Kathleen Flinn's Blog, page 15

Event – Oct 19th: Meet the “Bad” Women who Made an English Book “Big in Japan”

Maybe you’ve heard that I’m Big in Japan. Well, if you’re in Seattle on Thursday, Oct. 19th, you can hear directly from the two women in Japan who made that happen – translator Riko Murai and editor Rie Tanaka. In an event titled “Not Lost in Translation,” I will be sharing a conversation with them […]

Recipe: French Onion Soup

Something mesmerizes about soupe a l’oignon gratinée. If properly done, there’s the cheese – thick, oozing, bubbling and likely a bit browned and toughened around the edges. Next, the slices of baguette, perhaps acting as a raft for the cheese or a lazy guard of the hot, fragrant stock. Then, the onions, soft, sweet and […]

“Hungry for Words” Food Writing Weekend July 22-23

Registration is open for the two-day introduction to food writing weekend “Hungry for Words.” I’ll be teaching this intensive, hands-on session at the Richard Hugo House in Seattle. Cost is $337 for Hugo House members, $375 for non-members. I also provide a light breakfast both days, lunch on Saturday and an afternoon snack. Class size is limited to 15 […]

I’m Big in Japan. Really.

A couple months ago, I began to notice a lot of Japanese folks trying to friend me on Facebook. I couldn’t figure it out. Then, I got an email overnight on Sunday that explained it all. My second book, “The Kitchen Counter Cooking School,” was recently published in Japan. Apparently, it’s doing so well there […]

How to Make Gumbo Out of (Almost) Anything

By Kathleen Flinn For most people, the word “gumbo” traditionally inspires the image of the classic New Orleans version studded with spicy sausage and shrimp. But Chuck Taggart of the GumboPages notes, “There are as many variations on gumbo as there are Louisianians.” If you master the basic formula, you can customize gumbo to your […]

Recipe: Perfect Mashed Potatoes

[Updated November 2016] Such a simple thing — throw some potatoes into a pot, then mash them up, but there’s more to creamy mashed potatoes than that. I tend to make mashed potatoes a day ahead of a big family dinner and gently reheat in the oven; microwaving them tends to change the texture. Alternately, […]

The 2016 Great American Cookie Election

If you’re like me, you want something happy to read about aside from the endless campaign coverage. So I decided to hold an election on something of critical, national importance. Cookies. Holiday baking season is coming up, after all. Like many individuals, in times of crisis, my husband and I often turns to baking. So, […]

Class: Performance for Writers (Aug. 20th)

I’ve been wanting to teach a class like this for a long time. Why? I’m a trained actress and comedian, so standing up in front of a crowd is not only easy for me, it’s the highlight of any day. But we do not live in a world where one can sit in a dark […]

Class: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal

In fiction, you have to write the whole book to sell it. In non-fiction, agents and editors want a book proposal. Whether you’re planning on writing narrative non-fiction, memoir, cookbook, historical non-fiction or even a how-to book, you need to put together a non-fiction book proposal. In this six-week class starting July 20th, I’ll provide […]

Provencal tomato spread

This recipe first appeared in The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry. It’s loosely based on a dish that I learned to make while studying at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. During the heat of summer, I probably make this once a week and if I have to take something to a party, this […]