My Little Chickpea: An Exploration of Falafel | Episode 270

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PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

Most of the same food carts selling the ubiquitous street meat also offer a strikingly vegan dish that is both traditional and modern. Falafel checks all the boxes from traditional, healthy, and delicious. On this hunger inducing virtual program, our resident food expert Brian Hoffman will explore all aspects of this humble little fritter from its historic controversial origins to recommendations on the best versions in New York to an explanation on how they are made. Along the way, we will learn from some of the best falafel chefs on New York food carts, and Brian will show us how to make great falafel at home with a live cooking demonstration.

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Machines and Tools: Printing Technology with Woodside Press | BCAP at Home

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Typeface collection at Woodside Press at the Brooklyn Navy Yard

PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

How did people print newspapers and books before the age of computers? Join this virtual program to learn about the history of printing technology with Woodside Press at the Brooklyn Navy Yard! We’ll virtually visit their workshop, which is like stepping back in time, and see how they use tools and machinery that are over a hundred years old that still work great today. We will share tips for how children and families can do their own printmaking at home using paper, paint, potatoes, cauliflower, and other objects.

This free family virtual program is part of Brooklyn Public Library’s Brooklyn Cultural Adventures Program. 

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Around the World in One Kitchen with Brian Hoffman | Episode 201

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PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

Brian and his son Sam have set an ambitious goal: to make a traditional dish from every country in the world. They’ve been making their way through the countries alphabetically and documenting their process in a wonderful video series featuring cooking demos, insights on ingredients and culinary traditions, and of course, Sam’s taste test. Join us a for a live episode, where Brian will share what goes on behind the scenes making the videos, discuss where to find ingredients from every country on Earth, and do a cooking demo with one of his recent creations. So join us if you’ve ever wondered how to make Afghanistan’s Kabuli Pulao or Antiguan Johnny Cake (yes, they’re still on the A’s, but there are a lot of countries to get through!)

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Winter Birding with the Brooklyn Bird Club | Episode 186

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PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

While winter can seem like a slow time for birdwatching, many migratory species can be seen in New York only at this time of year. Join us for a discussion with experts from the Brooklyn Bird Club, where they will share some of the notable species currently found in the city, how to identify them, and tips for where to to find them. We will also have a birder joining us live from the field showing some of these spots in Prospect Park.

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“Pop-Surreal” Art and Tile Demo with Artist Ralph Almeida | Episode 171

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PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

Originally from Connecticut and of Portuguese descent, New York-based artist Ralph Almeida creates colorful and imaginative “pop-surreal” works of ceramic and acrylic art that combine many influences – of indigenous and modern artists, the ancient and contemporary, nature and spirituality, and his own background as a textile designer. Ralph is perhaps best known for his painted decorative tiles, and he will walk us through a hands-on tile demo and some of his favorite projects, from tiles inspired by the stained glass windows of the Museum at Eldridge Street, to special commissions for people’s homes to decorative face masks.

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Stories with Children’s Author Peter G. Reynolds | Episode 166

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PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

Join us for story-time with Canadian children’s author Peter G. Reynolds. Peter will read from his illustrated book Lost Hallway which follows the adventures of a young boy who discovers a magical world that contains all lost things, as well as selected stories from his podcast, “Musings and Other Nonsense.” There will also be an “interactive story” with Peter inviting the youngsters to help him create a children’s story live during the show. Suitable for kids 3 and up and anyone who likes a good tale.

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The Future of Thai Cuisine | Episode 6 (153)

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PAST PROGRAM | Thai Food in America | Recipes
This series is sponsored by Thai Select USA

For our final episode of this series, we will meet two chefs who are using the traditions of Thai cuisine as a springboard for culinary innovation. On the West Coast (with locations in San Francisco, Oakland, and Portland), Chef Kasem “Pop” Saengsawang has built his Farmhouse Kitchen Thai Cuisine concept, where he creates new dishes based off of his childhood growing up in Thailand’s Northeast. And from Brooklyn, Chef Suchanan Aksornnan (aka Chef Bao Bao) brings her fine dining background to create Thai fusion in a relaxed approachable setting at Baoburg. These chefs represent a new generation that is exploring exciting new possibilities in Thai cuisine, and we’ll discuss with them what they see for the future of Thai cuisine in America and across the world.

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Cooking Thai Regional Dishes: Northeast | Episode 5 (149)

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PAST PROGRAM | Thai Food in America | Recipes
This series is sponsored by Thai Select USA

Although popular Thai dishes such as papaya salad and sticky rice are consumed by millions of Americans, few know its origins are from the Isan and Northeastern region of Thailand. There are so many differences between Thai regional cuisine. In this mouthwatering program, we will focus on this region’s culinary traditions to learn about what makes it unique and the dishes to look out for. Bright spicy and sour salads, grilled meats, sticky rice, and lots of chili peppers are just some of the building blocks of Isan cuisine, and we are excited to feature two chefs from the region. We will learn about the famous Som Tam (or papaya salad) from Chef Kulsatree Noree, who owns Amazing Thailand Uptown in Minneapolis, and we will pay a visit to Chef Warunee Mouthapong, who owns Miami’s Siam Bistro and will be preparing spicy salad made of curried rice – as a special treat, Chef Warunee will be joining us directly from Thailand!

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Cooking With Thai Ingredients | Episode 4 (145)

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PAST PROGRAM | Thai Food in America | Recipes
This series is sponsored by Thai Select USA

The core of Thai cuisine is selecting ingredients that balance flavors – sweet, spicy, sour, and salty. Thanks to the growth in popularity of Thai food in the United States, many staple ingredients are readily available, either imported from Thailand or produced locally. On this program we’ll learn from top chefs about how they obtain the best ingredients for Thai cooking, and we’ll explore the international and domestic supply chains that support Thai chefs and home cooks alike. Our guest will be Chef Terrawong “Yo” Nanthavatsiri from New York City’s Pinto Garden, who sources local, seasonal ingredients to create his innovative takes on traditional dishes, and he will show us how to make a delicious and refreshing seasonal salad.

Photo credit: Clay Williams Photo

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How to Take a Walk in an Era of Social Distancing with Photographer Sean Carroll | Episode 144

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PAST PROGRAM | Virtual Programs

In the height of the pandemic, artist Sean Carroll drew inspiration from his street and neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to create How to Take a Walk in an Era of Social Distancing: A Step-by-Step Guide, a multimedia project aimed at documenting his and his family’s daily activities as a way to approach daily life in this new reality with, “clarity, empathy, and humor.” As a professional photographer and former tour guide, Sean will share stories and insights from this ongoing project and will use the guide as a leaping off point to highlight how Pittsburgh’s geography, topography, and history have affected the development of the region, and ultimately what led him, his wife, and children to live in Pittsburgh and specifically on the block where they live. Sean Carroll is an artist using photography and video raised in coastal Massachusetts, now living in Pittsburgh. He received an MFA in Photography from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, where he lived for many years, and teaches within the College of Fine Arts at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

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