The Chicago Way: An Oral History of Chicago Dining with Michael Gebert

From a city associated with steak and the stockyards, Chicago has become a capitol of innovative, even avant-garde cuisine—but how? That’s the story that James Beard-winning Chicago food journalist Michael Gebert tells in The Chicago Way: An Oral History of Chicago Dining (Agate, $36.00). https://www.agatepublishing.com/97815728…/the-chicago-way/

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Rich History of Lebanese Baking with Maureen Abood

Join us on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, 7 PM via Zoom

Podcast

Recipes:
Apricot Gems
Mocha Cardamom Snack Cake
Pomegranate Mousse with Lime Icing

Lebanon’s culinary repertoire includes a multi-faceted baking tradition that is influenced by the country’s history as much as by the diaspora the world over. Maureen Abood’s new book, Lebanese Baking, offers a sweeping, deeply personal guide to the baked traditions of Lebanon. With more than 100 recipes and detailed process instruction, this is the first English-language cookbook of its kind. A tribute to Lebanese baking in all its forms, the book provides a tour in chapters, photos, recipes, and stories of the many facets of baking that make up and express the Lebanese culture of hospitality, feasting, community, sharing, and family. 

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The Whys and Wheys of Wisconsin Cheese

Presented by Nicole Bujewski, Kristin Mitchell, Keith Burrows and Leslie Damaso
Podcast

Wisconsin cheese is more than a local delicacy—it’s a national treasure. Join us from the historic town of Mineral Point, in the heart of Wisconsin’s Driftless Area, for a look at The Wisconsin Whey—what the book is about, how it came to life, and why this landscape makes such exceptional dairy possible. 

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 Foods of the African Diaspora

 

Presented by Rahim Muhammad and Magic Johnson,
Mahari restaurant, Chicago’s Hyde Park

America offers a melting pot of cuisines, with the foods from such countries as Mexico, Italy, France and China becoming as familiar to us as apple pie. But there’s an entire continent, Africa, where most of us have not explored its vast cuisine, let alone the cuisine of the African diaspora. Continue reading