Since starting this blog I’ve enjoyed interviewing a wide range of home cooks about their family memories and everyday cooking. Today I’d like to welcome food writer Katherine Martinelli.

Please welcome reader Karen Hyams for today’s reader interview.

Please welcome Emily Segal,  a Holistic Nutritionist living in Kfar Saba, Israel. Four years ago, she and her husband made aliyah (immigrated) from New York with her two sons and Labrador retriever. She writes at Triumph Wellness.

1. What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when you were growing up? My mother is an excellent cook and even ran her own catering company from our home when I was a child. Needless to say, we were very well-fed. Even though she also worked outside of the home, I remember my mom coming home at 5:30 pm every day, immediately throwing on an apron and creating a fresh, balanced dinner from scratch. We would sit down to eat as a family at precisely 6:30 pm when my father arrived in the kitchen at the close of the evening network news. Our meals were always protein, vegetable and starch, although we never ate much meat.
   My mom has always been ahead of her time healthy-cooking wise. Although we were always tempted by her homemade baked goods, we mostly ate whole grain bread, low-fat foods, and plenty of fruits and vegetables, which incidentally I hated and nicknamed Shmukinuk. When I went back to school to study nutrition, my mom enjoyed the last laugh as they say.
2.  How is your cooking style different from your mother’s? I learned the fundamentals of food and meal preparation from my mother, but I now cook almost entirely vegan and vegetarian meals for my family. My mom cooks a lot of chicken. But we are always sharing recipes and consulting with one another about things we have tried. My sister is also a wonderful cook and works as a professional food and travel writer.
3. What is your favorite gadget? I could not live without my blender. I use it every single day, usually more than once. I almost always make a smoothie for myself after my workout and I make smoothies for the kids when they come home from school.
4. Do you entertain, and in what circumstances? What is the biggest party or meal you have hosted to date? We entertained more before we made aliyah. Now it’s just family gatherings on holidays which my husband’s family always do pot-luck. The largest meal I ever cooked was Thanksgiving dinner for about 20 when we lived in New York, but I had lots of family members helping me in the kitchen.
5. Can you share a typical daily menu? Weekly menu? As I said, I usually have a smoothie for breakfast, or oatmeal if it is cold outside. The kids have cereal, oatmeal, eggs or homemade muffins. My husband has whatever I’m having. I pack sandwiches plus either fresh fruit or veggies for the kids 10am school snack and for my husband’s lunchbox. I normally eat leftovers of the previous night’s dinner for my lunch.
   Like my mom, I do my best to make a family meal every night. I make a new meal plan every week and try lots of new recipes, but we usually have one night of pasta or noodles of some sort; one night a rice and bean based dish like Mudjadara (Persian Rice and Lentils), chili, or stir-fry; one bread-based meal like homemade pizza, calzones, or soup, salad and fresh rolls; one night Mexican – tacos, burritos or quesadillas. My husband cooks chicken or fish for Friday night and I make the soup and sides. Then we generally have leftovers on Thursdays and Saturdays. I also make sweet things several times a week as well: muffins, brownies, cakes, puddings and the like – sometimes healthy, sometimes not so. Let’s just say my kitchen is well-used!
6. How has your cooking style evolved over the years? When we first married, I wanted to be the good wife, so I quickly learned how to cook chicken, fish and meat to please my carnivorous husband. I have been a vegetarian since my teens, so really, I didn’t know how to cook animals. Gradually though, my husband came to be inspired by my health and energy as a vegetarian and began to request less meat. There has been no red meat served in our home for about 6 years. Now my husband cooks either fish or chicken once a week for himself and the kids, usually Shabbat (Friday night dinner). The rest of the week, I only cook vegetarian.
7. Can you recommend any cookbooks, TV shows or websites that have inspired you? I have about 100 cookbooks and I read tons of food blogs as well. I think the cookbooks I use most are Get It Ripe, by Jae Steele, The Happy Herbivore by Lindsay Nixon, and The World of Jewish Cooking by Gil Marks.
8. What posts on CM have you enjoyed? Do you have suggestions for future posts? I like it when you interview people. It’s so interesting to hear what is happening in other people’s kitchens. I would love to see more posts pertaining to our local food scene, the traditional Jewish dishes from different lands, and what’s in season when, but I don’t know if that is your desired blog direction.
9. What is the most unusual dish you’ve ever made? One time, I made so many changes to a cake recipe that it actually exploded in my oven! What a mess. I had tried to make it vegan, fat-free, and gluten-free all in one go. Now I know to only change one thing at a time.
10. What is the oldest item in your kitchen? The newest? The oldest item is a cake decorating set from probably my high school or college days. The newest item would be the wok we just bough this week. I can’t believe I never had one before!
11. What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? I have really been paying attention to how much oil we go through. It’s too much. I am working on lowering the fat in my cooking, by sauteing in water and subbing things like applesauce for oil in baked goods.
12. Please share a favorite recipe and cooking tips. The most popular recipe on my website is this one:

Recipe: Carrot Red Pepper Soup

Please welcome Nina and her unusual Italian-German culinary history.

I’m Nina, 40ys old, stay-at-home-mom and rugby player, peer-to-peer breastfeeding counselor, Italo-German living in Bremen, Germany, have 2 children and a husband plus a demented grandmother I care for. Here’s my cooking blog:http://tofusofa.antville.org/ which is pretty abandoned as I have other special interest blogs on women’s rugby and feminist mothering. They’re more on top of my list at the moment.

• What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when you were growing up? I come from a rather dysfunctional family and my mother was never the best cook or housewife, so one of the things I missed the most when my parents separated was my father’s (Italian) cooking. My mom could make a decent pork roast and pretty good bolognese sugo, and that’s about it. I learned most of my cooking from watching my father cook, as I wasn’t allowed to help, and from both my grandmothers.
• How is your cooking style different from your mother’s?  Well, she did not cook unless was told to. I love to cook for lots of people and that’s why I have a family.
• What is your favorite gadget? Really sharp knives. I have a wonderful Zwilling Santoku knife which I adore.
  Do you entertain, and in what circumstances? What is the biggest party or meal you have hosted to date? I like to have friends and neighbours over for Dinner. Back in the days I catered for a DIY PunkRockShowBooker and was out there cooking mostly vegan or vegetarian buffets and meals for visiting Bands like the Cro-Mags etc.  The weirdest job ever was a buffet for the opening party of a S/M brothel…. I was also working as a “professional” chef and when I started that job (I had no professional training) the very first evening we shoveled out 450 meals.
• Can you share a typical daily menu? Weekly menu? Today we had a Risotto. I call it Smugglers Risotto, as it’s in honour of my grand-aunt Angiulina. It’s made with Italian sausage (lughaniga) and extremely tasty! I don’t have a weekly menu as I love to shop for groceries and always find something special on one of the wonderful markets we have here (but which are crap compared to the markets in Italy…).
• How has your cooking style evolved over the years? As a kid i was a picky eater. Every kind of meat had to be well done, plus I was eating mostly pork and turkey. I wasn’t a diverse eater, when i was at a Greek restaurant for the first time I thought they were going to poison me and I really hated Dolmades (I love them now and make them myself with fresh wine leaves from my garden). I guess the “break”  came when I really got into cooking, in German schools you had to do an internship in 9th grade and as I was lazy and always hungry I decided to do it in a restaurant. I had so much fun and they even gave me some money! After that, I really started to become interested in cooking.
• Can you recommend any cookbooks, TV shows or websites that have inspired you?
  I love the BBC shows from Antonio Carluccio, I really love Giorgio Locatelli’s “Made in Italy” Book. It’s a bit odd that I like two Italian chefs that made their career in the UK – but on the other hand both of them come from an area near to my home village (near Lago Maggiore), so I kinda “get” their style of cooking. I also love the “Zu Tisch in…” (Cuisine des Terroirs) Series of French/German Broadcaster ARTE, they are incredibly good! But most of my cooking books are in German or Italian…
  And I used to get a lot of input from foodblogs, such as http://kochtopf.twoday.net/, http://nutriculinary.com/ and others.
  I started blogging very early (around 1999), but my food blog is much younger, it only started 6ys ago…
• What posts on CM have you enjoyed? Do you have suggestions for future posts?
  I enjoy every post as I like the very down to earth, yet “professional” attitude. I bet with 6 children there is a lot more to consider, be it economical or organiational. I loved the “rice washing” post! Just keep it going!
• What is the most unusual dish you’ve ever made? Rheinischer Sauerbraten (a special roast made from horse meat). Wasn’t as good as I expected, but was my own fault. I had shortened the marinating time…
• What is the oldest item in your kitchen? The newest? OMG! I have no idea! I got some pretty old glasses. And the last thing I purchased was a new dishwasher.
• What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? I’d love to think a bit more ahead, I had lots of stuff going to waste in the last months which is a shame, but I love to buy groceries that much…. Plus I try to not buy any conventional meat anymore, only organic. So we’re heading towards a week of veggie meals and then a good Sunday roast

Please share a favorite recipe and cooking tips.
OK, this is veggie and yummy:

My daughter loves it! I stole the recipe from a Moevenpick-Restaurant where they used cottage cheese instead of Mozzarella. But I hate cottage cheese! Try it with buffalo Mozzarella, but cow’s milk Mozzarella (fior di latte) is just a s good as the Balsamico is the big “Player” here.

Please welcome Sara for today’s interview. Be sure to check out her moving post, describing how she told her husband about her credit card debt.
1. Please introduce yourself. I’m Sara, the thrifty living mama behind My Frugal Fun Life. I have three young children, a husband, a puppy, 2 birds, and a 110 gallon aquarium full of fresh water fish .
2. What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when you were growing up? My mom did not cook much, and most everything we ate came from a box or can. I don’t remember her ever spending time in the kitchen, and after I moved out-I realized I didn’t know how to cook or bake myself.
3. How is your cooking style different from your mother’s? Up till about a year ago, it was very similar. Most everything we ate came from a box or can, or we ate out (several times a week). That changed last year though, when I really started to get interested in cooking and baking—not only to save money, but to be healthier too.
4. What is your favorite gadget? It’s a tie between my crock pot and my bread maker. I use both several times a week.
5. Can you share a typical daily menu? Weekly menu? I’m big on menu planning, and right now I do monthly plans.
   • Breakfasts are usually oatmeal, smoothies, fruit and yogurt, homemade muffins and sweet breads, and homemade pancakes.
   • Lunches are leftovers, sandwiches, homemade soups, and homemade mac ‘n cheese.
   • Suppers always include one breakfast type meal each week (frugal and filling), one meatless meal per week (usually sandwiches), and one new recipe. The other days are family favorites, usually involving my crock pot and bread maker.

   How has your cooking style evolved over the years? Well, up to about a year ago I didn’t have a cooking style lol! I’m still at the beginning stages of learning how to cook and bake, and I’m excited to keep learning new methods and recipes. I’ve also really started focusing on healthier eating, and we’re transitioning to a whole foods/organic diet right now.

6. What websites that have inspired you? I love $5 dinners, , A Year of Slow Cooking,  Weelicious, and Heavenly Homemakers.
7. What is the oldest item in your kitchen? The newest? Most of my kitchen gadgets have been bought in the last few months! My newest addition is a juicer I found at a thrift shop for $2.
8. What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? 2011 will be all about transitioning our diets to healthier choices, while still staying within the parameters of my small grocery budget (currently $85 a week for a family of five). This spring I’ll be learning how to garden, and I’ll be learning how to can later on this year. I think we’ve made pretty good progress so far, but by the end of the year I hope we’ll be much further along in our healthy living journey. I want to continue finding new recipes that use healthier ingredients.
9. Please share a favorite recipe and cooking tips. My biggest tip is to really evaluate everything that you’re putting in your grocery cart, and see if you can make it from scratch. Not only is this going to be healthier, but most times it will save you a lot of money! My new favorite food is banana strawberry smoothies:
   

   Banana Strawberry Smoothies

   1 banana (cut into slices and frozen)

• handful of frozen strawberries
• handful of fresh organic kale
• handful of fresh organic spinach
• organic yogurt (I don’t measure-just dump some in)
• 1/2 cup fresh squeezed organic orange juice
• 2 tbsp of ground flax seed
• 2 tbsp of raw honey

Blend together and enjoy!

Kelly's son enjoying a brioche

Please welcome Kelly (Elisheva) Milotay from Victoria, BC, Canada. She has three kids – Akiva is 4, Benjy is 2, and Mia is 1, and is expecting another in early summer. She used to be a middle school teacher but is now a full-time stay-at-home-mom. My husband works for the provincial government.

1. What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when you were growing up? My parents divorced when I was very young so my mom worked and was a single parent. We ate a lot of typical Midwestern fare – fish sticks, cube steak, spaghetti with meat sauce. She did make stir-fry with chicken and lots of snow peas and water chestnuts – very avant-garde for northern Michigan in the 80s
2. How is your cooking style different from your mother’s? Living on the West Coast of Canada, I have so many more options than my mother ever did. I’ve eaten things in the past 5 years that I had never even heard of before (dragon fruit, kale, Swiss chard, to name a few). I think we share a commitment to healthy food, though, and making the best for our families. My family also keeps kosher. We live in a place without kosher restaurants or take-out and we have to bring our meat in from off-island (either Seattle or Vancouver). This means we do a lot of whole foods cooking and I’ve learned to make things from scratch that I’d never dreamed of making before like croissants, different types of bread, a mean pizza, Chinese steamed buns (bao), mozzarella cheese and paneer using raw milk, a variety of East Indian dishes …
3. What is your favorite gadget? Hmm. I’d have to say it’s a tie between my Kitchen-Aid mixer and my food processor. I’m not a big gadget person.
4. Do you entertain, and in what circumstances? With three young kids we almost never entertain – the occasional Shabbat or holiday meal is about it.
5. What is the biggest party or meal you have hosted to date? We had my second son’s bris here at our house and we made all the very simple food for it (bread, salmon salad, cut-up veggies).
6. Can you share a typical daily menu? I try to serve protein in the morning as I find it’s what sticks with us – scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, apples and peanut butter, bananas and plain yogurt (remember I’m feeding the under 5 crowd!). I also almost always serve seasonal fruit with breakfast. Lunch is often interchangeable with breakfast with the addition of cut up vegetables and dip – plain yogurt with a little ketchup added, blended cottage cheese with some Montreal Steak Spice thrown in, or hummous. Supper can be anything from hamburgers, to fish patties, to macaroni and cheese, to sausage with cabbage, to homemade spanakopita. My husband is very interested in Asian cuisine and makes delicious noodle dishes and stir-fries over rice or quinoa. I tend not to plan normal menus in advance – I stock up on our “basics” and buy vegetables and fruit that are on sale. I tried menu-planning once for a few weeks but it just doesn’t fit with me right now. Our meals are simple enough (right now my husband is eating low-carb so that simplifies it even further!) that I can decide in the morning what we’re going to eat that night.
7. How has your cooking style evolved over the years? When I first got married, I was very tied into high-carb, low protein, processed-food with few vegetables…now we eat pretty healthily with a variety of protein sources, fruits, and vegetables. I’m still a sucker for fresh donuts, though I have to make my own here.
8. Can you recommend any cookbooks, TV shows or websites that have inspired you? Most of our cooking is done without recipes. I love YouTube for videos on specific techniques (stretching pizza dough, making roti, making authentic crumpets) For inspiration, I really like Michael Smith’s “Chef at Home” TV show on the Food Network Canada. My husband used to eat out a lot before he started keeping kosher. Now it’s one of his hobbies to try and recreate the mostly Asian dishes that were his favorites. He gets cookbooks at the library to browse until he finds what he wants. If it’s a baked/bread item, I get tipped to make it. He can do the noodles and stir-fries himself.
9. What posts on CM have you enjoyed? I enjoyed the series on cooking with kids. Since we almost never eat prepared food or eat out, my kids will definitely need kitchen skills.
10. What is the most unusual dish you’ve ever made? Hmmm. Gobhi d’arbari, I think  It’s an East Indian dish of cauliflower with tomato sauce (and I put in paneer) served over basmati rice.
11. What is the oldest item in your kitchen? I have a Joy of Cooking from 1961 that I love to read. The newest? My Cuisinart 12-cup food processor.
12. What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? More vegetables. Less wheat.
13. Please share a favorite recipe and cooking tips.
    Except for my baked goods, I rarely cook from recipes. Here’s my kids’ current favorite snack:

Lara Balls

Ingredients:
Ingredient amounts are approximate.

• 1.5 cups raw almonds
• 500 g pitted dates
• ½ cup cocoa powder (I’m pretty sure I usually add more than this – do it to taste)
• 1 cup coconut
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Whiz almonds in a food processor until they are finely ground (watch out you don’t get almond butter!)
2. Add dates, cocoa powder, coconut, and vanilla and process until a dough is formed. If mixture remains crumbly, add a little warm water by tablespoon and continue to process until a dough forms.
3. Shape the dough into balls the size of walnuts and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Refrigerate balls until firm.
5. Store in refrigerator in a covered container. These never last more than a few days in my house so I’m not sure how long they keep.

Kelly and baby

Cooking Tips? Gosh. Don’t use recipes. Don’t be afraid to deviate when you do use recipes Add what you think will taste good. To get the hang of using spices that are new to you, get ethnic cookbooks from the library.

You may also enjoy: How to Cook with a Baby in the House

Medieval Kosher Cooking with Devora

12 Tips for Getting Kids Used to Healthy Foods

Please welcome Chavi Cohen for today’s reader interview. Chavi is married with two adorable little munchkins, 22 months and 3 months. Read more about her on her blog, Harvard Housewife.

1. What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when you were growing up? My family almost always had dinner together.  My mother’s cooking style was classic Jewish Eastern European. Lots of meat and potatoes with vegetables as more of an afterthought.  We had red meat at least 2-3 times a week. My mom has a bit of a gourmet side and liked to experiment every once in a while with new recipes and flavor profiles.  But mostly, we had savory, heavy dinners.
2. How is your cooking style different from your mother’s? I still have a preference for meat, but because my husband is from Florida and enjoys more vegetables, we do a lot more salads.  I also love Mexican/Argentine food (a nod to my Argentine roots – my grandfather grew up there) and my husband spent 10 years living in Arizona, so we usually have some sort of Hispanic dish once a week.  I love enchiladas, burritos… I make a great Mexican stew.  Since we didn’t eat traditional Shabbos (Sabbath) meals in my parents’ house, I also make a lot more kugels and do a ton of baking. My mom was more the bakery sort, I think mostly because she didn’t have a Kitchenaid mixer.
3. What is your favorite gadget? My baby pink kitchen aid mixer.  When I was engaged I loved baby pink (still do!) so I ended up with lots of baby pink housewares.
4. Do you entertain, and in what circumstances? What is the biggest party or meal you have hosted to date? I love to entertain.  We mostly entertain on Shabbos.  I don’t mind inviting very large families. They always almost want to invite us instead but we’re happy to have them.  The biggest party or meal I have hosted was probably my son’s bris seudah (celebratory circumcision meal).  I wasn’t really at my peak hosting ability but I was able to direct my amazing friends who came to help and I had cooked and frozen a ton of food ahead of time.  I also made some easy things a few days before. Inevitably, with these parties/meals where I cook a lot of food, I leave one item in the fridge!  This time it was the roast I made.  But my husband was thrilled because we were able to keep it to ourselves and eat once all our guests had gone home later in the week.
5. Can you share a typical daily menu? Weekly menu? Since my husband likes to cook and I work full-time, I’m thrilled he’s able to cook once or twice a week.  For the day, I usually have toast for breakfast and some of the dinner leftovers for lunch.  For dinner during the week, we try to mix it up.  We usually have one Italian night, usually dairy, although pasta with chicken and veggies with all different types of sauces and spices usually makes it into the menu.  We also do one Mexican night.  We try to have red meat, like steak or ground meat once a week as well (can’t forget your roots!).  Occasionally we have big salad nights.  We also, like most people, have one night of leftovers.  Salmon is also featured probably once a week (we get very inexpensive kosher frozen salmon from Giant Eagle).  We also love classic American food, especially in the summer, when meat/chicken/hamburgers on the grill are a must.
6. How has your cooking style evolved over the years? In the almost three years that I’ve been cooking seriously (my mom never let me in the kitchen!) I have definitely expanded to use a lot of different spices and ingredients that I never saw in my parents house like cumin, ground ginger and sesame oil.  In New York where there are lots of different kosher restaurants, if I wanted a specific cuisine, I would just go out to eat!  But here in Cleveland, I’ve learned to make authentic American Chinese meals, Mexican food and fresh veggies and salads, not just steak and broiled chicken and baked potatoes.
7. Can you recommend any cookbooks, TV shows or websites that have inspired you? The cookbook that really jumpstarted my cooking was the first Quick and Kosher cookbook by Jaime Geller.  I got it only four days after getting married and have relied on it ever since.  I also Google ingredients for inspiration or look at a number of recipes and combine my favorite elements.  Lastly, I keep an eye out for interesting and easy recipes in Binah magazine and love trying them out occasionally.
8. What posts on CM have you enjoyed? Do you have suggestions for future posts? Love the posts on how to shop for bargains, would love more of those!
9. What is the oldest item in your kitchen? The oldest item, while not really for cooking, is a handmade wooden stepstool my grandfather made years and years ago.  It’s great for reaching the top shelves and my daughter loves using it to see what we’re doing on the countertops.  The newest? The newest is probably a set of metal mixing bowls my husband picked up from the Marc’s closeouts (Clevelanders will know what I’m talking about) for almost nothing.  We used to use glass bowls and slowly but surely they are all breaking – so we’re hoping these bowls last a while.
10. What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? I would love to follow my husband’s lead and use different and interesting spice combinations.  Unfortunately, after years of using the sacred combination of onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper, it’s hard to deviate!
11. Please share a favorite recipe and cooking tips. Cooking tip: My favorite way to get a crisp top on a piece of salmon or chicken is to use tons of Pam spray!!  It’s low-fat and easy to do.  Especially on salmon, if you put some breadcrumbs on top and then put a good layer of cooking spray on top, you’ll get a moist layer of breading that is just delicious!  My mom does this and it was such a good tip I use it all the time! Also, to get an authentic Mexican flavor, use cumin and a mix of cheddar and mozzarella cheese in your dish and for authentic Chinese, invest in sesame oil – it’s expensive but you only use a little for each meal and the difference in taste is quite significant. You’ll think you’re eating out at your favorite Chinese restaurant!

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Please welcome Roz Chapman for today’s reader interview.

Rosalyn Chapman grew up in the Midlands area of England and now lives in Sixt Sur Aff, South Brittany in France with her husband Paul. Her two sons Daniel and Michael live near by, and she’s a grandmother to Michael’s son Kenzo.

1. What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when I was growing up? As one of six kids I remember we always had our meals round the dinner table, we couldn’t always afford to have a joint of meat, buying lamp or pork chops would be too expensive to feed eight of us, except on a Sunday where there would always be a roast, rarely beef. There was always a traditional Sunday lunch of some description, and during the week Mom would cook sausages, liver and onions, stews with dumplings (my Mom made the best dumplings ever!), or corned beef, always with two veg and potatoes. Always a pudding, tapioca, semolina, my Nan was a great baker, so every weekend there was a pie, apple, pear, we used to go out regularly in season to pick fruits, us kids would go scrumping for apples and pears, we used to wrap each apple and pear in newspaper and store them in barrels. I remember eating rabbit, my Nan knew some poachers who used to give her game. My Nan actually comes from noble birth, a member of the DeSauss family, originally from Switzerland and France, the family fortune long gone before my Nan had chance to inherit anything. So to answer (eventually) the question, good wholesome food, served on a tight budget. Simple foods, but served in a lively environment.
2. How is your cooking style different from your mother’s? A lot less frantic, but what I have continued is eating round the dinner table, as a family, without TV. Really there’s a pre France and France. In the UK I went out to work, shops were near by and a lot of my work was cash, so I could shop daily, so I did buy a lot of convenience foods, things that I could serve quickly but always with vegetables and potatoes, my kids thought it normal to eat at the table and I could never understand why others didn’t do the same, my lads have always been allowed an opinion and the freedom to express it, so sitting at a table together, without outside interruption meant that we talked, this carried on till they left home. Sunday lunches a roast; but I suppose the main difference between my Mother’s style of cooking and mine was purely a financial one, I often cooked the same things that my mother cooked, but I could also afford a joint of beef or lamb, so yes there would be apple pie but mine would have been bought at the shop! I was at work during the day, I had a family to feed so it made sense to buy prepared food. Living in France my style has changed considerably, I rarely buy any processed foods preferring to make my own, I prepare foods to suit the seasons, pot au feu or tartiflete in the winter, salads and fruit in the summer.
3. What is your favourite gadget? I don’t really have gadgets, I have tools I use, to me gadgets are something you buy then put away in the cupboard never to be seen again. How many people have a fondue set put away somewhere? My favourite tool will always be my bottle opener, but I wouldn’t be without my blender, I make a lot of soups, I may go shopping and find (for example) carrots on special offer, so will buy loads and make and freeze carrot soup.
4. Do you entertain, and in what circumstances? What is the biggest party or meal you have hosted to date? Yes I do, often a reason is not needed, often entertaining is not planned. I can start cooking a meal for Paul and I and then get a call from Dan, Mike or both saying they’re coming over. Often we will invite people over for aperitifs, normally an hour for a pastis and a few snacks, olives, little snacks of anchovies on bread, a little saucisse or such like. Or it could be a planned meal for four or five or six! I’ve cooked a complete meal, four or more courses for ten, I’ve had a summer BBQ, although Paul runs the BBQ, but I’ve prepared the salads, made the coleslaw, quiche and other foods for thirty.
5. Can you share a typical daily menu? Weekly menu? Just Paul and myself eating, this time of the year, Breakfast of croissants and pain au Chocolate. Lunch, Home made soup with crusty bread, dinner, a starter of Coq St Jaques followed by Tartiflette, Home made Tiramasu. The recipes for all these is on my kitchen blog.
   But could be fresh prawns with a Marie Rose sauce, chicken stuffed with cheese, the chicken coming from our own garden, or one of my ducks, grilled with an orange sauce, I don’t really have a typical menu. As a snack I might cook a Camembert cheese in the oven and eat it with a fresh baguette.
6. How has your cooking style evolved over the years? I’m in danger of repeating my self from an earlier question. But simply I’ve learned to cook, I’ve learned to take basic foodstuffs and turning in to something that gives me pride. I’m always learning, I see something in a book or on the TV, I will try it, but I’m then looking to make it mine, changing things or using the basic method but using a completely different ingredients. I buy foods on sale and in season, I rarely look in the freezer section except to buy frozen peas or to make sure I have a good just in case stock. In my freezer I have home-raised and killed chickens, a turkey and a goose, trout that my son caught, or potatoes grown here, there’s a few bags of soups and a bag of beef stock, there’s even a small bag of fish stock. I’ve also learned from my French daughters-in-law Veronique and Violaine who have had recipes passed down to them, these are recipes that I would probably never hear of without them.
7. Can you recommend any cookbooks, TV shows or websites that have inspired you? Yes, my food gurus are Hugh Fernley Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver, Jamie with his simplistic attitude to cooking, taking away the mystique that some chefs try to show and demonstrating that we can all cook. Hugh because of his attitude towards the basic ingredients, I love River Cottage, I know I will never create what he did, but I have started on my own road to River Cottage. Books, The River Cottage “Everyday”, The Good Granny cookbook, The Women’s Institute “650 Everyday Recipes”, Pat Chapman’s Indian cookbooks, but I have lots more books, including a reprint of the 1852 book by Charles Elmé Francatelli book “Cookery for the Working Classes” I also have a note book from my Nan.
8. What is the most unusual dish you’ve ever made? Not unusual really, but something different for me, Tongue, takes so long to cook but I remember my Nan used to cook it and I was in the local super market and was looking at the tongue and almost daring my self to buy one, which I did, tasted as good as I remember and will cook it again.
9. What is the oldest item in your kitchen? The newest? Oldest, my Nans bread knife, the newest my Raclette Grill, going back to the gadget question, I like my raclette and use it.
10. What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? I want to learn to cook more different styles of cookery, Indian and Pakistani for example, as long as they are in English or French I will look at them, so I often join or read websites that offer something different.

Roz Chapman writes An English Rose in France, and posts her blog’s recipes at Rosie’s Kitchen. Although she’s keen to make the blog interesting to others, it makes a great diary and an easy way for her family around the world to stay in touch and follow Kenzo’s progress.

Please welcome Leah Schapira for today’s reader interview. Leah’s story will inspire parents of picky eaters everywhere.

1. Please introduce yourself. I live in the New York area. I write a food column for Ami magazine and I was the food editor at Mishpacha magazine for 3 years. I recently launched www.cookkosher.com a kosher recipe sharing site.
2. What do you remember about family meals and your mother’s cooking style when you were growing up? It was a constant battle. My mother made the most delicious food. Our main base was Hungarian but my mother put her American twist to it. She also added middle eastern and Chinese to her everyday supper repertoire. We never had bakery food in our house and till this day I prefer homemade cake to the bakeries. However I was one of the pickiest eaters and for years I wouldn’t touch anything but pizza. I was skinny and nervous and all day long I was hungry. My family claims I ate nothing but pizza and oranges for a few years straight. I clearly remember the day I tasted lettuce for the first time. And the day I tried chicken in a sandwich- that was a huge milestone. I would only eat chicken on one plate and bread on the other. My poor mother, I don’t know how she handled it.
3. How is your cooking style different from your mother’s? I cook pretty much like my mother, but the difference is that most of my kids eat anything.
4. What is your favorite gadget? Black pepper grinder. I recently added a salt grinder to my collection and I think it adds a tremendous amount of flavor to salads and food. I can’t imagine going back to black pepper out of spice bottle.
5. Can you share a typical daily menu? Weekly menu? Once a week I must fry breaded chicken cutlets. It’s my 4 year old’s favorite and if I don’t make it he cries and cries. We’ve come to an agreement that I make it once a week, and only once a week.My basic menu:Sunday: Leftover

   Monday: Some sort of chicken

   Tuesday: Vegetarian or Dairy

   Wednesday: Chicken or meat

   Thursday: A quick dinner, it depends on what we’re in the mood for.

   I devote once a week to a new recipes (something I may feature in my column).

   Supper is always a protein, starch and vegetable. And I find that the more salads I cut and leave on the table the more my children eat it. So I’ve become really quick at putting a salad together and I’ve improved my knife skills. Practice really helps!

   How has your cooking style evolved over the years?When I cooked as girl I was extremely picky and I would cook only with food items I liked. The list was very basic- there was a limit to how many potato recipes you can come up with. Today I eat almost everything so my ingredient base has expanded .

6. Can you recommend any cookbooks, TV shows or websites that have inspired you? Cookbooks: I love all cookbooks. I read cookbooks like novels. I can’t say I make too many things from cookbooks, but I like to read the stories and techniques. I also enjoy community cookbooks. Although they usually have lots of mistakes, In those cookbooks you can find real gems. Websites: In 2004 I discovered food recipe sites and I was hooked. I loved all of the. After a couple of months I got tired of sifting through recipes to find recipes that were kosher. I dreamed of having a choice to pick a recipe that is pareve… or a recipe that would be suitable for a sheva brochos. That day I went and bought the domain. It took years (and a couple of kids later) www.cookkosher.com launched.Today I like www.foodgawker.com.  But eat before you start looking. The site really makes you hungry.What posts on CM have you enjoyed? I like the interviews. Its fun to hear about new blogs.
7. What is the most unusual dish you’ve ever made? I once made a Polish Chulent (Sabbath stew cooked overnight). You need to peel the potatoes, salt them and leave overnight. In the morning the potatoes are completely black and release murky black water. You add the water and potatoes to the chulent. It sounds terrible and i was scared to eat it. But the men folk claim its one of the best chulents out there. Rumors are that some men choose to pray in synagogues that serve this chulent.
8. What is the oldest item in your kitchen? The cookbook I got when I was eight. Some silly cookbook that shows you how to make a sandwich into a face The newest? A Cuisipro Scoop and Stack Ice Cream Scoop. I didn’t use it yet. I’ll let you know if it’s any good.
9. What would you like to change about your cooking style in the coming year? I’m going to try to stop recreating fast food. There is a reason why fast food belongs in take-outs. I love recreating it at home but it’s terribly unhealthy and fattening.
10. Please share a favorite recipe and cooking tips. I used to love creamy simple chumus. Then one day I tasted a chunky version and fell in love. I have a hard time eating the plain chumus out of the tub.
    

    Chunky Parsley Chumus

    This is the most addictive thing currently in my refrigerator. With some crackers or pretzels I can finish this entire container in a couple of minutes.  Parsley is optional, but adds a great flavor. You can make the hummus less runny by adding less water and make the hummus creamier by blending the chickpeas longer before adding the lemon juice, water…

    • 1 14 oz can garbanzo beans (chickpeas)1 handful parsley leaves

      1 clove garlic

      ½ tsp salt

      ¼ tsp ground cumin

      3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

      4 Tbsp water

      4 Tbsp tahini paste

      2 Tbsp olive oil

    Drain and rinse the garbanzo beans, setting aside a few chickpeas use as garnish. Place in a food processor with the parsley, garlic, salt, cumin. Blend until chunky. Add lemon juice, water, tahini and olive oil.

    Garnish with additional chickpeas and olive oil.

Photo by Dan Engongoro

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