Eat, Drink and Be Merry

Big Blend Radio Network

This tasty Big Blend Radio foodie podcast channel features interviews, conversations, and panel discussions focusing on food and drink, cooking and recipes, and where to shop, taste, and play!

  1. Oct 19

    Wisconsin Dells in Every Season: Wine, Waterparks & Supper Clubs

    Wine country, waterparks, supper clubs, and yoga with alpacas: Wisconsin Dells has something for every season, and it’s not just a summer destination. On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio’s "Food, Wine & Travel" Show with the International Food Wine Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA), host/producer Lisa D. Smith talks with Ken Leiviska of the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau. He shares what to see, taste and do in the Dells all year long. Ken explains how the Ice Age shaped Wisconsin’s wine country and why the Dells’ wineries are worth a stop. You’ll also hear about: - Harvest season and fall color - Winter markets and the Tree of Light - Ice fishing - Indoor waterparks that stay open all year, in the “Waterpark Capital of the World” - Classic Wisconsin supper clubs, from relish trays to brandy old fashioneds - Alpaca yoga, cheese curds and farm visits - Where to stay, and what to know before you go Pack a sweater, a swimsuit, or both. Whatever the season, the Dells is ready for you. Piece together our Wisconsin Dells fall colors jigsaw puzzle of a Dells boat tour, and get the episode highlights: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/wisconsin-dells-in-every-season  Learn more and plan your trip: - Wisconsin Dells: https://www.wisdells.com  - Food, Wine & Travel Podcast with IFWTWA: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/food-wine-travel-ifwtwa  - Travel, Food & Wine Digital Podcast Magazine: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/travel-food-wine-magazine  - International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA): https://www.ifwtwa.org

  2. Oct 8

    Pizza, Wine Pairings & Sicilian Roots

    Celebrate Pizza Month, Italian American Heritage Month, and Family History Month with pizza, wine, and Sicilian family stories in this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "Wine Time with Peggy" Podcast! Peggy Fiandaca, co-owner of Arizona's LDV Winery, starts with a fall update from the vineyard and the tasting room in Old Town Scottsdale, including a Burgundy wine talk, Petite Sirah in November, trivia night, and two new wine releases. Then she and Lisa D. Smith dive into Peggy's Italian American heritage: growing up Sicilian in Chicago, why so many Italian immigrants came to America and the discrimination they faced, and the close-knit extended family and Sunday suppers that shaped the way she cooks. Peggy shares the Sicilian pizza traditions of her childhood, a thick, rectangular, focaccia-style pizza baked in an olive-oil-slicked pan and made at home every Friday night. She also explains her Wine Term of the Month, Nero d'Avola, Sicily's flagship red, and what makes a ragù different from a Sunday sauce. Then it's time for pizza and wine pairings: what to pour with a cheesy slice, ham and pineapple, Margherita, and white pizza, plus why pizza for brunch with bubbles sounds like a great idea. LINKS & RESOURCES - Get Peggy's pizza and wine pairing tips, plus more of her Italian-style recipes: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/how-to-pair-wine-with-pizza  - Learn more about LDV Winery: https://ldvwinery.com  - Check out the "Wine & Bites" Recipe & Podcast Digital Magazine: https://online.fliphtml5.com/yhwzg/fmlb  - Follow "Wine Time with Peggy" Podcast: https://wine-time-peggy.podbean.com/

  3. Oct 2

    It's Time to Visit The Peanut Patch in Yuma, Arizona

    It's October, and that means The Peanut Patch is open! Donna George, owner of The Peanut Patch in Yuma, Arizona, joins producer Lisa D. Smith on this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "The Peanut Patch" Podcast, to celebrate the start of the season, with fresh peanut brittle and fudge back on the counter for Yuma locals, winter visitors, and road trippers passing through. Donna shares what it takes to get the store restocked, from making peanut brittle every day to a fudge table that can hold about forty-five flavors at once. They talk pepitas and pumpkin seeds, about twenty Peanut Patch salsas for Taco Day, apple butter and preserves, sugar-free candy, and the pickled vegetables and local products on the shelves. You'll also get a look behind the storefront. Peanuts are roasted on site and ground into fresh peanut butter, and the kitchen makes brittle, clusters, and fudge, alongside Medjool dates grown in Yuma. Donna's grandson Matthew is busy freeze drying goodies too. Along the way, Lisa makes the case for real candy at Halloween, Donna and Lisa swap ideas for candy corn and peanuts, and Donna shares her twenty-nine years of owning The Peanut Patch. Her store anniversary party is Saturday, November 21, and Medjool date shakes will likely start that day. 🛒 Shop year-round: https://thepeanutpatch.com/  🎙️ The Peanut Patch Podcast (new episodes every 1st Friday): https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/the-peanut-patch-podcast  🍽️ Recipes from The Peanut Patch Magazine: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/recipes-from-the-peanut-patch

  4. Sep 14

    Chasing Truffles in Istria with Prodan Tartufi

    Enjoy this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "Wanderers Compass" Podcast! Three years after Joelle's first truffle hunt in the pouring rain with a cooking group of sixteen women, she and Ryan return to Buzet, Croatia, to sit down with Višnja Prodan Jekić of Prodan Tartufi — a family truffle business now heading into its fourth generation. It started in the 1960s, when Višnja's grandparents didn't even know what truffles were — they thought they were smelly, inedible potatoes and fed them to the pigs, until Italian traders showed them otherwise. Today, the Prodan family hunts and trains their own truffle dogs (five of them, each with their own name and personality), collects from 50-60 local hunting families every week, and ships fresh truffles worldwide — to Michelin-star restaurants like Alchemist, Noma, and Geranium in Copenhagen, and markets as far as Japan, Singapore, and Dubai. In this episode, Višnja walks through what makes Istria's climate uniquely suited to truffles, how a dog is trained from puppyhood to become a serious hunter, the real differences between black and white truffles (and why white truffles can sell for €2,000-€5,000 a kilo), how to actually cook with truffles at home without overcomplicating it, how to spot a real truffle product versus a chemical imitation, and the story behind the largest truffle her family has ever found. She also shares her own favorite way to eat them — simple scrambled eggs — and what it means to be building a new generation of this family tradition while opening the business to travelers from around the world. 🔗 Read the article: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/prodan-tartufi-istria-truffles   🔗 Learn more about Prodan Tartufi: https://prodantartufi.hr/hr/   🔗 Wanderers Compass: https://www.wandererscompass.com/   🔗 More Wanderers Compass episodes: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/wanderers-compass-podcast   🔗 Wanderers Compass Digital Podcast Magazine: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/wanderers-compass-magazine  New episodes of the Wanderers Compass Podcast air every second Monday on Big Blend Radio.

  5. Sep 8

    Explore Tualatin Valley, Oregon: Where Wine Country Meets the Great Outdoors

    Just 30 minutes from Portland, Tualatin Valley is Oregon's underrated wine country — home to 40+ wineries, one of the state's most ethnically diverse food scenes, tax-free shopping, and a 21-mile paved trail past a giant wooden troll.  On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "Food, Wine & Travel Show," presented in partnership with the International Food Wine and Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA), Sylke Neal-Finnegan, VP of Communications and PR at Explore Tualatin Valley, gives us a conversational tour of the Willamette Valley's northwest corner. Beyond the vineyards, Tualatin Valley is shaped by a 50-year-old urban growth boundary that protects farmland and keeps its wine country sustainable including some dry-farming. Sylke also digs into the region's thriving arts scene — from the Broadway Rose Theatre Company to the Patricia Reser Center for the Arts — plus year-round outdoor adventure along the Tualatin River, Hagg Lake, and the fully accessible Banks-Vernonia State Trail. It's proof that this corner of the Willamette Valley offers a lot to experience. Featured image: David Hill Vineyards & Winery, courtesy of Explore Tualatin Valley. RESOURCES LINKS: - Plan your visit: https://tualatinvalley.org/  - Learn more about IFWTWA: https://www.ifwtwa.org/  - Follow the Food, Wine & Travel Podcast: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/food-wine-travel-podcast-ifwtwa  - Check out Big Blend Radio's "Travel Food & Wine: Digital Podcast Magazine: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/travel-food-wine-magazine

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This tasty Big Blend Radio foodie podcast channel features interviews, conversations, and panel discussions focusing on food and drink, cooking and recipes, and where to shop, taste, and play!