Ann Mah's newsletter / June 2017
June 2017 newsletter
Hello!
It's been a busy month since my last dispatch and I have lots of news to share. First, and incredibly excitingly, I have a new novel coming out!
It's called The Burgundy Diaries and it tells the story of a young American woman who visits her family's winery in Burgundy, France, and discovers a secret wine cellar hidden since the Second World War – along with evidence that her prominent wine family might not have behaved as honorably during the war as she had always believed. As she uncovers a story that's been hidden for over sixty years about a teenaged girl who struggled to survive the Occupation without betraying her moral code, this tale of heroic sacrifice helps the young American woman understand her place and purpose in the world.
William Morrow / HarperCollins will be my new publisher, and rights have already sold in five countries. After so many months (years, really) of thinking, researching, and dreaming about this story, I truly cannot wait to share it with you. In fact, as subscribers to my newsletter, you'll have first dibs on early bound galleys and other giveaways. Thanks, as always, for your support!
Okay, onto the second bit of news... I'm writing a cookbook! It's a soon-to-be-titled French cookbook for the Instant Pot and other multifunction electric pressure cookers, and I'm delighted to be working with editor extraordinaire, Michael Flamini at St Martin's Press! As you may remember, my dad sent me an Instant Pot last winter, and I fell instantly in love with it. After doing a little research, I discovered that pressure cookers are actually a French invention – discovered in the 17th century by a French physicist! – and the the device is a staple of the French home kitchen. I'm having so much fun creating fast and easy French recipes with this fantastic new kitchen tool – and if there are any classics that you'd like to see, please drop me a note :)
Finally, thirdly, a bit of personal news – we are moving to Washington DC at the end of the month. Yes, four years in New York have flown by in the blink of an eye, as most tangibly evidenced by our daughter, who was not yet born when we moved back to the Big Apple, and who is now almost four. (I know, I can hardly believe it myself!) My husband will continue his work as a diplomat and I'll keep doing the same stuff – writing books and articles, blogging, cooking, and enjoying the Dupont Circle Farmer's Market, which I actually like more than any other farmer's market (shh, don't tell). This will be our sixth move together and if you're wondering, no, it never gets easier. I'm certain there will be an awkward adjustment period because, as Susan Orlean once Tweeted (and I have never forgotten), transitions in life – and in writing – are hard. But, the most important thing is being with the people you love and my appreciation of that only continues to grow.
Where I've been eating (special florence edition!)
I was delighted by everything I ate in Florence last month, and after a few people asked me for tips, I decided to round up some of my favorite places, which I discovered via Italian food experts Emiko Davies and Elizabeth Minchilli. If you are traveling to Italy, their books, blogs, and apps are indispensable!
Le Volpi e l'Uva
Steps from the Palazzo Pitti, Le Volpi e l'Uva is a charming enoteca with an excellent selection of Italian wines by the glass – I particularly liked a glass of white from the Maremma region, which was full of lush, stone fruit flavors. But my favorite discovery here was the crostone (photo above) of melted Asiago cheese and 'nduja. What is 'nduja? It's a soft, spicy, highly seasoned spread of offal-y pork bits and chili peppers – some people call it a "spreadable pork sausage," but the texture is looser than that description suggests – rather, it's almost like a hot sauce. After I tasted this magical ingredient – which is pronounced "in-dew-ya," and comes from Calabria – I quizzed my server who showed me the bottle and told me he likes to put a spoonful in his tomato sauce. He also told me where to buy it (Florence's Eataly, where else?), but unfortunately I was too cheap to check a bag. My mistake!
Sostanza
People go to Sostanza for the butter chicken – which is delicious and justly famous – check out Elizabeth Minchilli's documentation here – but I fell in love with this tortino de carciofi, a little nest of beaten egg swirled around a bed of breaded artichoke hearts, cooked over glowing coals. It was also here at this old-fashioned trattoria that I ate my favorite Tuscan beans of the trip, as well as a refreshing salad of bitter greens. This was a delightful meal, perfectly ordered by Emiko, and I wish I was eating it again right now.
Semel
It was raining cats and dogs the day I decided to eat panini, and I wandered around for a long time trying to locate this tiny sandwich shop near the Mercato Sant'Ambrogio. By the time I found it, I was drenched and starving – but the man behind the counter welcomed me with a glass of wine and then warmed my heart with this sandwich filled with punterella, anchovies, and orange, a combination as stunning as a lightening bolt. I demolished it in seconds and then ordered a second. (PS Here's a Florence tip I learned from Emiko: If you're looking for a particular address, it helps to know that the city has two numbering systems. Businesses are numbered with red numbers, and residences have black or blue numbers. The street numbers do repeat, so make sure you're searching for the right color!)
What I've been reading
Footsteps is my favorite column in the New York Times travel section, and now it has its very own book! I was so super excited and honored to have three pieces collected in this new anthology, I celebrated with a giveaway on my blog (if you are a newsletter subscriber, you were automatically entered to win). Whether you're headed somewhere exotic, or journeying from your armchair, Footsteps is the best travel inspiration – and it would make a great gift for Father's Day, or all your other favorite travelers.
I kicked off my cookbook project with this Food52 article offering tips from French home cooks on the best way to make the most out of the pressure cooker (aka the best tool in the kitchen!).
There's much excellent advice in this Guardian article on writing, but I think this is the most important: "A writer is not someone who thinks obsessively about writing, or talks about it, or plans it, or dissects it, or even reveres it: a writer is the one who puts his arse in the chair when the last thing he wants to do is have his arse in the chair."
Cosmopolitan magazine's "Get That Life" column is always fascinating, but I especially enjoyed this interview with Ariel Levy, "How I Became A New Yorker Writer." (Short answer: a lot of guts and a lot of sweat.)
Did you know the culinary term "à la Florentine" has literally nothing to do with Florence? Emiko Davies does a bit of sleuthing in this interesting piece for Food52. Also if you love food and beautiful photos of food, check out this cooking and food photography workshop in Puglia, which Emiko is leading this fall (a girl can dream).
Continuing this month's Italy theme – because, hey, why not? – I laughed out loud reading this New Yorker essay, Under the Crushing Weight of the Tuscan Sun in which Jason Wilson sizes up Frances Mayes's middle-aged-woman's-fantasy-real-estate-porn-travelogue and, in fact, softens towards it over time.
A bientôt!
The next time I send this newsletter, it will be from Washington DC. Gulp! Thanks, as always, for reading and sharing this newsletter with your friends. If you'd like to subscribe, you can sign up here. Until next month, I'm wishing you a happy start of summer – and I will see you on The Other Side :)
Amicalement,
Ann