The first week of the fall semester, Cypris Wilkinson G’26 found she needed to change an elective fast.

A graduate student in the Goldring Arts, Style and Culture Journalism program in the Newhouse School of Public Communications, she was looking for a class in food journalism but hit upon a unique alternative.

Wilkinson’s solution was to restart “Cooking with ’Cuse,” a food show created by graduate students that had been on hiatus for the last two years after they graduated. She learned about the program from Meg Craig, general manager of the Orange Television Network and an adjunct instructor.

“I was like, ‘OK, how do I revamp it? What do I do? Where do I start?’” Wilkinson says. “Everything happened really fast once that happened. I really wanted to do something in food, and it fell into place so easily.”

Three weeks into the fall semester, the program was up and running with a crew of students Wilkinson recruited. By the end of December, the team produced and aired four episodes, ranging from segments featuring Syracuse locals like Mamma Hai’s chef Ngoc Huynh and Matt Read from Spatchcock Funk to themed holiday specials.

‘Sign Me Up’

The program is hosted by Maggie Robinson G’26, who Wilkinson reached out to “cold” on Instagram as she was working to resuscitate the show.

Robinson, who is in the broadcast and digital journalism program on the sports track in Newhouse, was struck by the opportunity.

Growing up, she wanted to own her own restaurant. But her passion for college sports eventually eclipsed her culinary goals.

“I was thinking all my extracurriculars were going to be super sports heavy,” Robinson says. “I had my blinders on.”

She says Wilkinson’s message, asking her if she’d be interested in hosting a revamped “Cooking with ’Cuse,” “unlocked” a part of herself she’d forgotten about and finds joy in.

“I love cooking, and my mom was so big on bringing people together through food,” Robinson says. “She’s an immigrant herself, so she uses it as a way to teach us about different cultures. And I was like, ‘Wow, if I can have any part in this, sign me up.’”

Wilkinson, who serves as executive producer of the show, and Robinson bonded quickly over how food connects people and their shared passion for learning about the history and people behind a cuisine.

Soon after, Wilkinson brought on her director of photography, Malcolm Taylor ’26. Anna Lapidus ’28, who is double-majoring in television, radio and film and in marketing management, joined as the show’s editor.

Taylor, a photography major in Newhouse, was excited to join the show because of his own passion for food.

“It was very natural and so much fun to work with these people,” he says. “It was wonderful.”

Connection Through Food

In its previous iteration, “Cooking with ’Cuse” focused on students, bringing them on to cook dishes. Restarting the show, Wilkinson knew she wanted to incorporate the broader Syracuse community.

Filming the show in the kitchen at Salt City Market, rather than on campus, helped the team connect with members of the local food scene.

By including community members, viewers get more than just a recipe—they learn about the food and the person making it.

“We did our research, and I would come prepared for the episodes,” Robinson says. “But as the conversation flowed, we would let things happen. So it didn’t feel so tightly wound, and it was more comfortable for the viewer.”

Wilkinson wants students to relate to the episodes and connect with the show’s guests, but the hope is that the content appeals to viewers beyond the campus.

“Syracuse as a whole is our audience,” Wilkinson says. “With some stuff we have planned, we are hoping to branch out a little bit, but still want to appeal to our Syracuse audience.”

The team filmed an episode on the road in Chicago over break and hopes to do another in New York City during this semester.

“The Syracuse episodes are focused on the community here, but hopefully it’s showing people everything food can do,” Robinson says. “You eat it for nourishment, but it’s also a vehicle for so many other things and so much connection.”

‘We Want to Do as Much as We Can’

As the new semester gets underway, the team plans to do more episodes featuring Salt City Market chefs and experiment with on-the-road and “at home” segments.

“We’re really excited about this semester, to jump in and get going and have a little more planning,” Wilkinson says. “We’ve talked about how we’re on limited time now that we’re graduating, so we want to do as much as we can.”

With Taylor, Robinson and Wilkinson all graduating in the spring, they hope to establish a show model that can be handed off to new students to continue the program next year alongside Lapidus.

Wilkinson, Robinson and Taylor have had such a good experience working together, they’re also talking about collaborating on producing food media after they graduate.

“We’ve fallen in love with the idea,” Wilkinson says.

Meeting and working together has been one of the best things about reviving “Cooking with ’Cuse,” they say.

“Meeting all the fantastic people around Newhouse, and seeing all the resources Newhouse has, just blows my mind every single time,” Robinson says. “The production value on this show is insane, because of the resources and because we have people like Anna, who is really good at editing, and Malcolm, who’s fantastic at photography and video. This is very professionally done, and they’re also amazing human beings.”