Why this cook doesn’t spoil the broth
In 2011, I profiled the rapper Snoop Dogg for a Sunday newspaper. When I walked into his dressing room I was struck by two things: his height and the overwhelming smell of marijuana smoke.
He turned out to be one of the most engaging and charismatic people I have ever interviewed, although my judgment might have been blurred by the amount of weed I passively ingested.
Part of his charm stemmed from his unexpected eccentricity. A former LA gang member, he said he loved Benny Hill and wanted to play the British comedian in a biopic: “I’ll even paint my face white!” he grinned.
So I wasn’t entirely surprised to learn of his new incarnation as cookbook author. The book, imaginatively titled From Crook to Cook, will be published in October and will include recipes for lobster thermidor and “Gin and Juice”, the title of one of his most famous tracks.
The book was inspired by his television stint alongside Martha Stewart on Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party – a series that was nominated for an Emmy last year.
I do admire his longevity. The music industry is notoriously fickle and yet Snoop Dogg has been successfully reinventing himself ever since his first album was released in 1992, and now has a net worth of £101 million.
Given my experience all those years ago, I was a bit worried about some of the cookbook ingredients. Luckily, the publisher has set my mind at rest: all the recipes, they say, are “cannabis-free”.