a recipe from Love and Hunger. And if you like what you hear on this ad free podcast, you can contribute to the Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Vicky Bennison: Eat Everything 08.10.2026 27мин

  In the last of our mini series of speakers from BrightonFoodStory, the food festival Gilly produced this year in her home town which is aimed at changing the conversation about the way we eat, we’re with Vicky Bennison, the James Beard award-winning author of Pasta Grannies: Eat Everything.Vicky was at BrightonFoodStory last weekend to talk about nonnamaxxing, the Instagram trend of yearning for the slower, simpler, more resilient way of the grandmother. You can find out more @BrightonFoodStory on Instagram and Substack.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites and a recipe from Eat Everything. And if you like what you hear on this ad free podcast, you can contribute to the Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Karen Newby: The Post Menopause Method 01.10.2026 30мин

  Ahead of BrightonFoodStory, the food festival on October 3rd that Gilly is producing in her home town aimed at changing the conversation about the way we eat, we’re meeting some of the speakers on the various panel discussions.This week, we’re with Karen Newby, author of the Natural Menopause Method and its cookbook partner, and now The Post Menopause Method.Karen will be on the Nonnamaxxing panel to talk about how to age healthily. The Instagram trend has highlighted the global yearning for a slower more wholesome approach to life, and Gilly asks her why we need a method to get through what she says could be the happiest and healthiest time of our lives.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites and a recipe from The Post Menopause Method. And do come along to BrightonFoodStory on Saturday October 3. It's all free.And if you like what you hear on this ad free podcast, you can contribute to the Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Hodmedod's: Whole Food 24.09.2026 30мин

  This week, we meet Nick Saltmarsh and Josiah Meldrum of Hodmedods to talk about the magic of beans in their debut cookbook Whole Food.Now, Hodmedods has long since become the byword for beans in Britain, and can claim a major role in elevating the plucky pulse to enjoy its moment in the sun. Gilly's just finished another series of Bang in Some Beans for The Food Foundation Podcast – watch out for that coming in mid October presented again by Melissa Hemsley - and it seems that beans really are having their moment.Whole Food tells the whole story, joining the dots between farming and fibre, global and local, history and the power of storytelling to change the conversation about fibre and keep it there. With recipes from King Richard II’s master chefs to ancient Arabic feasts, Southern Indian temple offerings to Hampshire blue poppies, this glorious read weaves legumes, seeds and pulses easily and affordably into delicious dishes that anyone can make. It’s a must read and it’s why Nick will be on the Magic Beans panel at BrightonFoodStory on Saturday Oct 3.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites and a recipe from Whole Food. And do come along to BrightonFoodStory on Saturday October 3. All the details are on the BrightonFoodStory Substack and Instagram, and it’s all free. And if you like what you hear on this ad free podcast, you can contribute to Gilly's Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Andrew Turvil: Blood, Sweat and Asparagus Spears 17.09.2026 27мин

  This week we’re with former editor of the Good Food Guide, Andrew Turvil and his book,  Blood, Sweat & Asparagus Spears: The Story of the 1990s Restaurant Revolution.Like Andrew, Gilly was right in the centre of the birth of what another editor of the Good Food Guide, Drew Smith called Modern British Cooking, and has written her take on this story in a biography of Jamie Oliver, and Taste and the TV Chef. As Andrew curated the story in the Good Food Guide from a consumer guide’s point of view, they discuss where the narratives coincide. Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Andrew, and if you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Jeremy Lee: Kitchening 10.09.2026 26мин

  This week, in an extended episode, we’re with one of the most important voices in British food writing, Jeremy Lee with Kitchening, his follow up cookbook to the 2022 multi award winning Cooking.Jeremy has taken his time to become one of the central storytellers of modern British cuisine – with his cookbooks at least, despite being right there at the birth of modern British cooking. Do listen to Sheila Dillon’s brilliant interview with Jeremy for The Food Programme, but also to the CTB episode with Food Foundation ambassador and campaigner against food poverty, Dev Sharma.  For a 17 year old Indian lad from Leicester, Cooking was more about a lesson in food manners ahead of going up to Cambridge.  Click here if you’re interested in the story of British food through that lens.Meanwhile, join Gilly and Jeremy in the library at Quo Vadis to talk about his second dive into British food from his childhood garden outside Dundee through the kitchens of the nascent London food scene.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites and a recipe from Kitchening. And if you like what you hear on this ad free podcast, you can contribute to Gilly's Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Claire Thomson: Dear Grace 03.09.2026 27мин

  This week, we’re celebrating Back To School and Uni season with Claire Thompson and her latest book, Dear Grace.This is a book unlike any Claire has written before. She wrote it while her heart was breaking as her eldest daughter, Grace, set off for university, and the letters from mother to daughter – and daughter to mother - about how to survive  are a universal weep as fledglings all over the world spread their wings and head off into the big wide world.   Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites and a recipe  from Dear Grace. And if you like what you hear on this ad free podcast, you can contribute to the Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Anissa Helou: Lebanon 30.07.2026 30мин

  This week, we're with an absolute legend in food writing, Anissa Helou and her culinary celebration of Lebanon.Listed by Arabian Business magazine as one of the "500 Most Influential Arabs" and "100 Most Powerful Arab Women, she’s among the greats of modern food writing with the likes of Claudia Roden and Elisabeth Luard. Now, after 32 years of writing about the everyday food of the Middle East and beyond, Lebanon, A Culinary Celebration takes her back to where she began.  Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Lebanon. If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Cooking the Books LIVE: Honey and Co. 23.07.2026 39мин

  This week, we are live in Brighton on the hottest day of the year so far with Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer, aka Honey and Co. to talk about their new book, Honey and Co.Daily.Against the sound of a massive fan at Patio Wine Bar, we talked about the huge dollop of love that the Honeys have made their brand, and how a warm hug of hospitality has not only saved their business but reminded us all of what people really want from a restaurant.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Cooking the Books Live at Patio, Brighton, plus a recipe from Honey and Co. Daily, and from the Ingrid at Sussex Surplus who spun their food moments into small plates for an adoring crowd. If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Rebecca Seal: Irritated 16.07.2026 32мин

  This week we're with author, journalist and broadcaster, Rebecca Seal and her deep dive into the world of allergies in IrritatedShe's spent 20 years writing about food, not least as the deputy editor of Observer Food Monthly, and her life was all about the deliciousness of food. But it was her younger daughter’s allergy to soy which prompted her to explore the rise in the allergy epidemic, and to piece together a fascinating puzzle of the way we live.If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Trine Hanhnemann: Midnight Sun 09.07.2026 29мин

  This week we're with Danish food writer, restaurateur and campaigner, Trine Hahnemann and her latest cookbook, Midnight Sun.This is a book about long lazy summer days - cycling to the beach, stopping off to buy strawberries from a local stall, peeling shrimps to eat with homemade mayo and bread.. But under the haze of a Scandanavian sun, food for Trine is about much more than a picnic. It’s about history, time, geography and culture, a sum of the past and a warning about the future. Gilly asks how the simplicity of a long hot summer could say so much.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for extra bites of Trine and a recipe from Midnight Sun. If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link. Or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Ozlem Warren: Istanbul 02.07.2026 30мин

  This week, we’re with the WORD on Turkish food and heritage, Ozlem Warren to dig into her latest book, Istanbul.We’ve followed Ozlem on Cooking the Books through her writing career, from Ozlem’s Turkish Table which inspired a fund raising supper club for the earthquake in 2023 at Gilly’s house, through vegetarian Turkish in Sebze, and now to Istanbul, her most confidant work yet, and her warmest welcome to her homeland.If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Rachel Khoo: The Smallest Restaurant in Paris 25.06.2026 29мин

   This week, Gilly is with the author of The Smallest Restaurant in Paris, Rachel KhooNow, you may know her as the author of The Little Paris Kitchen and the star of the BBC’s cooler original version of Emily in Paris - without the haute couture or the PR job, a young Brit abroad, feeling her way through being in Paris and cooking in her tiny kitchen.Now she’s written a memoir about those years, and – whisper it - published it herself. A self-published book by someone with 400k followers on Instagram? How? Why? Well, as we find out, Rachel has never been the kind of girl to do what she’s told.In true Rachel Khoo spirit, Gilly is paving her own streets of gold on this podcast through the economy of kindness. If you like what you hear,  do click here to make a contribution.Then pop over to Substack for Extra Bites of Rachel and the recipe for the baby baguettes from her food moments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Sudi Pigott: Consider the Anchovy 18.06.2026 27мин

  This week, we're with travel and food writer, Sudi Pigott to Consider the Anchovy.Part memoir, largely a travelogue, this is a deep dive into the story of a big hitting little fish. Stuffed with maverick, rakish characters, it's a passionate manifesto making the case for the anchovy as a leading mover and shaker in world culinary history.  Rachel Roddy described it as "an anchovy odyssey, a journey in search of a small fish of enormous importance — fascinating, unexpected and utterly enticing." Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Sudi and a recipe from the book.If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Ella Risbridger: The Kitchen Book 11.06.2026 33мин

  This week, we're with Ella Risbridger and The Kitchen BookNow, we know Ella intimately through her memoirs, Midnight Chicken and The Year of Miracles, both of which blended grief, joy, love and loss with food, gathering serious accolades and scooping up the awards. Here, she’s happy. Her life is good. Her writing is full of joy and the reception over on Instagram in particular has been effusive. And it’s an instant Sunday Times bestseller.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Ella and a recipe from The Kitchen book. If you'd like to support CTB which is advertising and sponsorship free, contribute whatever you like via this link, or become a paid subscriber on Substack which gives you access to Second Helpings, monthly Zooms with a CTB guest, and a massive archive of Gilly's articles. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  The World Food Photography Awards 04.06.2026 24мин

  This week, we're with three of the judges from this year’s World Food Photography Awards which took place earlier this week at The Mall Galleries in London.The competition, first known as the Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year, has pretty much put food photography on the map since 2011. With more than 120,000 entries from nearly 100 countries over that time, this year the judging panel led by legendary food photographer David Loftus, assessed 9000 images from professional and amateur photographers from 50 countries. Gilly caught up with 3 of the judges, food stylist, Sal Henley, Skye Trayler of the London-based agency At Trayler and Angela Nicholson, founder of SheClicks, an award-winning community for female photographers to talk through the runners up and winning images in two of the categories. Pop over to Gilly's Substack to see the images for the runners up and the winners of those two categories on Extra Bites. And if you’d like to support this ad and sponsor free podcast, just click here to contribute to Gilly's economy of kindness. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Chetna Makan: 5 Ingredient Indian 28.05.2026 28мин

  This week, we’re off to lunch with Chetna Makan, the Bake Off semi finalist who has become one of our national treasures with her massive YouTube channel, Food with Chetna. Her latest book 5 Ingredient Indian is yet another way of making Indian food simple enough to cook for quick weekday suppers while keeping all the flavour.Pop over to Substack for Extra Bites of  Chetna, and a recipe from the book.And if you like what you hear on this ad and sponsor free podcast, you can contribute to the Economy of Kindness by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Felicity Cloake at Cooking the Books Live 21.05.2026 39мин

  This week, we're back at Cooking the Books live in Brighton with Felicity Cloake (and Wilf the Wonderdog) to talk about her debut novel, The Underdog.We know Felicity from her Bridget Jones-on-a-bike style adventures across France in One More Croissant for the Road, the UK in Red Sauce, Brown Sauce and America in Peach Street to Lobster Lane. But she's also the Queen of Culinary Perfection in her Guardian column, How to Cook the Perfect..., and has somehow managed to combine both personalities in Katy, the hapless protagonist in her first rom com. Gilly finds a thin line between fact and fiction.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites and a recipe for one of Felicity's food moments whipped up by Jo at Sussex Surplus.And if you’d like to support this ad and sponsor free podcast, don’t forget to click here to contribute whatever you like. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Jago Rackham: To Entertain 14.05.2026 34мин

  This week, we meet Jago Rackham to talk about his first book, To Entertain: Instructions for a Dinner Party.But the book is not quite what it seems. The millennial Substacker who hosts supper clubs and pop-ups fashioned as dinner parties,  has, with his long term partner, the artist Lowena Hearn, earned the social media title of East London’s power couple. But Gilly finds a rather old-school English couple from another time among the pages of this very literary book.    Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Jago including his playlist, and to see Lowena's art.And if you like what you hear on this ad and sponsor free podcast, you can give a little back by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall: High Fibre Heroes 07.05.2026 33мин

  This week we’re with the prince of plants, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his High Fibre Heroes.Hugh and Gilly have been talking about the national diet for years on this show and before it was even born. They both campaign with the Food Foundation for policy change to make healthier food more accessible for every child in the UK, and Hugh's last book How to Eat 30 Plants a Week was all about adding way more colour and texture to the nation’s plate. Now he’s joined the growing family of fibre authors banging in some beans and plenty of veg for the sake of our health.Pop over to Gilly's Substack for Extra Bites of Hugh and two recipes from the book.Click to listen to The Food Foundation Podcast's Bang in Some Beans mini series produced by Gilly.And if you like what you hear on this ad and sponsor free podcast, you can give a little back by clicking here to contribute a little something, or here to become a paid subscriber on Substack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.