Books, Blogs & Links

On The Cook Counts Too

21 March 2010 by Jean Johnson
You heard it here first. Straight from Hippie Kitchen, p. 44. On the Cook Counts Too— Fussing with cooking vegetables by the singleton is something I do less often than not. That’s because when you’re going for a quick meal, it’s easier to get a bunch of veggies onto the heat ...

Hippie Kitchen Upstaging Her Older Sister

23 December 2009 by Jean Johnson
Isn't that just the way. The first does yeoman service path breaking, and then the second comes along with her flirty name and catchy clothes and skates all the way to the bank. Speaking of the bank, though, both numero uno, Cooking Beyond Measure, and Ms. Hippie Kitchen are both ...

Flash Cooking = Hippie Stir Fry = Fast/Slow Food

18 December 2009 by Jean Johnson
Ah, yes, I remember my own trip to Mexico as a food writer. Here's one of my photos: So Mark Bittman's recent NYT piece on Mexican markets was a nice reminder of my own cruise-arama. Here he's talking about how Mexican women get fresh veggies on the table pronto--but he ...

Hippie Kitchen Appeals to the Upcoming Gen

17 December 2009 by Jean Johnson
Lenore's not two yet, and she's already in the groove. Angela, her mom and next door neighbor, sent these images and says they weren't posed. Rather Lenore loves to page through Hippie Kitchen, pausing particularly at page 159 where Iris (same-same from the Cat in the Cheese blog post here) ...

Eating Animals

4 November 2009 by Jean Johnson
The review of Eating Animals on Alternet calls the author, Jonathan Safran Foer a younger grittier Michael Pollan. Cool. And he'll be at Powell's tonight. 7:30.

The Cereal Bowl

by Jean Johnson
Beans in your morning cereal bowl are cool. A few garbs rolling around with the hazelnuts. Some blackies and a spike of red chile and lime to go with chunks of fresh pears. A pink hummus spread on apples. (Cooking Beyond Measure, p. 32) And now even a nod from ...

Affordable Local Produce

3 November 2009 by Jean Johnson
Once you discover fresh local produce, there's no going back. But the problem for me has always been the spendy price tags at farmers markets. I solved it by growing my own and here's a snippet of this year's harvest. Kitchen gardens aren't everyone's cup of tea, of course. So Bion ...

Thoughts on a Measurefree Life–and Ian McEwan’s Hearty School

1 November 2009 by Jean Johnson
Here's how Booker Award winner Ian McEwan describes not measuring in his novel, Saturday. The passage comes through Henry Perowne, neurosurgeon and husband of Rosalind: "What he likes about cooking is its relative imprecision and lack of discipline--a release from the demands of the [operating] theatre. In the kitchen, the consequences ...

Brown Butter Sauce, Beurre Blanc & the New Julia Child Movie

19 August 2009 by Jean Johnson
Julia. Even the sound of her name brings lavish thoughts--grounded in a no nonsense approach to life. Bon vivant she was with her "bon appetit!" That's why I've been smiling since watching Meryl Streep bring Julia Child alive once again on the big screen. Ah, yes. Wasn't our Julia a grand ...

From the Sick Room to the Signing Table, Vegan-Style

3 March 2009 by Jean Johnson
I talked to my bud Matt yesterday. His kids have both been down with the flu. It's almost the same here as I've been nursing a cold. What to do other than get the soup pot on and review my fav book, Laurel's Kitchen. Golden Noodle Soup from Laurel's ...