It was May, 2004, during a glitzy dinner celebrating that year’s James Beard Awards at a mid-Manhattan hotel.
Gabriella Gershenson, at that time a fledgling food writer living in New York, was seated next to me. I discovered that I and this soft-spoken young woman with thick, wavy black hair and a winning smile were kindred souls.
My mother Ruth Schachter (née Nisse) in the garden of her flat in Primrose Hill, London UK, in 2014
I wrote this in 2002 when I was food editor for the Toronto Star. My dear mother, 95, died peacefully in her sleep a month ago on April 21, 2018
“Bread is Gold” is the result of the “refettorio” launched at Milan’s Expo in 2015. Top-notch recipes from famous international chefs creatively use discarded food. The caramelized bananas with balsamic drizzle from the book are delicious!
Click on this – my podcast chat with domestic goddess Nigella Lawson recorded in Toronto in late 2015 – and you’ll hear her say that we are “kitchen cousins”: http://www.marionkane.com/podcast/chat-nigella-kitchen-cousin
She’s referring to several important things we have in common: A willingness to freely improvise when cooking; an acceptance of failure in the kitchen as a necessary path to learning, and a penchant for eating her dish of Squid and Orzo Pasta cold for breakfast.
Martinson coffee, founded by my great-uncle Joe Martinson
This column appeared in the Toronto Star in 2002. I was reminded of it recently when I stayed in a hotel in Kitchener, Ontario, and found this coffee in the room.
A cup of joe.
Who would have thought I am related – albeit distantly – to the “Joe” of that famous culinary phrase.
My ultimate Key Lime Pie, Florida’s signature dessert (scroll down for recipe)
Miami, Fla: I call Miami “New York on the beach.”
In particular, I mean the South Beach hub of ocean-front that’s been a magnet for northern snowbirds fleeing the chilly grip of winter in my home of Canada.
Top photo: My mother, Ruth Schachter, in her NW London garden in 2014
Bottom photo: Mum in 2015, after her serious fall, with my daughters Ruthie (L) and Esther (R)
In Memoriam: My mother Ruth Schachter (nee Nisse), age 95, died peacefully in her sleep at home in NW London UK on April 21, 2018.
The recipe for this French Apple Tart comes from ‘America’s Test Kitchen’
Food magazine covers often catch my eye.
Such was the case recently when I was browsing the racks of a newstand at the Toronto airport on my way to to visit my elderly mum in London, UK.
This appeared in my column “Dish” in the Toronto Star in 2004.
I baked my first Tarte Tatin late last fall.
I had come across the recipe in Kitchen Wisdom (Knopf, $29.95), Julia Child’s latest cookbook and a nifty, compact collection of her favourite recipes.
Minchenden School Reunion, North London, in 1999: My friends Julie Ward Duncan and Frances Carter with our teacher Frankie Stabler and my famous cheesecake
Occasionally called “a veteran” and, more attractively, “a seasoned member” of Canada’s food media, I’ve been around for a while waxing eloquent about my consuming passion: food.
