Everything Cookbooks Podcast By Andrea Nguyen Molly Stevens Kate Leahy Kristin Donnelly cover art

Everything Cookbooks

Everything Cookbooks

By: Andrea Nguyen Molly Stevens Kate Leahy Kristin Donnelly
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A podcast for curious writers, readers, and cooks. Episodes provide behind-the-scenes information and stories about how cookbooks get made.2022 Everything Cookbooks Art Economics Food & Wine Leadership Literary History & Criticism Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • 138: Writing a Cookbook Based Around Her Ice Cream Brand with Pooja Bavishi
    Jul 23 2025

    Kristin and Kate speak with Pooja Bavishi, the founder of Malai Ice Cream, about her debut cookbook. They ask Pooja about her company's history from stand to scoop shop, why she wanted to revolutionize ice cream by highlighting South Asian flavors and why now was the right time to write a book—even when many publishing professionals told her to wait a year or two. She takes us through the expectations vs. the realities that came up while writing, how she got connected to her agent and why the photoshoot was wildly different from what she expected. Finally she shares her thoughts behind the formatting and the advice she has for other business owners who are interested in writing their own cookbook.

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

    Editor: Abby Cerquitella

    Mentions

    Pooja Bavishi

    • Malai Ice Cream website
    • Instagram

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

    • Malai Ice Cream by Pooja Bavishi


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    44 mins
  • 137: Being a Cookbook Editor with Sarah Billingsley of Chronicle Books
    Jul 16 2025

    Molly and Kate speak with Sarah Billingsley, the publishing director of food and lifestyle at Chronicle Books, about moving up the ranks as an editor and her experience on the other side as an author of her own cookbooks. She talks about how her role has shifted over the years, the first book she acquired and what makes something a "Chronicle Book". We get a glimpse at what goes on during a typical publishing house meeting and learn her thoughts on the state of cookbooks today before she divulges what she's looking for in a book and no, its not just platform! Finally she shares her thoughts on what moves the needle sales wise and what she wants authors to know about the editorial process.

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

    Editor: Abby Cerquitella


    Mentions

    Chronicle Books

    Chronicle Books Submissions

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

    • Tartine Bread, by Chad Robertson
    • Humphry Slocum Ice Cream Book
    • Whoopie Pies, by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell
    • Handheld Pies, by Sarah Billingsley and Rachel Wharton
    • Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson
    • Coastal by Betsy Andrews
    • Lavash by Ara Zada and Kate Leahy
    • Baking Yesteryear by B. Dylan Hollis
    • Six California Kitchens, by Sally Schmitt
    • Instant Ramen, by Peter Kim
    • Dobre Dobre, Baking from Poland and Beyond, by Laurie Kratochvila


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    47 mins
  • 136: Cooking the Food of Nigeria with Ozoz Sokoh
    Jul 9 2025

    Kristin and Molly discuss how Ozoz Sokoh, an Ontario-based professor of food tourism and culinary anthropologist, went about creating her new book that explores the vastness that is Nigerian food. Ozoz shares her thoughts on Nigerian cuisine, why she loves it and where the inspiration for making this book a 'bridge' came from along with the trepidation she had for writing the proposal and the challenges of writing a project of this scope. We ask her about her audience, publishing in multiple markets and how she landed on the format and the language for the recipe titles and she speaks on how she changed over the course of the book's creation, the photography process and what she hopes to work on next.

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

    Editor: Abby Cerquitella

    Mentions

    Ozoz Sokoh

    • Website
    • Blog: Kitchen Butterfly
    • Instagram
    • Feast Afrique
    • Journey By Plate Tedx Talk

    James Ransom photography

    Anne McBride

    Enid Blyton, British children's author

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

    • Chop Chop: Cooking the Food of Nigeria, by Ozoz Sokoh
    • Mallory Towers, by Enid Blyton
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    45 mins
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