Tonya Hopkins and Kenya Parham have some delicious suggestions. They are the creators of a new online miniseries for the Food Network called "The Kwanzaa Menu." And you two know one another.
Read More
It's a truth we rarely reflect on, and even more rarely appreciate - but we should. Think about it. How much of our identities, our attachment to our own cultures and our connection with others come through the things we like to eat? Then there's the question of power, which in terms of food covers everything from who gets to eat, to which foods are considered cuisine. And America's erasure of Black people from its food history, like its history of home, is no small factor in upholding our exclusion from its fundamental sense of self. And of course. there's the money…
Read More
SFA’s Gravy podcast episode, ““America’s Lost Peanut and the Price of Bringing it Back,””, produced by Otis Gray delves into the revival of the Carolina African Runner Peanut—an audio story inspired by a particular part of chapter 8 of Sarah’s book,Endangered Eating— i.e., Sarah’s conversation with Tonya Hopkins, aka “The Food Griot”. In the end of that chapter Tonya talks with Sarah and makes a powerful point about the complicated intersections of power, privilege and preservation…and served as a primary spark for the creation of this Gravy Podcast episode.
Read More
Celebrating Kwanzaa matches my “more is more” holiday mindset: more opportunities to connect with family and friends, more chances to discover diaspora dishes, and more reasons to innovate with interesting ingredients. From December 26 to January 1, each day is anchored in one of the holiday’s seven principles (unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith), offering meaningful ways to sustain seasonal vibes for a full week.
Read More
This year instead of celebrating Juneteenth on just one busy day (a hump day at that!) I’ve decided to digitally pair one or more TFG-curated Juneteenth recipes to each of the 17 Days o Freedoms identified and showcased at 17:17 (5:17pm EST) each day by the Prospect Park Poster Series creator — my colleague and friend, Grey Jones between June 19th - July 5th. I’ll blogpost the recipes here on the TFG website for each of those 17 days complete with my “Tiny Bites and/or Big Sips” of historical and cultural context PLUS the option for you to secure your own digital download of each recipe. DAY 1: Beet Red Velvet Cupcakes are paired with “The (first) Freedom to Keep and Raise One's Own Children”. Kids of all kinds love cupcakes. Baking together can be a beautiful bonding moment across the generations for families big or small. Early (enslaved and later emancipated) American Black women…
Read More
This long weekend tune in to hear MILK STREET Radio’s replay of their (start of) SUMMER SHOW featuring yours truly, Tonya Hopkins (aka @TheFoodGriot) talking with show creator and host Christopher Kimball as we dive into the foods of summer. In our convo I give him (and therefore ya’ll) the scoop 🍨 on the Black innovators who made America’s ice cream 🍦industry what it is today….
Also in this. episode: somebody named Bill Alexander reveals the history and fate of the tomato 🍅 and artist Ana Inciardi tracks down a tomato from her family's past; …Dan Pashman gives a lesson on his favorite ways to eat watermelon and corn; and then they bake up a Fresh Peach and Raspberry Crostata….ENJOY!
Read More
This April 2024 calendar collage gives you just a glimpse of some of the food, drink, cultural, historical and sometimes personal “holidays” happening this month that I think are interesting and suspect you will too. Especially if I happen to have taken good pics relevant to the topic or in some cases have a boatload of food or beverage beauty shots I snapped and saved over the years and wanna show 'em off (i mean SHARE them ;) with you for the visual side of the storytelling. On a more serious note, I check a lot of sources to compile this TFG calendar and am more often than not startled by the blatant “lies of omission” so many mainstream ‘daily holiday’ calendar platforms perpetuate. Outright exclusions of entire cultures, ethnicities, historical facts! ... serving up only slivers of the story. Which is a big part of my motivation for doing this one…
Read More
March's 2024 DAILY "TFG Culinary & Cultural Calendar" is in progress. It takes a lot of time and resources to create an ongoing interactive Calendar featuring all the fab foodie reasons to celebrate something (almost) very single day. Which is why i’m always encouraging people to support via my Patreon to help speed things up 😆… + it would also help to know if ANYBODY s utilizing this fun interactive tool & in what ways if so! LEAVE a COMMENT or DM me TO LET A SISTA KNOW, THANKS!
Read More
Williams, better known as Chef Stikxz, the second part of which is a name conferred unto her during her childhood because of her small stick-like frame, is doubling down on a holiday tradition inherited from her Jamaican-born parents. She does so while preparing two meals, directing kitchen colleagues and answering questions from a witty journalist.
Read More
FEATURING: Reasons to Celebrate Something (Almost) Every Day This Year🥳 •DRY-ish ⏳ JANUARY vs.🍸 GIN-uary & •WINE🍷 withOUT Alcohol (+ Get your discount code on a super-premium spirit!) •it’s SOUP🥣 etc. Month! •MLK + AKA 🩷💚 •Upcoming 🧑🏽🍳🍷EVENTs + Something Super SPECIAL to 📺 WATCH in FEBruary 🎬 🍿…
Read More
Check Out TFG's Culinary & Cultural Calendar for Fab Foodie Reasons to Celebrate Something (almost!) Every Single Day…
Read More
Have you immersed yourself yet in the enchanting world of "Chasing Flavor with Carla Hall" that’s streaming on MAX?!
If you haven’t then it’s time to join Chef Carla Hall, acclaimed chef and arguably America’s fave food TV personality — as she globe trots to uncover the various roots of many iconic American dishes on a delectable journey in her new show called "Chasing Flavor!” available on HBO’s MAX …
There are 6 episodes total and and yours truly shows up in one (ok, TWO! ;) of ‘em... Nope I won’t tell you which ones so just plan to binge watch ‘em all — and get ready for a bunch of multi-sensory treats you’ll immensely enjoy! Carla's effervescent energy and genuine passion for the foods and the people she encounters…
Read More
Tonya Hopkins and Kenya Parham have some delicious suggestions. They are the creators of a new online miniseries for the Food Network called "The Kwanzaa Menu." And you two know one another.
Read More
It seems only natural that Food Network chose Hopkins, who wrote the Kwanzaa entry in the Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, to host its first show focused on Kwanzaa, the annual celebration held Dec. 26 to Jan. 1 that recognizes African-American traditions and cultural heritage.
Read More
Exciting news -- Food Network created special content from episodes of “The Kwanzaa Menu” I hosted that ran on air this year on the Food Network channel!
Read More
EatOkra, an app named for this food staple, connects 500,000 foodies to chefs, culinary creators and restaurants. Anthony and Janique Edwards, the creators of EatOkra, have set out to develop a Black-owned food ecosystem. Hopkins, known as “The Food Griot” on social media, co-founded the James Hemings Society, an organization named after Thomas Jefferson's enslaved chef who became the first American to train as a chef in France.
Her work as a culinary history consultant sheds light on the timeless Black culinary talents
Read More
Celebrate The Season of Remembrance! Spirited Storytelling + Flavorful Food, Drink, History & Cultural Connections: Strolling & Sampling Through The Slope…
Read More
“We Rise By Lifting Others!” so Let’s Rise Up to that Challenge b/c Bonbon Lakay Needs (Y)OUR Support Now More Than Ever. Check out their Pay It Forward initiative for win-win ways to help not only this wonderful specialty foods shop but also the many communities it benefits beyond just the neighborhood where it’s based…
Read More
“I think I might have been the only African American person here, and that’s not unusual,” said Tonya Hopkins, a food writer and TV personality known as the Food Griot.
Read More