Beat it
We’re always curious as to what goes on behind the scenes of a restaurant’s kitchen; how the food is made, the sexism in the kitchen, the different stations, the burns, blah, blah, blah. Currently, I’m (Caroline speaking) reading Dalia Jurgensen’s memoir “Spiced,” so I may be a little more interested than normal. I personally like being behind the stove, cooking away, concentrating on the meal and not the service aspect, that’s the fun part for me. So when Tasting Table tweeted about Shuna Fish Lydon’s (the pastry chef at Peels) Gooey Butter Cake it led me to her fun and informational blog, Eggbeater. Wanna know about opening a restaurant? becoming a chef? how to interview for a restaurant job? She’s got the post and the information not to mention the experience (Bouchon, French Laundry, do you need more?). Have a look, if you’ve ever been curious about the restaurant life.
The Ultimate Craving
We are really excited to be a part of Issue 2 of Remedy Quarterly, not only is it a great magazine but created by really amazing people. Half of the creators are one of our favorite couples ever, Aaron and Kelly Carambula. This new issue is all about cravings, with contributions by David Lebovitz and Ashley English to name a few. And for us, what more would we crave than sweets and fried food, FRIED CHICKEN and WAFFLES. Yes, together and yes, it’s delicious!
Continue reading The Ultimate Craving…
Book Nook: Kim Severson’s Spoon Fed
The only thing I love more than making and/or eating food is reading about it, and luckily, there is plenty of well-written material out there to satiate my mind’s appetite. It seems like everyone and her mother has penned a food memoir, and I will happily read every one, though some are obviously better than others (Orangette’s A Homemade Life is one of my recent faves and right now I’m plowing through Ruth Reichl’s Comfort Me With Apples). Kim Severson’s Spoon Fed, however, takes the food memoir down a different route. Yes, it’s still about The New York Times’ food writer’s life and how food played a part in it, but it’s just as much about the eight women who have made a huge impression on her, in life as well as in the kitchen. She takes you into Marion Cunningham’s home, out to lunch with Ruth Reichl, and to the Farmer’s Market with Alice Waters. She writes about becoming friends with Rachael Ray, breaking into New York’s food scene, and visiting a well-known New Orleans restaurant post-Katrina, all while navigating her family, her love life, and her alcoholism (the book’s subhead is How Eight Cooks Saved My Life and she means it literally). Of course it’s stacked with a few recipes as well (I reeeeally want to make the Meyer Lemon Meringue Pie with Marion Cunningham’s No Fear Pie Crust), but it’s Severson’s honest, straightforward writing style that’s the real draw, particularly her insider’s peek into the lives of these culinary icons. There’s no food snobbery here (she quotes James Beard early on: “A hot dog or a truffle. Good is good.”), just inspiring women leading interesting (and delicious!) lives.
The Art of Eating In: Our week of not eating out
I’m sure you guys know all about Cathy Erway and her supercool blog Not Eating Out in New York. And you probably already know that her blog birthed a book, The Art of Eating In, which is hot off the presses. But did you know that Cathy’s teamed up with the Huffington Post for an awesome seven-day experiment called The Week of Eating In? Well, we’ve read the book and we’ve taken the pledge and we’re gonna tell you all about both right here. It may only be Day 1, but we have a feeling that eating in is WAY harder than Cathy makes it seem. However, we’re pretty sure that the money we’ll save, the waste we won’t be creating, and the delicious dishes we’ll be cooking up will make it worth our while. So, if you want a fascinating insider’s glimpse into the burgeoning DIY food scene, pick up The Art of Eating In, and if you want to save the world and your wallet one meal at a time, take the pledge yourself. Or if you just want to experience both vicariously, come along with us on this little culinary adventure. We’ll be posting ruminations and recipes all week, including one of Cathy’s own. (Curious how we got our week of eating in started? Last night we made 101 Cookbooks Giant Chipotle White Beans so we could eat the leftovers for lunch today and tonight we’ll be scarfing down Martha’s Perfect Macaroni and Cheese. Both keepers. And that’s just the beginning!)
Meet n’ Meat
I haven’t read Cleaving*, the new book by Julie Powell. And to be perfectly honest, I haven’t read Julie & Julia either. But I have seen the movie multiple times, enough to be intrigued by the real person behind Amy Adams’ hideous haircut and annoying celluloid presence. Perhaps you feel the same? I decided to brave the cold to hear Julie Powell read at McNally Jackson last night, and you know what? She seems way cooler in real life. She read a couple NSFV (not safe for vegetarians) passages from Cleaving, one that described her first day as an apprentice at Fleisher’s and one that recounted the drawing of blood from a cow’s neck for consumption in South America. And when she took questions afterward, she swore like a sailor which I found totally endearing. She was also very frank in her ruminations which I suppose shouldn’t be surprising since this latest tome is full of intimate details of her broken marriage and torrid affair. She was also wearing a pair of kind of amazing glittery heels. What I’m trying to say is, I’m a bit relieved that this real life encounter eradicated my negative snap judgement, ’cause both of her books are high on my to-read list, and now I can enjoy them without the baggage of bias. If you’ve got an opinion of them, please, do share!
*Aren’t you wondering who illustrated that beautiful cover? It was our buddy Chris Neal!