🔥 Forget boring BBQs… it’s time to grill with flavor, joy, and purpose! - Kate Merker

The Not Old - Better Show

Paul Vogelzang

History, Fitness, Film, Health, Aging, Employment, Fashion, Career, Technology, Seniors, Society & Culture, Music, Health & Fitness

5 • 1.8K Ratings

🗓️ 19 June 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

We’re talking grill season like you’ve never heard it before with Good Housekeeping's Kate Merker

Good Better Best, The Not Old Better Show, Good Housekeeping Interview Series

🔥 Summer just got a whole lot more delicious — and more intentional.

This week on The Not Old Better Show, I had the pleasure of speaking with Kate Merker, Chief Food Director of the Hearst Lifestyle Group and the culinary genius behind Good Housekeeping’s legendary Test Kitchen. We’re talking smart summer grilling — not just sizzling steaks, but heart-healthy, high-flavor meals that celebrate aging, wellness, and the joy of good food.

Kate brings nearly 20 years of experience in food media and fine dining — and she brings that knowledge home to our listeners in the most accessible, fun, and inspiring way. In our conversation, she shares her favorite simple grill recipes, her secret weapon ingredients, and why grilling for one can be just as joyful as cooking for a crowd.

What struck me most is how Kate reframes grilling from a once-in-a-while indulgence to a vibrant, everyday tool for better living. She talks about cooking as connection — to ourselves, to others, to health — and her insights speak especially to those of us navigating new phases of life. Whether you're retired, an empty nester, or just trying to cook smarter, this episode is for you. 🥗🍢

👨‍🍳 Plus: We dive into her work at Good Housekeeping, what it takes to develop a recipe readers can trust, and how the GH+ Membership gives exclusive access to all this smart, science-backed content — including product testing opportunities, expert interviews, and member-only recipes.

🎧 If you’re hungry for change — or just a better way to do summer dinner — I invite you to listen in. The grill's hot, the ideas are fresh, and you won’t want to miss what Kate has to say.

👇 Tune in now and taste what’s possible.
#NotOldBetter #HealthyAging #GrillSmart #GHKitchen #WellnessOver60 #SmartCooking #Hearst #GoodHousekeepingPlus

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Not Old Better Show, Good Housekeeping interview series on radio and podcast. The show covering all things health, wellness, culture, kitchen, cooking, and more. The show for all of us who aren't old, we're better. Each week, we'll interview superstars, experts, and ordinary people, doing extraordinary things, all related to this wonderful experience
0:23.6	of getting better, not just older. Now here's your host, the award-winning Paul Volkensat.
0:29.6	What do you really know about the products you use every single day? At Good Housekeeping, it's not guesswork, it's science.
0:39.8	In this special interview series, we sit down with the experts behind the lab doors,
0:44.3	the scientists, the analysts, the pros, the chefs who test everything from sneakers to sauce fans
0:50.2	to these wonderful recipes that we're going to be talking about today.
0:53.3	These are not ads at all.
0:55.9	These are facts backed by 100 years of trusted good housekeeping testing. Welcome to the brand new
1:02.3	not old better show good housekeeping interview series where smarter living starts with knowing more.
1:09.1	I'm Paul Vogel saying and today's episode is all about the beauty of food, and it's never
1:14.6	just about what's on the plate.
1:16.8	It's about the memories, the health choices, the stories behind each ingredient.
1:22.8	And as we learn today, each stage of the preparation of the food is just amazing. The joy of sharing it
1:30.7	with the people that we love. Welcome to the Not Old Better Show, Good Housekeeping Interview
1:35.9	series on radio and podcast. Today, we're turning up the flavor on an episode that will
1:40.7	leave your mouth watering and your wellness goals re-energized.
1:46.0	My guest is none other than Kate Berker the brilliant, bold, and endlessly creative
1:50.5	chief food director at Good Housekeeping.
1:53.7	Kate is a professionally trained chef.
1:56.0	She's a cookbook author and the guiding force behind the delicious, tested, and trusted
2:00.7	recipes that land on millions
2:03.2	of American dinner tables each year. Kate Merker's here to share her insights from the legendary
	...

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