Carla Lalli Says Food Is A Feeling, from Expense Account

Food serves as a lens for understanding personal growth, emotional healing, and cultural shifts. Carla Lalli, a veteran of the food media industry and former manager of the original Shake Shack, explores these themes in her latest book, *Food is a Feeling*, which blends memoir with recipes to document her journey through divorce. The discussion rejects the restrictive "guilty pleasure" narrative, advocating for a more intuitive, shame-free relationship with eating. Alongside insights from Emily Sundberg on seasonal produce and the evolution of food media, the conversation highlights the necessity of viewing cooking as a form of self-care rather than a performative service. By examining everything from personal fridge contents to the history of industry trends, the dialogue underscores how food remains a fundamental, grounding element of human experience regardless of life’s transitions.