Today’s guest, Geraldine DeRuitter won the James Beard Award for Journalism in 2019 for a post she typed out in about 45 minutes. Before that, her blog The Everywhereist, had already topped Time magazine’s choice of best blogs in America. 

Geraldine’s latest book is titled, If You Can’t Take the Heat: Tales of Feminism, Food, and Fury and having read it in just a few sittings, I’ll add that they are also tales of deep vulnerability which provoked strong responses from me, in the form of scribbled notes in the margins and a list of questions about 4x longer than we were able to discuss. 

Geraldine is on par with the funniest writers I’ve ever read. However, rather than just saying that Geraldine is funny, I really want to say she’s a humorist (if that's a word). While many people are born funny, I'm hoping that calling Geraldine a humorist will give you a sense of just how finely Geraldine has tuned her talent, how sharply she's honed her craft. Not only did I laugh out loud throughout the book, but the angrier parts were sharper, the sad parts were sadder, and the (rare) sentimental parts touched me even more deeply because of Geraldine’s wit and humor. 

In addition to all of this, Geraldine gave me, hands down, the hardest recipe I’ve ever made (and if you’ve been following this podcast for a while, you know I’m not afraid of a challenge)! Although we had to discuss the recipe in a later call, I’m beginning the interview with our discussion of Nesselrode Pie, which I’m happy to share was a total success, technically and taste-wise. Friends arrived for dinner just as I finished photographing the pie. They all enjoyed a piece before dinner (since, obviously, dinner was running late, and there were plates full of pie in front of them.) The fact that they also gratefully accepted another piece after dinner tells you all you need to know about this creamy, boozy, vintage cherry pie!

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Geraldine's Storied Recipe: Nesselrode Pie

Connect with Geraldine DeRuiter

The Everywhereist Blog

If You Can't Take the Heat: Tales of Food, Feminism, and Fury

Links to Resources Mentioned in the Podcast

Sally's Baking Addiction Guide to Blind Baking Pie Crusts

Pastrys by Ava Video on Making Italian Meringue

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