Food Books

June 2 and 25: Genevieve Sherrow's gluten-free classes

POSTED: Wednesday, May 25, 2011, 11:51 AM

Filed Under: Food Books | Food Events

Local nutritionist/author Genevieve Sherrow is the founder of Gluten-free Warrior, a nutritional education program derived from Sherrow's recently released cookbook filled with gluten-, wheat- and soy-free recipes. GF Warrior has teamed up with La Cucina at the Reading Terminal Market (12th and Arch streets) to share how to live within the constraints of a gluten-free diet with ease, and there are a couple of upcoming classes to kick off the series.

Next Thursday, June 2 (5:45-7:45 p.m.), Sherrow's demonstration, Gluten-free Budget Friendly, Quick and Easy, will center upon keeping a whole-foods diet while remaining conscious of your budget — she will be preparing and sharing recipes that cost less than $20 and take less than 30 minutes to prepare. Some dishes include curried carrots and chickpeas; rainbow veggie chili; and quinoa with zucchini and mushrooms. This leg of the demo series costs $30, and includes recipes, food samples and educational materials.

Later on in the month, on Saturday, June 25 (11 a.m.-1 p.m.), Sherrow focuses on gluten-free brunch — all of us GF humans can probably agree that it's the most frustrating and difficult meal that exists, with all the pancakes and Belgian waffles and French toasts — by preparing a millet-based porridge with seasonal peaches; a scramble of scallion, nori and walnut; and buckwheat waffles. Interested? Register by contacting Anna Florio of La Cucina at 215-922-1170 or sign up at lacucinaatthemarket.com.

Posted by Laurel Rose Purdy @ 11:51 AM Permalink | Post a comment

Win a copy of Matt Armendariz's On A Stick!

POSTED: Wednesday, May 18, 2011, 11:48 AM

Filed Under: Contests | Food Blogs | Food Books

We've got a giveaway copy of L.A.-based food blogger/photographer Matt Armendariz's On a Stick! — published by Quirk, it's a gorgeous cookbook literally centered around fare stuck on sticks, from curry shrimp and pineapple skewers and chicken satay to deep-fried candy bars and adorably impaled Scotch eggs. You like, you want? Entering is easy: Before 4:30 p.m. this afternoon, leave a comment on this post describing a Philly-based dish you'd like to eat off a stick, and why. It can be a restaurant dish, something from a food truck, something your Armenian neighbor makes, anything — just tell us why you want to gnaw it off a stick, dude. We'll pick our favorite by the end of the day. Have fun!

UPDATE: Cheers to Meal Ticket reader bje55 for his inspired and locally logical food-on-a-stick suggestion:

Roast Pork a la Jack 'n Jill. I'm envisioning something resembling the famous Chocolate eclair and strawberry shortcake popsicles from childhood, but in mine the middle will be perfectly roasted pork held together with copious amounts of lardo. The outer crumble will consist of caramelized onions and roast garlic with a hard sharp provolone stick.

Posted by Drew Lazor @ 11:48 AM Permalink | 8 comments

Miami's Michael Schwartz at Amis June 15

POSTED: Wednesday, May 18, 2011, 9:43 AM

Filed Under: Chef Salad | Food Books | Food Events

Philly native Michael Schwartz, a 2010 James Beard winner (Best Chef: South) for his cooking at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink in Miami and Grand Cayman, is making the most of his mid-June trip to his hometown for Marc Vetri's Great Chefs Event. On Wednesday, June 15, the night after the fundraiser, he'll hop into the kitchen with Brad Spence of Amis (412 S. 13th St.) to cook a four-course dinner collaboratively dubbed "Genuine Amis." The meal — inspired by recipes out of Schwartz's new Michael’s Genuine Food: Down-To-Earth Cooking for People Who Love to Eat — costs $100 a head and will include a copy of the cookbook. Tix available online; rundown of the comfy-sounding coursework after the jump.

Click for more »

Posted by Drew Lazor @ 9:43 AM Permalink | Post a comment

IN PRINT: City Paper Food and Restaurants, May 5

POSTED: Thursday, May 5, 2011, 11:45 AM

Filed Under: Food Books | In Print

- Adam Erace visits Mark and Eric Plescha, the undercover brothers who run the modern BYOB Charcoal in Yardley. The self-taught chefs, who took the restaurant over from their father, are using modern techniques to their best advantage. "Family and rebirth are the themes of Charcoal's story," says Erace, "and from the open, come-say-hi kitchen to the down-to-earth service, that sense of togetherness colors the dining experience."

- Author Jennett Conant — who's at the Free Library in Philly tonight — chronicles Julia Child's pre-cooking exploits in WWII espionage and black propaganda in her book A Covert Affair: Julia Child and Paul Child in the OSS. Though the book is far more political than culinary, it does offer some amazing insights into Mrs. Child — she was an experienced opium slinger, for example.

- In Feeding Frenzy, there's word on Spread Bagelry and a new Center City Saxbys Coffee, plus all sorts of other little vittles.

- Over in What's Cooking, Laurel Rose Purdy shares details on a jam-packed food/drink week: Check out details on a high-grav "beer goggles" dinner at Varga Bar, next week's Meal Ticket panel event (more on that here!), some Mother's Day ideas and more.

Photo: Neal Santos

Posted by Drew Lazor @ 11:45 AM Permalink | Post a comment

Prune's Gabrielle Hamilton at Amis Industry Night April 4

POSTED: Monday, February 28, 2011, 5:03 PM

Filed Under: Chef Salad | Food Books | Food Events

We made it quite clear how much we admired Gabrielle Hamilton's memoir Blood, Bones & Butter in our Feb. 24 issue, and it's cool that Philly fans of the Prune chef/owner's book will be able to meet the author at an April 3 First Person Arts brunch at Pumpkin. Now comes word that Marc Vetri, who's been pals with Hamilton since they met at the South Beach Food & Wine Festival a few years ago, will host Hamilton at April's first-Monday-of-the-month Industry Night at Amis (412 S. 13th St.). "Anyone heading into or even thinking about heading into culinary school should have to read [Blood, Bones & Butter]," says Vetri, who's read the book twice. "It gives you an idea of what they're in store for." Early in the book, Hamilton writes in beautiful detail about the elaborate lamb roasts she and her family would organize for their friends and neighbors in nearby Lambertville; they'll recreate this meal for Industry Night attendees on April 4. So big a Blood, Bones & Butter booster is Vetri that he's actually purchased 150 copies of Hamilton's book for the event the first 150 folks through the door will receive a free copy, which they'll be able to get Hamilton to sign.

blue

Posted 2011-02-28 17:02:58

Taunt?  Sounds like they're trying to protect us.  The food industry is not for the faint-hearted.

Dave

Posted 2011-02-28 15:07:38

Now they're just trying to taunt those of us who don't work in the food industry, aren't they?

Posted by Drew Lazor @ 5:03 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Tonight: Gluten Free Warrior book event at Grindcore House

POSTED: Wednesday, February 9, 2011, 4:47 PM

Filed Under: Coffee | Food Books | Food Events

South Philly's vegan coffee shop, Grindcore House (1515 S. Fourth St.), hosts author/nutritionist Genevieve Sherrow tonight at 6 p.m. for a discussion of her debut book, Gluten Free Warrior, a how-to guide for taking charge of a gluten-free lifestyle as well as a collection of GF recipes. Sherrow, a graduate of the MS Nutrition program at Seattle's Bastyr University, will discuss the contents of the book and the story behind how she came about writing it. During the talk, samples of her recipes will be available â look forward to a Thai-style bouillabaise and quinoa with nori, sesame and raw cashews, among other dishes. Grindcore has recently added gluten-free baked goods to its vegan repertoire, and feel that this event will enlighten all of us as to how those living without gluten can manage their lifestyle while still taking pleasure in what they eat. Following the book discussion will be a Q&A with the author. To learn more about Sherrow, check out her blog here.

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Posted by Laurel Rose Purdy @ 4:47 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Feb. 2: Author Jessica B. Harris at Geechee Girl Rice Cafe

POSTED: Tuesday, February 1, 2011, 4:17 PM

Filed Under: Food Books | Food Events

geecheegirlricecafe.com

Tomorrow evening, Geechee Girl Rice Cafe (6825 Germantown Ave.) will be host a collaborative of food and non-fiction. Jessica B. Harris â the writer and food historian featured in CP's food section this week â will highlight her new book, High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey from Africa to America, while partnering with Geechee Girl chef Valerie Erwin on a roots-inspired four-course meal. The menu will include recipes from some of Harris' 11 cookbooks, which focus upon the African diaspora and its effect on New World cuisine in Louisiana, Brazil and Puerto Rico, among other places. Look forward to traditional Senegalese Yassa, a famed roasted leg of lamb, and much more. Harris' book will be available for purchase at the dinner. Seats are $55 per person; call Geechee Girl (215-843-8113) for required reservations. UPDATE: Additional menu items include Akara (traditional African black-eyed pea fritters), sugar cane shrimp over warm sweet potato salad, Romaine and orange salad from Harris' Kwanzaa cookbook, sides such as cous cous and braised collard greens, and Geechee's very own lemon pound cake with pecan praline.

arlene

Posted 2011-02-01 11:39:14

I wish I lived in Philadelphia. This will surely be a taste treat. I want all of her amazing cookbooks.

Posted by Laurel Rose Purdy @ 4:17 PM Permalink | Post a comment

IN PRINT: City Paper Food and Restaurants, Dec. 16

POSTED: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 6:34 PM

Filed Under: Food Books | In Print


Photos \| Neal Santos

- The lead piece in CP's latest Book Quarterly casts an eye on the manymanymany cookbooks out there just waiting to be scooped up for the holiday gift-giving season. Justin Bauer and Char Vandermeer recipe-test tomes from Mark Bittman, Nigella Lawson, Dorie Greenspan and more, breaking down which are the belt-busting best. - Adam Erace raps about the wraps at Philadelphia Chutney Co., finding that most all the dosa and uttapa renditions at this vegetarian quick-serve Indian street food joint are on point. - The Founding Foodies examines the eating/drinking habits of American icons like Washington, Jefferson and Franklin, and how their hobbies, professions, likes and dislikes shaped the culture of the time and influenced how we eat today. - There are some good food events scheduled in this, the calm before the pre-NYE storm. Check out What's Cooking for word on an Iron Chef tasting menu, a very Jewish Christmas celebration and more. - Shot Tower Coffee, Marabella Meatball Co. and Kennett all brand-new, and all detailed in the latest Feeding Frenzy.

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INTERVIEW: The Spice Necklace author Ann Vanderhoof

POSTED: Monday, June 21, 2010, 6:28 PM

Filed Under: Food Books | Food Events | Interview

Food and travel writer Ann Vanderhoof was still riding the Caribbean surf aboard her sailboat, Receta, when we chatted about her new book, The Spice Necklace, and her upcoming June 24 Edible World visit to Philly. By the end of our conversation, her island-infused accounts of curry-clouded hamlets and medleys of stewing fruits had summoned the steel-pan music in my head. In case you're not familiar with the Canadian's work, her story's pretty typical — magazine editor and husband get tired of the rat race, drop everything, sail off to the Caribbean, eat, cook, eat some more and then write a book about it. OK, so maybe we can't all go cruising the West Indies. But Vanderhoof's knack for sniffing out the quirky charms of Caribbean life ensures her books are a perfectly seasoned blend of escapist travelogue and original cookbook. This Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Chestnut Hill Farmers Market (8229 Germantown Ave.), First Person Arts will serve up an open-air night of storytelling* with Vanderhoof, as well as a menu of authentic Trinidadian food provided by Calypso, chef Claudette Campbell's stand at the market. Campbell will actually start up the festivities by sharing her own personal experience of immigrating here from Trinidad. Then it's time to eat — Trinidadian "doubles," meaty stews, fried plantains and more will be on the menu. Vanderhoof breaks down her Caribbean experience after the jump. * There's a special discount available just for Meal Ticket readers: Use the code "MealTicket" to get $10 off the list price. You're currently in Grenada. What have you been up to? This season, we were as far as north at Antigua and now we have been island hopping our way back to Grenada. Grenada is one of the places that we feel we are coming home to when we pull into an anchorage. But truth be told, there are a number of places like that now. Another place that immediately feels like home is, of course, Trinidad. What's special about Trinidad? Trinidad has stolen my heart. I was absolutely delighted to know that the food at Edible World was going to be Trinidadian. ... The food in Trinidad is wonderful. One of the delights is the street food. In the book, I talk about a concoction called "doubles," which, in its simplest form, is a curry chickpea sandwich. But that does nothing to capture how wonderful the taste of these are. For me, as it is maybe for Trinidadians, it became an addiction — they're breakfast food, they're snack food, they're late-night food. And they're many more dishes like that. Do food and storytelling go together naturally for you? What happens on every island is that food becomes the entry point, the route that takes us into island life, turning strangers into friends. Part of my passion is, of course, to cook food and to cook local food with local ingredients. But it became more than that — it became a starting point for adventures that took us off the beaten path and to people who took us under their wing and showed us their island. The title of your new book is The Spice Necklace — what is that? It has two meanings for us, really. First, Grenada is called the island of spice because so many spices grow here. At the big market in the capital, St. Georges, women string spices to form necklaces. They have this fantastic aroma. In fact, I picked some up today to bring home with me. It has nutmeg with the mace still around it, cloves, bay leaves folded into little squares, exotic beans, cocoa beans, cinnamon bark, all of it together. But also for me and my husband, the spice necklace became a metaphor for the whole island chain of the Caribbean. As we would sail from island to island, each place would have a different feeling, a different aroma or fragrance. So, the spice necklace is both for me the island chain itself, as well as these actual spices hung into necklaces. In the book, the chapters are woven loosely around this idea, using some of the spices as starting points for our adventures. We followed the spices.

What prompted to you write a second book? What happened when we went off on our first trip — what I record in my first book, An Embarrassment of Mangoes — we had planned that trip to be two years. At the end of two years, we had to turn our sailboat around and point her back north again. But, as soon as I got back, I had the feeling of having left a wonderful dinner party after just the first course. Things were just getting going — there was more to eat! When we got back to Toronto, I was looking forward to having space again, appliances, even a dishwasher. But much to my surprise, the house felt claustrophobic. Because we were so used to being outdoors with big open skies, whatever island we were anchored off of was an extension of our living space. I had become used to the unpredictability of everyday, the unpredictability of what ingredients I would have available to make dinner or what our own fishing lines would yield if we were sailing. All this to say, we wanted to go back. There's a phrase in Trinidad ... they say if someone cooks really really well, so that people who are eating want to lick the plate, he or she is said to have "sweet hands." And I knew right away that I wanted to learn more about island cooking and to have sweet hands myself. Do you think you have evolved at all as a cook or a writer since your first novel? Certainly as a cook. The first time in the market, every ingredient was strange to us. Now there are certain ingredients that we have fallen in love with. Right now, it's mango season, which I love. In the first book we were just eating them as fruit. Sometimes, I would bake them into a crisp or in muffins. However, now I've learned that in Trinidad they make a fantastic mango chow with unripe mangoes. It's a simple combination of the unripe fruit, salt, lime juice, hot pepper and an herb called "shadow benny," which is related to cilantro. How are the two books different? If at all? The first book was really about getting to the island and taking this break in our lives ... the second book is really about being on the islands. It's more of our adventures. We had a bit more confidence in getting further off of the beaten path, especially in terms of what we do on land. In The Spice Necklace, the first couple chapters are set in the Dominican Republic during the hurricane season. We had heard that goat was the popular meat there. One day, I was exclaiming to someone about this fabulous goat dish we had eaten and he just poo-pooed it, saying, "That's not the best. The best is at the other end of the island where the goats graze on wild oregano and because of that the meat comes to the kitchen pre-marinated." So, this time, [my husband] Steve and I looked at each other and said we need to taste that. We left the boat, rented a car and headed off to the other end of the island to find these goats, which feed on wild oregano. And, not only did we find them, I can report that the meat really does taste of the herb. Another example was in Trinidad where we had heard about this town called Tunapuna. It's home to a large East Indian population and it's also where a lot of curry powder is made. So, we thought lets go and see for ourselves because it sounded absolutely delicious since the air supposedly smells of curry. Well, when we go there, we found that it wasn't just that the air smells like curry, but there was a visible ochre haze in it — there was actually curry in the air! In my second book, we have just let ourselves follow our noses and taste buds further off the beaten path. How do you go about developing a recipe after sampling it from the locals? Do you stray from the traditional recipes you learn? When I get recipes from people, they are not neatly written down or a precise list of ingredients — it's usually from just watching people cook. If they're describing a recipe to me, they'll often say: it's a tip of this, or they'll cup their hands together, meaning a handful of that. Then, the first thing for me is to go back to my galley and experiment. It's always great to go back and try it out myself. ... If something is not quite right, we'll go back to the people who told us and sometimes I'll bring a sample and ask them — what'd you think? It's hard to get an honest reaction, but if I push I often can. Then I experiment some more. By the time they reach the stage of my book, I also work out substitutions so that if you can't get some of the ingredients these are substitutions that stay true to the spirit of the dish. One thing for instance is the West Indian pumpkin, which is closer to a squash than what we call a pumpkin in North America. So, you can use a butternut squash, which mimics the taste quite nicely. Any favorites out of the recipes in your new book? I have a recipe for a mango and pineapple gazpacho. At this time of year, it's fantastic — cold and refreshing. That's a favorite. Another is pepper shrimp. It's easy and takes hardly anytime at all. ... There's another Trinidadian recipe that uses jira, [the] East Indian term for cumin seed that has been roasted and ground. They make jira pork. I don't eat pork, so we did it with a lamb. First, you caramelize sugar and oil till it's almost burnt — dark, dark brown. Then, you put the meat in so that it sears in the juices, and next you add the jira, salt and the requisite hot pepper sauce. It's fantastic. I should mention something on the sweet end of the spectrum, too â¦ there's a recipe for ginger spice cookies that I worked out because they use a lot of Grenadian ingredients: nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and they have fresh ginger, so these cookies have a real spicy bite. You talk a lot about spices. Do you have a go-to spice? One spice I use a lot more now than I did before traveling in the Caribbean is nutmeg. We often think of nutmeg as the pumpkin pie spice or dusted on top of a rum punch. But a little bit of nutmeg when I make mango or papaya muffins is fantastic. A bit of nutmeg on greens like spinach just gives the flavor a little kick. In what ways do you find that the culture surrounding food differs in the island lifestyle? The big change — what is important to me — is that, like the people who live here, we eat what's local, what's in season, when it's in season. In other words, when mangoes are in season, you eat them in abundance. Then, you switch to another fruit, and by the time mango season rolls around you are looking forward to them again. Are mangoes still your number one treat? During mango season, absolutely. I do love mangoes. One that we had for lunch today was called a peach mango. The gentleman in the market, who sold them to us, said, "Try these, they're sweeter than Julies," which is another kind of mango we like. He was absolutely right.

Ticket Stubs: Meal Ticket Weekly Recap, June 21-25 :: Meal Ticket :: Food Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper

Posted 2010-09-08 16:08:08

[...] Chatting with The Spice Necklace author Ann Vanderhoof. [...]

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Tracey

Posted 2010-07-06 09:28:01

I've just finished The Spice necklace and absolutely loved it. My husband and I have been visiting the islands since the early 80's with Dominica being our 'coming home' island. Ann has exactly captured the essence of the islands; the people, cultures, and of course the food. The way she describes the driving is spot on too!

Posted by Will Stone @ 6:28 PM Permalink | Post a comment

IN PRINT: City Paper Food and Restaurants, June 17

POSTED: Thursday, June 17, 2010, 6:41 PM

Filed Under: Food Books | In Print

Photo | Neal Santos

- Brion Shreffler heads up to Chalfont to check out a unique tasting menu from chef Slim "Sam" Ben-Ouhiba of Tutto Mario — it's an Italian restaurant, but the native of Tunis also offers a chef's table highlighting the many-varied flavors of North Africa. - Philly Beer Week is over, but lingering hangovers remain for some local breweries and bar owners. Tara Nurin talks to industry insiders to learn how the 10-day celebration can sometimes have undesirable effects. - Lots and lots going on on the food/drink front — Hadley Assail chronicles dinners, cookoffs, charity events and more in What's Cooking. - Feeding Frenzy has word on rumblings in the restaurant scene — Tweed, Trolley Car CafÃ©, The Blue Comet and Barbuzzo are featured. - Over in our Book Quarterly, Hadley Assail chops up Medium Raw, Anthony Bourdain's latest. - Also in the Book Quarterly: Katherine Hill's review of The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, Aimee Bender's novel about a girl with the odd ability to taste people's emotions through their food.

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1 | 2 | 3 | 4

If you don't know Nutella is bad for you and your kids, then you are a total idiot and a bad parent.
Bummer: Grub Street Philly shutting down
Notes from the Weekend: May 20
Afternoon Snacks: Rachael & Guy do improv, Bacon hot dogs, Seasonal cocktails both posh and... less-so
Frozen Drinks Alert: Water ice cocktails at Noir
Now Serving: Jerry's Bar
Serious Eats weighs in on Questlove's fried chicken joint
Afternoon Snacks: Ramen burgers, Faux-artisanal liquor, Pet worms
Hell's Kitchen casting in Philly
Spike TV's "Bar Rescue" turns Swanky Bubbles into Sheer

About this blog

Founded in October 2008, Meal Ticket is a City Paper blog about food, drink and assorted other things that make you go mmm. We do recipes, interviews, restaurant news, commentary and much more. We don't do restaurant reviews here — those are handled in print, mostly by our critic (and Meal Ticket contributor) Adam Erace. Got a tip, question, thought or concern? Just want to say hello? Please shoot a note to caroline@citypaper.net.

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