Food With Friends

Deep Fried Cod Tongue - Max

Fri, 20 Feb 2026 04:00:00 -0600

Max and Melanie have been food exploring together for many year at home, in restaurants and on vacation. Today's chat touches on their shared meals, but the real conversation is about Max's cooking and food adventures.

Max's Gran Gusto Recipe:

Episode Links:

Odd Duck

Nicer Dicer Plus

Flemmings Selection Hotel Frankfurt City

The Pasta Tree Milwaukee

Oscars Pub & Grill

Maharaja Indian Restaurant

Don't Be Shy With the Broiler - Andy

Fri, 13 Feb 2026 04:00:00 -0600

Melanie's last guest this season, Andy, brings a lot to the table; food & flower gardener, grill & smoker man, soup & stew maker, and salsa king. From his food beginnings to his latest meal. This episode, Andy and Melanie will share their food joy.

Episode Links:

Gloriosos

New York Times Cooking

Cuisinart Hand Blender

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

Simple and Informal - Lea

Fri, 06 Feb 2026 04:00:00 -0600

Today's conversation with Lea serves up a bit of evrerything, everywhere. She is American-born, English-influenced and globally-focused, so it's no surprise we'll talk about curries, castles and cleaners all in the same episode.

And....if you're wondering the English term "faffing" is the same as the American term fussing ;)

Lea's Persian Orange Cake Recipe: https://www.kulinarian.com/recipes/persian-orange-and-almond-cake/

Episode Links:

Madhur Jaffret Indian Cooking: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75385.Madhur_Jaffrey_Indian_Cooking

Windsor Castle: https://www.rct.uk/visit/windsor-castle

Jamie Oliver Recipes: https://www.jamieoliver.com/

Fun to Play With My Food - Ethan

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 04:00:00 -0600

Melanie's conversation with Ethan is a first for the podcast: Ethan is a professional chef. They'll discuss his influence, the winding road that led to catering, meal kits and being a private chef.

Ethan's Recipe:

Episode Links:

Vitruvian Farms

Peck: First Food Hall in Milan

Vom Fass

Chifa: Peruvian-Chineese Fusion

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

Topolobampo

Glorioso's

Mad City Chefs

Just Invite Them All - Moe

Fri, 23 Jan 2026 04:00:00 -0600

Moe's food journey starts on Grandma' s farm and includes soup, salad and feeding a choral group. Melanie and Moe have spent hours in each other's kitchen, cooking for each other, family and friends. Today you'll hear a few ideas from a very good homegrown cook.

Moe's Crab Rangoon Pizza Recipe:

Episode Links:

Brother Sebastian's Steakhouse and Winery

"The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book" by Fannie Merritt Farmer

Rosewood Restaurant

Asheville Proper

Milwaukee Public Market

Oro di Oliva

Penzey's Spices

The Spice House

French Fries & Ice Cream Dip - Sean

Fri, 16 Jan 2026 04:00:00 -0600

The saying "like father, like son" says a lot this episode. Last week John and I chatted all things food at the Tehan house and today you'll hear echoes of that conversation. My son-in-law, Sean, honors his father's cooking and moves on to create some great food and food memories of his own.

Episode Links:

Room Service Bay View: https://www.roomservicebayview.com/

Hawaiian Sweet Rolls: https://kingshawaiian.com/original-hawaiian-sweet-rolls-2-packs-12-rolls-per-pack-gift-boxed/

Outlaw Oyster: https://outlawoysterwi.com/

The Famous Racing Sausages: https://www.mlb.com/brewers/fans/mascots/racing-sausages

Soft Cookies Trick: https://www.foodandwine.com/keep-cookies-soft-trick-8708456

Johnsonville Original Brats : https://johnsonville.com/products/original-bratwurst/

G. Groppi Food Market: https://groppis.com

Bartolotta's Harbor House: https://www.bartolottas.com/harbor-house

Holy Mackerel - John

Fri, 09 Jan 2026 04:00:00 -0600

This episode you’ll meet the in-laws. My guest today is John. We’ve shared some great food together since his son, Sean married our Elise. John’s a great cook, and his happy place is the stove, grill or fish-camp oven. We get into everything from Florida scallops to northeast crab, and......wine, of course!

John T's Macaroni and Cheese Recipe: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:va6c2:0b7a26f9-ce1e-440e-b687-4676fa473ccc

Episode Links:

Magic Seasoning Blends: https://www.magicseasoningblends.com

Super Taster Blends: https://supertaster.com

Meater: https://www.meater.com

Pampered Chef Food Chopper: https://www.pamperedchef.com/shop/Kitchen+Tools/Specialty+Cutting+Tools/Food+Chopper/2585

Grumpy Gourment : https://cmhgourmand.com/tag/grumpy-gourment/

Hooked On Hot Sauce - Ray

Fri, 02 Jan 2026 04:00:00 -0600

Years ago, Ray and Melanie started hanging out with a group of work friends, affectionately called “the usual suspects”; first for happy hours, next at each other’s houses and then they took the plung to vacation together. The rest is history. Today Ray and Melanie discuss meat, AirBnB cooking and Christmas in Connecticut. Be sure to listen till the end, when you'll find out the most important ingredient for a great party.

Ray's Seared Steak Recipe:

Episode Links:

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

Findlay Market

Traeger

Kitchen Aid

Food Is Why I Travel with Meagan

Thu, 17 Jul 2025 04:00:00 -0600

Meagan and Melanie’s friendship was sparked by their mutual love of family, food, friends and travel. The two have had some ridiculously good times together and appreciate the other’s delicious food and thoughtful hosting. Meagan will talk about food from her adventures and….what a Wisconsin girl misses while living out-of-state.

Meagan's Weekly Bread Recipe

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Tallest, Best Eater in Segovia with John

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 04:00:00 -0600

It’s all in the family, again. John is a friend and…another one of Melanie’s nephews. John and Melanie share a love of travel, food and people. Fortunately, they’ve been able to enjoy all of them together, and today they’ll share a glimpse into John’s tasty life.

Chilindron, Spanish Stew Recipe

Check out:

Klements Sausage https://klements.com

Modern Carnivor https://modcarn.com/category/recipe/

Hank Shaw https://honest-food.net

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You Can’t Beat A Burek with Steven

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 04:00:00 -0600

It’s all in the family…Steven is Melanie’s nephew and friend, and their food connections include travel treats, local restaurants and their very own test-kitchen successes and failures. Today these two are taking a delicious trip down memory lane.

Citrus Tart (500 Tapas Book) Recipe

Check out:

Three Brothers Restaurant https://www.threebrothersmke.com

Chef (the movie) https://chefthefilm.com

Bay View Bowl https://www.facebook.com/bayviewbowl/

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Daddy’s Girl with Desti

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 04:00:00 -0600

Friends for decades, Desti and Melanie usually connect over a meal. Lucky for Melanie many of those meals are right out of Desti’s kitchen, which provides all the “wonderful” you think from an Italian kitchen: measuring by sight, overflowing plates and plenty of garlic and wit.

Arancini Appetizer Recipe

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Drinking In The Local Offerings with Tom

Thu, 19 Jun 2025 04:00:00 -0600

Tom and Melanie have known each other for a long time. They know each other well and well they should….they were once married. They shared food and travels and continue to share friends, food and adventure stories. Tom likes to travel and sample local food and drink, which leads to stories of bento boxes, slivovitz and horse meat."

NOTE: We had some technical issues recording this episode. Apologies for the less than optimal quality :)

Mrs. Mac’s Cookies Recipe

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Putting All The Love And Ingredients In with Amy

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 04:00:00 -0600

Amy and Melanie met at a challenging time in both of their lives and formed a connection around caring for others through food. The two explore Amy’s food origins, as well as her need to try something new. A multi-talented person, Amy shares food memories and meals including, bread, soup, pizza and….desert.

Heart Waffles Recipe

Check out:

Tower Chicken https://towerchicken.com

South Shore Farmer’s Market https://southshorefarmersmarket.com

Sciortino’s Bakery https://petersciortinosbakery.com

Syttende Mai Festival Stoughton Wisconsin https://www.stoughtonfestivals.com

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Season From Your Heart with Stephanie

Thu, 05 Jun 2025 04:00:00 -0600

Melanie met Stephanie at work and together they’ve done a good job of perfecting “play”. At the top of their “play-list” is food. It started with a Napa Valley vacation and continues in their homes, backyards, neighborhood and the world. Stephanie, a real home-grown cook, discusses her takes on everything from porchetta to paprika.

Grandma's Pork & Beef Roast Recipe

Aringer House Dressing Recipe

Check out:

Morton’s Steakhouse O’Hare https://www.mortons.com/location/mortons-the-steakhouse-rosemont-il/

Points East Pub

https://thepointseastpub.com

Spice House https://www.thespicehouse.com/pages/about-the-spice-house

Hue Restaurant

https://huerestaurants.com/front-page/

Groppi’s Market

https://groppis.com

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Quest For Crispy Duck with Christine

Tue, 27 May 2025 00:00:00 -0600

Notes: Christine and Melanie go way back. The two have shared love of food. From their early days of restaurants, take-away, and travel food to discovering and enjoying cooking for their guests. Christine talks remodeling, knives and her romantic notion of hosting.

Delia’s (Smith) Crispy Potatoes Recipe

Check out: Travail Kitchen https://www.travailkitchen.com

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