Joanne Weir's Plates & Places

Join Joanne in her beloved San Francisco Bay Area to pick persimmons in backyards along the Peninsula, and head over the hill to gather ingredients at a 3rd generation Italian market. Then join her and a few friends as they create a casual meal with locally produced ingredients and techniques from the heart of Italy.

While cruising along the Danube, Joanne does a fresh spin on a Viennese classic, the Wiener Schnitzel, and an inspired potato dish you won’t soon forget. You’ll also get an up close and personal tour of one of her favorite wineries and learn about why Gruner Veltliner is so revered all over the world.

Today Joanne makes a b-line to visit the incomparable Budapest Central Market in search of paprika, the spice Budapest is most famous for. She’ll also take you on a little tour of this beautiful city and then it’s back in her San Francisco kitchen to cook some traditional, and not so traditional, Hungarian-inspired dishes.

Joanne and her students take a class with Chef Popi who shares her secrets on making her specialty, classic moussaka, on the Greek island of Syros. While the moussaka is in the oven, the group take a walk in the majestic hills above the city. Joanne brings it home and shows off a few of the cooking tricks and techniques she learned from her Greek travels.

Come along and meet the renowned Chef Massimo Spigaroli, who makes one of the most coveted and revered cured hams in the world. Share an insider’s tour of the farm, restaurant and the esteemed cellar at Antica Corte Pallavicina. Back at home, in honor of everything Italian, Joanne creates a modern Italian dinner board perfect for a family dinner.

This is no ordinary picnic! Joanne and her Greek friend, Elias, share a rustic picnic as they pluck sea urchin directly from the Aegean, douse them with fruity virgin olive oil and the juice of tomato and enjoy them in the summer sun on the Greek island of Syros. Then, head back to Joanne’s kitchen to cook up a few recipes that will inspire you to grab your picnic basket.

Come along with Joanne to Northern Spain and find out what makes the prized Tempranillo grape so unique. Savor wine and lamb chops grilled in the fireplace at Rioja Alta Winery and later, visit La Vieja Bodega’s ancient wine cellar. Back in Joanne’s kitchen, she’ll whip up some dishes inspired by her time in Spain.

Joanne takes us on a shopping spree for beans in the Spanish Basque Country and on the Greek island of Syros. Meet her delightful Spanish friend as she makes her coveted pot of the most succulent beans. Inspired by her Mediterranean travels, Joanne shares her own versatile and satisfying bean recipes.

Greek small plates, or meze, are very much a part of Greek life. Join Joanne as she wanders the busy streets of Hermoupolis, the capital of the Greek island of Syros, shopping for the best local ingredients to prepare a few meze dishes. Then head back to the outdoor kitchen for a cooking class overlooking the Aegean Sea.

Join Joanne and take in the bounty of the Italian tomato harvest in Parma, Italy. Then cook up a classic lasagna along with her chef friend, Alaria. Joanne brings a bit of Italy back home and cooks up some unique and delicious tomato dishes.

Follow Joanne's early morning trek to the lively Central Market in Budapest in search of the perfect fresh white asparagus. Back on the Danube River, Joanne has fun in the kitchen with the ingredients she’s found along the way.

Joanne is determined to learn the secret to making the perfect paella, so when Spanish friends invite her to cook up a storm with them along the River Oja in Northern Spain, she jumps at the chance. Then she puts their tricks to use and creates her version of this quintessential Spanish dish at home.