Ann Mah's newsletter / August 2020
August 2020 newsletter
Hello
Recipes are like postcards and in this summer of staying put, they're like armchair travel, too. I'm such a creature of habit, I enjoy cooking the same things, in the same places, at the same time of year. Pesto and fruit pie says summer in Provence to me, pavlova is Christmas in California, and a good gratin dauphinois is February in Paris. There's no rhyme or reason to any of this, but I wonder what recipe will define this period in Washington... and if I'll ever feel nostalgic for it ;)
Speaking of Washington, we recently went to Hillwood Estate, which is the former home of Marjorie Merriweather Post (yep, she also owned Mar-a-Lago). If you're in the area, I highly recommend a visit here – social distancing was beautifully observed, reservations and masks are required both outdoors and in, and the gardens are spectacular (photo above). They have virtual tours, too.
Here's what else I've been up to...
What I've been eating
–It's zucchini season and if you've been overrun, try this wonderful zucchini cake with crunchy lemon glaze from David Lebovitz. The batter uses crushed nuts and olive oil for a beautifully moist and tender crumb. I bought a new bundt pan to make this – sidenote: how many new baking pans will I buy in this pandemic? – and it was worth it!
–If it's the yellow squash that's taking over, you can't go wrong with Julia Reed's summer squash casserole (New York Times).
–I'm a new convert to Julia Child's method for ratatouille. I have to admit that for years I found her version too fussy – all that salting, draining, and frying of separate vegetables – but I tried it again a few weeks ago and instead of my usual watery mess, was amazed by the deep, rich, jammy result, like condensed sunshine. I highly recommend digging out your copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking and giving it a try.
–These Food52 Roman rice-stuffed tomatoes are one of my favorite sloppy, savory summer dinners. They cook over a bed of roast potatoes, which deliciously absorb all the tomato juices. Make them in the morning when it's cool and eat them at room temperature for dinner.
–I used to make Patricia Wells's fruit tart every summer in Provence and I'm hoping the one I make today (with peaches) will transport me there :)
–The tyranny of the farm box continues! Here are some more of my recent season-inspired meals (note the running theme: zucchini):
–Fried green tomatoes from The Kitchn
–Ina Garten's zucchini vichyssoise
–Corn and zucchini fritters (kind of fussy) from Serious Eats
–Raw tomato sauce pasta sprinkled with my special addition... blue cheese!
–Pesto pasta topped with avocado, a new summer standby
What I've been reading
–It's peach season and maybe you love them best eaten over the sink with the juice running to your elbow. For a little variation, I recommend Belinda Smith-Sullivan's cookbook, Just Peachy, which has allllll the peach desserts you could ever want (pie, slump, cobbler, crumble), plus savory recipes like a cool peach tomato gazpacho. (Bonus: the e-book is currently on sale for $2.99.)
–If your vegetable garden is over-flowing, you need my friend Patricia Tanumihardja's new book, Asian Pickles at Home! Learn how to make your own kimchi, sambal, chutney and more.
–My daughter and I have been loving What's Cooking at 10 Garden Street? by Felicita Sala, which is part illustrated story, part recipe collection featuring dishes from around the world. Already we've made stir-fried broccoli, coconut dahl, and peanut butter cookies.
–Beloved cooking school La Cuisine in Paris has launched their online cooking classes and they look like so much fun! I'm eyeing the tart class – details here.
–And if you'd like to take a family French cooking class, cooking-with-kids expert Mardi Michels, author of In the French Kitchen with Kids, is offering a virtual series on bistro fare – details here.
–I loved learning about ancient Roman culinary history in this essay and recipe for lentil stew from the Getty Museum.
–I tore through a new novel, Miss Graham's Cold War Cookbook, about a British woman who goes to post-war Germany to uncover a network of spies and war criminals.
–Now, like so many of you, I'm finally reading Normal People.
–Olivia de Havilland has died at 104. She was a great supporter of the American Library in Paris, which is one of my favorite places, and I met her once at their gala. This obituary in Bloomberg News describes the lawsuit she instigated that liberated actors from the grip of the studios, making them free agents.
Tonight!
If you're free tonight (August 6) at 6pm (EDT), please join me virtually at The Penguin Bookshop, where I'll be chatting with author Ellen Feldman about her new book Paris Never Leaves You. Details are here and I hope to see you!
In the meantime, sending you best wishes for lazy summer afternoons filled with fruit pie and good books –
XO Ann