A Handful of Books I Can’t Wait To Get My Hands On. . .

This idea of writing up a list of books I’m looking forward to is constantly knocking around in my brain. Thankfully, the list never stops growing, but ultimately the works I anticipate are released and that list ebbs and flows. . . Alas, there are a handful of books that have yet to be released right now that I have been looking forward to for a long while. Perhaps it is just that I am an adult now (am I?) and I understand how the world turns a little better every year, but it does seem that thanks to social media, and the Internet on the whole, we are exposed to the progress of beloved authors’ latest works. Be it a periodic Instagram post or an apologetic/grateful blog post addressing a stressed/excited absence from their virtual space – we are given insights to how things are going, snippets to whet our appetites. 

Here are the titles I cannot wait to hold in my hands on, get cooking from, and finally see in print:

Extra Virgin: Recipes & Love from Our Italian Kitchen by Debi Mazar & Gabriele Corcos

The chemistry that flows between Debi and Gabriele on the screen and in person is practically tangible – they’re the kind of public couple you can tell are doing what they do because they absolutely love it, and love each other and their daughters. When I need some soothing I can find a clip or full episode of their Cooking Channel show. Their gentle, playful nature calms me and inspires me to get cooking. I’m looking forward to relaxed Tuscan recipes alongside their sweet and entertaining stories. [Photo from: http://underthetuscangun.com/]

Get It: May 6, 2014

Delicious!: A Novel by Ruth Reichl 

Ruth Reichl is one of my favorite writers. Her food memoirs are ones I want to re-read every year, and ones I often refer back to for reliving the moments she’s written (like hiding out in Danny Kaye’s kitchen and eating his luxurious lemon pasta). To have her writing food-related fiction has me over the moon with excitement. As far as I can tell it will be a story of: sisters, magazines, letters, and a rich tapestry of all things food. I devoured her food memoir trilogy in no time and I look forward to carving out time to take in Delicious! as soon as I get it. [Photo: https://www.facebook.com/monica.bhide1]

Get It: May 6, 2014

Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Practical Pantry by Cathy Barrow

Many moons ago I had the pleasure of meeting Cathy Barrow at my first Duckathlon. When we met I didn’t know about her blog, Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Kitchen, or about her work with Charcutepalooza (and the-one-and-only Michael Rhulman), but soon after I began following her across the board online I realized she was my kind of food person. She does an amazing job preserving the bounty of the seasons to enjoy all year long – in every form possible, not just jams and tomato sauces (although we once exchanged treats and she sent me to-die-for strawberry rhubarb preserves!). Her book is already making me want to live out my aspirational kitchen fantasies. To top it all off Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton (Canal House) did the photography for the book. The stunning cover is enough to get me anxious for what is inside.  [Photo: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/267823509064638838/]

Get It: November 3, 2014

Under the Covers: Exploring Below the Dust Jackets of Cookbooks

I’m not sure what compelled me to get under there. Maybe it was a lustiness that arose from the shirtless, tanned, fish-tossing-in-a-rough-ocean photo towards the beginning of the book that make me remove the dust jacket on Chef Ludo Lefevbre’s first book, Crave: The Feast of the Five Senses. Since that first time, I’ve wiggled my hands under the cover of many a hardcover cookbook to see what I might find or quickly bent back a front over to peek between the glossy paper and cardboard cover. Often enough the results are uninspired, a design space forgotten. But once in a while I hit the jackpot and discover lush photographs or gentle textures and reap my reward by carefully running my fingertips over the book with a glassy-eyed gaze. My heart swells, my stomach growls and my grin widens.

Chef Ludo’s interior is elegant enough, a blacked-out background with khaki-colored text. Organic swirls mimic the title on the cover, the black and off-white print play up his then edgy-rockstar cooking style:

Others simply utilize the space to mimic their cover art, such as Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours, Paula Wolfert’s The Food of Morocco, and Nigella Lawson’s Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home. Not exactly inspired, but better than nothing:

Some go as understated and tasteful as desired… not just on book covers…

"An Everlasting Meal" and "Ratio" WINNERS!

Thank you to everyone who entered and shared the giveaway of these great books from Tamar Adler and Michael Ruhlman. They are fantastic tomes that I recommend you make part of your own collection. It was wonderful to read over all your thoughtful comments about how you integrate economy and grace into your own kitchen routine as well as which of Ruhlman's ratios piqued your interest. 

I divided all the entries into those for An Everlasting Meal and those for Ratio then used random.org's random number generator to choose the two winners...

Giveaway!: Tamar E. Adler's "An Everlasting Meal" and Michael Ruhlman's "Ratio"

My initial plan had been to hit 1,000 followers on Twitter and finally giveaway one of my favorite books of the past year: Tamar E. Adler's An Everlasting Meal. Unexpectedly, Michael Ruhlman stepped in like a knight in Twitter armor to tip my follower count beyond 1,000 (more than 20 people) in less than 30 minutes. So rather than just give away one favorite book, I thought why not also give away one of my favorite Ruhlman books as well? In addition to Tamar's book I will be giving away a copy of Ratio.

So here we are! I had been hearing a lot about Tamar Adler's book before I actually bought myself a copy. Similar to how it took me a few months to decide to pick up Lauren Shockey's Four Kitchens.  What gave me the go-ahead to check out Tamar's book was after she started following me on Twitter (before I even knew she was on Twitter!). I took that as a bit of a sign to find out for myself what all the buzz was about An Everlasting Meal. Gladly, I was very quickly enchanted by her writing style, the easy way she instructs her audience to fearlessly get in the kitchen, cook what you have, and make the most of every bit of food you buy. Economy and grace, indeed. 

On the Twelfth day of Christmas... Twelve Amazing Cookbooks!

The last day of my 12 Days of Christmas gift guide is full of my favorite things- cookbooks! Like the 11th Day, you should be able to run out to the book store and pick up most of these great books, making them perfect last minute gift ideas. Again, I recommend a gift receipt if you are giving these books to friends and family with plentiful cookbook libraries. Enjoy! 

Cooking in the Moment by Andrea Reusing. During the Kitchen Arts & Letters book sale this spring, I scooped up this first book from Andrea Reusing. It is visually beautiful and filled with drool-worthy recipes. She gently takes her reader through the seasons with simple yet innovative ways for using whats available. This is for your friends who love amazing recipes and food photography. 

Cook This Now by Melissa Clark. I've come to sing the praises of Melissa Clark plenty of times this year. She's a delight as is her newest book Cook This Now. Like Reusing's book Clark's is full of seasonal recipes focused on local food that really make you want to make all the recipes ASAP. Read about why I love her and then get this book for the people on your list who do most of their shopping at the farmer's market or co-op. 

French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook by Mireille Guiliano. It is disheartening to me that this book is classified as "diet" or "weight loss" because it is one of the greatest cookbooks I own. Guiliano's outlook is just to eat really good food, in simple ways with moderation and above all joie de vivre. This is not a diet book! It is full of fabulous recipes that make you feel good about yourself just reading over them, while making you hungry as well. I really recommend this book for any Francophiles, lovers of simple food and fans of Mireille's other books. Check it out for yourself- its one of the best.

Tante Marie's Cooking School Cookbook by Mary Risley. Tante Marie's made my list of cooking schools on the Sixth day of Christmas and the Tante Marie cookbook would make a great gift paired with a gift certificate for the school. I liken this book to a sort of Julia Child's cookbook with a Californian flair. It is highly instruction with lots of notes on the given recipes. She includes plenty of basics along side original recipes. A perfect book for someone who cooks a lot but wants to learn more techniques. 

In the Small Kitchen by Cara Eisenpress and Phoebe Lapine. I think I came upon the Big Girls, Small Kitchen blog via a giveaway. Their book is a tasty volume of recipes perfect for college student and recent graduates getting into their own kitchens for the first time. Not to be misleading by that, these are full fledged recipes perfect for everything from feeding a party of 8 to oneself. This gift will keep on giving, too, for once they discover the book they will then have the blog to keep up with that has fresh recipes, cooking tips, entertaining ideas and giveaways. Wrap this up for your favorite 20-somethings who are home for the holidays. 

The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones. Written by the woman who got Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking published, this book has recipes perfect for the single chef who believes in a little indulgence. This book has been pretty revolutionary for me, the constantly solo cook. There are so many recipes I want to try but always hesitate to pare down from 6 or 8 servings to 1 or 2 just to have something like bœuf bourguignon. Jones gives perfect recipes for one, many French inspired and all delicious. An excellent option for your dear friends who live alone but absolutely love to cook. And not to be morbid at all, but the reason Jones is left cooking for one is due to the lateness of her husband-- this book could uplift someone who has lost their loved one and get them back into the habit of cooking.

Twenty by Michael Ruhlman. Oh Michael Ruhlman, how do I love thee? Let me count the techniques.... This is one of two Ruhlman books on this list because he is just that amazing. I found out about Ruhlman watching Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations Christmas special last year. I thought, who is this handsome man with such amazing hair? I immediately Googled him and found his wonderful blog and the opening recipe for home made English muffins. He's so smart and logical and makes great food even more amazing. This book discusses twenty techniques- methods and ways of using key ingredients like salt and water. The photos are descriptive and stunning (taken by his wife Donna). Give this book to everyone! Even if they don't cook out of it (try not to though) it would be a fabulous coffee table book. (I got this for someone on my gift list and its also on my wish list- Twenty for everyone!)

In the Green Kitchen by Alice Waters. Staying in the vein of technique, In The Green Kitchen gets the best chefs and friends of Alice Waters together to create this volume of simple recipes for making everyday food. Recipes for things like pesto, simple tomato sauce and how to make and dress a salad from the masters of each. It is a basic yet luxurious volume of recipes, again, perfect for anyone but especially lovers of local and organic ingredients.

Ratio by Michael Ruhlman. I heart Michael Ruhlman part two. I picked up Ratio in late spring after reading so many blog posts about making your own bread. Shortly after I bought my kitchen scale for macarons and trying some of Ruhlman's recipes out with the extreme precision a scale allows. Amazing! This slim paperback is misleading, thinking it might be a funny little work on how things equate when it comes to food. What you get is a book bursting with recipes simplified to their most basic that come together quickly and perfect every time. A nice one for new and experienced cooks alike.

Crave by Ludo Lefebvre. I couldn't very well get through a proper cookbook list without Chef Ludo, could I? I've sung the praises of Crave a few times in the past, but this is an especially special present because it is out of print. Luckily, if you can't find it you can just look forward to the forthcoming LudoBites Cookbook (I know I can't wait!). This book is an inspiration that encourages me to play with flavor combinations and techniques in my own cooking. Superb for any Chef Ludo lovers (or, as we're called "Ludo Bitches") or people who like big colorful cookbooks with creative recipes. [I know Kitchen Arts & Letters had a copy of the book, which may have sold, but I'd try there first!]

The Food of Morocco by Paula Wolfert. My birthday is right around the corner (New Years' Day!) and I'm throwing myself a Moroccan themed party. I gifted myself her brand new book on Morocco and have been raving about it ever since. It is a complete look at Moroccan food and an examination of how people dine in Morocco, what spices they use and more. I can't wait to cook from it next week. For any Moroccan food/culture enthusiast in your life, this is the book for them. Also great for travelers and lovers of North African food. 

Ideas in Food by Aki Kamozawa and H. Alexander Talbot. This book is full of crazy ideas for amazing things to do with food. I don't have the book but I follow the Ideas In Food blog and they always have ways of stretching the way we normally think of ingredients. A really great idea for any chef stuck in a rut and totally perfect for your friends working the line in restaurant kitchens to keep them inspired and on their toes.

As I finish writing this "Auld Lang Syne" has come on my iTunes. I hope you've enjoyed all 12 days of Christmas here on The Culinary Librarian and that you got some great ideas for gifts to friends, family and probably yourself. Thank you for reading!

Wishing all of you the happiest of holidays, 

the merriest of Christmases and 

the most magical of New Years!

On the Fourth day of Christmas... For the Macaron Lover

Macarons have been such a huge part of my life the past two years. I have developed a small library of books on the subject, any of which would make superb holiday gifts to the macaron enthusiast. All these books are a joy to look through, so even if your macaron lover never plans to make them, they will still enjoy reading about the process and possibilities. 

First is the new Les Petits Macarons which I was so impressed with I have already given out a copy to a lucky Culinary Librarian reader! This is a very "giftable" book, as well. An inch thick and about 6" square this book would look great open with macaron batter smears on it or kept pristine as a coffee table book. You can read more on why I love this book in my posts about it here and here. 


Next up is Mad About Macarons! by Jill Colonna. I won this book from Jill from her blog- I found out I had won while I was IN Paris! I really like how straightforward Jill's recipes are. This would be an excellent book for a baker who really wants to get to baking macarons right away, it is the least fussy with plenty of mouthwatering photos. Pair this with a simple kitchen scale like this. 


One of my favorite macaronneries in Manhattan is MacarOn Cafe. Both locations of this little cafe are chic and welcoming. I especially enjoy spending a little time at the 59th/Madison Avenue location before heading to events at FIAF. Anyway, Cecile Cannone has a book for how to make macarons her way titled Macarons: Authentic French Cookie Recipes from Macaron Cafe. I've only attempted her recipe once in my early macaron-making days but it is a good little volume covering all their favorite flavors. This holiday season they are offering this clever little macaron kit that includes a copy of the book, piping outlines, almond flour and powdered sugar, pastry bags and a tip and food colorings. The perfect gift set for anyone ready to make macarons at home! 


And finally I offer to you my first macaron book that I received last year with my food processor (most recipes will recommend processing the almond flour and powered sugar together): I Love (Heart) Macarons. This is also a good starter volume with especially helpful troubleshooting and then decorating/presentation ideas. This book along with Macarons and Mad About Macarons! all include recipes for using up those endlessly leftover egg yolks- an absolutely necessity! This is the least expensive of all the books and wouldn't be a bad idea to pair with any of the above books. 

I own all of these books and consult each of them for different things during my macaron making processes. You can mix and match different shells with fillings from other books and combine decoration ideas, etc. I'm glad to have each in my library and any true macaron lover would certainly be overwhelmed to receive all at once as a gift, but would truly be grateful to have all of them over time. I also happened upon these cute macaron ornaments yesterday while shopping at Sur La Table- so wrap up these four books in paper, tie them together with ribbon and slip one of these ornaments into the bow-- Parfait! 

On the Third day of Christmas... Ruth Reichl

For the third day of Christmas I want to share a gift I already have and cherish entirely, the gift of Ruth. 

Within the time frame of the past year I've become a serious fan of Ruth Reichl. Sure, I love her ethereal tweets and I think Gilt Taste is great, but its her trilogy of memoirs that has made me a proper fan of Ruth. I devoured Tender at the Bone while on vacation in Cape Cod, I gobbled up Comfort Me With Apples shortly after and now I'm onto Garlic and Sapphires, hesitating to move too quickly through it for I know there is no immediate book to follow (I will probably get to For You Mom, Finally at some point, though). When I read in the recent WSJ interview with her that there are three more books on the way I was overjoyed.

She is an inspiration to me, to the possibilities of my own life - in my career, in my love life, in my geographical location. Her three memoirs follow her journey from childhood through to the offer to be editor of Gourmet. Reichl is one of the true greats we are lucky enough to have among us in our lifetime. Her three books together will make an excellent present (whether they know it or not) to any food lover or aspiring writer. Start by getting Tender at the Bone from Gilt Taste that comes with a bookplate signed by Reichl herself (half wishing I didn't already own a copy so I could get this!). 

On the Second day of Christmas... Ultimate Ice Creams

The second day of Christmas adds two more items to my wishlist: an Ice Cream maker and the Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams cookbook.

Among some combination of an unair-conditioned apartment and reading a slew of tweets over the summer about everyone running their ice cream machines I decided I will require one of my own someday soon. I've had my eye on the Cuisinart one which goes for around $50 on Amazon and which I've heard good things about from others who have it. It would be highly impractical for me to acquire one now since I lack even counter space for my beloved Cuisinart Food Processor(last year's major present) in that same steamy apartment. Someday.

If you are thinking of getting an ice cream maker for someone this season, be sure to pair it with the Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams book. The joy of tasting Jeni's ice creams has yet to be mine, but the best way to try these raved about treats if you don't want to order them is to make them at home using the cookbook (coolbook?). (Sidenote: mailing these ice creams would make a really excellent gift, less so around the holidays and more so on birthdays, Valentine's day, special occasions, when someone you love is under the weather etc.). I first heard about Jeni's after seeing a tweet from Suvir Saran about a macaron ice cream sandwich. Jeni's isn't the only one slipping ice cream between those maddeningly wonderful French cookies, but she was the first person I heard of who was (You can also have the sandwiches shipped!).


A few other things that would pair well with these two: plastic quart containers (for storing the ice cream when its made), a great scoop, sundae toppings, cones and maraschino cherries.

"Les Petits Macarons" signed copy WINNER!

Bonjour my macaron lovers! I am happy to announce I have selected the winner of the signed copy of the Les Petits Macarons book. Thank you to everyone who entered and who shared the giveaway with friends and followers. There were a handful of entries by email in addition to those left as comments on the giveaway post. I used a random number generator to pick a number between 1 and 25, 25 being the total number of entries. Here are the results: 

Entry #25 is.... 

GIVEAWAY! Les Petits Macaron: Trials In the Kitchen

Last month I spent a bit of time thinking about what my next giveaway would be. Naturally, another book was a given, but which one to choose? Recently I have been churning through books at lightning speed and allowing myself a weekly stock up at Kitchen Arts & Letters. Finally I thought since you know how much I love macarons and because I would be going to the Les Petits Macarons book party this month-- a signed copy of the beautifully designed and comprehensive book would be parfait! So here we are. 

My initial plan was to quickly turn out some amazing, homemade macarons and show them off to all of you in the same week that I bought the book. As plans of macaron-makers worldwide tends to go, that's not what worked out. Making macarons is a bit of a challenge because there are so many factors at play each time you make them, especially if you don't follow the directions of your recipe (like not bothering to age your egg whites or let them sit out at room temperature for 2 hours before whipping). The most successful macaron baking sessions come when you really know your cooking tools, especially your oven. This past week I have learned that my oven heats unevenly as well as inconsistently. Not impossible to work with for macarons, but definitely more difficult. I have also found some joys this week, like how decadent and sexy (yes, sexy!) French-style buttercream is. The keys to baking macarons at home are knowing your oven, following the recipe, exercising patience and remembering no matter how ugly your macs turn out, they are still probably going to be delicious! Now I shall tell you The Story of Les Trois Macarons with the giveaway details at the end:

Freerange Nonfiction Presented "A Night of Food Writing": Four Books You Should Check Out

This past Wednesday night I attended the Freerange Nonfiction Reading Series event at Pianos on the Lower East Side. Freerange Nonfiction is a group supporting and preserving the art of nonficition by nurturing writers and holding monthly readings. Recently they started doing more thematic readings and kicked off Wednesday with the theme of Food Writing. I heard about the event from Jonathan Dixon's Beaten Seared and Sauced Facebook page and decided to check it out. 

Four authors would be reading from their own books of food/drink-related nonfiction. Naturally, Jonathan Dixon was there to read from Beaten Seared and Sauced, Max Watman read from Chasing the White Dog, Lauren Shockey read from Four Kitchens, and Danyelle Freeman read from Try This. You know by now I loved Dixon's book but I have also been meaning to read Shockey's Four Kitchens. I had heard of Freeman's book but did not know much about it and I hadn't heard of Watman or his book before the event. I was looking forward to an evening of good readings and more titles to add to my constantly expanding list of books to read. That was just what I got. 


Being at Pianos I felt a bit out of place, not quite trendy or "hip" enough to be there in my all black ensemble. The crowd was small, mainly due to the never-ending rain we'd experienced all week, but they were happy to be there. Mira Ptacin got the evening going with an introduction to the evening and Freerange Nonfiction. Then Max Watman started the readings with an excerpt from Chasing the White Dog.

Watman's book is about his journey through the world of Moonshine. He read the chapter titled "Skillet's Place." From the moment he finished reading the first page of his selection, I could tell Watman was a great writer and that his book would be a joy to read. In this part of the book he's exploring the nip joints where moonshine is served and trying to see if he can go to one or at least acquire some moonshine that is sold in one. The descriptions he gives of how he imagines them, the realities he discovers, the people he meets (and the dialogue with them) and finally the moment he tastes some nip joint moonshine are vivid, entertaining and intriguing. You want to know more. Even though I had not heard of Watman before Wednesday night, he is on my radar now and I plan to read his book even though I'm not very interested in moonshine. 

Creamed Spinach Ravioli and Eating for Beginners Giveaway!

This past October I attended the New York Public Library event The Locavore's Dilemma where I met Melanie Rehak and bought her book "Eating for Beginners." As you may have read in the post about the event, I thoroughly enjoyed reading her book and taking an adventure through the food system with her. Today I am writing about Rehak's book again because I've been given the opportunity to giveaway TWO copies of "Eating for Beginners" that has freshly arrived in paperback form! Her publisher was kind enough to send me two copies to giveaway to you, my readers! I know any of you will relate to Rehak and enjoy her prose and story, as well. The book is also a mini cookbook with one or two recipes after most sections. For the giveaway, I thought it would be a fun idea to make one of her recipes in a wild and crazy way and share it here. 



In autumn I made the tasty, heavily buttered and baconed Brussels sprouts that were a discussion point at the NYPL event and they came out great (page 186). The other recipe that always stood out to me from her book was her "Lucky Dog Creamed Spinach" (page 14, you could say I have a thing for green leafy vegetables slathered in butter). All of the recipes have a fun title like this that usually reflect where the ingredients came from or how the recipe came about. Lucky Dog is a farm that supplies produce to the place Rehak works throughout the book, applewood restaurant in Park Slope, Brooklyn. As part of Rehak's locavore education, she takes to tracing the ingredients in the restaurant back to their source and learning how they get from farm or sea to table. When she visits Lucky Dog she spends the cold, damp, pre-dawn day picking spinach out in the field. Upon arrival to work at the restaurant the next day, the very same spinach she helped pick had been delivered and ready to be used for the restaurant's dinner service. Rehak makes it into creamed spinach and Lucky Dog Creamed Spinach is born. 


Since there is a half pound of butter in her recipe and I wasn't expecting company- I decided I would quarter her recipe, make it for one and actually created creamed spinach raviolis from it with wonton wrappers I bought the other day. As odd as it sounds, the spinach mixture works really well as a ravioli filling. The béchamel around the spinach makes for a silky, hearty and flavorful inside to the raviolis. Don't have ricotta on hand? Use this instead! You could also add bits of meat or other vegetables to this. Little bits of bacon would add a meaty pop to each bite. 

PARIS Part I: A Parisian Homecoming

More than two years after returning to the US from my semester in Paris, the opportunity to go back came in the form of a week-long vacation with great friends. I had a mix of excitement and anxiety leading up to my trip, concerned my French would be too rusty and that I might not remember how to get around. Once I took out my suitcase and started packing, all that apprehension melted away. . .

I arrived at CDG in Terminal 2 which I know very well after bringing my father to the airport after a visit and leaving from Terminal 2 at the end of the semester. After getting my bag I knew just where to go to get on the RER B into Paris. Once settled on the train I was on my way with an indelible smile across my face; ready for vacation, ready to start a sort-of homecoming.

Now, when I was studying abroad I was in Paris for four months I used a NaviGo (a month-long unlimited metro card) for getting around the city. Unlike Metrocards in NYC if you have a NaviGo you have to put your picture and name on it. Metro riders can be fined if they don't have a picture on their NaviGo or if they don't have a cancelled one-way ticket from entering the subway. In four months time I never had a ticket or my NaviGo checked for validity.

Giveaway!: The Locavore Way by Amy Cotler

***UPDATE***
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I will extend the contest to Sunday at 4:00PM EST! 


As promised, now that I have reached 400 followers on Twitter I am doing my first giveaway! One of you will win a copy of Amy Cotler's The Locavore Way. Just in time for the height of Farmer's Market season you will have an amazing resource for the best ways to find and enjoy local ingredients.

The Locavore Way at the green market

Cotler's book is a powerful petite volume full of tips and tricks for finding the best local produce and getting the most out of it when you bring it home. I purchased the book last summer during my trip to Portland and it has helped me relearn how to shop and eat locally. Cotler includes great lists such as: "15 Ways To Become a Locavore," "Ways to Make the Most of your CSA Bounty," and a full list of local fruits and vegetables in "Play With Your Food." Many, like the one below, are perfect for copying and posting on the fridge as a reminder to eat and shop locally.

Beginning with a history of Farmer's Markets, U-Pick stands and CSAs, Cotler gives a great overview of today's options with an appreciation of how we came to them. While reading through the book you will find yourself becoming a greater proponent of locavory and learn new ways to seek out the produce growing nearest to you. 

A Discussion and Review of Jonathan Dixon's memoir Beaten, Seared and Sauced: On Becoming a Chef at The Culinary Institute of America

Thanks to Kitchen Arts & Letters I found out about a great event on May 19th at the Museum of the City of New York to promote their current exhibit Movable Feast: Fresh Produce and the NYC Green Cart Program. Jonathan Dixon discussed his first book Beaten, Seared, and Sauced with food writer Andrew Friedman. I'd heard a little bit about the book, mostly in the same breath as Michael Ruhlman's The Making of a Chef; this comparison seems to be drawn mostly from the idea that both have written about attending the Culinary Institute of America, not based on style (I have yet to read Ruhlman's book). The day of the discussion I read the first few pages of the book online. When I hit the words "Grateful Dead" on the very first page and "Bob Weir" on the second, I had an inkling I'd really enjoy both the book and hearing Dixon speak later that evening (I was destined to be a Deadhead before I was even conceived). 

The Museum of the City of New York is an impressive building sitting across from Central Park on upper 5th Avenue (my brief walk through SpaHa from the subway stop over 3 city blocks was only slightly intimidating). The event was held in a small auditorium just within the side entrance. Friedman and Dixon spoke to the audience from a small raised platform in grandfather's-study style arm chairs. 

Kitchen Arts and Letters Book Sale!

The day before the Duckathlon I spend my early afternoon loitering around in Kitchen Arts & Letters, New York’s resident cookbook store. I told you about this place last May after my first visit, but I thought it deserved a post all to itself. Just a few days after reading about a serious weekend-long book sale at Rabelais Books in Portland, ME I got a newsletter in my inbox saying KA&L would be having their own! Rejoice!

The sale was confined to a table in the back of the (not large) store. Because the space given for the sale was small, books were being brought out from storage in shifts, hence the loitering. Every cover had a colored sticker in the upper left hand corner and signs with prices were hanging above the table. Prices ranged from $1 to $10.

I got there an hour after the sale began and saw some good ones had already been scooped up by shoppers; most notably A Return to Cooking by Eric Ripert and Michael Ruhlman. The narrow space took a bit of maneuvering to make sure you could look through what was already out but most importantly see what was coming out new. I admit I was watching the store employees like a hawk waiting to see when they went in the back and positioning myself as close as possible to where the newbies were being placed.

The system worked well and

An Evening with Patricia Wells: Salad as a Meal

By far one of the best decisions I've made since moving to Manhattan was becoming a member of FIAF (French Institute : Alliance Française) this past Bastille Day. Tonight found me at another great event in Le Skyroom with my good friend Kyle (also a FIAF member). 

Kyle waiting for the talk to begin

FIAF welcomed Patricia Wells for the American launch of her brand new cookbook Salad as a Meal. Tonight's event was the first in a series of 3 talks and a city-wide tour titled Gardens for Gourmets. Each talk will have a notable guest to guide the conversation and tonight we were happy to welcome the well-known Ina Garten who is a long-time friend of Wells. 

Garten introduced Wells as the second most influential person in bringing French cuisine to America, of course, after Julia Child. Salad as a Meal is Wells' 12th book. One of her best-known works is The Food Lover's Guide to Paris (which I believe Wells said would be coming out in a newly revised and updated version soon). Garten remarked that Salad as a Meal is a combination of what Wells loves - fresh, simple market ingredients and easy, beautiful cooking. Garten recollects that when she and Wells go to fresh markets, Wells is always asking the growers what they do with their bounty; 'well what do you do with those raspberries?' Finding out what the people who are bringing the food to the table do with it in their own homes is a way to come up with new ways of using ingredients. 

Wells and her husband, Walter Wells, split their time between Paris and Provence. The couple moved to Paris in 1980 when Wells' husband was offered a job as an editor for the  International Herald Tribune (and he has a piece in the recently released, excellent collection of works about Paris, Paris Was Ours). They stayed on in Paris for Wells' job as a restaurant critic for the International Herald Tribune. Before becoming the cookbook author and Paris/Provence home cooking school teacher she is today, Wells worked extensively as a journalist and restaurant critic. When speaking about what it is like living in France she mentioned how a foreigner is always an outsider looking in, never fully part of the "club." As a journalist she found this exteriority to be a helpful perspective, aiding in giving a view  on a subject at arm's length.

As the first of a series of "Gardens for Gourmets" talks, Wells spoke to her own growing philosophy. In Provence she has a beautiful garden (there are some stunning photographs in the book), Wells encouraged audience members to grow something (same advice Marion Nestle gave at a talk I attended in June 2010). Rosemary was her best suggestion for a good, hearty herb to grow on an urban windowsill (if only I had windows!). Boasting an impressive garden, last year she had 40 varieties of tomatoes and even has her own vineyard producing a Côtes du Rhône. (You can find her wine at Eli Zabar's W.I.N.E next to TASTE on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.)

Culinary Destination: Portland, Maine

During my vacation in Albany I was fortunate enough to be able to accompany my dad on an overnight business trip to Portland, ME. I went to Maine as a child with my parents but they are not times I really remember. Recently my friend The Creative Culinarian moved from NYC to Portland so I also was able to see her briefly which was a real treat. 

                                           
 My day in downtown started at the Standard Baking Company, 75 Commercial Street. As per recommendation from Tiffany I enjoyed a ham & cheese croissant. Here they top these delightful French treats with sesame seeds adding a level of crunchy texture that pairs nicely with the pillowy texture of the croissant. The ham inside is meaty and hardly fatty as some sliced ham can be; the cheese is melted down to a sauce-like nature-- not hardened as some cheese croissants can get after sitting. All of this made for a warm delicious breakfast I paired with a fresh iced tea sweetened                                                                              with simple syrup.

The Longer You've Been Away, The More You Cry-- Reading Kat Flinn & Crying my eyes out

I just finished Kathleen Flinn's "The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry". Nothing I have read in the past year and a half since returning from studying abroad in Paris has conjured up so many memories of the City of Light or so many tears from my eyes.

It always seemed to me that people went abroad to their country of choice and had the time of their life-- making new friends from across the globe, travelling all around the region they are staying in, in Europe hoping from country to country every weekend, etc. Of course I figured it would be no different for me. I don't know if I had been more excited for anything as I was to leave for Paris. I decided I would go abroad late in the game, bored with my school and seeing the same people everyday on our campus of about 5,000. I was ready to change it up for my senior year so I didn't leave Geneseo bored and bitter. Plus I knew it was the best time to get away without being weighed down my bills, loans, rent, a job etc (all of which I have to deal with now!) and didn't want to let to opportunity pass. I applied in winter for the program, was accepted in early spring and had a long summer to work and prepare to leave in late September.

All summer long everything I said and did was about Paris. Paris came up to everyone who asked me about school; once I knew some of the people in my program we started e-mailing/IMing/facebooking; every other sentence from my mouth seemed to have Paris in it. I couldn't wait.

My trip really started with packing... packing too much! I worked at New York & Company the whole summer before leaving, so with my employee discount and their constant sales I amassed a whole new wardrobe which of course I felt I needed to bring with me! Bad idea.. should have saved my euros to get new clothes in Paris. So I set out to the airport with my parents and 3 ridiculously heavy suitcases which I think will be no problem because I am meeting our program director at the airport and we are being brought into the city on a tour bus.

We come into the city and I am eager to get to my foyer where I will be living for the next four months which is located on Ile St-Louis-- the smaller of the two Parisian islands located in the Seine. Unfortunately my quaint little island does not allow tour buses on it! This news is not good due to my heavy load to carry. I struggle across Pont de la Tournelle then a nice man offers to help me and I accept immediatement. I am surprised and delighted. I'm a little anxious so I don't let him walk all the way to Foyer la Vigie with me-- just in case.

The courtyard to the foyer is charming. The next challenge is getting my luggage up 6 flights of a worn down slippery spiral staircase up to my room. It works out well enough that I leave my open suitcase on the bottom and bring my things up seprately. Though I packed too much, I still packed smartly and used the large ziploc bags to put all my things in so this was easy.

By the time I'm done I try to set up the internet only to find there is no internet in my room (some say its because the buildings are too old and the walls to thick, i think its just because la vigie like to keep somethings un peu ancien). This led me, my overtired, hungry, jetlagged self to start the fountain of what would unfortunately be many tears falling Paris. 


So I was home sick nearly the whole first month of my stay; thought about seriously leaving within the first week. It was all ridiculous but I certainly grew (up) from it and do not regret how I spent Paris at all. It all boiled down to loneliness and fear which eased each day I was there. I got a good sense of a handful of areas in the city and cannot WAIT! to get back with my loved ones and be able to play tour guide. 


Paris continued and I began to see her beauties daily. In the patisseries the beauty came in the form of sugary confections and fresh baguettes and pain au chocolat; on the streets the beauty was in the old buildings, the street performers, school children running wild, and of course the lovers kissing on every bridges; indoors were the greatest beauties passed through the ages at the Louvre, the Musee d'Orsay, and even within each peek into Paris' many courtyards hidden by large metal doors which open up to reveal little oasis' at the center of apartment buildings. Paris is a place that has not left me and is forever in my heart. Flinn's wonderful descriptions rekindled many memories for me that I had nearly forgotten; for this I am very grateful. 


Reading "The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry" had me tearing up every couple pages and longing for Paris worse than before I left for the first time. Merci Meeze Fleen!