Lemonada.

Hey everyone, Julia here. Since it's Thanksgiving, I thought it would be the perfect time to revisit one of my favorite conversations from season one with the amazing Ruth Reichel. She's a food writer, magazine editor, author, and an all-around culinary icon.

Ruth and I have a warm and funny conversation about the way food shows up in moments of joy and grief,

and how doing things that scare you can sometimes lead to the most meaningful parts of life.

And as a special treat, we're sharing a bonus clip at the end of this episode,

something that only Lemonada premium listeners have heard before. Whether you're cooking,

traveling, or just taking a break today, I hope this feels like sitting down at a really

great table. Thanks for being here, and we'll be back next week with a brand new episode.

When I was about 28, I got pregnant for the first time,

and I was crazy happy. I got pregnant easily. I felt very fertile, very womanly. And then,

quite late in the pregnancy, my husband, Brad, and I discovered that this little fetus was not going to live.

So that was emotionally devastating, as you can imagine, but it got worse because I developed an

infection that landed me in the hospital. And I mean, this whole thing was just a complete nightmare.

Of course, my mom flew out to be with me.

And before she left, she told her best friend Ellie that she was coming out to be with me.

And naturally, the first thing that Ellie said to her was, so what are you going to cook?

After a couple of days, I finally got out of the hospital and I came home to recuperate,

but I wasn't allowed to get up out of bed yet. I was, as they say, bedridden.

But my mom cooked.

She made this incredible, cozy chili in a cast iron skillet with cornbread on top in the pan.

And she and my husband Brad set up a little card table at the foot of the bed and the smell

of that cornbread and the chili was so wonderful. It just filled the room and the whole house

...