Mario Batali's #1 side for Thanksgiving

Posted by Alexis Tirado

Listener Brenna called the hotline and told the great Mario Batali (who has a cameo in the new film, "Fantastic Mr. Fox") that he inspired her daughter to become a chef! She asked Mario for his suggestion for one amazing side dish that can accompany the turkey. His response?

"I think everyone loves sweet potatoes. I would take sweet potatoes, peel them, cut them into 1 1/2 - 2 inch. relatively large cubes. Blanche them in water for about 4 minutes. Boiling water -- not long enough to cook them all the way through but enough to get them to soften. Take them out. Get a cookie sheet, put extra virgin olive oil on there, a little bit of chopped sage, a couple pieces of chopped garlic, and mix that all around in the oil. Then put the sweet potatoes on top of that -- toss them. Season them with salt and pepper and bake them at 500 [degrees] for 25 minutes."

"They will get insanely crispy outside, they'll be soft like everyone's favorite memory of the smushy ones [on the inside]. Instead of putting marshmallow-y stuff on it, go to the grocery store and pick up a pomegranate and break the seeds out of that. Sprinkle that over [the sweet potatoes} after you put it in the bowl. It will blow people away."

Martha calls the Thanksgiving Hotline!

Posted by Alexis Tirado

We usually field calls from listeners who want expert advice from all the top chefs manning our Thanksgiving Hotline. But occasionally the boss lady, Martha Stewart calls the radio channel. Today Martha called the hotline and excitedly chatted with Pierre Schaedelin, executive chef at Alain Ducasse’s Benoit and her former personal chef. "Pierre worked with me for 2 years in Bedford. I miss you so much! I LOVE that you're participating in our hotline. All this information is so valuable to our listeners. Each and every one of you great chefs that are on today are so generous with your information and I really, really appreciate it," said Martha. Tune in to her phone call below.

For more of Martha and Thanksgiving check her out on The Today Show. She was on the show this morning, sharing tips for a tasty turkey.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Cooking With Emeril premieres on Tuesday!

Posted by Alexis Tirado

YES! Emeril Lagasse has joined the Martha Stewart Living Radio family! Tune in on Tuesday, December 1 for the premiere of "Cooking with Emeril" a show that takes you inside his kitchen at home, in his restaurants, and on the road. He'll have weekly guests on air such as his favorite chefs, sommeliers, and culinary experts. For Emeril's first show he has handsome chef and restaurateur Todd English as his guest! Did you know that Todd was once listed in People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People"? Emeril and Todd will talk about entertaining holiday menus. Check them out in the radio studio below!

Tune in to "Cooking with Emeril" every Tuesday and Thursday at 11 a.m.to 12 p.m. ET on Sirius 112 and XM 157.

Nigella Lawson explains what a dundee cake is all about!

Posted by Alexis Tirado

The lovely Nigella Lawson, who's latest cookbook is called, "Christmas: Food Family Friends Festivities,"stopped by our radio studios for the Thanksgiving Hotline. She talked about a dundee cake which is like a boiled fruitcake. What makes this cake stand out? "The never changing feature of a dundee cake is that it has a concentric circle, a hole on the top. That's what makes it a dundee cake," explains Nigella. Listen to the mp3 below to learn more about this cool cake.

Image courtesy of Delia online.

Thanksgiving Hotline is here!

Posted by Alexis Tirado

It's the moment we've all been waiting for...it's the annual Thanksgiving Hotline on Martha Stewart Living Radio! Starting today until Wednesday, 11/23 our radio hosts and celebrity chefs like Martha, Emeril, Nigella Lawson and Mario Batali, will be answering all your Thanksgiving-related questions! The hotline is live today, tomorrow and Weds. from 7 am EST to 7 pm EST. Call 866-675-6675 with your question or listen to the broadcast for FREE today. Just click on the player located on the right. You can even download recipes from all the chefs featured on the hotline! Happy Thanksgiving!

Hanging out with Bobby Flay, Wolfgang Puck and other celeb chefs!

Posted by Lauren G

Earlier this month I had the opportunity to attend the 2nd Annual Savor Borgata event where I wined and dined with the hotel’s top chefs including Wolfgang Puck and Bobby Flay. Savor Borgata is a ticketed event, open to the public that happens every year at the Water Club Hotel in Atlantic City, NJ. It attracts food lovers from all over the country who want to meet, greet and taste with some of their favorite culinary heroes. Below are some of the highlights of Savor Borgata, including some great Thanksgiving tips for you to try at home.

Bobby Flay tells us about his Thanksgiving plans. He also talk about why "themes" are great for a big feast.

Bobby whipped up Surf and Turk Skewers with Red Pepper Vinaigrette and Honey Mustard Mint.

Here's Wolfgang Puck in action, serving Stir-Friend Pad thai noodles, Grilled Shrimp, Steak and Scallop Skewers and Chinese Chicken Salad.

In this video Wolfgang shares his Thanksgiving plans and how you can create a family meal at home with more meaning than just eating a turkey! Plus Stephen Kalt, of the newly opened Fornelletto Cucina and Wine Bar shares his tricks for a perfect cranberry sauce (1 cup sugar, 1 cup water and 12 ounce bag of fresh cranberries. Bring all to a boil and simmer 5 minutes.) Lastly, Chef Michael Schulson of Izakaya tells the TRUTH about what every chef does at Thanksgiving time!

Michael Schulson also says his favorite dish for Thanksgiving is always turkey, but in the meantime, he is happy to serve up delicious sushi! The event featured scrumptious sushi such as California, shrimp tempura, yellowtail and smoked salmon.

SEE MORE PHOTOS

10 Things You Didn't Know About David Chang!

Posted by Alexis Tirado

Yesterday afternoon, Martha sat down with chef David Chang on her radio special, "At Martha's Table." Martha called him a "national treasure" and gushed about his amazing culinary creations (Steamed pork buns! Momofuku ramen!). David struck me as a very candid and down-to-earth dude. He's definitely not a celebrity chef diva, which is refreshing!

Here I am, looking ridiculously happy next to David.

Below are 10 things he talked about on air.

1. David barely graduated from Trinity College in Hartford, CT. "I graduated very low in my class, at the bottom. My degree is pretty useless," he admitted.

2. "I felt so late in the game. I felt so behind," said David about enrolling at the French Culinary Institute, at the age of 22. He's pretty hard on himself, right? You can listen to David talk about this in the clip below.

3. David used to answer phones at Mercer Kitchen and Craft restaurants. At Craft, Tom Colicchio became a mentor of sorts. This was pre-Top Chef fame.

4. He's single. (And yes, Martha asked if he was married and when he said no, she went in for the kill and asked about his GF situation). Listen below to Martha grill David on his love life!

5. He doesn't own a car.

6. He moved to Tokyo for awhile. At one point, he lived in a men's shelter and cooked for free just to get culinary experience in Japan!

7. David tried to get many investors interested in his first noodle shop but no one put the money down. Eventually David's father gave him money to open his first restaurant.

8. David loves to order Chinese take out from Grand Sichuan (they have various locations in NYC). "I almost never cook at home. It's easier in New York City to order in than to cook at home," he said. You can listen to David talking about why he doesn't cook at home in the clip below.

9. Some of his favorite NYC restaurants are Soto and Gramercy Tavern.

10. Chef Chang's advice to aspiring chefs? "Don't be afraid to make a mistake," he said. He told Martha that his famed pork buns came from an accident and he didn't think it would be a crowd favorite!

Momofuku Milk Bar's blueberry cream cookies from the event. These were some of the best cookies I ever ate!

Martha Stewart sits down with David Chang!

Posted by Alexis Tirado

Here at Martha Stewart Living Radio, we adore David Chang as much as Anthony Bourdain does. Martha hearts David so much that she's going to sit down with him tomorrow afternoon on the radio! Martha will talk to David about his Michelin star-studded restaurants, his new Momofuku cookbook and so much more. You can even ask Martha and David a question! Tune in tomorrow, November 3, at 4 pm EST (1 pm PST) on Sirius 112 and XM 157. The number to call in is 866-675-6675.

Grand Tasting at the NYC Wine & Food Festival

Posted by Jennifer Sendrow

There are many tasting events at the New York Wine and Food Festival, but the Grand Tasting held at Pier 54 dwarfs them all. Dozens of restaurants, wineries, and liquor brands compete for attention, and it can be hard to take it all in visually, let alone in sips and bites. Here are the highlights for 2009.

Though Mediterranean restaurant Ilili was officially serving leg of lamb, a little cajoling got me my favorite -- and most unusual -- taste of the day: lamb brain lightly breaded and fried, served atop a milk bread pancake and topped with pickled slaw.

Klee Brasserie served Viennese fried chicken. I wish I could convince my local sports bar to do the same!

Chef Patrick Connelly from Bobo reinvented the BLT without bread, just pork belly on lettuce garnished with fresh mayonnaise and chutney.

I watched as "Morning Living" regular guest Chef Dave Martin received compliments from fan after fan who still think he should have won season one of "Top Chef." Someone get this man a restaurant!

From Top Chef to Iron Chef: Yes, it's the Chairman!

SEE MORE PHOTOS

Alicia Silverstone and a Birthday Cake Taste Test

Posted by Jennifer Sendrow

We celebrated Terri's birthday on Whole Living today in high style! First actress Alicia Silverstone joined us to talk about her new book, The Kind Diet. We've loved her since Clueless, but her dedication to animal rights and protecting the environment left us even more impressed.

 

What's a birthday without a cake...or three? I set up a taste test for Terri so we could find out if there's a big difference between a conventional box cake, an all-natural box cake, and a cake made from scratch. She tasted all three without knowing which one was which.

 

The cakes all looked similar once they were baked, though when I was making them it was easy to tell the batters apart. The conventional mix by Duncan Hines contained artificial color that made the batter very yellow and the texture was totally smooth. The natural mix by Naturally Nora was white coming out of the box, gaining color with the addition of egg yolks, and it was very easy to pour once mixed. The Martha Stewart recipe for basic yellow cake produced a batter that was buttery yellow and thick. All three tasted pretty good when I licked the spoon!

DUNCAN HINES CAKE: Terri correctly guessed that this sponge-like, sweet cake was the conventional mix because it was so flavorful. Though some other tasters loved it, it was Terri's least favorite.

NATURALLY NORA CAKE: The all-natural mix confused some tasters who swore it was the homemade cake, but Terri guessed correctly based on its totally uniform texture. She deemed it second best, and declared it well worth eating.  

 

MARTHA'S BASIC YELLOW CAKE: Terri's favorite - and remember, she was tasting blind - was the Martha cake made from scratch. It had a dense crumb and a buttery flavor she liked best. The bottom line: an all-natural mix is the next best thing, but nothing beats homemade! Do you agree?