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Simmons Sez: On tour, looking for a good cup of coffee
By Marie Simmons
Correspondent
May 14, 2008
MY NEWEST COOKBOOK is hot off the press and I'm about to embark on an ambitious promotional tour to 15 cities. In some cities there will be either cooking classes or media appearances, and others there will be both. It all sounds terribly grand and glamorous. It's not. But it can be fun.
On the less glamorous side, I'll sleep — or attempt to sleep — in a different bed in a different city almost every night. The two things I dread the most are the watery brown liquid that passes for coffee and the frenzied airport security lines. Plus, I'll miss my husband (and the perfect cappuccino he makes every morning), our kitty, my yoga classes, Jazzercise, and hikes, my good friends, and, of course, my kitchen.
On the other hand, between tossing and turning in strange beds and pasting a smile on my face as I robotically maneuver dull coffee and unfriendly airports, there will be a few bright moments.
Among the brightest will be the cooking classes. Some think I'm a born teacher because I enjoy spending time with a roomful of kindred souls, chopping, chatting, sauteing and swapping food stories. Teaching is never an easy task, but as those of you who teach are well-aware, the rewards always surpass the inevitable sore feet and aching back.
The other bright light will be media. Televised cooking gigs are ridiculously challenging and require nerves of steel. Demonstrating a recipe from start to finish in less than 5 minutes is nearly impossible. But fortunately, TV has an element of magic. Prepped food is swapped for semi-finished and fully finished dishes in a matter of seconds. Simultaneously, the interviewer asks a million questions — some out of left field — while yours truly keeps that proverbial smile cranked up with a friendly giggle thrown into the mix. Meanwhile, you out there in TV land will think I'm having the time of my life — which, by the way, is often the intent, and not so far from the truth.
But while the television gig feels like a silly race to beat the clock, the radio interview — my favorite type of media — will be pleasantly paced, relaxing and conversational. It's here that I'll get the chance to describe the book and display my enthusiasm for the project.
"Things Cooks Love: Implements, Ingredients, Recipes" took me almost two years to write. The work — including the food prep, recipe development, equipment research and writing, was rewarding — and luscious. Unlike any of my other cookbooks, this one is focused primarily on cookware. All the basics like the baking dish, the skillet, the saucepan and the roasting pan, and more exotic stuff like the fish poacher, clay cooker and stove-top smoker are in the book. Plus, "Things Cooks Love" ventures into the global kitchen, highlighting authentic cookware such as the Mexican molcajete, the Japanese suribachi, the French cocotte, the Italian chitarra, the Moroccan tagine and dozens more. The book boasts about 60 pieces of cookware and 120 recipes.
Filled with color photographs and lots of information in addition to cookware explanations and recipes, this is one heavy book (almost 350 pages) to lug from coast to coast, on and off airplanes and trains and in and out of hotel rooms. But I'm determined that the bright moments of this tour will negate the more stressful ones. I'm optimistic that the days will go by quickly, and that soon I'll return to all that I love, including perfect cappuccino in the morning.
Reach Richmond resident and award-winning cookbook author Marie Simmons at marie.simmons@comcast.net .
Copyright 2008
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