For Nellie and Rod (below), a married couple living in Durham, NC, the feud over salt started with a beef stew Rod had cooked.
"[Rod] gave me my serving, and I tasted it and added a little bit of table salt to it," Nellie recalls. "And he told me that it was offensive to add table salt -- like I was offending his cooking. And I had never heard that in my life."
This week on The Sporkful, Dan's mom, Linda Pashman (below), joins us to take questions and settle debates with listeners. She's a family and marriage therapist, and an avid cook and eater, so she's well-suited to the task.
Is there a way for Nellie and Rod to find a compromise, so they can each season their food to taste and enjoy their meals together? Listen in to hear Dan and his mom's advice.
Plus, what is the optimal way to layer the toppings on a pizza -- two friends in Philly need help settling their debate. And is there such a thing as paper napkin etiquette? Dan and his mom weigh in on that, too.
And, as promised, here's Dan's mom's list of her 10 favorite cookbooks:
1. "The James Beard Cookbook", James Beard
2. "The Classic Italian Cookbook", Marcella Hazan
3. "Mastering the Art of French Cooking", Vol 1, Julia Child
4. "Pies and Tarts", Maida Heatter
5. "The Silver Palate Cookbook", Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins
6. "Barefoot Contessa", Ina Garten
7. "Jerusalem", Yotam Ottolenghi
8. "The Food Lab, Better Home Cooking Through Science", J. Kenji Lopex-Alt
9. "Roasting", Barbara Kafka
10. "Vineyard Harvest", Tina Miller
Interstitial music in this show by Black Label Music:
- "Fire Breather" by Steve Pierson
- "Cracker Jack" by Ken Brahmstedt
- "Out To Lunch" by Chris Bierden
- "Simple Song" by Chris Bierden
- "Gravity" by Hayley Briasco
- "New Old" by JT Bates
Photos: FlickrCC/jinny pearce and courtesy of Dan Pashman
