Mark Bittman

A few leaves off a savoy cabbage makes a great side dish for one or two people.

Whole wheat gets a bad rap. But 100% whole grain is nature’s original plant food — packed with fiber, prebiotics, and actual nutrients. The way it was before we started messing with it. This is the bread your body actually wants. Subscribe to a bread box and save 10% at bittmans.com

Arroz con Cosas, “Rice with Things.” The idea is that you take good ingredients and you don’t fuck them up.

Your pastrami deserves better rye. Subscribe to a bread box and save 10% at bittmans.com

It’s a perfect time to have today’s three guests on. Liz Carlisle, who is an associate professor in the environmental studies program at UC Santa Barbara, joined me on the podcast back in 2022, along with farmers Mai Nguyen and Latrice Tatsey. Today, we’re bringing Liz back. Her new book is Living Roots: The Promise of Perennial Foods, which she edited with Aubrey Streit Krug, the director of the Perennial Cultures Lab at The Land Institute. Joining the two of them is Leah Penniman, who is an acclaimed activist and farmer; she co-founded Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, New York, is the author of Farming While Black, and contributed an essay in Living Roots. Tap the link in my bio to listen to our conversation, or search “Food with Mark Bittman” wherever you podcast. Plus, read an excerpt from Living Roots at bittmanproject.com.

Four whole grain sourdough loaves. Dandelion Chocolate Hazelnut spread. Creamy butter. Cute tote. We made a Mother’s Day gift box around these very things, in partnership with our friends at @dandelionchocolate . Order by May 5th — link in bio. ⏰

Corn bread, not cornbread. It’s our sleeper hit—and Kate’s favorite. Deeply savory with very subtle sweetness and a crust liberally dusted in crunchy cornmeal. Pass the chili. Subscribe at bittmans.com 🍞 Photo: Jim Henkens

Dad + daughter. Whole grain + ciabatta. A perfect pair. Subscribe to a bread box and save 10% at bittmans.com 🍞

Finally, a bread the whole house can agree on. Subscribe to bread delivery and save 10% at bittmans.com

Today, we’re (me and Kate and a fantastic small and mighty team, including @zoesakoutis ) launching Bittman’s, a line of whole grain sourdough breads. Breads that are made the way bread was MEANT to be made: flour, water, salt, time. That’s it. Oh: and intention. I’ve spent most of my life helping people eat better—writing cookbooks, shaping food policy, learning, and sharing what I’ve learned. I’ve talked about bread for decades. Taught myself how to make it, taught people how to make it, written about why it matters. And now, I’m making it for you. Bread has been central to human life for thousands of years—but it was also one of the first casualties of industrialized food. In the name of shelf life, industry stripped it of nutrients, fiber, and flavor, then tried to patch it back together with sugar, mysterious additives, and synthetic vitamins. What’s left on most shelves today isn’t really bread—it’s a loaf-shaped sponge that usually tastes the way it looks. With @bittmans , we are doing our part to reclaim bread, to bring it back to what it was and will be again. We freeze our loaves at peak fermentation to naturally preserve freshness—no stabilizers, no preservatives, no weird shelf-life tricks. All that’s left is for you to finish the job. Bake your bread until the crust is deeply golden, break it open, and pass it around the table. You are not going to believe how good this bread is. I mean it. We’re starting with whole wheat, half wheat, rye, corn, cinnamon walnut raisin, focaccia, demi baguettes, and ciabatta flats, and we are excited to see what you think. Much love! 🍞 Build your bread box at bittmans.com—there’s a link in my bio.

Don’t you have a spring in your step this morning, gorgeous. #balstonbeachworthiteverytime #morningrun

Protein. Keto. Intermittent fasting. Gut health. Food as medicine. Kate and I both tend to shrink away from buzzwords and trends. Of course, though, many of these terms and ideas come from real research and truths. It’s when they spin out of control and everyone hops on the bandwagon that we eyeroll. Food as medicine is one of those terms that’s been taken out of context and used for just about everything possible. But since we Bittmans are such proponents of home cooking and the nourishment that good food can provide, we do believe in the roots of food as a healing power. When you see a big plate of homemade food, how can you not? This week’s guests are Sven Gierlinger and Terrence Meck. Neither uses the term “food as medicine” verbatim, but both of them are doing important work to nourish people—the people who need it most. Sven is Northwell Health’s chief experience officer, and in 2017, under his leadership, Northwell—which has 28 hospitals—embarked on an impactful culinary journey, reimagining the way food is sourced, prepared, and served to both patients and staff. The initiative prioritizes fresh, locally sourced, ingredients, and has, as you may imagine, been very well-received. And Terrence Meck is in his second year as the CEO of God’s Love We Deliver, a nonprofit that provides medically tailored meals at no cost to 15,000 New Yorkers each year. God’s Love is very special to Kate and me and we try to support them whenever we can. Before his tenure as CEO, Terrence served on the God’s Love Board of Directors for 14 years, and as Board Chair for four of those years. Terrence and Sven hadn’t met before this interview, but their teams have worked together, as you’ll hear about, and it was wonderful, and inspiring, to get to know them both. Tap the link in my bio to listen, or search “Food with Mark Bittman” wherever you podcast.