Felicity Cloake on cycling across America to explore its cuisine, the perfect brownies and her love of trifle

What happens when a food-obsessed cyclist pedals across the U.S. in search of the real American plate? In this fun and heartfelt episode, food writer and national treasure Felicity Cloake joins host Samuel Goldsmith to dish on everything from smoky barbecue and spicy dumplings to Midwest lake culture and late-night toast rituals. Felicity shares stories from her latest book Peach Street to Lobster Lane, which chronicles her epic ride from California to Maine, taste-testing her way through Tex-Mex mashups, Amish Southern cooking, and Serbian sausage in Chicago. Expect culinary confessions (spoiler: she once cooked pasta in a kettle), a love letter to buttered toast, and an unapologetic ode to trifle. With a side of political observations, dog dinners, and a few questionable hot dog contests—this episode is a feast of flavour, culture, and laughter. Hit play if you love food, travel, and a good story, or just want to know how many hot dogs someone can eat in ten minutes. Felicity Cloake is the multi award-winning author of the Guardian's long-running How to Make the Perfect series, the New Statesman's food column and seven books, including One More Croissant for the Road and Red Sauce Brown Sauce, which won the Fortnum and Mason food book of the year award in 2023. Subscribers to the Good Food app via App Store get access to the show ad-free, and with regular bonus content such as interviews recorded at the good food show. To get started, download the Good Food app today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices