One rainy day this winter, I treated myself to a morning at a café that not only has delicious food and a great atmosphere, but also has this wonderful wall of cookbooks. They are the proprietress’s collection, open to perusal over a steaming cup of coffee or pastry. This wall is like Christmas morning to me – full of so much lure and excitement I hardly know where to start.
I somehow managed to narrow it down to a few choices and settled into this perfect morning. At Home with Michael Chiarello may not be the first cookbook I opened, but it is certainly the one that fully absorbed me. You could say I’m a bit of a Top Chef junkie and thus was familiar with Chef Chiarello as a contestant on Masters Season 1. He was personable on the show and I liked him even more as I started thumbing through the pages of this book. His recipes are approachable, creative and playful. It was hard to put this book back on the shelf that day.
Luckily I have a husband that is a good listener, and took note when I made mention of this cookbook that already had the cogs of my brain turning with new ideas. Shortly thereafter, a copy of my own arrived on the doorstep. The first thing I made was the Crispy Sausage-Stuffed Olives – one of the recipes I had drooled over that rainy day. In fact, this whole cookbook makes me want to call in sick to work and just dive in – cooking all day and then inviting a big table full of friends over that night to enjoy. I’m thinking the Italian in Chef Chiarello would approve.
I totally agree – a long morning left alone with cookbooks is the best! I worked at the public library in Boise and I always enjoyed the hour before we opened – walking around straightening the shelves and taking a long look at some of the cookbooks. I used to test them out and if I liked at least 5 recipes, then I would consider buying a copy for myself. Have you gone into a Tavola on Grove St? They have a wall of cookbooks.
I love A’Tavola for so many reasons… a big one of which is their wall of cookbooks. That’s where I first saw the cookbook I wrote about in this blog. I went home and raved about it so much that my husband immediately ordered it for me. I’ve only made a couple things out of it, but am inspired to get it back down off the shelves and revisit it now that the days are getting cooler and darkness comes earlier and earlier making it easier to stay inside and cook. Maybe you’ll see a blog post inspired by it again soon.
I am really enjoying your blog about your new adventures. I am a friend of Po’s but have clearly not seen him in awhile as I had no idea you were moving. I’d love some details on what took you to the other side of the world. Cheers!
OH, that makes sense! Of course you’ve been to a Tavola! And knowing Po means that you probably got this link from his FB site? Regardless, I’m glad to meet you online and to read your posts about food. I’m missing the September tomatoes in Boise – really, all the fall cooking will be something to miss. I like your blog too – I am obsessed with cooking and I love to read about new foods or new ways of fixing old favorites. Great pics too. We’ll have to meet in person when I return. We moved to Singapore because Po had a one-year sabbatical from IEP and he took a job as an ED doc in one of the hospitals here. We’re hoping to travel all over Asia during this time and explore things we might not otherwise see. And the food here – LORD! It is something else. I hope to write a post or two on food once I get my bearings and try a few more things. I’ll stay in touch through your blog or you can email me directly at jsubach@yahoo.com. Or friend me on FB. Take care – j
Yes… got the link to your blog from Po’s FB site indeed! I too am obsessed with food… but you probably figured that out since I have a food blog. 🙂 Bistro OneSix can also be found on FB. The blog posts are linked there too but there’s also more links out to recipes and such on the FB page.
So, is the food in Singapore good, bad or just different? I’m a big Anthony Bourdain fan and if you haven’t already, maybe you could find the episode of No Reservations where he’s in Singapore. He LOVES that country for its food if I do remember correctly. I can’t wait to read all about your experiences there. Maybe it will inspire me to cook more Asian.
Hope you’re starting to get your feet under you. I look forward to following your adventures. Linda