How to stay grounded in the world. How to remain connected to others. How to remain in the now when performing everyday tasks. We talk about this with Misty Bell Stiers and her new book, Light, Fire, and Abundance: Harness the Power of Food & Mindful Cooking to Nourish the Body & Soul.

Learn more about Misty, including other writing, by visiting her website.

Food has been used as a metaphor for sex and sexual attraction in many a song and play and movie. But in poetry it can mean even more. Andy Young uses food, and fruit in particular, in her poems.

Her newest collection is Museum of the Soon to Depart, published by Carnegie Mellon University Press. She is also a translator and teacher. We talk about and listen to her poems. It’s on Tip of the Tongue.

I thought that you would enjoy this encore release from Julia Skinner.

Julia is doing so much - combining art, nature, and food - that it is good to be reminded how grounded she is. Listen to hear about all that she is doing making a life for herself in food and in other areas that interest her.

Anne Byrn is the master of cakes of all kind. In her new book, Baking in the American South: 200 Recipes and Their Untold Stories, she really makes southern baking of all sorts come alive.

We talk about the book, baking, and other kitchen talk. The book is a treasure trove of information and talking about what motivated her and what it all means motivated lots of talk. You can listen, it’s on Tip of the Tongue.

You can also come to the cake extravaganza we are planning for September 18 at the Southern Food & Beverage Museum in New Orleans.

The law of hospitality, especially as it is related to tipping is hopelessly convoluted. Add the tipping rules to the reduced minimum wage that tipped employers pay, and trying to keep within the law in a nightmare. Having a lawyer who actually understand the law is imperative.

Listen to this conversation with John Reyna, managing attorney for the Texas Hospitality and Non-profit Law Center in Houston, Texas. It is illuminating.

Learn more.

New Orleans residents pride themselves on living to eat, as opposed to eating to live. Beth D’Addono taps into that spirit in her new book: City Eats New Orleans. Her new book almost tenderly caresses the selected restaurants, the food, and the people. It is an outstanding and very personal review book that you will not want to miss. It is an insider look at the restaurants of New Orleans and what makes them tick. Listen. It’s on Tip of the Tongue.

You can listen to this podcast wherever you listen to podcasts.

There isn’t a more beautiful and interesting book about cooking with spices than A Whisper of Cardamom by Eleanor Ford. Listen to our conversation about the issue of desserts being so sweet that you cannot taste them. The book is full of deep and complex uses of spices lightyears beyond cinnamon and vanilla. Listen. It’s on Tip of the Tongue.

You can read more about Eleanor on her website. . .

If you want to get a feel for her expertise balancing spices, both savory and sweet, be sure to check out the recipe section of her website. You can also see what other books she has written.

What does it take to style and photograph food? Is it about the food proper or the story that the food represents? We can learn a lot about food and photography and cooking from this discussion. Listen. It’s on Tip of the Tongue.

You can find Eugenia’s photograph’s everywhere in magazines. And as a person who writes recipes, I can attest to the fact that her food photographs make the recipes come alive. Anyone in food who is lucky enough to work with this talented artist is fortunate indeed.