As we are nearing Halloween, I thought I should look at some books devoted to creepy-themed dishes. I grabbed a few titles from our collection and tried to find something fun to make. The first book I looked at just didn’t work for me (more on that later). Thankfully, there was another book I had brought home: “Zach Neil’s The Nightmare Before Dinner: Recipes To Die For.” Continue reading “Read The Recipe! Spooky Food”
A few weeks ago, I started watching the old uncensored versions of Kitchen Nightmares. This led me to finally watch the short BBC series, Boiling Point. The Boiling Point mini-series followed Chef Gordon Ramsay in his quest to be the youngest chef to be awarded three Michelin Stars. And finally, I then became interested in some Gordon Ramsay cookbooks. I knew he had written a few (lol), but they were more mainstream, home-cook fare. Though, while writing this, I did find that he wrote a book about The Aubergine (the restaurant he left before opening Restaurant Gordon Ramsay), but we don’t have it in the collection. Coincidentally, he has a new effort devoted to his first (and best) location, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay; “Restaurant Gordon Ramsay: A Story of Excellence.” (Typical Gordon Ramsay modesty.) Continue reading “Read the Recipe! Gordon Ramsay: A Story of Excellence”
I have really been struggling with food and cooking lately. It’s not that I don’t love food (because boy do I love food!) but I just can’t seem to get the energy or inspiration to cook. Maybe it’s the heat. Or maybe I’m just bored with the same five things I’ve been making forever. But I’m hungry. And I’m not sure exactly what I’m hungry for. Connection? Community? Comfort? Curiosity? I need inspiration but I just find it difficult to sit down and read a cookbook. I need stories. So here goes my quest for food inspiration through memoirs. Continue reading “Tasty Memoirs”
When I started out as a cook, I didn’t really have any disposable income, so I couldn’t go to restaurants and sample what the local established chefs were doing. My window to technique and flavors was books and television. A few celebrity-type chefs guided me from afar: Jacques Pepin, Anthony Bourdain, Gordon Ramsay, Ming Tsai, Mary Ann Esposito, Lidia Bastianich, Nick Stellino, David Chang. If you’re about to chastise me for not mentioning Julia Child, sadly I watched her much earlier than this time I am referring to. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses, their own angle on what makes a dish, or a meal, great. (If you notice, almost all of these chefs had shows on PBS; specifically, my local station, PBS Wisconsin, Channel 38.) I would watch these shows and steal flavor combinations, learn the traditional dishes of their ancestry, watch their methods, skills and techniques. I would bring this new knowledge into my home kitchen and my work kitchen. Continue reading “Read the Recipe! Lidia Bastianich”
We have (finally) entered the summer season and for some that means finding a sandy beach or a quiet forest to relax and keep cool. “Summer! A Cookbook: Inspired Recipes for Lazy Days and Magical Nights” has you covered for most of your eventualities. Whether that be the food and drink or all the essentials needed for comfort in the wild. This book is small enough to throw in your backpack or beach bag, but certainly is comprehensive enough to not leave you stranded for solutions. Continue reading “Read the Recipe! Summertime”
This Juneteenth, consider including some new-to-you foods that honor our country’s African American heritage. If you find that doing this is remarkably easy and delicious, don’t be too surprised.
In the founding days of our nation it was usually Black Americans, typically enslaved people, feeding not only most of the founding fathers but also the field hands and the entire household. The foods that came out of their kitchens were a unique blend of African vegetables and spices, ingredients available in colonial America and the preferences of the diners. While American food includes a dizzying array of influences from our diverse immigrant population, there is no doubt that the work and creativity of Black Americans in our nation’s kitchens still resonates through menus today. Continue reading “Celebrate Juneteenth With Food”
This month, I would like to look at “Greenfeast: Spring, Summer.” This completes the coverage of seasons started in “Greenfeast: Autumn, Winter ” which I wrote about previously.
As you may guess, in this volume author Nigel Slater gives dishes that are generally lighter, fresher and visually brighter.
One of my favorite parts of this collection is that the time commitment seems to be quite short; who wants to spend hours in a hot kitchen during summer? Simple dishes and small ingredient lists make for quick dinners. Eating fresh, plant-based dishes also gives you an excuse to visit the farmer’s market, by the way.
The recipes are mostly vegetarian-friendly and can be made to even vegan standards (with slight modifications), if necessary. Each dish is given a ridiculously brief name, mainly because the recipes are simple. The only issue I can see is some ingredients can be a bit difficult to find, but I like to think that gives me the freedom to make it my own.
Recipes are sectioned by time of day, or an indication of how it is prepared or how it is served. A couple that caught my eye: Mustard Guacamole, Mozzarella, Bagel looks like a great breakfast sandwich. Pasta, Tomatoes (see what I mean about ridiculously brief names) could be scaled up to create a nice dinner with lunch leftovers.
As a companion to “Autumn, Winter” I think this succeeds in finishing the task set by the author. Enjoy!
Recently, I watched the movie “The Menu.” I loved it: I saw bits of myself in a few of the characters on either side of the pass. Here is a short synopsis of the film: an ultra-exclusive restaurant prepares a special menu for a select clientele.
Essentially, “The Menu” is a horror/comedy/satire piece on the fine dining experience. Between this movie, other recent stories spilling secrets on the culture of restaurant work, and the recent announcement of Noma’s impending closure (Noma is a many-times named Best Restaurant in the World and is planning to close in 2024), some have started calling for the end of fine dining, whatever that means. The issue for many is the impression that all fine dining restaurants are hyper-competitive, intense, toxic workplaces that can destroy people. Though those accusations are damning, the idea of “free labor” was the final straw. In some high-profile places, like Noma, talented and ambitious cooks are hired, but not paid. According to “The Sorcerer’s Apprentices” by Lisa Abend (a book about the now-shuttered restaurant named el Bulli), the cooks are paired with a host family and generally they eat at the restaurant (the “family meal”). My view has been these types of positions are for a special few, and the sacrifice is repaid through contacts made and through future earnings. Generally, these types of situations are only found at high-end places, but the pressures and expectations can find their way to “regular” establishments. You might have dined in a place that suffers from the same problems, even here in Mid-Missouri. Continue reading “Read the Recipe: Noma 2.0”
This month, I am looking at a fascinating collection of recipes, stories, interviews, visual art and essays: “Ghetto Gastro: The Black Power Kitchen” is an amazing book written by three Bronx natives. The text is peppered with wisdom, enlightenment and that Bronx voice. Oh, and some seriously good recipes.
There is so much to like about this book, there’s so much to learn from this book and there’s so much to be inspired by from this book. From the art, the photographs, the interviews, it makes the recipes almost become secondary. In fact, I will inject here that I think the recipes ARE secondary, what I gathered from the text and illustrations was a goal of shifting a mentality. One of those steps is to move away from a meat-based diet. Many of the meals use plant-based options, though there are some items that cannot be replaced, e.g., fish and a very tempting jerk chicken selection. Continue reading “Read the Recipe! Food Is a Weapon”
December is here, and for many of us that means baking. And baking cookies, specifically. Holiday cookies are a great way to connect generations of family in a task sure to create memories. When we think of holiday cookies, what comes to mind? Sugar cookies, peanut butter blossoms, ginger snaps, snickerdoodles? Sure. Those are all fine and have a place on the table, but maybe you want to show your cousin who the real cookie boss is in the family. Here’s where the mad genius, the rule-breaker, the one marching to the beat of her own Hobart mixer… Christina Tosi, comes in.
Listen, I know you want to recreate the holidays of your youth and create memories for your youngest family members, and that is commendable, but we can do better. “All About Cookies” is the newest book by Christina Tosi, and, as expected, it is amazing. Continue reading “Read the Recipe! Stop: Cookie Time!”
