Raquel Pelzel has long been a terrific recipe developer in her own right. Now, she has a new book called Umami Bomb, a mostly vegetarian cookbook that, I swear, my daughter picked up and asked me to read to her at bed time last night. But for you, Raquel’s got more than bedtime stories; she’s got great ideas for how to set a holiday table that works for carnivores, vegans, and everyone in-between. She joined me in the studio with some very fragrant samples. She also shared her recipes for her umami-packed Bomb Sauce and Mushroom Lardons with Black-Eyed Peas & Greens, which sounds like a great New Year’s dish to me!

Francis Lam
Francis Lam is the host of The Splendid Table. He is the former Eat columnist for The New York Times Magazine and is Vice President and Editor-in-Chief at Clarkson Potter. He graduated first in his class at the Culinary Institute of America and has written for numerous publications. Lam lives with his family in New York City.