Frances Mayes's Blog, page 6
May 23, 2012
Dinner in Napa Valley at Signorello Vineyards
On 21 and 22 July, Ed and I are going to California for a dinner at Signorello Vineyards honoring The Tuscan Sun Cookbook. Chef Michael McMillan has planned a scrumptious winery dinner, beginning with drinks by the infinity pool overlooking the grapes that are on their way to being the wonderful wines we’re drinking. Check the Signorello website: http://www.signorelloestate.com/frances-mayes-dinner.asp
It’s preceded by a concert with Joshua Bell–a not-to-be-missed experience.
At the same time around the country, groups will be organizing their own parties, cooking the same menu and drinking the same wines. The idea is that everyone links and comments and toasts together through Twitter and Facebook. Virtual dinner party! It’s a new, new concept pioneered by Chef Robin White. See her website for the menu and details on how to be involved: www.chefrobinwhite.com and follow her on Twitter @canapes45
The afternoon of 21 July, Signorello is throwing a pizza party and booksigning.
All this is associated with the fabulous Festival del Sole. For tickets see:
https://festivaldelsole.secure.force.com/ticket#sections_a0Fd0000003n453EAA
Of course, the Festival is a grand celebration of musical and culinary events over an eleven day span. Check their website for the full program. http://festivaldelsole.org/calendar-2012/festival-artists-2012/
Besides Joshua Bell, two of my favorite artists from The Tuscan Sun Festival over the years are Danielle de Niese and Helene Grimaud. Just superb! They and many other over-the-moon artists will be in Napa for the 2012 edition of the festival. If you’re considering a vacation in Napa, what better time to go? Through the festival, you’re privy to very special food and wine events as well. Plus, there’s the wine country!
Speaking of Twitter, follow me @francesmayes and Ed @edwardmayes. It’s fun–if you don’t get addicted!
Meanwhile, we’re in chilly Tuscany. Just had artichoke lasagne for lunch—not so bad!
May 20, 2012
Moments of Tuscan Spring
You never know what May will bring in Tuscany. We’ve been here two weeks and have had four glorious, sunny days and the rest wind, chill, and rain. I’m telling myself that’s good–I can start to focus on a new project and get my concentration back, after a dizzy March and April, when I was on the road constantly. But the flowers we planted on the warm days are battered and bent and I’m wondering if I’m going to be starting over. That’s May, an undecided month, always. The rain gives us dreamy green smeary vistas, and the poppies are going viral over the fields and olive groves. The white wisteria on our pergola looks lacy and poetic.
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I would like to be setting that table with a big bowl of roses, and plates for ten friends. Instead, we’re inside, by the fire every night.
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Not so bad! We love the artichoke season and the last we’ll see of asparagus until next spring. We’ve made our little veal meatballs with tomatoes and artichokes, a rolled turkey breast with artichokes, and raw salads from the small, purple violetta artichokes. Every day we roast asparagus in the oven–the very best fate for any stalk of asparagus! Our neighbor, Fiorella, served us a pasta last week that has inspired us to use fresh herbs more abundantly. She coarsely chopped tomatoes from one of her 200 big jars from last summer–you could use canned–sauteed some garlic, and to that added MORE THAN A CUP of minced sage and rosemary. Some parmigiano. Basta, that’s it. She used small penne; we used bucatini. We’ve made it twice and find the copious use of herbs just so fresh. We feel as though we are eating Tuscany! I added some oregano and basil. Then we tried the big herb mixture with our stand-by lemon chicken that’s in The Tuscan Sun Cookbook. Again, we loved the intense, green, pungent taste. Cooking is always new here.
We’re entering the season of the sagra. If you’re driving in Tuscany look for signs of a sagra–it’s a feast celebrating a particular ingredient–cherries, polenta, fava beans, goose, rabbit, artichoke–whatever is in season or is traditional in the area. Here, below, the sagra for the wild boar.
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Even in the rain, everyone gathered along the Giro d’Italia route. What struck me is how dangerous that race is. All the support cars are intermingled with the riders. I don’t see how you could pass them, two abreast, if you wanted to move up in the race. Still–very exciting! What an elegant sport–the cool jerseys, the essentially pared-down bikes, the super-lean bodies. It was over in a heartbeat. That cool pink outfit that you see in the lead belongs to Joaquim Rodruigez. Forza!
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Were there any women racing? I didn’t spot any.
So far, May is a time to read, cook, think, and rest for the summer, which is full of guests, big changes, and travel. I walk into town early, before most people are out and about. A quick breakfast, a contemplation of the local death notices posted near Nessun Dorma. We’re not going to be seeing names like Assunta, Lazzaro, and Primo much longer.
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Soon all the roses will bloom on our side of the hill. Lower down and on the other side, my friend CoCo’s already are in bloom. She brought me these almost-apricot, delicately scented beauties:
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In my garden, I’m content right now with peonies the size of dinner plates. Here’s the heart of one:
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May 15, 2012
Wish I Had Taken More Photos
The book tour for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook was like a party that lasted a month! Here are some of the fine people and times:
At Warwick’s in La Jolla. Photographer Steven Rothfeld on right.
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At Genentech:
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At Left Bank in Larkspur CA:
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Above is the reunion of the crew that made the film Under the Tuscan Sun. On either side of me are Audrey Wells, screenwriter and director, and Diane Lane, our star. Magic evening at photographer Greg Gorman’s house. He’s beside Audrey.
Many places I went were restaurants in corporations and museums. They’re owned by Bon Appetit Management–all green, organic, super good and staffed by terrific chefs, all of whom cooked from our book. The lunch at Terzo Piano, Art Institute of Chicago, lived up to its dazzling setting in the Renzo Piano wing. Umm, long braised quail with junier berries, delicate sformato, vegetables. Dessert was my favorite Wine Cake.
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The Williams Sonoma events were everywhere fun and so well organized. Great staffs–must be a good company to work for. (And imagine the discount!)
Below, with the chef and restaurant manager at Yahoo. Those who work in those tech giant places are pampered. They have dry cleaning, oil change, teeth cleaning, even free cappuccino all day! Clever name.
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Above, at Book Passage in the San Francisco fabulous market Ferry Building. We’re with a friend from Twitter, @tutti_dolci. She brought us pecan oatmeal icebox cookies and we ate them in the car en route to Meadowood Resort:
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Last stop was Barnes & Noble in Cary NC. B & N did a grand job with displays in their stores. Still odd to me to walk in a bookstore and see my books like this. Not like the old days when I wrote poetry.
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Now The Tuscan Sun Cookbook is launched in the world and is on its own legs. I hope they’re sturdy, as mine were during such a long and varied and exciting tour.
We are back in Tuscany, savoring the glorious artichokes and asparagus and agretti and myriad lettuces in the market. Last night Gilda, who is a butcher by craft and one of the world’s most amazingly innovative cooks, brought over a cut of beef called “tasca,” (pocket.) It comes from near the stomach. She stuffed it with ground veal, garlic, breadcrumbs and artichoke hearts. She braised it for about forty minutes and we could cut it with a fork. ”For your next cookbook,” she said, “something almost lost. Only my oldest customers remember this.”
Next cookbook? I’ll have to think on that. Right now, I’m happily home at Bramasole, reading, walking, gardening, thinking of a new project. A summer to invent.
April 17, 2012
Semi-demi Finale, Plus News!
Buona sera,
The initial tour for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook will come to a grand finale at Antonia’s, a neighborhood restaurant in Hillsborough NC this Thursday, 19 April, at 6:30. We will be happy to see many friends who have begun to forget us because we’ve been busy or gone for so long! Claudia is setting up long tables, and Bramasole Olive Oil will grace each one.
Here’s her favoloso menu for the evening:
Hors d’oeuvres
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Roasted Olives, Salami and Prosciutto
Bruschetta: Roasted Tomato, Roasted Garlic, Pea and Shallots,
Red Pepper with Balsamic Vinegar, Cannellini Beans and Sage
Prosecco, Luna Argenta
Antipasti
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Caprese
Fried Zucchini Flowers
Fried Artichokes
Bresaola rolled with Robiola and Rughetta
Primi
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Orecchiette with Shrimp
Pear Agnolotti with Gorgonzola and Walnuts
Risotto Primavera
Entrees
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Ed’s Pork Roast
Chicken with Artichokes, Sundried Tomatoes and ChickPeas
Grilled Vegetables
Contorni
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Domenica’s Rosemary Potatoes
Zucchini with Lemon Pesto
Dogajolo Rosso, Carpineto, Tuscany
Dogajolo Bianco, Carpineto, Tuscany
Dolci
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Torta della Nonna
Ricotta Tart
Ed’s Cantucci
Sangue di Giuda, Casteggio
–
Antoniashillsborough.com
Antonia’s Restaurant
101 N.Churton Street
Hillsborough
The event sold out quickly but there are always last minute cancellations, no? Call Claudia if you’re interested. All the above photos are by Steven Rothfeld, taken for the book, except for the Torta della Nonna. (Can’t you tell who took that one!) Steven was with us for the California part of the tour so he got to hear directly how gorgeous his photos are. All were taken in natural light, most in our gardens, at Bramasole, and at our mountain house. All the photography is natural–nothing sprayed or gelled or oiled. We ate every bite after the shots. What luck! To work with someone whose vision matches your own. I wanted the book to show the ease, spontaneity, and beauty of Tuscan food. He did too. We did all our own styling, with a visit from my friend Kim Sunée, who joined in the fun of cooking and styling. What a pleasure all this was. And a lot of very hard work as well. Same with the tour. I loved meeting readers of the blog along the way! The trip was glorious and long and exhilarating and exhausting. Kiss the ground. We’re home!
In the first sentence, I said “initial” tour. We’ll be going back to Napa Valley, California for a few events still shaping up. But one is certain–a big, splashy, glamorous evening at Signorello Vineyards signorellovineyards.com on 22 July–a vineyard feast! We’re pairing with The Festival del Sole festivaldelsole.org for a grand feast and a concert with violinist Joshua Bell. The dinner is also a Tweet Fest, developed by Chef Robin White. See her website for details, www.chefrobinwhite.com . This concept involves parallel dinners happening around the world at the same time and everyone Tweeting about it as it progresses. So, groups of friends cook the same menu, drink the same wines, and form an invisible but palpable bond during the dinner. It sounds new and fun. Tickets to the dinner at the vineyard and the concert with Joshua Bell are available now. There also will be a pizza and gelato party and book signing the afternoon of the event. More on all this will be appearing here and on Robin’s website.
Finally, and so marvelous—Fodors, with American Express and Alitalia, are honoring the cookbook by sponsoring a trip for two to Tuscany during the olive oil harvest this fall. Look at their website for details and DO enter! www.fodors.com/sweepstakes/under-the-tuscan-sun See you at Bramasole?
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March 25, 2012
A Stop at A Southern Season
The book tour for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook has been exciting and exhausting and fun. All the events are just so enjoyable. I've been posting some photos along the way on Twitter and Facebook. Today we were at the food and cookware mecca, A Southern Season, in Chapel Hill with our friend Susan Gravely, who so graciously gave us so many ceramic pieces for our photo shoots for the cookbook. Almost all the table settings are graced by her Vietri dinnerware. We already owned several patterns and Vietri supplied us with more so that all our shots look different. At the Vietri shop in the store, they set a table similar to one in our book:
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Here we are with Susan, who, with her sister Frances and her mother, founded Vietri ( www.vietri.com ):
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While waiting in line, you could sip prosecco, Vermentino, or a red from the Maremma, all poured by wine guru Dean Coglaiti. The staff passed crostini from our book, and over in the food section, they served Tuscan Ribs, Garlic Soup, and Pears with Mascarpone. Great scents drifted around the store! A Southern Season, if you don't know it, is a vast food and wine emporium–you want an ingredient, a certain pasta or risotto, a special hot pepper jelly, or cheese straws? Here it is in the solid South. Of course they ship. ( www.southernseason.com ) This is their new display kitchen with butcher block counters–such a warm look–and a red Viking stove that makes the room sing.
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Since I'm thinking of remodeling a kitchen next year, I was taking in all the details and mix of textures. Loved the detail on the open shelves and this big shiny sink.
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Thanks, Jay and Jennifer, everyone who made the event happen. Especially Susan. I wonder who won the Vietri platter?
We met so many people. The big thing about the tour is just that for me–so many potential friends, if only I lived in that place. It's an affirming experience.
March 18, 2012
This week on tour for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook
On March 20, 10am-2pm, we'll be at The Art Institute of Chicago's Terzo Piano. That evening at 6:30, we'll be at The Book Stall in Winnetka IL.
I go on to Atlanta on Wednesday, where I speak at The Atlanta History Center at 8pm.
Then on March 22, to Rainy Day Books in Kansas City for a 12:30 lunch event at Mercato in DeSoto, and an evening event at Unity Temple on the Plaza at 6pm.
Please come if you're nearby!
Ed and I hope to meet some of the readers of this blog while we travel.
On March 20, 10am-2pm, we'll be at The Art Institute of Chicago's Terzo Piano. That evening at 6:30, we'll be at The Book Stall in Winnetka IL.
I go on to Atlanta on Wednesday, where I speak at The Atlanta History Center at 8pm.
Then on March 22, to Rainy Day Books in Kansas City for a 12:30 lunch event at Mercato in DeSoto, and an evening event at Unity Temple on the Plaza at 6pm.
Please come if you're nearby! Click on TOUR for details.
Now to try to get my carry-on bag down to 25 pounds. Over that, loading it above my head becomes dicey.
March 12, 2012
Kitchen / Garden video The Tuscan Sun Cookbook
During the photo shoots for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook, Steven Rothfeld shot a few scenes with his video camera. Here they are–our vegetable garden and our kitchen at the mountain house, my favorite kitchen I've ever had. It's not huge but it just works so well, especially for two cooks. The stove is central in the U shaped design and there's a good-sized sink on either wing. Lots of cool travertine counter space for making pasta, and an indestructible brick floor. As a homage to the former coop it was, I used chicken wire in the cabinet doors. Just out of sight, there's a fridge and wine fridge and storage for glasses. The long dining table pictured several times in the book is at the other end of the room.
All the photographs in the book were taken in natural light, on our plates, at our tables. We'll never get back the time we spent waiting for the lazy Tuscan clouds to move away from the sun. We did our own styling–nothing is faked or glazed or sprayed!!! We agreed that we wanted the photographs to match the spirit of the food–tempting, colorful, spontaneous. Steven did a fabulous job with the photography. After each shoot, we ate everything!
The book comes out 13 March and I start my wandering minstrel journeys, visiting this week Smart Talk Lecture Series in Wilmington DL on Wednesday 14 March; Williams Sonoma in Washington, DC on 15 March; and the Williams Sonoma in Annapolis MD on 16 March. Then I'm back in NC for an event at Williams Sonoma in Raleigh on 17 March. The next week, Art Institute of Chicago, Atlanta History Center, then two events with the great Rainy Day Books in Kansas City. Click on TOUR for details. I hope to meet some of you along the way. Please say hello!
March 9, 2012
Good Reads
Good Reads is giving away 12 copies of The Tuscan Sun Cookbook.
March 7, 2012
Banging Pots, Clattering Spoons, Thunk of knives
Other than chamber music, the nicest sound at my house is the banging, thunking and clatter of pots, knives, and spoons drifting up to my study from downstairs. Those noises mean that Ed is at play in the kitchen. It means that the aroma of ragù or minestrone or lemon-garlic chicken soon will waft up the stairwell. Our house runs well when Ed pulls himself away from his writing and indulges in a marathon cooking morning. In Bringing Tuscany Home, I wrote about his jars. He likes to keep them full of oven-roasted tomatoes, artichoke hearts, roasted peppers, olive salsa, roasted garlic, tomato sauce, aioli, and soffritto, that base preparation of onions, carrots, parsley, celery and garlic that just makes ragù, soups, and many pasta sauces. In fact, it can be a simple pasta sauce. Steven Rothfeld shot this for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook. Ed's mezzaluna at rest after chopping the odori:
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With Ed's jars on hand, quick dinners appear with a wave of a wand. We've learned from our Tuscan neighbors the ease and wisdom of the concept on hand. They have their stashes of dried mushroom, wild cherries, and various vegetables they've put up. And of course, tomatoes–shelves and shelves of big jars of peak-season tomatoes. What luxury!
Ed's other prep that just let's us sail through busy writing weeks–his Vegetable Frenzy. He hauls every vegetable out of the fridge and decides it's fate. He lines up his herbs. Soon the music is blaring. He steams, roasts, sautés.
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He litters the floor with carrot peels and beet skins. By the time I go downstairs for my second cappuccino, this is on the counter.
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About two hours at the chopping board and stove, that's all it takes to make the week easy. Besides just side dishes of parsnips, potatoes zucchini, for a few days we have on hand beets for salad, butternut squash for ravioli, asparagus for risotto, onions for a pasta sauce, on and on. And what a healthy little lunch:
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We're not always this organized but when we are, opening the fridge and seeing all those glass containers full of delicious vegetables gives you pride! Right now, he's calling me. Soup's on the table. Is there anything better than a partner who cooks???
March 2, 2012
Tour for The Tuscan Sun Cookbook
Marco Polo, speaking. I'm embarking in a couple of weeks on a long giro in support of The Tuscan Sun Cookbook.
Please click on TOUR to check out my stops. My thanks to those who have invited me and planned such fantastic, fun, varied events.
I would love to meet blog friends! Ed and I hope you like the book and find recipes that you make your own in it.
