In preparation for tomorrow’s Thanksgiving dinner, amateur chefs around the country are consulting cookbooks for ideas.
For a side dish with a Japanese-Mexican fusion spin, try the “Roasted Kabocha and Maitake with Bitter Chocolate” recipe listed on the bottom of this post.
The recipe comes from Anita Lo, chef/owner of the Michelin star-rated New York City restaurant Annisa. We spoke with Chef Lo and her writing partner Charlotte Druckman about their cookbook collaboration project Cooking Without Borders.
A = Chef Anita Lo
C = Writer Charlotte Druckman
Q: How does a chef approach the cookbook creation process?
A: I’ve been trying to write this book for literally decades. I came up with the idea for this book in the early 90’s. You get an agent who can help you sell the book; you don’t necessarily have to have an agent but I did. You write a proposal. Hopefully someone buys the book; hopefully it gets several bids and you decide who is going to support you the best for what you want to do. I’ve been trying to write it myself for a billion years and realized that I just didn’t have the time. I ended up hiring a writer, Charlotte Druckman who is very talented and smart. I think I wrote a good portion of it, but the rest of it we sat down and sort of dictated what to write for the head notes and choose some recipes.
Q: How does one approach writing a cookbook? Is it about being technical and giving exact directions?
C: The first and most important thing is to come up with a focus and structure. In this case, my priority was not only to distill Anita’s culinary point of view, but also to find out what matters most to her, and what she wanted her cookbook to convey. That goes beyond the food. The recipes become examples of how she thinks and of her collective life experiences (in and out of the kitchen). They allow you to show readers who she is and what she values without your having to tell them. Once you’ve figured out what the book’s mission statement is, you want to, as a writer, get ‘The Voice’ down. The way that Anita expresses herself verbally is as important as the way in which she does that on the plate. I don’t want it to sound like me; I want you to read it and say, ‘That’s Anita.’ But, at the same time, the tone needs to match the content. Anita is a serious Chef (I capitalize that to distinguish it from home cook or even a chef-in-training or a chef who is just starting out) and her restaurant isn’t some casual brasserie. So, you don’t want something that sounds too colloquial; still, you want to feel as though Anita is speaking to you.
As for the technical aspect, it relates. This isn’t a cookbook for beginners; it’s not about quick-n-easy cooking in 30 minutes or less or taking shortcuts. That’s not who Anita is. You don’t want to dumb things down to a point where you lose her style or type of food. It’s a hard balance to strike–assuming a certain level of culinary intelligence on the part of your reader without going too far; you want people to feel inspired, and, also, confident enough to try the recipes. One of the things that’s particularly trying for chefs is that they’re asked, often, when writing recipes, to give exact cooking times. The truth is, depending on your cooking equipment (pan size and composition, oven, etc.), you’re going to find that things cook differently. We decided it would make more sense and, at the same time, help readers become better cooks, if we told them what the desired result was and what they were looking for, so that they would begin to learn how to tell when their meat has reached its ideal doneness, for example. It’s not all that different from what you’re trying to do on the literary front–you want it to be accessible but not a Cooking For Dummies project. And, it also relates to the book’s ultimate goal, which is to expose people to new flavors and encourage home cooks to incorporate unfamiliar global ingredients at their stoves … if the book can broaden their virtual (and literal) pantries and get them improvising on their own, that would be the best possible outcome.
Q: What advice do you have for writers when they embark on a collaborative project?
C: First and foremost, you need to respect the person you’re working with–you have to believe in them and what they do. Equally important, though, you need to make sure you can work with that person. Genuinely liking him/her helps, because you’re going to be spending a lot of time together. That’s not enough though; you have to have complementary working styles. If you’re collaborating with someone who will be the star of the show (as in, if he/she is The Talent and you are the hired pen), you also have to realize that part of your job is project management. I was lucky because Anita stayed on top of things and was good about sticking to a schedule. But you may find yourself working with someone who needs to be pushed and prodded to stay on track.
And then, two other related pieces of advice. 1. Avoid what I call narcissistic writing. That means, remember, it’s not YOUR voice. You may write something you think is the cleverest, most pithy thing and everyone’s going to think it’s great. Well, guess what? If it doesn’t sound like your subject, if it doesn’t mesh with the overall tone you’ve created for the book or, if it’s some kind of passive ‘all about me’ interjection, you need to cut it. 2. Respect the trust. Again, when you’re writing on behalf of someone else or translating his/her perspective or biography, you need to take that seriously. It’s not an even exchange–someone is telling you a whole lot about him/herself and it’s kind of a one-way flow of information as far as getting the work done goes. You need to honor that; protect your source and value their trust.
Q: What do you think is the best way to self-edit?
C: See narcissistic writing, as above. If it doesn’t sound like it belongs, it probably doesn’t. Also, always keep your mission statement in mind. If you’re writing about recipes and the idea is to tell the story behind each one and also to talk about it on a technical level–to show home cooks how it comes together in the mind and on the plate–then anything that doesn’t achieve either of those things needs to go. If your book is called Cooking Without Borders and it celebrates global influences, you should probably make sure each recipe and what’s written about it relates to that. And if one recipe has a whole lot of backstory and not a lot of cooking-related intel (or vice versa), you need to think about evening that out. On the other hand, you don’t need to be so formulaic about it. As long as the whole feels balanced, if a few of the parts aren’t a perfect 50/50 split, it’s all right.
Q: How does an Asian-fusion style chef such as yourself celebrate Thanksgiving?
A: I’m actually French trained. I don’t speak Chinese, I speak French. I trained in France. What I normally do for Thanksgiving is a little French-influenced…Going to make a black truffle sauce to go with [the turkey.] I’m making foie gras stuffing. I have to have brussel sprouts with bacon. I have to have white kabocha or sweet potato puree.
Q: What’s next for you?
A: I definitely would like to write more cookbooks. I’ll start thinking about another one in a year. I’ve always wanted to do a ‘cooking for one’ book.
C: I’ve just completed the manuscript for my book Skirt Steak: Women Chefs on Standing the Heat & Staying In The Kitchen, which Chronicle will publish next (2012) fall. No recipes in there. It’s what I call a communal memoir and addresses what it’s like to be a chef who happens to be a woman. Lots of it has more to do with being a chef than being a lady, to be honest. But certainly, there are those topics (e.g. motherhood) that are gender specific. I interviewed 73 chefs for it and it was like a whirlwind of awesomeness. Incredibly inspiring. I get really corny when I start thinking about it, so will stop now. You can check my tumblr where I post outtakes and outbursts from the interviewing process (theskirtsteakfiles.tumblr.com).
I’m also collaborating on another cookbook (hooray!) with Caitlin Freeman who co-founded San Francisco’s Miette Patisserie and now oversees all pastry operations for Blue Bottle Coffee. It’s about the influences/confluences of pastry & Modern Art. Soon, everyone will be making her Mondrian cake at home. (Yes, she created a cake that looks like a Mondrian painting, and YES you can do it at home. For now, you can try a slice at the Blue Bottle cafe at SFMoMA. Caitlin took items from the museum’s permanent collection as a jumping off point and invented some stunning and delicious edibles accordingly. NY Times link.) I am a cookie monster and obsessive (compulsive?) tracker of baked goods (ice cream too), plus, I am a lapsed doctoral candidate in Art History (Modern Art being my focus), so this project is a dream come true. And, Caitlin’s up there with Anita in terms of being easy to work with, so my being spoiled streak should continue.
RECIPE: ROASTED KABOCHA AND MAITAKE WITH BITTER CHOCOLATE
Mexico and Japan couldn’t be farther away in distance and in culture, but in the contemporary American kitchen their ingredients find common ground. Here, sweet and earthy Japanese pumpkin and wild mushrooms are paired with a rich and bitter chocolate sauce based on mole, a famous Mexican stew. I don’t want to mislead anyone. This dish was certainly inspired, in part, by that wonderful sauce, but mine is so far from the authentic thing that to call it a mole would be insulting to the real article or anyone who has taken the time and gathered all of the ingredients necessary to make one. As for kabocha squash, it won me over when I tasted it in Japanese stews, with its skin on and designs carved into the bite-size chunks. The pumpkin tends to pick up the flavors of its braising liquid, and the skin is tender enough to eat. I would have used its own seeds for garnish in this preparation, but their shells are a bit tough, and my prep cooks would have killed me. Besides, pepitas (the Spanish word for a prolific variety of pumpkin seeds) are a popular ingredient in Mexican cuisine and get the job done just as well.
Serves 8 as an appetizer or 4 as an entrée
½ small spaghetti squash, halved, seeds scooped out
3 tablespoons neutral-flavored vegetable oil
1½ teaspoons salt
Black pepper
1 small kabocha squash, rinsed, stem removed, halved horizontally, seeds scooped out
For the sauce :
4 tablespoons butter
1 large shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup sesame seeds
1 piece star anise
¾ cup mushroom juice or vegetable or chicken stock
1½ tablespoons light brown sugar, or more to taste
⅓ cup finely chopped extra-bitter chocolate (2½ ounces)
Pinch each of salt and pepper
To serve:
24 large, bite-size clusters fresh maitake mushroom or fresh shiitake or oyster mushrooms (about
⅔ pound)
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup julienned scallion greens (about ½ bunch)
1½ teaspoons salt
A few grinds of pepper
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon neutral-flavored vegetable oil
½ teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons roasted hulled pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
Ground pequin chiles or red pepper flakes
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush the inside of the spaghetti squash with 1 tablespoon of the oil and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of the salt and a few grinds of pepper. Put in a roasting pan or on a baking sheet and roast for about 30 minutes, until soft. Meanwhile, cut the kabocha into wedges radiating from the center stem of both halves. Place in a bowl with the remaining oil and salt and a generous amount of pepper and toss to coat. Arrange in one layer on a roasting pan or on a baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes, until soft and slightly caramelized on the edges. Set the spaghetti and kabocha squashes aside to cool. When cool, scrape out the flesh of the spaghetti squash with a fork to remove strands; discard the tough outer shell. There should be about 1 cup.
Make the sauce: In a small saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter, add the shallot and garlic, and cook over low heat until soft and translucent, but not browned. Add the cumin, cinnamon, sesame seeds, and star anise and stir. Add the mushroom juice and brown sugar and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Over medium-high heat, whisk in the chocolate and the remaining butter until fully incorporated and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, adding more brown sugar if necessary. Remove and discard the star anise and set the sauce aside in a warm place; gently reheat before serving to preserve the consistency of the chocolate.
To serve: Sauté the mushrooms in the butter over high heat until golden brown and crisp. Reheat the kabocha in a 400°F oven. Combine the spaghetti squash with the scallion and season with the salt and pepper, lemon juice, oil, and sugar. Place 3 warm kabocha pieces in the center of each plate. Ring with the sauce and arrange 3 pieces of mushroom around on top of the sauce. Scatter a few pumpkin seeds in between. Top the kabocha with a little of the spaghetti-squash mixture and sprinkle with some ground chiles. Serve.
Notes : You can substitute buttercup squash or any other sweet, dense winter squash or pumpkin. For kabocha, leave the edible skin on; other types of squash may require peeling. To make mushroom juice, simmer 12 ounces button or cremini mushrooms in 2 cups water for 30 minutes, then pour through a finemesh sieve set over a bowl. Reserve the mushrooms for another use.