Weekend Cooking: Women on Food by Charlotte Druckman

Today I have a different kind of food book for you. I thought about waiting to write about Charlotte Druckman's Women on Food (Abrams, Oct. 29) until I had finished reading the entire book, but changed my mind.

Here's why. This is a book to savor, to dip into, and to read a bit here and a bit there. I didn't want to ruin my enjoyment by rushing through the pages. At the same time, I wanted to make sure you were aware of this wonderful collection of food writing because it would make an awesome holiday gift.

So what's Women on Food all about? It's a little hard to explain because it's a compilation of essays, photos, drawings, snippets, thoughts, memories, conversations, and interviews from and with more than 100 women involved in the food world. As the book cover says, the women are writers, chefs, critics, television stars, and eaters, and each one has definitive opinions about their relationship with food, cooking, and eating.

This hodgepodge scrapbook-like collection includes a series of essays like Sadie Stern's on her true thoughts about M. F. K. Fisher and Dorie Greenspan's thoughts about good cookies (including a recipe). The interviews and conversations are insightful and down to earth. From them we learn, for example, the role that family played in Nigella Lawson's career and the surprising first real job held by FoodLab's Davida Davidson (not in food!). There's even a fun foodie horoscope and some beautiful photographs.

My favorite sections, however, are the ones that start with a prompt. What follows each is close to 50 short responses on topics like

• The Truth about My Mother
• Cook This, Not That! What is a type of food you wanted to cook and were told you couldn't--or were made to feel as though you couldn't . . . and you're pretty sure it's because you're a woman?
• The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread (in food)

One of my favorite prompts is the one titled "A Toast! What is a good thing to put on toast?" The answers range from Chandra Ram's "Please. Name one thing that isn't good on toast. I dare you" to Sofia Perez's explicit "Tomato, olive oil, and Iberico ham." I love all the answers, but that's probably because I agree with Ram.

Finally, you might ask, Who are the women who contributed to Women on Food? Some you've heard of, like Julee Rosso and Deb Perelman. Others may be new to you (or maybe just me), like restaurant owner Ning (Amelie) Kang and freelance writer Naomi Tomky. I loved hearing the voice of each of these women and am happy to have a whole fresh batch of food lovers to learn from.

Charlotte Druckman's Women on Food is one of my favorite food books of the year. I love food writing in general, and the frank honest voices collected in this volume sing to me. I was inspired, I laughed, I cried, I sighed, and I still have at least half of this 400-page book left to read. As I said at the beginning, Women on Food would make a great gift, but you'll want a copy for yourself as well.

Thanks so much to Abrams Books and the Abrams Dinner Party for the copy of Women on Food.

_______

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page.

NOTE: Mr. Linky sometimes is mean and will give you an error message. He's usually wrong and your link went through just fine the first time. Grrrr.
_______