Kristin and Molly speak with previous Insider Series guest, Rebecca Eisenberg, about her evolution from blogger to author. After working in media for years, she eventually decided to write for herself and talks about turning The Practical Kitchen blog into a business and all that entailed. Ever practical and operating under the mantra 'do it messy, clean it later', she learned on the job and shares what her day to day looks like now, how she addressed going viral and the work it takes to keep up with the ever shifting demands of SEO, the algorithm and AI. Rebecca discusses her decision to write a book based on only a subset of her blog topics and the behind the scenes experience of crafting a proposal, getting an agent, going to auction, selecting a publisher and then the work of recipe testing, writing and photographing. Finally, she talks about her innovative and interactive marketing campaign and the lessons learned from her first cookbook experience.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Rebecca Eisenberg

• The Practical Kitchen
• Instagram
• Workshop with Rebecca about Growing a Platform with Short Form Video

6 Tips for Feeding and Discarding Sourdough Starter

Purchase a recording of Rebecca's Insider Series here

Kristin's Cookbook Courses

Subscribe to our weekly Substack newsletter for more information about each episode and a peek at what's coming up.

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Small Batch Breads by Rebecca Eisenberg

We're turning the hosting reins over to Charlotte Druckman today to learn about Andrea Nguyen and Pim Techamuanvivit's experience collaborating on their new 'instant classic' cookbook, Cooking Thai. Pim shares her original idea for the book, how it evolved and the mission statement she settled on while Andrea explains why she felt drawn to work on her first collaboration with this project. They speak about recipe testing, the writing process and how they worked together, speaking on task division, communication styles and working through tension to create a product they're immensely proud of. Pim and Andrea each share what they learned from the other, how they challenged each other, the books they were inspired by and how they landed on an approachable yet educational tone before leaving us with some advice and a sneak peak.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Charlotte Druckman

• Website
• Instagram
• Sweethearts Newsletter

Pim Techamuanvivit

• Instagram

Andrea Nguyen

• Website
• Newsletter
• Instagram

Subscribe to our weekly Substack newsletter for more information about each episode and a peek at what's coming up.

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Cooking Thai by Andrea Nguyen and Pim Techamuanvivit
• Dishoom by Kavi Thakrar, Naved Nasir, and Shamil Thakrar
• Kitchen Remix by Charlotte Druckman
• Love in the Afternoon by Charlotte Druckman
• Cooking without Borders by Anita Lo with Charlotte Druckman

Kate and Andrea speak with cookbook collaborators Joyce Tang and Soleil Ho about their new cookbook, Bake Sum. Joyce shares her journey from project manager to bakery owner to cookbook writer and why she wanted to write this book at this time. She describes how she got connected to Soleil who speaks about how working on cookbooks tends to be a relaxing break from running a media company. They share how they divvied up the work, the decision to include stories and histories in the project and insights behind the cover image. Joyce describes the recipe testing process and the challenge to 'smallerize' recipes while Soleil talks about the book's unique organization before they each share their thoughts on working through an 'Asian Americana' lens. Finally they share the audience they hope the book reaches and the lessons they each learned along the way.

Hosts: Kate Leahy + Molly Stevens + Kristin Donnelly + Andrea Nguyen

Editor: Abby Cerquitella

Mentions

Joyce Tang

• Instagram
• Bake Sum Bakery

Soleil Ho

• Website
• Racist Sandwich Podcast

Subscribe to our weekly Substack newsletter for more information about each episode and a peek at what's coming up.

Visit the Everything Cookbooks Bookshop to purchase a copy of the books mentioned in the show

• Bake Sum by Joyce Tang and Soleil Ho