Wander, Eat, and Tell

spring 2022 cookbook club: legendary women cookbook authors, part 1

It just happened to be International Women’s Day when the request came for the next seasonal theme for our cookbook group. It also happened that I was pondering how to incorporate the most requested cookbook of them all, simply referred to as “Julia“.

That’s a big, giant, elephant of a book to bring into a line up. That book is legendary. And the woman who wrote it, even more so. Only other legends could hold their own with her. Now there’s a theme… Legends. And women.

This season of 92^nd Street Y and Kitchen Arts & Letters cookbook club begins on May 10, 2022 (click that link above for more information). As of the day I’m posting, there’s still time to register and receive your books so you can get cooking! I’ll personally get you caught up on the upcoming assignments and early discussion.

I’d love to have you join us live on Zoom if you’re able. But if not, I’ll be posting about each book as we go, so you can follow along here on Wander Eat and Tell too.

Let’s start with more about our theme, and of course, what books we’ll be cooking from…

cookbook club: japanese farm food

(and announcing the next season!)

I’m a bit late posting this one – apologies to those who’ve been waiting to find out where our journey Cooking Off the Beaten Path has taken us! For me, part of that journey was a cross-country move that, like this season of cookbook club, has come to a delicious close.

Our previous books, took us on a taste adventure from Portugal to the Baltic, then to Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Kurdistan in Taste of Persia. It’s been quite a journey! Our final book takes us to a very different world on another continent.

NOTE: For those of you who are eager to learn more about next season (starting May 10, 2022), you can click through HERE. I’ll share more at the end of this post as well.

cookbook club: Taste of Persia

The third book of our winter 2022 season of cookbook club is one that’s been around for several years and is a personal favorite of mine. This time our “Cooking Off The Beaten Path” journey takes us to five places that were once part of the first global empire, dating back to the seventh century BC.

Through the two previous books, we traveled from Portugal to the Baltic. We are now arcing south through Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Kurdistan in Taste of Persia by the inimitable Naomi Duguid.

Off the Beaten Path is a perfect theme for the inclusion of Naomi Duguid’s work. Her previous solo book, Burma: Rivers of Flavor would also be a great choice (or any of her other 6 books coauthored with Jeffrey Alford). Duguid is a traveler, writer, photographer, cook, and culinary anthropologist. The journey she takes us on is captivating, revelatory, and delicious!

cookbook club: Amber & Rye

As we continue “Cooking Off The Beaten Path” with our Winter 2022 season of cookbook club, our culinary journey is now taking us from Portugal to the Baltic through the cuisines of three distinct cultures. Visit Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania with author Zuza Zak as she takes us on a personal exploration of the markets, pantries, and kitchens of three countries through stories and recipes.

And you can do it without leaving your own kitchen (except, maybe, a trip to the market!).

cookbook club: Portuguese Home Cooking

The theme for this season of Cookbook Club is Cooking Off The Beaten Path. Food is culture and I deeply believe in its power to take us on amazing journeys (inner & outer). Over the next couple months, we’ll explore a few cuisines and cultures that may be new to many of us.

Along the way we’ll try some new ingredients and techniques and learn why they matter. We’ll not only seek to understand differences, we’ll also look for connections. In this season of Cookbook Club, we’re also exploring beyond the kitchen. Our live group discussion also branched out to music, art, and cultural influence. I’ll share a taste of that with you as well!

Our first cookbook of this season is Portuguese Home Cooking by Ana Patuleia Ortins – a book rich with recipes for comfort foods and hearty soups – the perfect kickoff to our winter season!

winter 2022 cookbook club: cooking off the beaten path

Food is culture and I deeply believe in its power to take us on amazing journeys, both inner & outer.

This season we’re taking a journey off the beaten path to explore a few cuisines and cultures that may be new to many of us. Along the way we’ll try new ingredients and learn why they matter. We’ll not only seek to understand differences, we’ll also look for connections.

I could have easily chosen a dozen or more books for this theme. Let’s say we’re off to a good start, and I promise we’ll continue our “off the beaten path” journeys well into the future.

This season of 92^nd Street Y and Kitchen Arts & Letters cookbook club begins on February 1, 2022 (click that link above for more information). I’d love to have you join us live on Zoom if you’re able. But if not, I’ll be posting about each book as we go, so you can follow along here on Wander Eat and Tell too.

If you’re just joining us and would like to catch up on previous or cookbooks (including previous seasons), you can catch up from the start HERE.

cookbook club: Italian American

I’m ending 2021 with a special cookbook. This book was the reason I selected the theme Flavors of New York in the first place. If you’re just joining us and would like to catch up on previous or cookbooks (including previous seasons), you can catch up from the start HERE.

Also, as our Autumn 2021 season of Cookbook Club draws to a close with this fourth book, I’d like to announce the start of our next season of 92^nd Street Y and Kitchen Arts & Letters cookbook club that begins on February 1, 2022 (click that link above for more information). Our theme will be Cooking Off The Beaten Path – I’d love to have you join us live on Zoom if you’re able (click here). If not, I’ll be posting about each book as we go, so you can follow along here on Wander Eat and Tell too!

Now, back to this very important book – Italian American: Red Sauce Classics and New Essentials by Angie Rito and Scott Tacinelli….

cookbook club: Flavors of the Sun

If you’re just joining us and would like to catch up on previous or cookbooks, you can catch up from the start HERE. Our Autumn 2021 season of the 92^nd Street Y and Kitchen Arts & Letters cookbook club was dedicated to exploring four distinct food stories that represent what is just the tip of the iceberg of food in New York City.

Flavors of the Sun by Christine Sahadi Whelan, the third book of our Flavors of New York cookbook club, was one of the two books this season that I felt the greatest personal connection to (along with our next book, Italian American).

This book is subtitled The Sahadi’s Guide to Understanding, Buying, and Using Middle Eastern Ingredients. Sahadi’s Importing Co. on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn was my neighborhood grocery store when I was in culinary school in the early 1990s. I’m convinced that shopping there transformed the trajectory of my career and sent me on a decades-long adventure that only gets better as the journey continues!