On this episode of Taste Buds with Deb, host Debra Eckerling speaks with actor, writer, and philanthropist Patricia Heaton. While Heaton has created relatable characters on TV over the years (“Everybody Loves Raymond,” “The Middle,” “Carol’s Second Act”), she is also known for her commitment to philanthropy, as well as a love of food.    As founder of an organization called O7C, which stands for October 7th Coalition, Heaton has been organizing a series of unity dinners, designed to bring Christians and Jews together in conversation. Recently, Heaton and O7C partnered with Maman Nonprofit for an event with The Dream Center Foundation in Los Angeles.   “Sharing a meal together is a sign of peace and of unity ,” she says. “It's the perfect way to start helping our communities get to know each other.”    For Heaton, growing up in an Irish Catholic family was a world away from the food she discovered, as a result of working in entertainment. She explains how she got a food education after moving to New York City; working with Phil Rosenthal (“Somebody Feed Phil”) only amplified it. (Deb previously interviewed Phil and Lily Rosenthal on Taste Buds for their children’s book, “Just Try It!”)   “Phil Rosenthal, who created “Everybody Loves Raymond,” [also] had a mom who wasn't a great cook,” she explains. “Even as a starving actor/writer in New York, he would save up money all year, and then for his birthday, he would take himself out to a very high end restaurant.”   Rosenthal brought that same sensibility to “Everybody Loves Raymond.”    “He also introduced me to the finer things in life, as far as cuisine was concerned,” Heaton explains. “It didn't start out that way, but eventually my adventures in the entertainment industry took me to all these great food places.”   Heaton, whose books include “Your Second Act” and the autobiographical “Motherhood and Hollywood -- How to Get A Job Like Mine,” also has a cookbook: “Patricia Heaton’s Food for Family and Friends.” Get Heaton’s recipe for Chicken Chilaquiles at JewishJournal.com/podcasts.   “For someone who works in an industry where everything is sort of ephemeral - you go in front of cameras, you do stuff, but the editor takes it away,” Heaton says. “You have no idea how it's going to turn out, you don't know if anybody's actually going to watch it.   “It's great to be able to go into a kitchen, pull some ingredients together, start cooking,” she explains. “At the end of it, you have a meal and it actually is nourishing yourself and others; it's a very tangible thing.”   Heaton talks about the O7C and her other interfaith experiences - including her first seder, her food and cooking evolution, and so much more.   Learn more about O7C at october7coalition.com and follow @PatriciaHeaton on Instagram.   For more from Taste Buds, subscribe on iTunes and YouTube, and follow @TheDEBMethod on social media.