Barry Estabrook, What Are You Reading?

Earlier this month, the James Beard Foundation Award winners were announced, and Barry Estabrook was the winner in the Individual Food Blog category. On his blog, Politics of the Plate, you’ll always find interesting information about how food is produced and the myriad issues related to its production. This was not Barry’s first James Beard Award. In 2010, he was awarded for his Gourmet feature about tomato growing and associated labor abuses in Florida. That story has led to his upcoming book Tomatoland, to be released in June, which expands on the issue of industrial agriculture and the true costs of growing tomatoes as we do now. He was formerly a contributing editor at Gourmet for eight years and now serves on the advisory board of Gastronomica, The Journal of Food and Culture, and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, TheAtlantic.com, MarkBittman.com, Saveur, and Men’s Health. I knew I’d hear about some interesting books when I asked, what are you reading?

Barry:

I got a Kindle for my birthday recently and immediately down loaded Upton Sinclair’s 1906 muckraking masterpiece The Jungle (for free, no less!). It had been decades since I’d read the novel. Having recently reported on the exploitation of workers in Florida’s tomato industry for my book, Tomatoland, I was appalled how many of the abuses Sinclair describes still exist today: below-poverty wages, exploitive slumlords and merchants, crooked bosses, and multimillionaire owners who live far from the conditions they profit from so handsomely. The extremely conservative anti-union movement gives me concern that things will only grow worse.

I live with Rux Martin, who runs the cookery publishing program at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, so needless to say, our house is overflowing with cookbooks. They line the walls floor-to-ceiling in our sunroom, overflow the shelves in the kitchen, and rise in a tottering tower on a counter. There are hundreds of seafood recipes within their covers—most of which call for species that environmentally conscious cooks avoid. What a relief it was, then, to get a copy of Barton Seaver’s For Cod and Country: Simple. Delicious. Sustainable. The book is full of color photographs, both evocative and step-by-step how-to. The recipes are imaginative. And the ingredients are seasonable and sustainable.

Thank you for participating, Barry. Check back to see who answers the question next time and what other books are recommended.

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Joanne Chang, What Are You Reading?

Growing up in a traditional Chinese household, Joanne Chang didn’t experience sweet desserts after meals until she was introduced to them by friends. Luckily for us, she did indeed develop a sweet tooth which led her to a serious interest in desserts and pastries. Sure, she dabbled in consulting after graduating with honors from Harvard with an Applied Mathematics and Economics degree, but soon enough, she began her career in food. After working at a few restaurants in Boston, she took the opportunity to work as a pastry cook at Payard Patisserie in New York before returning to Boston to open her own bakery. The name of that bakery, Flour, comes from the idea that even the most complex things start with basic elements. Today, there are three locations of Flour Bakery and Cafe, and Joanne is also an owner of Myers + Chang with her husband Christopher Myers. Last October, her book Flour was released, and I’ve been having a great time baking from it. The book will be celebrated this Sunday at the The Beard House in New York where Joanne will prepare a sweet and savory brunch including her famous sticky buns, smoked salmon tartines, bacon quiche, and brioche doughnuts with chocolate pudding. I managed to steal a moment of her time this week to ask, what are you reading?

Joanne:

Thai Street Food by David Thompson- a truly gorgeous book. As inspiring as Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet was to me when we first opened Myers+Chang. The recipes are all authentic and he doesn't take shortcuts. His exploration of the street foods of Thailand make you want to jump on the next plane to SE Asia. The photos are mouthwatering and the people watching from the book's vantage point is like being there.

My Bread by Jim Lahey- I love his method of bread baking and have had such success with it at home. I love bread and My Bread allows me to enjoy it more easily at home.

Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson- I'm as in love with this book as I am with Tartine, the pastry book. The methodical and professional explanation of how to make bread are terrific for someone like me who knows a bit about bread but wants to learn more.

The Sweeter Side of Amy's Breads by Amy Scherber- Amy's Breads is my must-see place whenever I go to NYC. Of course the breads are great but over the years I've fallen in love with Amy's scones and cookies and cakes, all of which are in this book. She has a great matter of fact way of explaining the recipes and stories behind them that I always enjoy reading.

Blood, Bones and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton- My husband got an advance copy and I read it in one sitting. Prune is one of my favorite restaurants in NYC and I found Gabrielle's life story fascinating. She's lived about a million lives in one and she's the real deal.










Thank you for participating, Joanne. Check back to see who answers the question next time and what other books are recommended.

Previous WAYR posts:
Jaden Hair
Michael Ruhlman
Monica Bhide
Michael Natkin
Sara Roahen
Andrea Nguyen
David Lebovitz
Rick Bayless
Tara Austen Weaver
Mollie Katzen
Deborah Madison
Soup Peddler
Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan
Robb Walsh
Kim Severson
David Leite
Dan Lepard
Carolyn Jung
Joan Nathan
Melissa Clark
Dianne Jacob
Zoë Francois
Yotam Ottolenghi
Lucinda Scala Quinn
Barbara Lynch
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Monica Bhide, What Are You Reading?

Monica Bhide, incredible cook, cooking instructor, food writer, food writing instructor, and author of three cookbooks, contributes regularly to iSpice, an online column for The Washington Post, the DC CityGuide for ARRIVE magazine, and is a weekly food blogger for AARP-The magazine online. Her most recent book is Modern Spice, and her twitter feed was just voted the best in food in DC by The Washington City Paper’s Best of DC 2010 guide (@mbhide). And, she shares beautiful recipes and great information on her site. I knew Monica would have an interesting answer when I asked her, what are you reading?

Monica: 1. Every Day in Tuscany by Frances Mayes - I have been totally immersed in this book recently. Mayes is one of the most poetic writers I have ever read. Her words take me to Tuscany, make me feel like I am in the piazza with her, sipping my cappuccino and watching the miracles of everyday life on a street corner. I want to breathe the air she breathes, eat the roasted chestnuts her husband roasts over their fireplace, and gaze in wonder at the masterpieces of artists she loves. She makes me want to wander. A perfect read for lovers of food of all kinds but especially for those longing for a bit of romance and those filled with wanderlust

2. The Soul of a New Cuisine by Marcus Samuelsson - I interviewed chef Marcus once and totally fell in love with his philosophy on food and spices. And I love his book. The recipes are enticing and make me want to run into the kitchen. Who would not want to make a caramelized mango soup with poppy seed rice pudding or a spectacular beet ginger chutney. This book is perfect for a spice-lover like me!

Thank you for participating, Monica! Check back to see who answers the question next time and what other books are recommended.

Previous WAYR posts:
Jaden Hair
Michael Ruhlman

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Michael Ruhlman, What Are You Reading?

What Are You Reading is a new feature that will appear from time to time here on lisa is cooking. I’ve been open about my obsession with books and food publications, and I thought it might be fun to ask around and find out what other people are reading. I want to know what people have read lately that was interesting or inspiring. So instead of asking what’s your favorite book ever, I’m asking what are you reading?

Michael Ruhlman has appeared on several television shows including Cooking Under Fire on PBS, was a judge on the Next Iron Chef on the Food Network, appears occasionally as a judge on Iron Chef America, and has been a featured guest on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. His most recent book is Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking, and he recently co-authored the cookbooks Ad Hoc at Home and Michael Symon's Live to Cook. More of his informative and thought-provoking writing as well as stunning photography by Donna Ruhlman can be found on his blog. I wanted to know: Michael Ruhlman, what are you reading?


Michael: I most recently finished Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human. A delightful and compelling read, the book argues that it was the eating of cooked food that shaped our bodies into what they are today and shaped our society.


Also, I’ve been reading The New Yorker food issue with excellent stories on taste creation, Michelin restaurant evaluators, and Calvin Trillin.





I’m currently finishing much needed non-food reading, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, an excellent long novel.













Thank you for participating, Michael! Check back to see who answers the question next time and what other books are recommended.


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