This week on Hot Grease, our hostess Nicole Taylor sits down with food critic and writer Charles Campion, and Don Sloan from Oxford Gastronomica. Tune in to hear Nicole's weekly food headlines. Charles, and Don talk about Oxford Gastronomica's influence on food culture in Britain, and the upcoming Oxford Literary Festival writing contest. Author and cooking instructor Susan O'Brien joins Nicole via the phone lines to discuss chia seeds and her Hot Five vegan suggestions for Easter or Passover meals. This episode was brought to you by Fairway Market.

"Until Oxford Gastronomica, no one took food and drink very seriously in Britain. There was little in the way of good courses. I firmly believe the more that you can stir up a bit of interest and give it a little cred, the better it is." -- Charles Campion on Hot Grease

"Chia dates back to the early Aztec days, and for many years was considered to be like money- like gold." -- Susan O'Brien on Hot Grease

Did you know that gangsters controlled nearly all of the food distribution in Depression-era New York City? This week on A Taste of the Past, Linda Pelaccio invites Andy Coe to talk about racketeering in New York City food history. Learn how something as innocent as an egg cream was the cause of major crime. Find out what products were controlled by specific gangsters, and how the food rackets weren't eliminated from the Big Apple until the days of Giuliani! Learn about Murder Inc., and how competition was dealt with in the 1940s. Calling all fans of The Godfather: you don't want to miss this installment of A Taste of the Past! This program has been sponsored by The Heritage Meat Shop. Music has been provided by SNOWMINE.

"Today we have supermarkets and bodegas, and the food appears on the shelves and we don't really know where it comes from... Back then, food distribution was much more spread out." [7:45]

-- Andy Coe on A Taste of the Past

With all of the focus on ethnic and regional cooking in the modern food movement, why is Russian cuisine so often neglected in the foodie canon? This week on A Taste of the Past, Linda Pelaccio sits down with Darra Goldstein, Professor of Russian at Williams College. Darra is also the founder and former Editor in Chief of Gastronomica, and the author of two books- A Taste of Russia and Georgian Feast. Tune into this episode to learn about the staples of Russian cooking. Why did Russian peasants crave sour foods? Learn how Peter the Great Westernized Russian cuisine for the upper classes. Tune in to hear Linda and Darra discuss some traditional Russian beverages such as vodka, kvass, and kefir. Listen in to learn about traditional Russian aversions to ocean fish and bears! This program has been brought to you by Bi-Rite Market.

"The new Russia is so fascinating... The capital cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg- you would hardly be able to recognize them if you lived there when it was the Soviet Union. There are many foreign chefs working there." [7:00]

"One thing that distinguishes Russian cuisine is the stove's falling temperature." [22:50]

-- Darra Goldstein on A Taste of the Past