Nancy Leson

Making your own vinegar is not complicated, thank goodness, but it does require a  good starter. Seattle Times food writer, Nancy Leson, tells KPLU's Erin Hennessey how she makes her own red wine vinegar and why it's so special.

The only difference between John Pizzarelli and a real ham is...

And the winner is...

I like it straight out of the bottle, no ice, no glass.  And with apologies to Fast Eddie Felson, I don't mean JTS Brown bourbon.

Created for a Medici, it was the dessert of choice for Venetian working girls.

Our diets lay bound, gagged and locked in the trunk as Nancy and I sped toward our date with Wretched Excess.

Have you noticed your local grocery clerk asking you more personal questions of late? "Plastic or paper?" is giving way to "What are your weekend plans?"

This wicked turn toward what they call a 'charade of intimacy' doesn't sit well with Dick and Nancy. They've had it up to their squeaky shopping carts with faux familiarity!

And what about those frequent shopper cards that populate your wallet? Are they really 'saving' you money, as you're told at check out? 

The end (and the beginning!) of the year often marks change in business of all kinds, and the restaurant business is no exception. 

Nancy and Dick lay down the latest on some noteworthy Seattle restaurateurs who have opened - or are about to open - new kitchens. Other famous spots have new names, or new owners.  Nancy says look out for:

It's the first Food for Thought of 2011, so Nancy and Dick put the spotlight on a little morsel associated with the start of a new year from the Japanese tradition: Mochi making.  

A lot of folks around these parts lately have become experts at cooking during a power outage. A listener asked Nancy and Dick to offer their own tips on making do when the juice shuts off.  

This week's Food for Thought makes sure your covered when the lights go out. 

Picture your favorite cookbook, and how you have come to savor the experience of its splendor.  This week’s Food for Thought reveals new favorites that rank in that class, and Nancy and Dick are naming their top picks,   in time for Christmas.

Seattle Times Food Writer Nancy Leson is back from her KPLU Travel Club trip to Paris, where she ate…and ate…and, well, you get the idea.  

So how long would you be willing to stand on line for a table at a popular restaurant?  10 minutes?  A half hour?  Longer?  Not KPLU’s Dick Stein – as he tells Seattle Times food writer Nancy Leson on today’s Food for Thought – which is ready for you right now.

Ever wonder how your favorite restaurants make sure they have the freshest seafood ready to serve to you? Dick and Nancy take you on a journey from the boat (and the airfreight cargo office) to the table, and follow one of the regions top seafood proprietors on this week's Food for Thought.

Seattle Times food writer Nancy Leson and Dick Stein usually get together at the KPLU studios each Tuesday to record Food for Thought -- but given Tuesday's hazardous driving conditions it seemed more prudent for Dick to just get Nancy on the phone for their Thanksgiving chat.