Saturday Afternoon on Mt. Washington

It is so rare these days, especially in LA, to meet new foodie friends at a party, decide to get together for a feast, then actually do it. I had a divine afternoon with my new friends at the home of Aussie chef Ben Johnson and actor Mark Espinoza, along with Denise Daclan who creates the most divine artisan infused sea salts. I baked my Armenian cheese beorag (pg. 306 of Siren's Feast) and made some Muhammara (pg. 197) Ben( Mannix of TheLoveBite.com) made his Wombat Salad of roasted root vegetables, goat cheese, watercress and pistachios which had me in ecstasy and Denise brought along a sampling from Saltistry. Wine, sunshine, and a view of Los Angeles from the deck completed our fabulous feast.

LA Times Festival of Books

Los Angeles does some things right. The LA Times Festival of Books (April 25 & 26) was a huge success, except for the three unfortunate people who were injured by flying scaffolding. Saturday was so windy. I was extremely fortunate to be signing books on Sunday, which was a gloriously beautiful day, at the popular Book Soup booth, right after the ever so popular T. C. Boyle and Candy Spelling, widow of Aaron, mother of Tori. This is LA, after all.

My yalanchi sarma (stuffed grape leaves) were a hit and worth the labor involved. And I met some fantastic people.
I stopped by the Heifer Booth (The Heifer Foundation's mission is to end hunger and poverty by giving people the means to feed themselves) to meet Kim, whose mission is to review and promote independent bookstores through her blog as well as supporting the Heifer Foundation and just generally being fabulous. And to my surprise and joy, copies of Siren's Feast, An Edible Odyssey, were flying out of my hands.

With the spate of independent bookstore closings, it was truly a thrill to see thousands of people who are enamored with reading and meeting authors.

Aztec Soup

A while back, after I'd returned from the wedding on Isla Holbox, I promised to post a recipe for the amazing soup I ate several times while there. Everyone loved this soup and I've done my best to recreate it. In honor of my lovely young friend, Kate Puzey, I decided it was high time to revisit the wonderful memories of the time we spent together. Knowing that Kate had an exciting life and the support and love of such an amazing family is some consolation over the loss of her.

AZTEC SOUP

2 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, sliced thin
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tomato, chopped
1 lb. ground chicken
1 tsp. oregano
2 ears fresh corn, with kernels removed
salt/black pepper to taste
4 cups chicken broth

Garnish:
chopped fresh cilantro
sour cream
crumbled Queso Fresco (Mexican cheese)
sliced avocado

In a stock pot, begin by sauteing the onion, then the bell pepper and garlic in olive oil, until softened. Stir in the chopped tomato and saute a few minutes more. Add the ground chicken and continue sauteing. Finally add the oregano, corn kernels, chicken broth and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish each bowl of soup with chopped cilantro, 1 tbsp. sour cream, crumbled Queso Fresco and avocado slices and serve.
DEELISH! And so easy.

Good news and more truly sad news

I've been so busy with Mom, who at 94 has had to recover from a broken hip, full-time book promotion, working on my next book, keeping up with the garden, the dogs and friends, I just realized I hadn't written a post in a long while. I'm excited about appearing at the LA Times Festival of Books, signing books at the Book Soup booth (#330), which is one of the hippest bookstores in the West and thrilled about all the latest great reviews of Siren's Feast. All that info is posted on my website.

The truly sad news I received was about the passing of a young woman I met last summer at the beautiful wedding I attended on Isla Holbox, off the coast of the Yucatan. Kate Puzey from Georgia, cousin of the bride, who had been a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin, was found murdered outside her hut in the village where she had been living. I am still devastated. I pored over her blog and photos for days. She was a beautiful, brilliant and spirited soul and my heart is broken since I know how close she was to her entire extended family. You can read from her blog and see some of her photos through another site

Some things are just incomprehensible.

So sad

What a shame that another Los Angeles landmark bookstore is closing. I love Amazon as much as anyone, but nothing can compare to spending time in a brick and mortar bookstore, browsing the shelves, picking up books and chatting with the knowledgeable people who work there. So I was heartbroken yesterday when I read in the LA Times that one of my favorites, The Cook's Library in West Hollywood, will end its 20 year run the end of April. For cooks, chefs and foodies there was nothing like it. It was even listed in Gourmet magazine as one of the ten best best cookbook stores in the country.

Until April 30 their entire stock of cookbooks, including my own culinary memoir, will be on sale until all the merchandise has been sold. I visited yesterday and took along a plate of stuffed grape leaves and left with a fabulous Thai cookbook - Spirit House Thai Cooking.

I LOVE book clubs

So I'm not the best photographer, but try fitting 15 enthusiastic women into one frame. The Bookie Club in Rancho Palos Verdes is a delightful group of accomplished women and I was thrilled to be invited to their gathering in an art and treasure-filled home overlooking the Pacific. I hardly minded the 2 hours spent on the 405 Freeway getting there since I was able to listen to our brilliant President's town hall meeting on route.

It seems like every gathering for Siren's Feast includes lots of delicious food and this was no exception. We had a scrumptious chicken tajine, couscous, cheese beorag, tabbouli, lemon squares and oh yes, lots of wine. I even gave a mini-demonstration of self-help Jin Shin Jyutsu. I could have stayed all night it was so much fun and I can't wait to see them again. They're called the Bookie Group because they usually play poker after their meetings.

My little Vedra walks the Red Carpet

Mothers sometimes have reason to be proud. If you've already read Siren's Feast, you would know that my daughter Vedra spent nearly her first 18 months in a London Prison with me. Just last week she walked the Red Carpet at the Berlin Film Festival with her adoptive Dad, Joe Dallesandro, for the premiere of the documentary she produced--Little Joe. Joe also received the Teddy Award. All the screenings were sold out and they had over 75 requests for interviews.

The project evolved over eight years and the results are just fantastic. You can read the review from Variety here.
http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=festivals&jump=review&id=2478&reviewid=VE1117939697&cs=1