Bold dishes for sensitivities — no substitute
For more than 30 years, Barbara Kafka has been telling people — in no uncertain terms — how to cook in the moment.
In every book, in every appearance, she has urged American home cooks to be bold, fearless and confident. Even more, she has championed trends. Not the ones that made food fashionable. The ones that made it healthier, tastier and easier.
“She helped create, but also translate trends in food for everyone at home,” says James Beard Foundation’s executive vice president Mitchell Davis, referencing “Microwave Gourmet,” Kafka’s 1987 book that got Americans cooking everything from risotto to pudding in their microwaves. “She managed to speak to a lot of people about how to make really good food, how to make it simple, but without compromising in any way.”
Along the way, Kafka wrote six cookbooks, all award-winners or best sellers, and in 2007 she won the James Beard Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement award. She taught cooking with Beard himself, collaborated with Jacques Pépin, won the respect of Julia Child.
Now Kafka’s seventh book, “The Intolerant Gourmet,” makes her a pioneer again, propelling the 78-yearold into the gluten- and lactose -free territory usually dominated by 20- and 30-something bloggers and tweeters.
It was a world she entered out of necessity. After years of dormancy, childhood food sensitivities to dairy and gluten (a wheat protein)
Good for You” ($15, Perigree Trade), a book that uses a “truth scale” to confirm or debunk claims about food and diet.
Davis, a graduate of Memphis University School, is a health journalist who has done stints at CNN, “PBS Healthweek,” The Wall Street Journal and WEBMD. He’s now the editor in chief of Everwell, everwell.com, a company he founded that creates and distributes health videos through the web and in doctors’ offices. He also also teaches at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health.
Soup Sunday
It’s time for a feast of soups. Get down to Fedexforum on Sunday to eat your fill of soups and more from area restaurants and support Youth Villages. More than 40 restaurants, from Jim’s Place to Coletta’s to Bardog Tavern, will participate. Ticket prices for adults range from $15 for general admission to $50 for VIP tickets to $100 for a ticket that includes both plus
Put a big pot of water on to boil and add a pinch of salt. When the water starts to boil, add the pasta and cook as directed on the package until al dente.
Heat the olive oil in a small pan on very low heat with the red pepper flakes and garlic. Turn off the heat once they start to cook and bubble.
Drain the pasta and return it to the pan. Stir in red pepper flakes, garlic and warmed olive oil. Add zucchini, lemon juice and basil and stir through the crème fraîche or sour cream. Season well with salt and pepper. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and the grated Parmesan cheese. Serves 4. Source: “Home at 7, Dinner at 8,”
by Sophie Wright a tasting of chocolates and wines. You can buy tickets through Thursday online at youthvillages.org; click on “events.” You can also buy them at the door on Sunday. Call (901) 251-5000 for more information.
Wednesday wine
We’re online tonight for our first wine tasting of the year at 7 p.m. at whiningdining.com. Bill Huddleston with Southwest Distributing has selected Foris Pinot Blanc 2010. We’ll have a winemaker on with us too. Join us.
Recipe of the week
I had a big stack of cookbooks to get through when I got back to the office, and “Home at 7, Dinner at 8” by Sophie Wright caught my eye. I know we’re all on the lookout for easy weeknight dinners. This recipe is simple, and it sounds delicious.
Contact Jennifer Biggs at (901)529-5223 or biggs@commercialappeal.com. Her blog is whiningdining.com.