Trudy Crane & Chloé Crane-Leroux Transcript
Kerry Diamond:
Hi, everyone. You are listening to Radio Cherry Bombe, and I'm your host, Kerry Diamond. I'm the founder and editor of Cherry Bombe Magazine. Today we are kicking off our Fashion Plate mini-series, presented by our friends at Boden. Over the next few Wednesdays, we'll be talking to folks at the intersection of food and fashion, one of our favorite subjects, and how they bring taste and style to everything they do.
We're starting with mother-daughter duo, Trudy Crane and Chloé Crane-Leroux, authors of the brand new book, “The Artful Way to Plant-Based Cooking: Nourishing Recipes and Heartfelt Moments.” Chloé, who many of you know from Instagram and TikTok, is a photographer and recipe developer, and Trudy, well, Trudy literally makes plates so she is perfect for Fashion Plate. She is a ceramicist and a model. We talk about their book, their close relationship, and the career pivots that got them to where they are today. Stay tuned for my conversation with Chloé and Trudy.
Our Fashion Plate mini-series is presented by Boden, the British clothing company that you are going to fall in love with. Boden believes in color, timelessness, and attention to detail. If you have a passion for prints, florals, stripes, or maybe you're mad for plaid, Boden is your new best friend. Just the plaid pieces alone will delight you. There are plaid maxi dresses with, yes, pockets, the cutest plaid kitten heels, and a red plaid blazer and trouser set that you will no doubt see me in again and again this fall. We also need to talk about the Boden dress selection. Whatever the occasion, from work to weddings, they have dresses that will delight you. Boden also has great accessories, bags, shoes, and boots. There's Mini Boden for children and even Baby Boden. Boden was founded by Johnnie Boden, a dog lover, and our favorite, a girl dad. His irreverent spirit is a guiding light for the company. You'll meet Johnny later in our series. Head to Boden.com to brighten your day and your wardrobe use. Code CB10 for 10% off.
Early bird tickets are now on sale for Jubilee 2025, which is taking place in Manhattan at the Glasshouse, a brand new location, very exciting, on Saturday April 12th. Jubilee is a wonderful day of community and connection, and we would love to see you there. Visit cherrybombe.com for tickets and more. Also, we're hosting our very first Jubilee Wine Country at the beautiful Solage Resort in Calistoga, California, on October 26th and 27th. Join me, Dominique Crenn, Jeni Britton, Tanya Holland, and lots of other amazing folks for what is going to be an incredible weekend of food, drink, and of course, wine. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit cherrybombe.com.
Now, let's hear from today's guests. Chloé, Trudy, welcome to Radio Cherry Bombe.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Thank you for having us.
Kerry Diamond:
I've loved learning about you, and we have a story on you in the new issue. And I got to interview you once already, so it's really fun to talk to you again about the things that I just find so impressive about the two of you, both as individuals and as a mother-daughter team. But first, let's talk about this beautiful book, “The Artful Way to Plant-Based Cooking.” Chloé, let's start with you. So how did you and your mom wind up doing the book together?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
We always had the idea of doing a second cookbook. We published our first one in 2017 with another author, but we always wanted to do a project, the two of us together, as a team. We love working together, we have such a special bond. And we had been talking about this cookbook idea since the other one came out, so since 2017 we were talking about doing a cookbook that was about moments, was about traveling. We kept talking about this idea. We just knew that after the pandemic happened and after my career had changed, Trudy's career had shifted, we just really wanted to put it into a physical book. Basically, how it came about is that we had our idea, we pitched it, and it's been two and a half years of work that we put in. It's just been such a journey, honestly.
Kerry Diamond:
Are you two in the book the same way you are in this book?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Not as much, I would say. There are photos of us, but this one is definitely a bit more about our actual relationship, which I think is very unique. Basically how I grew up, but also how you brought me up. And I think it just really talks more about the special bond that we have as mother-daughter, which is very different than the other one that we published before.
Kerry Diamond:
Trudy, you told me something interesting, that when you were growing up in British Columbia, that you weren't raised with food as the centerpiece, and cooking and entertaining, and you wanted that for your young family in Montreal where you moved.
Trudy Crane:
I did, and when I first moved to Montreal and I started to make friends, we would sit and have dinner. And it would take hours, and we would have course after course, and, "This is amazing." I was so happy. I just loved it. And I said, after Chloé was born, "This is how I want Chloé's life to be." And it was completely natural because this is how we were living, and Chloé just fit right into that. We have apéro hour, and I still do, every day we have an apéro. And just having this feeling of family together and friends over, and the hosting and dance parties, and it was all around food. Everything for us was around food and in the kitchen, and all our friends cooking and so on. And so this was really important for me, for Chloé, and for our life together. It was a big change for me.
Kerry Diamond:
Another interesting thing about this book is it celebrates plant-based food. You, Chloé, went plant-based first, and then Trudy, you followed. Tell us why you went plant-based.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
So I went plant-based vegan when I moved to New York, which was 10 years ago, which feels crazy to say, it went by so fast. But I tried being vegetarian for six months, and it was so easy to me. I, first when I moved to New York, felt like I was just being very unhealthy. I was a college student, of course, and ordering Insomnia Cookies at three a.m., which a college student does. After a few months of that, I was like, "Wow, I'm just really not taking care of my health." I was going to Parsons at the time, which was a pretty eco-conscious school, and we were talking about climate crisis.
At the same time, a bunch of vegan documentaries were coming out, which was like Earthlings, Forks Over Knives. I was watching these and I was like, "You know what, let me just try it out. Try veganism, try a plant-based diet." I was already being vegetarian for six months, let me try a few alternatives and see how I feel. I was really not pressuring myself in anything. And then I just went all in. At first, I remember Trudy being like, "What is this? Why are you being vegan?" Figuring out what was going on, and also her being a bit skeptical the first few years. Because I think that's a normal reaction, especially when I didn't grow up being vegan.
Trudy Crane:
As we went through the cookbook process and testing and so on, I said, "Okay, I think I can do this." And I did it slowly, it took me a year. And the last thing I gave up was eggs, because I really loved eggs. And I would come home from the studio and cook something up late at night. Once I'd let that go, and doing this journey, I don't think there's really any fixed way you should do this. If it just is incorporating plant-based meals two or three times a week, and just seeing how you feel after and seeing where you go with that. I think it's a different journey for everybody, and for me, I really felt great after, honestly, and I really enjoyed the cooking process. I liked meat, but I didn't like to cook meat.
And it felt very natural. I'm not surprised at all that Chloé went plant-based, she never liked meat as she was growing up. She was pushing it to the side and never really liked it, so it seemed quite natural for her to do that. And that was seven years ago I went plant-based.
Kerry Diamond:
And never looked back.
Trudy Crane:
Never looked back.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you always call your mom Trudy?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
No. Oh God, no. Absolutely not. I'm just saying it because we're on the podcast, but I call her mom all the time, of course.
Kerry Diamond:
Let's go back to Montreal. So you were cooking, when did you start to cook, Chloé? Do you remember the first thing you cooked?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, the first thing I cooked was definitely pancakes with you.
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, it was.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It still is a weekend tradition, ritual. It's such a thing that we grew up doing. You taught me how to make pancakes every weekend, every Saturday. I would look forward to Saturday because we would make pancakes together. At first, it was pancakes that had animal shapes, and it was just very fun, but then obviously now it just grew into this beautiful weekend ritual, which we both still do. You do that at home with your partner, I do that at home with my partner. So it's so fun to have this childhood memory, and when we're together, we still do that.
Kerry Diamond:
That's very sweet. You eventually became a very busy fashion executive.
Trudy Crane:
Yes, I did.
Kerry Diamond:
A fashion marketing executive. Why did you gravitate toward fashion?
Trudy Crane:
Well, I started in fashion when I was really young, and I loved it. I was a salesperson in a store and I just loved the environment, I was always looking at the magazines. I really did it very slowly, I changed my job many times. And I was in visual presentation, display, and so on, and then finally I went into marketing and became a vice president of marketing at the end of my career.
Kerry Diamond:
And you included Chloé and work somewhat. Chloé, you would go on shoots. Do you remember that?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh my God, absolutely, that shaped my entire childhood. I had the privilege, I would say, to be able to go on these photo shoots maybe twice a year, three times a year. My mom would basically do a huge campaign for the company that she used to work for, and I was so inspired by the set. I would go in and there was the photographer, two assistants, the fashion stylists, creative director, producer. There were so many people, and I was just in awe of that. And I was like, "Wow, this is exactly what I want to do." So that really, really inspired me, especially seeing the fashion world and seeing her be in fashion my whole childhood, I automatically thought, "Okay, I want to be also in the fashion industry," which is an incredible place to be.
Kerry Diamond:
You really gave Chloé her first camera at the age of five?
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, I did. She was so creative, I could see right away, and so I tried to give her opportunities to express her creativity. I would put paper on the walls and let her draw on that rather than on the wall, but on the paper. And I gave her a camera, and she would shoot little things and then I would have the film developed and she could look at it.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
And it was so great for me being a young kid, to have a film camera and for my parent to actually take me seriously. Looking back now, obviously I didn't think that when I was a child, but now for my parent to really trust me with a film camera and develop the film, and for me to learn on my own. And as such a young child and really being able to look at things and think about it, and be like, "Wow, this is such a beautiful moment, object, landscape," whatever it might be. To really think that through, I think as a kid, being trusted by your parent and also just being pushed to be creative is so important.
Trudy Crane:
We would talk a lot about what we saw, so we would be driving somewhere and we would have discussions about, "What do you think of that billboard? What do you think of this, that?" And really focusing on asking her what she thought of everything, and I think it really helped develop that creativity in her.
Kerry Diamond:
We'll be right back with today's guests. The fall issue of Cherry Bombe's print magazine is dropping very soon, it's all about the creative class. We're highlighting some of the most innovative and imaginative folks in and around the food world. From photographers to pastry chefs, I would love for you to subscribe to our magazine. It's one of the most beautiful ones around. It's thick and lush, and filled with stories, recipes, and beautiful photos. We print the magazine at Meridian, a family-owned printing press in Rhode Island. The cutoff date to subscribe and receive the fall issue is Sunday, September 22nd. So don't delay. Subscribe and get four issues delivered direct to your door, and free shipping. Head to cherrybombe.com for more.
Jessie Sheehan:
Hi peeps, it's Jessie Sheehan, the host of She's My Cherry Pie, the baking podcast from The Cherry Bombe Podcast Network. I have big news for you. My new cookbook, “Salty, Cheesy, Herby, Crispy Snackable Bakes” will be available on Tuesday, September 24th. This is my first savory baking book and I'm so excited to share it with all of you. It features 100 easy-peasy baking recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and of course, snacking. From sage butter scones to smashburger hand pies and tomato za'atar galette. You'll also find six of my essential savory baking hacks, including how to make my magic melted butter pie dough and the quickest and easiest caramelized onions.
I just announced my cookbook tour and tickets are on sale right now at cherrybombe.com. The launch party will take place in Manhattan on Tuesday, September 24th. Then I'm in San Francisco on Tuesday, October 8th, Chicago on Tuesday, October 15th, and Boston on Wednesday, October 23rd. And I can't wait to see you. Thank you to Kerrygold and King Arthur Flour for supporting my tour. You can also click the link in the show notes of this episode to pre-order the book now, or pick up a copy at your favorite local bookstore starting September 24th. I hope you love “Salty, Cheesy, Herby, Crispy Snackable Bakes” as much as I loved writing it.
Kerry Diamond:
By the time you were a teenager you knew what you wanted to do for a living, tell us what you announced to your family.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I was 12 years old, 13 years old, and I was like, "Okay, well, I am going to be a fashion photographer and I am going to Parsons." I was just so convinced and knew exactly my path. You talk about your dreams as a kid and it always changes, and no, for me, it was set.
Trudy Crane:
It was, it was really set.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
And when I graduated high school, I did this program that we have in Quebec called the CEGEP, which is essentially pre-university, and it was a three-year career program in photography. I applied to go to Parsons, and I got accepted with a scholarship.
Kerry Diamond:
It's so amazing to announce something as a preteen or a teenager and then actually stick to it.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
Trudy, you must have thought like, "Okay, she's saying this now, let's see."
Trudy Crane:
Well, I thought maybe she could change her mind over time because there was other things that she was doing creatively, and I thought, "Well, we'll see." And when she was 16, I think, she did a summer program at Parsons, and we thought, "Well, we'll send her a photography program and we'll see if she likes it." Well, she loved it. She absolutely loved it, and that clinched the deal.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, so you follow through on the goal, you go to New York. How was New York?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
New York was crazy the first year that I moved, I felt like I was so out of place in some way. And I knew that I wanted to be here, I really did, but I didn't know anyone. I moved completely not knowing anybody, and I moved also when I transferred. So most people, they go into college as a freshman, I went as a junior, so I only had two years left. So everybody was already friends and I just was coming in as the Canadian kid, and people were like, "What is she doing? She wants to be a fashion photographer." And Parsons was very artsy, and I just felt very out of place but I made my way through.
But the first year I would say I really wasn't sure about New York. It took me a long time, and I think that's also something that when people move to New York, you have to get used to it. It's an intense and crazy city, for sure. But it took me a while, and after I would say two, two and a half years, it really started to feel like home.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, that's good to hear. Some Canadians are just too nice to live in New York.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I think so.
Kerry Diamond:
It's a tough city.
Trudy Crane:
We were talking about this yesterday. She would come back from New York the first year, and I'd be, "Whoa, just-”
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Get off your high horse.
Trudy Crane:
Get down a little bit.
Kerry Diamond:
I'm glad you made it. Not only made it, but you thrived. So Trudy, we've got so many kids going away to school right now in September, and a lot of moms are empty nesters now. How did you handle the empty nest?
Trudy Crane:
Well, it was a changing period for myself at the same time. I had decided to change my job, I had been in my position for a long time. And I had done it for so long that I felt I had done the rounds of fashion marketing, and I really wanted to do something that I really felt creative and that fell closer to my heart. So I quit my job and I became a ceramic artist, much to everyone around me saying, "Not a good idea, just stick with it." But honestly, I really had to do it. It just felt that it was necessary for me, for my creativity. I couldn't imagine myself staying in my job for another 15, 20 years, it was just too much.
Kerry Diamond:
And friends were like, "It's your hobby, why are you doing this?"
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, "Nobody makes money doing this, why are you doing that?" And I didn't think of it that way at all. For me, it was creative and I could make a business, and I really wanted to do it. So I did. I quit my job and I went into the studio every day. I had a very clear picture of what I wanted to do, what collection I wanted to make. And I knew I wanted to make dishes, it was always in my head. Our whole life had revolved around the table, and for me, this was a completely normal thing to go into ceramics and make dishes. So I practiced, I went every day to the studio. And it was a community studio, there was just people coming and going, and I started to make my collection. And I got better and better and better and put it online. It started selling. It was quite incredible, and I was sending dishes to everybody, "Hey, look at my dishes."
Kerry Diamond:
So you knew this would be a business. Were you scared?
Trudy Crane:
Terrified. Terrified, of course, to make such a big change in your life and to go into something that is not sure. And I changed really my whole life, I ended up moving and going out on my own, and so it was a really big period in my life. I cannot imagine not having done it today. I'm so happy that I made that move.
Kerry Diamond:
And the line is called Lookslikewhite.
Trudy Crane:
Yes, it is.
Kerry Diamond:
Why that name?
Trudy Crane:
I really wanted to make white dishes, white matte or shiny dishes, because I just love the way food looks on white dishes. And it's just this beautiful palette that is waiting for the colors and the beauty of the food. So in my mind, I was only going to make white dishes. Eventually I did make other colors, not much though, some pastels. And I made a bit of black and a little bit of gray, but I really stuck with white. And I just love it, I love it.
Kerry Diamond:
And some of them have your handwriting on them.
Trudy Crane:
Yes, I do. I do. I put some handwriting. It's very few that I do. I do a lot with texture, linen and lace. I have some old French laces, and I do imprint that into the clay. My newest collection has handwriting on it, so I love that.
Kerry Diamond:
Trudy, you had another interesting creative detour. You became a model.
Trudy Crane:
I know.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell us what age you became a model at.
Trudy Crane:
- I was doing some work, people had asked me to do a bit of modeling, not being paid, just doing little things here and there. So I was doing it just for fun, and a photographer put my photo up on her page, on her Instagram, and a modeling agent in Canada got in touch with me and she said, "Hey, do you want to be a model?" I'm like, "Yeah, why not?" Hey, new career at 59. And I've been doing it since, and I absolutely love it. It's so much fun. It was easy for me because I had been on set so much in my life that it didn't feel like a scary thing for me to do. And yeah, I know I just love it, it's been great.
Kerry Diamond:
It's such a great story.
Trudy Crane:
What I love so much about it, I get to meet so many interesting people. And I think it's so important to show that we're here. Mature women, we're still out there, we're doing new things, we're trying things. We are still shopping, we're buying fashion or creams, or whatever it is. And I think it's really important to have that role model for other women, that you can make changes in your career after 50, and that we're important and we're still out there.
Kerry Diamond:
Absolutely. You, Chloé, had your own pivot. You were on this path that you announced at the age of 12 or 13, you're going to be a fashion photographer. You grew up on sets with your mom. But you come to a realization that that was not what you wanted to do, how did that happen?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yeah, I feel like it was a pretty quick realization for me actually, because I really started working in fashion when I moved to New York and I was interning a lot when I graduated, still doing a bit of fashion, but there was something that just felt a bit off. And at the same time, I was also exploring different fields within photography and different industries as well. I had a food shoot for a company in Canada. I actually pitched myself to them and I started shooting for them, and I quickly realized that, "Wow, I just really love food people so much more." It just felt just more natural. I just was in it, and just felt like this was exactly where I was supposed to be. As much as I do love fashion and style, I love style, I love clothes. Being around food and always loving food, and food was such a big thing growing up, it just all made sense. It just felt exactly right.
Kerry Diamond:
You found your tribe.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I did.
Kerry Diamond:
So you have this big pivot to food, and psychologically, what are you thinking? You had been on this path for so long, when you went plant-based, you knew that was the right thing to do for you and you felt like yourself immediately. Was it the same with the transition from fashion to food?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Absolutely. I think at first there was maybe a bit of imposter syndrome, or even just feeling maybe I had failed myself in some way just because I always thought that I would be this big fashion photographer and work with all these companies. I've always been a big manifester in my life and always writing down what I wanted, and I had written down that I wanted to have a spread in Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, and all these different magazines. And doing editorial, but I really, really loved, absolutely loved shooting food. There was something so natural and also very peaceful about it. I just love how light goes onto food. It's just so beautiful, and people just get excited around food. I quickly realized that it's okay. I'm really being guided in that way and I'm going to listen to what the universe is basically telling me, which was to be in the food space.
Kerry Diamond:
And people might not know this, you had a serious photography career before you became this social media personality. But tell us, you were doing cookbooks, ad campaigns, lots of things.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, a lot of cookbooks, a lot of ad campaigns, really working with a lot of different wine companies as well. I would travel a lot. I would go to South America, I would go to France, and I would shoot for these different wine companies. We would shoot food pairings with wine. So it was really incredible, and I loved doing that so much. It was such a great time for me because I was also working with chefs a lot when I was doing that. I was surrounded by a team as well, but I would be the photographer. So I would look at what was going on behind the scenes, where I was working with food stylists and prop stylists and chefs, and they would be actually doing the food. And I would create these relationships with different chefs and ask what they were doing, just really learning from them, which I loved because I loved food.
I would see what they were doing, and I was on set and photographing all these beautiful dishes, then I would want to recreate exactly what I was shooting on set, but making it vegan, plant-based. And that was really how it all started. I would see all these things, and I'd be like, "Oh, this is such a challenge for me and it would be so much fun," and then I would go home and really get the spices that I wanted, explore and do my research, and that's really, really how it started.
So for me, it was really more of being educated through these photo shoots that I was on after doing my own thing and putting in my own hours of learning on my own, so it was like the YouTube version of me learning a skill, but doing it in person with chefs and really after going home and being able to do it myself.
Kerry Diamond:
And this was more of a passion than, "I'm going to turn this into a thing one day."
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh, absolutely. I really at first was like, "I love food. This is a passion." I loved cooking. I just really, really loved it. I loved cooking vegan, that was really what I loved the most. But then when the pandemic happened, I think it changed so much for so many people.
Kerry Diamond:
This turned out to be a second pivot for you.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It was a second pivot, because as much as we had already done a cookbook then, I was, as we were all, at home, stuck in our very small apartments in New York City, but I was cooking all the time. And I couldn't go on food shoots, and I would be at home and say, "Okay, well what am I going to do?" Because I basically can't do my job and I can't be near a team, so I'm going to turn to social media and see what I can do with that. I had a small following then, I really started to showcase what I was doing, putting more of myself on social media as well. I used to just post my work, so I was putting myself more in front of the camera and I could see the people were really enjoying that. And also at the same time, August, 2020, Reels came out. And I decided, "Look, I'm going to really hone into this because I see that there's an interest from people, and I'm going to post a reel every day." I did that for about two years, and it grew.
Kerry Diamond:
That is dedication.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It was insane, but I really was so happy I did it. Because looking back now, it really grew into this full-blown business, and I'm so grateful for it. And I also just realized that I love being able to show my recipes online, and I got such great feedback from my followers, from people. And there was a time where I was figuring it out and even having a bit of imposter syndrome, because I was like, "I've studied photography for five years. This has been my career for 10 years, and now am I a content creator? Am I a cook? What am I?"
Kerry Diamond:
What are you? What do you call yourself today?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I like to call myself a food storyteller, creative director, recipe developer. I think there's so many titles for me, which I love, and I had a hard time with that actually just being like, "What am I? How many titles do I have?" But I love that we're all on this earth to do so many things, and we're all here to learn. If that means changing your path in different ways and being able to go through your own journey, to me, that's just the best.
Kerry Diamond:
I also think some folks forget that you are entrepreneurs, and serious entrepreneurs, and that's another interesting parallel with the two of you. You always worked for other people and now you work for yourselves.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I feel like I've pretty much been a freelancer my whole entire life. I did do a few internships. I obviously have some clients, but I was a freelancer for a long time. I still am, but I think both having businesses and being these business women, but we not only have a business together, but we both have our own work and our own entrepreneurs in some way, that was just very inspiring for the two of us.
Trudy Crane:
And I think it was really a great support. We really supported each other through that. I turned to Chloé very often for advice, and, "What do you think of this?" And she does the same for me, so it's actually been really great that we were able to go through this together and to support each other, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
How big is your team?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I have my assistant, which thank God for her, because I feel like that would be really, really hard. I have two managers and then I have my manager's assistant. I talk to them every single day, and then I have my PR team. We're a team, so I would say a few people involved, few cooks in the kitchen.
Kerry Diamond:
I think it's good for people to know that, because it can seem like you're just this magical solo creator.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
No, for sure. I think it's good for people to know that most of the time there's a team involved, especially when you have a business. I know that a lot of people say, "Wow, this is amazing. What do you do? How do you do it?" But if you don't have the help, I think it would be way too overwhelming.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah. Give folks one social media tip.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh, wow.
Kerry Diamond:
When you look at people's accounts and you're like, "Oh, I wish they would just do this."
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I think staying as authentic to yourself is so important. I think a lot of people try to emulate what they see, which is I think a normal thing to do when you first start, but really do what you love. Really, really do what your passion is and what you feel most comfortable in. And doing things that are challenging is super important, but also do things that you feel the best in and that resonates to you, and talk about things that matter to you. I think some people think, "Okay, well maybe I'll just do this and that will go viral," but I think the end goal is not to go viral. I think that's so important, because I think everybody just wants to go viral, but that's not the point.
Building community is important, and that's what I've learned in the last year. I think building community is so much more important than just going viral and gaining followers. If you build a community and if you can have people be fans of you in a way that they will support projects, cookbooks, things like that is so much more important. So talk about things that really, really you love. Build a sort of niche for first is super important, then really, really hone into that, because I think that that's your superpower in social media.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you follow some of the trends? Do you feel forced to do that? Did you do brat? Did you do demure? Are you going to do pumpkin spice latte next?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I think there's fun ways to do trends, for sure. I'm not a big trend follower, but I do think that they're so funny. And sometimes audios just crack me up, and I think, "I got to jump on that."
Kerry Diamond:
Trudy, I didn't see any brat content on your Instagram this summer.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I'm still waiting for it, honestly.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, let's talk about this cookbook because I can talk to you two about a million other things before we talk about this. What is a great gateway recipe? What is the first recipe someone should make that unlocks the book?
Trudy Crane:
Well, a recipe that I really love and that is so easy to make, and it's just delicious, is the galette, the squash galette. Chloé makes it all the time too, really delicious. And the other one is the pea pesto asparagus tart. I make it every week, it is just a hit. It's a favorite. If we have people over, I'm going to make the tart.
Kerry Diamond:
What kind of squash do you use in the squash galette?
Trudy Crane:
I use a zucchini and-
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I use butternut squash.
Trudy Crane:
Butternut squash.
Kerry Diamond:
So they're two separate ones or they're both in the same-
Trudy Crane:
Together.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, really delicious.
Kerry Diamond:
I love a galette because you can just freeform it and put whatever you want in it.
Trudy Crane:
Exactly, you can, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
It's so funny, because when I think of a galette they bring your dishes and other pieces to mind.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
They're so fun, because you can make a rustic galette, you can make a round one and you can make a rectangular. To me, making galettes is just the best thing for hosting, because they're easy to make, everybody loves them. They're always such a hit. I make them all the time. In literally two minutes, they're gone. I'm like, "Okay, I should have made three then," it's always what I think. But there's such great recipes for hosting. And I think that was really so important for us, because all of the chapters are made out of moments, but also just entertaining and hosting is just such a big part of the cookbook, of our lifestyle, of our life in general, but a lot of the recipes are just so shareable and just great to have with friends and family and loved ones.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you have a different gateway recipe than your mom?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I love the spinach pies, I make them all the time. Because I bring them to a friend's house when we're having a little get together. My favorite chapter is Apéro, that is just basically little snacks before dinner, obviously, many times it just turns into dinner for us. The ultimate girl dinner, I would say. But yeah, I have so many recipes for apéro. I love the blinis, I make those all the time, pickled carrots, but they're supposed to be like a faux salmon.
Kerry Diamond:
So you have a whole gateway chapter?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh, I do, sorry, I'm literally rambling about all my favorite recipes.
Kerry Diamond:
No, it's good. Hey, you should love your own book, absolutely. Okay, which recipe do you think will be the most popular, because there's always one that bubbles up?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
That's a really good question.
Trudy Crane:
It is.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Maybe the mushroom bolognese.
Kerry Diamond:
I flagged that one. Tell us how you make it.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It's so good. I feel like mushrooms, to me, they're one of my favorite ingredients. The thing is that I feel like sometimes you either love mushrooms or you don't. It's so good. Even to me, it's almost very meaty. The mushroom is seasoned so beautifully. Everything just goes into a pan. The flavors just bubble up, the mushrooms are just so flavorful. To me, pasta is just an easy dish as well, but also one that anybody loves. You make a pasta dish and it's always so popular.
Trudy Crane:
And I think it's a good one, because if you are just trying out plant-based recipes, it does have that meaty feel.
Kerry Diamond:
Tell me how long the bolognese takes to come together.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
About 40 minutes. All of our recipes are pretty simple and straightforward. We really wanted the ingredients to be approachable and for anybody to find them easily in their local grocery stores. I think that it's so important to make it as approachable, as simple as possible, yet so flavorful, so, so tasty. All the recipes are around 35 to 45 minutes. That's the thing, I know that we're all busy. Our world is going faster and faster all the time. People want to still eat a home-cooked meal, but we don't want to take three hours to do it. Especially New Yorkers, I'm just saying.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, next question about the recipes. I think I know the answer to this one. Which recipe is the most nostalgic for you two or the most emotional?
Trudy Crane:
Pancakes, simple.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, that's for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
For sure.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
This is a very nostalgic recipe for us because I think that we just obviously made that forever, but also just it's something that is, I don't know, it's been in the books.
Trudy Crane:
It's comfort food.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
But it's also been written for years.
Kerry Diamond:
Is it a classic pancake recipe?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It is, it's a classic pancake recipe.
Trudy Crane:
Made vegan.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yeah, of course, that we've done forever. But yeah, we changed the recipe 10 years ago. It used to have eggs and now it doesn't, but it's just such a good one. It has flaxseed meal and you make an egg with that, and it's just so good. And it helps you with your digestive system which is even better.
Kerry Diamond:
And it's nice and fluffy, and all the same as the traditional pancake?
Trudy Crane:
So fluffy.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Absolutely.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, are you doing a cookbook tour?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, so we're doing a few dates here in New York, we'll be going to L.A. at the end of September as well. We're trying to see about Paris soon.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, fun.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
That could be really, really fun. But hoping that we do maybe London as well. So a couple-
Kerry Diamond:
Montreal?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
And Montreal, of course, I can't forget about the hometown. Sorry, guys. But yes, Montreal, for sure. That will be on the list. So a few different cities, cities that also mean a lot to us.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, very exciting. And tell folks where they can find your plates and beautiful dishes and everything.
Trudy Crane:
I do have some on Food52, and of course on my website. And they are on Etsy.
Kerry Diamond:
And they're in the book?
Trudy Crane:
And they're in the book.
Kerry Diamond:
That must have been fun.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, that was so much fun.
Trudy Crane:
Yes, carrying them across the ocean was something else.
Kerry Diamond:
And we have talk about that, so you shot this book?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I did. I shot this book fully except for a few photos of us, of course, but fully shot our own cookbook, which is just such a gift, honestly. What a privilege. We shot it in Spain and in France, so it was such a beautiful, I don't know, it just tied everything together with the travel aspect in the book and Mediterranean-inspired travels, food and culture. It just all makes so much more sense.
Trudy Crane:
It was a beautiful trip.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It really was.
Kerry Diamond:
The pictures are so beautiful. The two of you under the wisteria, and the orange tree and the sunset behind you, it's a gorgeous book to flip through.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yeah, we really wanted to be inspiring to others, and I hope that it comes through.
Kerry Diamond:
So you shot it in Spain and France?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, exactly. In Spain we went to Majorca, which is one of my favorite places in the world, to a really small town near Girona on the coast of Spain. It was just such a amazing place too.
Trudy Crane:
Very beautiful.
Kerry Diamond:
Was it a tough cookbook to do? You two seemed like it was a really lovely experience.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh, we have some stories, honestly, podcast number two, maybe. We have some stories about what happened on our trip, but we do talk about a few of the anecdotes in the book. It was such a lovely and beautiful experience, but obviously-
Kerry Diamond:
There's always going to be things.
Trudy Crane:
Well, we lost our luggage, and the first four days we-
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I had lots of vegan cheese and vegan butter in my luggage.
Trudy Crane:
And all the dishes and everything, so we did get it back after four days finally.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh gosh, I don't want to smell vegan cheese after four days.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yeah, no, it wasn't-
Trudy Crane:
It wasn't too bad.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
It wasn't too bad, no.
Trudy Crane:
No.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
There was a few adventures, for sure.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, that's so funny. Well, congrats on the book, it's really gorgeous.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Thank you.
Trudy Crane:
Thank you.
Kerry Diamond:
And I can't wait to cook from it. There are so many things I flagged that I want to make, including the bolognese. That's probably the first thing I'll make. Let's do a little speed round. Okay, what beverage do you start the morning with?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Coffee.
Trudy Crane:
Definitely.
Kerry Diamond:
How do you take it?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
In the summer, I'm going to do an iced oat milk cortado always, it's my favorite thing. In the winter, I'm definitely going to do just a drip coffee with a splash of oat milk or soy milk, that's how I like it.
Trudy Crane:
Hot cappuccino, oat milk, every day, no matter what the temperature is.
Kerry Diamond:
I love it. What was your favorite childhood food?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
The thing that we made the most was pesto pasta, I think that was really something that we made a lot. Obviously, pancakes of course, but I loved sushi and I still do it, making sushi now. But the thing that I really loved was either like a pasta, I think that was what my request was every night.
Trudy Crane:
Almost.
Kerry Diamond:
What was your favorite childhood food?
Trudy Crane:
Toast with cinnamon and brown sugar.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, what's always in your fridge?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oat milk, for sure, and vegan Parmesan.
Trudy Crane:
Mine is tofu. I think I have four different tofu's in my fridge. I love tofu, and I really didn't like it when I first went vegan, and now I have it all the time.
Kerry Diamond:
What's your favorite food film?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
My favorite one was “The Taste of Things,” it was with Juliette Binoche. Oh my God, I cried. And I've watched it twice already, and every time, it's such a beautiful film. But also the way it is filmed, the recipes, the beauty of everything, just I want to be there. It's such a magical movie.
Trudy Crane:
It really is, and it's definitely my favorite also. It is so moving, and like Chloé said, it is just this beauty around the film, the set, the nature, the way they set the table.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
The kitchen, just, oh, wow.
Trudy Crane:
It was really inspiring.
Kerry Diamond:
That was a spectacular movie. Juliette Binoche was on the show, which was so thrilling.
Trudy Crane:
That's amazing.
Kerry Diamond:
That was a big pinch me moment.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Incredible.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, what's your favorite snack food?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Crackers and olives.
Trudy Crane:
Chips.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, traditional. What's your favorite smell?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
My favorite smell is probably garlic and onions. Honestly, when they're cooked with olive oil, butter in a pan, they just smell incredible. And even putting a bit of rosemary in there, I don't know, just garlic and onions together when they're being fried in a pan, just makes the apartment smell so amazing.
Kerry Diamond:
Even when your neighbors are doing something like that, and you walk in the hallway and you're like, "Oh."
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Yes, absolutely.
Kerry Diamond:
Trudy, how about you?
Trudy Crane:
It's probably rosemary and lavender, we have in our yard. We moved to the country, and just passing by and putting your hand over that and smelling it.
Kerry Diamond:
What's a cookbook that you treasure?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Mine. No, I'm just kidding.
Kerry Diamond:
Hey, that's okay. That's okay.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
No, I have so many cookbooks. Oh my God, it's like-
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, I do too.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I have obviously, because I buy a lot of cookbooks and also I get sent many.
Trudy Crane:
I would say for me, when we first went vegan and I was struggling a bit with what to do, I turned to Isa, and she has several cookbooks.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Isa Cooks?
Trudy Crane:
Isa Cooks, yeah. I-S-A, those are great books. Especially as a beginner, it was very detailed, and it really helped me to understand how to cook vegan food.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Okay, I'm going to say any book by Mimi Thorisson. I just adore her completely. She is such an inspiration to me. I have all of her cookbooks. She's so incredible. I think the French country one is probably my favorite.
Kerry Diamond:
Dream travel destination.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Oh, wow.
Kerry Diamond:
What's still on your list, places to go?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I really want to go to Morocco, it's been on my list for a long time. And Japan for sure, which I feel like you're probably going to say the same thing.
Trudy Crane:
Yes, definitely. For sure, Japan, I really want to go. That's top of my, same, top of my list. And to see the ceramics, and to visit some of the villages and to see some of the work that they're doing. It's amazing.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, last question. If you had to be trapped on a desert island with one food celebrity, who would it be and why?
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
I think I would actually want to be trapped with Stanley Tucci because I love him so much. I am obsessed. I just love every single thing that he does. All of his videos on Instagram crack me up, he's the best. I would watch him forever. I also was such a big fan of his show on CNN and was so sad when it stopped.
Kerry Diamond:
So good.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
So yes, him, definitely.
Kerry Diamond:
We love the Tucci.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Love Stanley. I'm also a fan.
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, he's amazing.
Kerry Diamond:
You can't say the same thing as Chloé.
Trudy Crane:
Maybe Pamela Anderson I would love to meet. She's such an avid, long time vegan. She's so dedicated to it.
Kerry Diamond:
Team Canada.
Trudy Crane:
Yeah, exactly.
Kerry Diamond:
You know she has a cookbook coming out?
Trudy Crane:
I know, and I just think that's amazing. She's got such a story to tell.
Kerry Diamond:
Oh, fun answers, okay. All right, well, you two are so special, I loved getting to know you more and more. You've put out this beautiful book into the world. And just thank you for the gifts, your beautiful mother daughter story. It's really inspiring and wonderful.
Chloé Crane-Leroux:
Thank you so much for having us, this was so enjoyable.
Trudy Crane:
Thank you, it's been great.
Kerry Diamond:
That's it for today's show. Thank you so much to Chloé and Trudy and the team at Boden for making our mini-series possible. Check back next Wednesday for more Fashion Plate. I would love for you to follow Radio Cherry Bombe wherever you listen to podcasts, and leave a rating and a review. Let me know what you think about the show and who you would love to hear from on a future episode. Our theme song is by the band Tralala. Thank you to the teams at CityVox and Good Studio. Our producers are Catherine Baker and Elizabeth Vogt. Our associate producer is Jenna Sadhu, and our content and partnerships manager is Londyn Crenshaw. Thanks for listening, everybody. You are the Bombe.