Thanks to all who offered criticisms last night. They were all to the point and valuable. Here's a second pass.
Food Porn
I walked in the front door and confronted a huge bowl of paella. At least, I thought it was paella. The perfectly shaped peas, bell peppers that seemed to glow, glistening mushrooms, and rice coated with a creamy golden sauce -- as well as few things I couldn't immediately identify -- had me salivating in moments and whispered "paella" in my mind. Paella or not, I know the dish was Spanish because emblazoned across the book's cover was Spanish. In smaller type below the title I read, "150 mouth-watering step-by-step recipes."
I bought it, of course. The book was filled with simple, genuinely "mouth-watering," recipes as well as gorgeous pictures. I opened the book and read about Banderillas, a tapa composed of olives, anchovies, and cornichons and featuring a photo that seemed to spill from the page. Another recipe offered Flash-Fried Squid -- a significant weakness of mine. Delving deeper there was an exquisite photograph of an avocado, orange, and almond salad. The Pan-Fried Sole with Lemon and Capers I already knew and loved (tilapia is a good substitute in the US). And what right-thinking Southerner could resist a recipe for Empanada that included pork and sausage in a cornmeal-based pastry shell? I was hooked. The bargain price of $2.99 was irrelevant. I would have paid ten times that without a further thought.
I seldom buy cookbooks anymore (as opposed to books about cooking and eating -- which I still buy). When I need ideas I hit the Internet. It's fast, offers a huge range of recipes, and it's easy to crib an idea here, a technique there, and an ingredient over yonder and quickly combine them into a recipe that meets my needs.
But this book… I took it home and drooled over it for a week before deciding where to start -- what to cook first. And now that I've begun, I've picked the next three recipes to try. And marked three more for later -- including one I plan for my birthday at the end of September. This, my friends, is a cookbook.
Last night I made Cochifrito and Patatas Bravas. Mmmm… Good food. In fact, seriously good food.
(recipes will follow)
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Comments: 27
Perhaps you're not doing it right.
Your lack of "virtue" is your most endearing characteristic.
Ya' know. The fun thing about Gather is the number of people who are not only smart enough to detect an allusion, but knowlegable enough to recognise it.
But that said, mascarpone, artfully applied, can indeed be down and dirty.
Thanks. There are some talented editors around.
Donna,
Thanks for all the help. The best editor I ever worked with was also the second best writer I ever worked with and he was insistent on the need for "more eyes."
The article with recipes will be on my blog sometime tomorrow. And would you do me another favor? You said you read my blog. If you ever notice anything in the writing that bothers you, please mention it. I'm not asking you to take on the job of editor, but I'm sure that, like me, you notice things sometimes.
Well, yes.
(And yes, I do read the blog. If I do notice anything I will certainly let you know, I'm flattered that you asked.)
Bugs on my veggies. I guess that makes it organic.
Thanks.
A year or so ago I ran across a web site that consisted of 100 photographs of nude females -- all ages, body shapes, colors. It was an extraordinary exploration beautifully executed and I shared it with some friends. One friend thought it pornographic because some of the females were children and one was of the photographer's mother.
I find it hard to imagine anyone being titillated by those spare black and white images, they were gorgeous, but rarely salacious.
I'm glad you like my porn -- presuming you recognize it is intended as porn. It's purpose is to make you desire the food. To covet that succulent lamb chop. To breath heavily when confronted with fresh herbs. To desire a peach.
Word!
Need title of cookbook immediately....! (please, she humbly begs....?)
Here's the link:
Spanish
The Complete Spanish Cookbook
I have made the Potato Tortilla on page 104, the Chilled Avocado Soup with Cumin on page 95 and a couple of other things!
I'm making a pork Empanada this evening from the book.
I remember we talked a bit about empanadas my first week in Gather...........!
This one is a killer! Photos and a link to the recipe by sometime Monday.
> Hell, I want to fly. I do not follow recipes.
Yah. I've flown an airplane twice -- it's pretty addictive. So's cocaine, which I've also tried.
> Gee, why am I babbling.
Because you're thinking about a trip here, in your plane, some time in the next year to eat something. After all, if you can't fly somewhere just to have a meal, then why bother flying? Well, aside from the addiction thing.
A long time ago.
Liz,
I got more than just my toes wet, but I got involved in old-timey music and bluegrass when I was 18 and drugs just weren't part of that scene -- on the other hand, white lightening was.{g}
And yes, I am old, older than I ever expected to be.