This week on "Sunday Morning" (November 21)

Jane Pauley hosts our annual holiday broadcast exploring all things epicurean!

And to get started: 

Check out our 2021 "Food Issue" Recipe Index, featuring holiday recipes and delicious menu suggestions from top chefs and mixologists, cookbook authors, food writers, restaurateurs, and the editors of New York Times Cooking. 

• Thanksgiving menu suggestions from New York Times Cooking

WATCH THE FULL NOVEMBER 21 EPISODE!

COVER STORY: Plant-based diets: Putting veggies at the center of our plates | Watch Video
Just 5% of U.S. households are vegan or vegetarian, but there are plenty you might call "plant curious," with omnivores swapping out some meat for vegetables in a diet that's plant-based or "flexitarian." Correspondent Ben Tracy talks with vegan foodie Tabitha Brown about how she changed her diet; with Ross Mackay, co-founder of Daring Foods, creator of plant-based chicken alternatives; and with restaurateur Ran Nussbacher, who believes a plant-based diet will protect the planet for future generations.

For more info:

• iamtabithabrown.com
• "Feeding the Soul (Because It's My Business)" by Tabitha Brown (William Morrow), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon and Indiebound
• Daring Foods
  
• Shouk
• Datassential

       
Special delivery: Goldbelly's nationwide restaurant service (Video)
Restaurants that struggled during the pandemic found a lifeline in the food delivery service Goldbelly, which ships regional cuisine nationally. Correspondent Serena Altschul talked with Goldbelly founder and CEO Joe Ariel about the logistics of delivering orders to customers across the country; and with the owners of restaurants like the Chicago-area Bartolini's, about how Goldbelly's team helped cook up a way to ship their signature pizzas and meatballs.

For more info:

• Goldbelly.com
• Veniero's Pasticceria and Caffe, New York City
• Bartolini's Pizza, Midlothian, Ill.
• Pat's King of Steaks Cheesesteaks, Philadelphia

          
Walker Hayes' ode to Applebee's | Watch Video
The song "Fancy Like" put Walker Hayes on the top of the country charts – and put Applebee's on the tip of almost everyone's tongue. Correspondent Lee Cowan talks with Hayes, a married father of six, whose life was a long, sometimes painful journey to double-platinum success.

To listen to Walker Hayes perform "Fancy Like" click on the video player below.

For more info:

• walkerhayes.com
• Applebee's

Meet the water sommelier (Video)
Martin Riese is America's first certified water sommelier, who studies the subtle flavors of bottled water, and prepares menus pairing specific brands with foods. Correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti sits down with Riese to discuss his unique palate, and his thirst for spreading the word on water.

For more info:

• Martin Riese

The Automat: A look back at the future of dining | Watch Video
For much of the 20th century the Automat was a destination restaurant – a gleaming, coin-operated self-service eatery, whose chrome doors opened to reveal comfort foods to match Mom's cooking. Correspondent Mo Rocca talks with Lisa Hurwitz, director of a nostalgic new documentary about Horn & Hardart's chain of cafeterias; and with Broadway star Chita Rivera, who fondly remembers her days as a dance student, when the Automat was a home away from home.

For more info:

• "The Automat" (Documentary), now screening
• Chita Rivera on Twitter
• New York Public Library Digital Collection: Automat photos

Orecchiette: The art of pasta | Watch Video
In Bari, the capital of the Puglia region of Italy, pastamakers adhere to traditions to create the local favorite, the distinctively-shaped orecchiette (or "little ears" pasta). Correspondent Seth Doane reports.

For more info:

• Nunzia Caputo, Bari (Instagram)
• Pastificio Ancora & Fiore, Bari
• elizabethminchilli.com
• "The Italian Table: Creating Festive Meals for Family and Friends" by Elizabeth Minchilli (Rizzoli), in Hardcover and eBook formats, available via Amazon and Indiebound

The secret behind bodega coffee (Video)
Khalid Sharafi and Omar Haimed's Brooklyn bodega will sell you a cup of Colombian coffee, for $1.50. But in the back, they brew for themselves what they call the world's best coffee, from Yemen. Correspondent Jim Axelrod learns why Yemeni beans have such a passionate following – and, from coffee merchant Ibrahim Alhasbani, of Qahwah House, why they have such a huge price tag.

For more info: 

• Qahwah House

History and tacos served at the Mitla Café | Watch Video
During the Depression, Doña Lucia Rodriguez opened the doors of the Mitla Café in San Bernardino, Calif., along old Route 66, because she didn't want her family members to go hungry. Since then, the Mexican restaurant has fed generations from all walks of life, and served as a gathering spot for community organizing. Correspondent Lilia Luciano steps inside the family-run business that also served as an inspiration for another notable establishment, Taco Bell.

For more info:

• Mitla Café, San Bernardino, Calif.
• Images courtesy of Mark Ocegueda and the Latino Baseball History Project

     
"The Humans": A Thanksgiving feast of family drama | Watch Video
The new movie "The Humans," adapted from the Tony Award-winning play, is a story familiar to any family that has gathered together for a bumpy holiday celebration. Correspondent Tracy Smith gathered together the film's stars – Steven Yeun, Beanie Feldstein, Jayne Houdyshell, Richard Jenkins, and Amy Schumer (also the star of a Food Network show) – to find out what they are most grateful for.

To watch a trailer for "The Humans" click on the video player below:

For more info:

• "The Humans" debuts November 24 in theaters, and on Showtime and On Demand
• "Amy Schumer Learns to Cook" (Food Network)
  
• Thanks to the Gotham Bar and Grill, New York City

What happens to ugly fruit and produce? (Video)
Not everything that farmers grow is cosmetically perfect. But rather than let produce with noticeable imperfections go to waste, companies like Misfits Market and Imperfect Foods will bring previously unwanted produce directly to your door. Correspondent Serena Altschul reports.

For more info:

• Misfits Market
• Imperfect Foods
• Lakeside Organic Gardens, Watsonville, Calif.
• Ugly Produce Is Beautiful

      
Visit the real birthplace of ranch dressing (Video)
In the mountains above Santa Barbara, Steve Henson created an Eisenhower-era delight that would take the country by storm: Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing, America's most popular salad dressing, is a creamy success story that lately has found new fame on social media. But it comes from a place that looks very different from the one on the bottle. Correspondent Luke Burbank talks to Alan Barker, a documentary filmmaker, who worked and lived at the original Hidden Valley Ranch, delving into the dressing's history and the real "ranch" behind Hidden Valley.

For more info:

• Hidden Valley Ranch
• Cold Spring Tavern, Santa Barbara, Calif.

Taste testing with artificial intelligence (Video)
For centuries, master tasters have helped design the flavors of our favorite foods, wines, coffees and teas. But can artificial intelligence replace human taste-testing? Correspondent Roxana Saberi checks out cutting-edge technologies that represent a new flavor of AI.

For more info:

• IBM Hypertaste – An AI-assisted e-tongue
• Aromyx – Sensing technology
• Tetley tea

T-Pain mixes a beer-and-ice cream cocktail | Watch Video
The Grammy-winning performer, whose hits include "Bartender" and "Blame It (On The Alcohol)," now has a book of cocktail recipes: "Can I Mix You a Drink? 50 Cocktails From My Life & Career." "Sunday Morning" contributor Kelefa Sanneh sits down with T-Pain, who mixes up a "5 O'Clock" (what he calls "a grown-up milkshake") and talks about his inspirations for libations.

For more info:

• "Can I Mix You a Drink? 50 Cocktails From My Life & Career" by T-Pain with Maxwell Britten, curated by Kathy Iandoli (Kingston Imperial), in Hardcover and eBook formats, available via Amazon and Indiebound
• nappyboyent.com (T-Pain's official site)
• maxwellbritten.com
• Thanks to Jimmy, 15 Thompson Street, New York City

     
Nature: Turkeys in Ohio (Extended Video)
     

WEB EXCLUSIVE: 

FOOD: Recipes from TikTok celebrity cook the Hebridean Baker
Author and cook Coinneach MacLeod shares stories and recipes with his social media following, and now with readers, with his debut cookbook, "The Hebridean Baker: Recipes and Wee Stories from the Scottish Islands."

For more info:

• "The Hebridean Baker: Recipes and Wee Stories from the Scottish Islands" by Coinneach MacLeod (Black & White Publishing) is available in Hardcover and eBook formats, from Amazon and Indiebound
• hebrideanbaker.com
  
• Follow the Hebridean Baker on TikTok

PODCAST: "Unsung Science"
"Sunday Morning" correspondent David Pogue explores the origin stories behind some of the most mind-blowing advances in science and technology. Presented by CBS News and Simon & Schuster. 

Listen to the episode, "How NASA's $2 Billion Rover Landed Itself on Mars: 'Seven Minutes of Terror'":

The Emmy Award-winning "CBS Sunday Morning" is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison.

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