The Story of Chicago’s South Asians and Their Food
Colleen Taylor Sen

Chicago has the country’s third-largest urban population of South Asians (a community that includes Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, and Nepalis) – and a vibrant South Asian food scene.

Colleen Taylor Sen will tell the story of this community from the early 20th century when a small community lived on the Far South Side to the present. She’ll also talk about the evolution of the city’s South Asian grocery stores and restaurants, including the transformation of Devon Avenue on the Far North Side from a mainly Jewish shopping district in the 1960s to a mecca for South Asian shoppers from all over the Midwest.

Today, Chicago’s Indian food lovers can enjoy a wide range of cuisines from the simple fare of taxi drivers’ "dhabas" to a Michelin-starred temple of cuisine.

Biography: Colleen Sen has presented many programs before the Culinary Historians of Chicago. A prolific author and editor, she has contributed free-lance articles to such publications as Travel and Leisure, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Tribune, and was a regular participant in the Oxford Symposia on Food and Cookery. 

She has written eight books, among them Food Culture in India, Curry: A Global History, and Feasts and Fasts: A History of Food in India. In 2017 Colleen coedited The Chicago Food Encyclopedia. Her books have been translated into Arabic, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. She has also organized many culinary tours of Indian stores and has given talks and cooking demonstrations on Indian cuisine.

Recorded via Zoom on December 3, 2024

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The Story of Chicago’s  South Asians and Their Food

Leftovers A History of Food Waste & Preservation
Eleanor Barnett, PhD

A third of all the food we produce goes to waste globally, and if all this needlessly discarded food were a country it would be the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world after China and the US! How did we become such a wasteful society? What can we learn about building a sustainable food future by looking to the past?Based on Dr Eleanor Barnett’s newly-published book Leftovers: A History of Food Waste and Preservation, this talk will explore the many ingenious ways our ancestors sought to avoid food waste through preservation, recycling or otherwise disposing of food scraps. Beginning in the Tudor kitchen, it’s a delicious and disgusting story that takes us to medieval streets lined with butchers’ offal, that explores the world-changing inventions in preservation of the Industrial Revolution, the hidden history of Victorian street-food scavengers, the thrifty recipes of the World Wars, right through to the AI restaurants of the future. Through our leftovers, we learn a lot more about our culture and our shared history, from poverty and inequality to globalisation. If we are what we don’t eat, we are equally defined by what we don’t eat!

Eleanor Barnett is a historian of food and religion with a PhD from the University of Cambridge (UK). She is currently a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at Cardiff University in Wales, where her research uses food as a unique lens through which to view the daily lives, beliefs, and identities of ordinary people in the past. Her first book, Leftovers: A History of Food and Preservation has just been released in 2024, exploring the topical issue of wasting food from a historical lens that moves from the medieval era to the AI restaurants of the future! Her other area of expertise focuses on the links between food and religion in the early modern world, exploring shared meals to break down traditional Christian-centric notions of major themes from the Reformation to colonisation. As @historyeats on Instagram, Eleanor posts daily food history facts, stories, and art to a large international following . She is a regular contributor to public-facing media, including TV, podcasts, and radio, and writes the monthly food history column for BBC History Magazine.

Recorded via Zoom on November 9, 2024

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Leftovers A History of Food Waste & Preservation

Chicago’s Astounding Food Evolution: 1990 ’til Now
Chef Dean Zanella
Founder and instructor, Tutore Italian Cooking School

The past 35 years have seen a sea change in Chicago dining. And who better than to take us on a voyage through this period than a master chef who has sailed through this time?

Come join us as chef Dean Zanella takes us from the local culinary world of 1990 to the present; where fine dining no longer requires white tablecloths; where non-European cuisine has been elevated; where chefs are the main focus of the restaurant; and where chefs work with local farmers. And he’ll dish on the impact of TV’s Food Network on our dining experience. Chef Zanella will also give his take on some of Chicago’s key chef influencers, like Charlie Trotter, Rick Bayless, and more recently, Erik Williams. “They held their standards high and made people expand their palates,” he says.

Bio: Chef Dean Zanella is a founder and instructor at Chicago’s Tutore Italian Cooking School. He has worked at some of Chicago’s finest restaurants, including Charlie Trotter’s and Gordon, in addition to helming such notable eateries as 312 Chicago, and Rhapsody Restaurant at the Chicago Symphony Center. He is a strong supporter of Chicago’s Green City Market.

Recorded via Zoom on December 16, 2024

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Chicago’s Astounding Food Evolution: 1990 ’til Now

How Vienna Changed Baking Everywhere

Rick Rodgers’ book, Kaffeehause: Exquisite Desserts from Vienna, Budapest, and Prague, has been in print for over two decades. Its longevity is primarily due to the luscious recipes, which are so different from those in the Franco-Italo canon.

Also, readers are fascinated by the interesting story of the coffeehouse culture. In his presentation, Rick will discuss how the Viennese (it was not Marie Antoinette) brought the crescent roll (kipferl) to Paris, its transformation into the croissant, and subsequent conquering of the pastry world. In Europe, what we Americans call Danish are called Viennoiserie, but do you know the story behind the discrepancy? What famous dessert was the basis of a long and expensive lawsuit to determine the legal owner of the recipe? What is the difference between “masculine/feminine” and “sugar/flour” desserts on Viennese menu? Rick will also tell how he researched his book, and his work as a ghostwriter with many celebrities, chefs, and social media influencers.

Rick Rodgers is the sole author, co-author, ghostwriters, or editor of over a hundred cookbooks, many of which have been nominated for Beard, IACP, and Gourmand Awards. He is also the recipient of Bon Appétit Magazine’s Food & Entertaining Award for Outstanding Culinary Teacher. He is currently consulting social media influencers as they transition to cookbook writing.

Recorded via Zoom on Tuesday, January 7, 2025


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How Vienna Changed Baking Everywhere - Rick Rodgers

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The Legacy and Impact of the Farm-to-Table Movement in Chicago
Chef Jason Hammel


Come join us as one of Chicago’s most iconic chefs, Jason Hammel, takes us back to the 1990s, tracing his journey from East Coast outsider to one of the Midwest’s most passionate advocates for hyper-local sourcing. He’ll recount the early days of the farm-to-table movement, the founding of Green City Market, and the rise of restaurants dedicated to local ingredients. Lula Café, his restaurant of 25 years, has grown in parallel step to this movement, and through stories from its early days, he’ll highlight the challenges and resistance that once stood in its way.

But this conversation isn’t just about the past—it’s about the economic and ethical decisions chefs face when choosing where and how to source their ingredients. As Hammel enters his third decade in the industry, he’ll reflect on the movement’s impact: What has changed in the restaurant world and beyond? What progress has been made for local, organic producers? And what does the future hold for Lula, for chefs across the Midwest, and for the next evolution of farm-to-table dining?

BIOGRAPHY: Jason Hammel is the executive chef and owner of Lula Cafe in Chicago, the Logan Square eatery known for its seasonal cuisine. His debut cookbook, The Lula Cafe Cookbook: Collected Recipes and Stories, was published by Phaidon in 2024.

Growing up in New Haven, Connecticut, Hammel aspired to be a writer, not a chef. After graduating in 1994 with a degree in English, he traveled to Italy, where an accidental stay across the street from Florence’s central market foresaw his career as a chef dedicated to seasonality.

In 2017 the Museum of Contemporary Art named Chef Hammel as executive chef/culinary curator for the museum’s new restaurant, Marisol, Hammel himself was named the Jean Banchet 2019 Chef of the Year, and in 2024 Lula Cafe was awarded for Outstanding Hospitality by the James Beard Foundation. 

Today Hammel splits his time between Lula, Marisol, and the non-profit food education group Pilot Light, which he co-founded in 2010.

jasonhammel@lulacafe.com / instagram

Recorded via Zoom on April 16, 2025

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The Legacy and Impact of the Farm-to-Table Movement in Chicago

250521CHCAdrianMillerAsianChefPresident.output

Heartland Masala: ﻿﻿An Indian Cookbook from an﻿ ﻿American Kitchen
Presented by Jyoti Mukharji and Auyon Mukharji

Come join us as a mother and son duo talk about the historical and cultural context of traditional and diasporic Indian recipes. They will base their talk on their new book, Heartland Masala: An Indian Cookbook from an American Kitchen.

Cooking instructor Jyoti Mukharji chose 99 of her favorite recipes to build the core of Heartland Masala. Her recipes hail from throughout India, with a special emphasis on the cuisines of Punjab and Bengal. To complement his mother’s recipes and recollections, culinary historian Auyon Mukharji offers a generous helping of culturally focused vignettes.

Auyon writes: “The Hindustani word masala, which translates to ‘spice mixture, feels an appropriate metaphor for not only the multifaceted and diasporic quality of my mother’s cooking, but also for the twists and turns of history that landed a daughter of Punjab here in the American heartland.”

“The history of Indian cooking is theIndiana cooking” he continues. “The cuisine itself is in constant flux, both within and beyond India’s national borders. Any attempt to pin it down is merely a record of a moment and place.”

https://www.heartlandmasala.com/
https://heartlandmasala.substack.com/

Biographies 

Jyoti Mukharji is a chef, teacher, and retired physician. She immigrated to the US from India in the late 1970s, and began teaching weekly Indian cooking classes out of her home in Prairie Village, Kansas, in 2010. Jyoti has since welcomed several thousand students into her kitchen.

Auyon Mukharji is a musician, writer, and culinary historian who spends most of his time thinking about food. He studied biology at Williams College and was awarded a Watson Fellowship in 2007 to study self-expression in folk music. Since 2009, Auyon has toured with, and cooked for, the indie-folk band Darlingside. He otherwise finds time to work in and around kitchens (and farms) in both his hometown of Kansas City and his adopted state-of-residence of Massachusetts.

Recorded via Zoom on October 29, 2025

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Heartland Masala: ﻿﻿An Indian Cookbook from an﻿ ﻿American Kitchen

Oakford Pecans - a story of discovery and ﻿﻿Pumpkin/Squash update

Linda Eilks grew up on a farm outside of Oakford, Illinois. After careers at both IL Extension and U.S. Department of Agriculture, she retired and moved into a home within the village of Oakford. There she was faced with an abundance of pecans falling from the trees in her yard. She researched what to do with them and found some interesting historical facts about the pecan trees in the area. She will talk about pecan trees in general, those that grow around Oakford, and especially those that grow in her yard.

Many moons ago, Catherine Lambrecht was a University of Illinois Extension Master Food Preserver instructed by Linda Eilks. As it happens, Eilks now lives in the region where pumpkins are commercially grown (80-mile radius from Morton, Illinois). Knowing Lambrecht was looking for a Dickinson Squash, Eilks found one of these squash for her. Lambrecht will update on her experience. One piece of wisdom: all pumpkins are squash, but not all squash are pumpkins!!

Just saw this the next day:
https://www.allrecipes.com/what-is-canned-pumpkin-11747656

Recorded via Zoom on November 5, 2025

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Oakford Pecans - a story of discovery and Update on Pumpkin Squash

Rich History of Lebanese Baking with Maureen Abood

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.  

Growing up Lebanese American in Michigan, Maureen was immersed in a world of baking that evolved from historical traditions in Lebanon. When she finally traveled to Lebanon, she was exposed to an even broader understanding of the repertoire. The expansive population of Lebanese and Middle Easterners in Michigan also contribute to her ongoing research to capture and share Lebanese cuisine as deeply and broadly as possible.  

Join us with Maureen as she shares details of Lebanese Baking, its influences and her personal stories. Discover more about Maureen on her website at maureenabood.com, and enjoy shopping with a special discount using code ZAATAR15 at her Lebanese-inspired online shop of ingredients and tools at shop.maureenabood.com. 

Biography:

Lebanese Baking is Maureen’s second book on Lebanese cuisine; her first, Rose Water & Orange Blossoms: Fresh and Classic Recipes from My Lebanese Kitchen, was a Michigan Notable Book and an International Association of Culinary Professionals finalist. Her writing and recipes have appeared widely, including in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Saveur, Food52, and NPR. She teaches Lebanese cooking through her website and social media channels, and she lives in Harbor Springs and East Lansing, Michigan.

Recorded via Zoom on November 19, 2025

***

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Rich History of Lebanese Baking with Maureen Abood

Culinary Historians of Chicago studies the history of food and drink in human cultures. Why we procure, prepare and serve the food we do has cultural, sociological, geographical, financial and political influences. We encourage participation from all walks of life: from academics to home cooks, chefs to grill masters, farmers to heirloom gardeners, food scientists to students. Our programs, and those of our sister organization Chicago Foodways Roundtable, are supported by research, fieldwork and scholarship, though geared to an informed popular audience. We welcome everyone to gather at our table to share food, drink and their life’s culinary experiences.

If you would like to contact us, please e-mail us at CulinaryHistorians@gmail.com

Heartland Masala: An Indian Cookbook from an American Kitchen

CulinaryHistory

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Heartland Masala: ﻿﻿An Indian Cookbook from an﻿ ﻿American Kitchen

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Heartland Masala: An Indian Cookbook from an American Kitchen