A sensation hit suddenly. Yesterday, for the first time in my life I returned to a place I consider my own. Foreign as it is, crazy as where I have settled may seem, and as far from my family I may be, it feels like I am home. After over two years of roaming around it is nice to be able to crawl into my own bed and dream vivid dreams, go to the kitchen and prepare comfort foods with elements collected throughout my travels, and sit in my room to write these words.
My uncles Mitch and Jon recently wrote a cookbook titled Cooking My Way Home. Told through a collection of recipes, it is a unique account of how hard work, dedication and enthusiasm for something you are passionate for lead to the realization that sometimes the best things can be explored in a space you call your own. Mitch and my aunt May are the most amazing chefs I know and have continued to inspire me through their devotion to good food. Now they made it possible to share that love and some of the dishes that came out of it with the masses. Cooking My Way Home pushes the limits of conventional cookbooks by proving one can be a chef of high caliber without leaving the home kitchen. The recipes are tried and true and turn out just as good as if you were to sit down in one of Mitch’s amazing restaurants. Everyone I know who has attempted to cook from the book were pleased with the outcome, including my wonderful grandparents who claimed the braised lamb shank from the book prepared by my grandma was the best they had had (a strong statement when you are in your 80's). The holidays have hit with quickness and I know there will be a lot of cooking (and eating) happening soon. I will be using the book as a manual to cook some things in my home away from home this Christmas in Istanbul, and I recommend you pick up a copy and do the same.
Check out COOKING MY WAY BACK HOME on the NY Times Notable Cookbook list and order your copy today!
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/30/dining/notable-cookbooks-of-2011.html
http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Way-Back-Home-Franciscos/dp/158008592X
Happy holidays and love to all!
XOXO
Ally
