Award-winning authors of BECOMING A CHEF, CULINARY ARTISTRY, DINING OUT, CHEF'S NIGHT OUT and the 2004 IACP Cookbook Award Finalist THE NEW AMERICAN CHEF

(Circulation: Our e-Newsletter has grown to 11,868 subscribers — among the most passionate food and wine lovers across the United States and around the world — since it began monthly publication in February 2004. For a FREE subscription for your favorite food enthusiast, simply email CookbookRave@aol.com, or enter an automatic subscription at www.becomingachef.com. To contact Andrew and/or Karen, please email us at Dornenburg@aol.com.)

I. DECEMBER GREETINGS FROM ANDREW & KAREN

II. CELEBRATE YOUR FAVORITE PIZZA IN AMERICA! Make Your Voice Heard in a New Book

III. THE SPAIN REPORT (Part II of II)

* Postcards From Spain: Highlights of Travels in Barcelona, Valladolid and Zamora

* "The Josh Report": Or, How One Young American Landed a Job Cooking in Spain

IV. STUFF WE LOVE: New Stuff, and Stuff About Which We Can Now Say "We Told You So"

V. IN THE NEWS: The Latest Ink and Air Coverage of Our Books

VI. OUR READERS WRITE: From Across the U.S. and Around the World

Dear Friends & Colleagues:

Meister Eckhart, the 14th century German mystic, wrote, "If the only prayer you ever say is ‘thank you,' that would be enough."

Contemporary researchers echo his contention that — just as you were taught as a child — the words "thank you" are indeed magic words.

Professor Martin Seligman, a leading figure in the positive psychology movement, has spent a great deal of time studying human happiness, and has found that an essential ingredient of happiness is gratitude — which has the power to amplify good memories of the past.

"The more positive memories you have, and the stronger they are, the better your chances of achieving contentment, serenity and satisfaction," Seligman says.

Gratitude for today and tomorrow — in the form of a sense of purpose and engagement in the present, and hope and optimism for the future — are all part of happiness, too.

As we end this year and begin another, we'd like to say "thank you" to all of you for your readership, for your incredible word-of-mouth that's allowed our e-Newsletter to grow from about 2,000 readers for our inaugural issue in February to nearly 12,000 readers as of this month, and for sharing such wonderful feedback, ideas, and encouragement with us.

We'd also like to give a big "thank you" to everyone who has provided such enormous help and support to us during the period of Andrew's father's illness and — very early Thanksgiving morning — passing this year. We are grateful that we were able to spend his final days with him in California last month.

While we considered foregoing a homemade Thanksgiving meal this year, in the end we found that putting our hearts and souls into preparing a feast was a wonderful way to carry out and celebrate Andrew's father's wish that we enjoy Thanksgiving in his home. Our work was a tribute to him and, together with family and friends, we toasted him over a delicious and unforgettable dinner.

Phrasing things as Seligman and Eckhart might, we are grateful for the challenges of 2004 that have allowed us to grow, and look forward to the opportunities of 2005 and beyond that we're excited will allow us to take our work in new directions.

Along with extending our sincere thanks to you, we wish each of you a very happy and healthy holiday season — and hope you'll take the time to invest in your own happiness by reflecting with gratitude upon the past year, and with appreciation for the opportunities of the year to come.

Delicious wishes,
Andrew & Karen

"If I were anywhere an hour or more north of New York on the East Coast,
I would definitely stop at Al Forno. The grilled pizza is a must."
—Mario Batali

Chicago magazine editor Penny Pollack and her colleague Jeff Ruby have been asked to write a book about pizza in the United States. Tentatively titled Everybody Loves Pizza, it is scheduled to be published in 2005.

Because they plan to include a directory of great spots for pizza all across the country, they ask that you send them the names of pizza parlors you love — especially in states outside Illinois (which we believe they've got well-covered — hopefully with some of our area favorites like Dave's Italian Kitchen in Evanston!). While there's lots of pizza we admire from coast to coast, our #1 favorite is George Germon and Johanne Killeen's grilled pizza at Al Forno in Providence, Rhode Island — which is the only pizza we've ever left an Elvis Costello concert early to get a bite of!

If you or your pizza-loving friends have pizza nominations for anywhere in the United States, please email JRuby@chicagomag.com. 

* Postcards From Spain: Highlights of Travels in Barcelona, Valladolid and Zamora

"Spain is the new France."
—The New York Times Magazine

Last month, we shared a few of the highlights of our gastronomic trip to Spain in October. This month, we'll share a few more — and you'll find more still to come on our Web site in 2005:

BARCELONA

La Carte des Vins
www.lacartedesvins.com
With its sleek, modern design and thoughtful selections, La Carte des Vins (with several locations; we visited the one in La Rambla) is the perfect place to stop to pair some terrific wines with all the goodies you've purchased throughout the rest of the market. We were impressed with the English spoken by the young man who helped us there: It turns out that Juan Carlos was raised in Spain and the U.S. and attended college in Boston, and that he can discuss cheese with as much passion as he can wine!

Pasteleria Escriba
Escriba has been known for making some of the best pastries in town since opening its doors in 1906. The café (at Rambla de les Flors, 83) is beautiful inside, but from its outdoor tables you can watch the all the action of the street. In addition to baked items, don't miss out on a great espresso or a cup of hot chocolate that is essentially warm, liquid pudding (and of which we immediately ordered seconds).

Enric Rovira
www.enricrovira.com
Enric is of the "New School" vs. the "Old School" of chocolate, as his chocolates are just as much about their conceptualization as their design and packaging as their flavor. One line of chocolates highlights what he considers to be an archetypal ingredient representing each continent, e.g. coffee for Africa, rice for Asia, sunflower seeds for America. Among another line of cubes containing chocolate-covered items, we each had a clear favorite, with Karen's being "Bombolas de miaz" (chocolate-covered corn nuts) and Andrew's "Bomba de naranja" (chocolate-covered candied orange peel).

Casa Pons
www.euroaliment.com
While in our last e-Newsletter we cited the fresh-pressed olive oil at Casa Pons as the best we've ever tasted, we also wanted to recommend a couple other high-quality items they distribute packed in their luscious olive oil: Keep an eye out for Mas Portell brand Piquillo Pimientos and White Tuna. The wood fire-roasted and hand-peeled peppers are rich and sweet with a hint of smoke, and add enormous depth of flavor to any dish to which they're added. The tuna is line caught off the coast of Spain, and comes in large, firm chunks.

VALLADOLID

Restaurante Fatima
www.restaurantefatima.com
This restaurant's kitchen is headed by one of Spain's top women chefs. To get to Fatima (Pasion 3), you enter a building across the street from the Plaza Mayor, walk up a dark flight of stairs to find an unmarked door that then opens into a beautiful dining room. All the dishes we sampled here were fantastic, but the standout was local foie gras from Soria. The foie of Spain is much lighter and more delicate than that of France or America, and something that should not be missed.

ZAMORA

El Rincon de Antonio
Zamora is a small town less than three hours by car from Madrid, and its parador (known as one of the most beautiful in Spain) served as our home base while we visited local food producers in the area. A few doors down along the narrow street that links the Cathedral with the square, you'll find El Rincon. The restaurant boasts a beautiful garden where fresh herbs are grown, and features columns dating back to the Renaissance. The cuisine of chef Antonio Jesus Gonzalez de las Heras is an impressive melding of the old and new cooking going on in Spain today: We tasted dishes pairing unusual ingredients with the latest techniques inspired by cutting-edge Michelin three-star El Bulli followed by a simple yet perfect dish of stewed local garbanzo beans that are served as an homage to the chef's hometown of Zamora.

A generation ago, serious aspiring chefs would make pilgrimages to cook in France, where the world's best restaurants were then located. If "Spain is the new France," what would it be like for a young American chef to cook in Spain today?

As we reported last month, we met aspiring 20-something chef Josh Silverman at the Cascadia Culinary Arts Conference on Washington's Whidbey Island when we keynoted the conference in May 2004. Here are highlights from Josh's latest report to us:

"Dear Karen and Andrew, Thank you for including my story in your e-Newsletter.  I think it's good for other aspiring chefs to know that it's possible to work anywhere in the world, and that all it takes is a couple of e-mails and some motivation. [For details, see last month's entry here.]

However, I would strongly advise cooks to try to learn as much as possible of the language of the kitchen they will be working in before they go — especially the vocabulary of everything in the kitchen, i.e, ingredients, cooking methods, names of tools and equipment, etc.  That has definitely been the major drawback for me: being as curious as I am and not being able to understand all the answers to my questions. 

It's been interesting to see the differences and similarities between the kitchens of the U.S. and the kitchens of Spain.  One major difference is that the meat products that I've been working with here arrive in the kitchen in much more of a 'natural' state than in America.  For example, all the poultry is head and feet on.  All the fish are whole — heads, guts and all.  It's a little more, how shall I say, 'realistic' than in the kitchens I've worked in [in the U.S.]  where the fish are usually gutted and the poultry cleaned and nicely packaged.  But everything here is super fresh, and the seafood is delivered daily. 

One thing that is similar is the sense of family that you get when working in a restaurant.  I think it's the same worldwide.  At Ca'Sento [the Michelin-starred restaurant where Josh worked], it really is a family that's owned the restaurant for 35 years.  The father (Sento) manages the dining room and the youngest son is a waiter.  The elder son (Raul) is the chef, and the mother prepares all the paellas to order.  The mother's sister washes dishes and launders the chefs' coats. 

Every day around noon at Oscargastrovi [the other restaurant where Josh worked], the whole staff sits down for nearly an hour for 'comida de familia' — the family meal.  We usually have Paella Valenciano or another rice dish accompanied by salad, a platter of cheese and meat, and a beverage that's an interesting mixture of red wine and 7-Up.  This is, of course, mixed with a lot of lively conversation and followed by strong coffee before heading back to the kitchen for service.  I'll miss 'Mi familia Español,' as I like to call them, and I hope they feel the same. 

All in all, it's been a great experience, and one I think every chef should experience.  In fact, I think restaurants worldwide should set up a network and arrange a chef exchange program. 

I'm looking forward to getting back to work in the States for a few reasons:  For one, it will be nice to get paid for working again!  It will also be nice to work in a kitchen where I can understand everything that is being said.  And I'm also looking forward to sharing what I've learned with my co-workers in the States.  But this can all wait for a few more months because I still have a lot more of Europe to explore. Hasta Luego! Josh"

* DA VINCI DECODED: Discovering the Spiritual Secrets of Leonardo's Seven Principles: Michael Gelb spurred the current fascination with all things Da Vinci with his international bestseller How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day, which showed readers how to use the seven Da Vincian principles to develop their creative potential. Da Vinci Decoded instructs readers on using the same seven principles to develop their spiritual potential.

"As Leonardo lamented 500 years ago in Tuscany, the average person, 'looks without seeing, listens without hearing, eats without tasting....' The Maestro nurtured his perceptual sensitivity by creating an environment that was aesthetically uplifting: he worked to the sounds of fine music...savored the aroma and taste of simple but fine food...He did all this not just for the intrinsic joy of such pleasures, but because he believed that 'the five senses are the ministers of the soul.'"
—from Da Vinci Decoded

* WILDEDIBLES.com: Our favorite fish market Wild Edibles is now online and shipping items across the United States. So, if you want to have the same guys who supply Alain Ducasse and Le Bernardin in New York City choosing your fish, it is just a click away. The Web site also features useful information about what seafod is currently in the market, flavor descriptions, and cooking recommendations.

Update:

* YOURWINESERVICE.com/gifts: We've previously written about our enjoyment of Winocerous.com, which was recently renamed YourWineService.com. Same great wines, easier to remember (and spell!) name. When you visit the "secret" page above, you'll be able to take 10% off any gift subscription package.

...And in the Category of "We Told You So":

In last month's e-Newsletter we included the following insider recommendations, which have since gone on to make national headlines! Is our judgment that good? Or are journalists (many of which subscribe to this e-Newsletter) paying closer attention to our e-Newsletters?! In either case, you, too, can benefit from:

* "STRIKING 12" — The Live Holiday Show and Musical CD by GrooveLily: You can enjoy this fun, modern, hip (and happy!) retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's New Year's Eve story of The Little Match Girl set to pop-rock music in person now through January 8th (thanks to the show's recent extension) at the Lucie Stern Theater in Palo Alto — or by purchasing the CD at PS Classics.

"PS Classics co-founder Tommy Krasker told Playbill that in just two weeks of sales,
the CD has become one of the label's strongest online sellers."
—Playbill

"Buoyant...Magnetic...A holiday gift for us all." (Plus its highest review, or the equivalent of four stars: The little man jumping out of his seat and applauding!)
—San Francisco Chronicle

"Too hot to miss!"
—San Jose Mercury News

* THE ROCKET REVIEW REVOLUTION: The Ultimate Guide to the New SAT: Pioneering test strategist Adam Robinson's truly groundbreaking insider's guide to the new SAT landed a rave review in Parade magazine on December 12th — and is slated to be featured on the "Today" show in January.

"'Tis the season for 2.2 million students to prepare for the college entrance SAT exams in March. This year's test brings a brand-new anxiety: an essay portion. To the rescue: The Rocket Review Revolution, a prep guide with Web site access to a full tutorial that even grades writing."
—Parade

Haven't Finished Your Holiday Shopping Yet?

* To help our readers with their holiday gift-giving, you can have a personally signed copy of THE NEW AMERICAN CHEF sent via two-day mail to the recipient of your choice with a gift card from you for $40. To order, contact CookbookRave@aol.com for instructions to send payment via Pay Pal.com. Be sure to include both your own information, and, if a gift, the recipient's name and address. Orders placed by 5 pm on December 22nd are expected to reach recipients on December 24th.

— In the December 16th edition of www.philly.com, Renee Schettler shares a recipe from THE NEW AMERICAN CHEF with readers of Rush Hour Gourmet: "This simple sauce of tomatillos, chiles, onion and cilantro couldn't be easier to make, takes less than 30 minutes to toss together, and tastes far better than any of its jarred counterparts. If you prefer, skip the corn tortillas and serve it over rice instead. Adapted from THE NEW AMERICAN CHEF, by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page."

— On Chef2Chef.net on December 6th, our book CULINARY ARTISTRY was ranked #10 of the "100 Top Chef Books."

— The December 1st edition of The Contra Costa Times mentioned that "Accomplished cook Roger Radius of Oakland loves this time of year because of all the root vegetables and cool-weather fruits, such as persimmons and apples....Favorite cookbooks: The book he relies on the most is CULINARY ARTISTRY by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page. He says it is a thesaurus of food ingredients and their complements.... "

— In the November/December 2004 issue of Eat, CULINARY ARTISTRY is among the books named (by chefs such as Jeff Keenliside of Fire and Water in Vancouver) in its survey of British Columbian chefs' favorite cookbooks.

— And in the December 14th issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education, PhD candidate and aspiring scientist Amber Wattson reflects in her article "In Pursuit of a Postdoc" on how she was inspired and informed by our book BECOMING A CHEF during her self-assessment and career development process:

"Late at night in the biochemistry laboratory, I spend hours cooking food for hungry cells, formulating recipes for enzymatic reactions, and preparing the exquisite gels through which nucleic acids run. The morning brings a tangle of data, which, after calculations and brainstorms (and perhaps a few days of technical fine-tuning), inspire research questions for a new day. That is the life I love; that is why I want to become a scientist.

Science, like cooking, is a practical art that is best learned through hands-on experience. As I finish my PhD at a well-regarded university, I am looking for an exceptional lab in which to do my postdoctoral training.

My mentors have told me that as a postdoc candidate, I will be a 'slam-dunk.' However, my early experiences searching for an appointment have suggested otherwise.

One particularly disappointing morning, I headed to the local library in search of guidance and came home with BECOMING A CHEF. I finished the book that afternoon, devouring the surprisingly relevant advice and realizing that becoming a chef is a lot like becoming a scientist.

One of the greatest similarities between the two is the importance that 'apprenticing with the best' has on your career trajectory. The aspiring young professional seeks to train with a master of his or her art, who, almost by definition, does not need to solicit apprentices.

The apprenticeship — whether it's with a master chef or a senior scientist — is not really a one-on-one tutorial, but rather a 10- to 12-hour-a-day staff position in a kitchen/lab. In many cases, the young apprentice must boldly inquire about an unadvertised job before fully understanding the specifics of the position and the working environment....

...In BECOMING A CHEF there is an anecdote about a culinary-school graduate whose 'dogged cross-country pursuit to track down' a master chef who had been reluctant to take him on, ended when he pulled up at her restaurant with a car full of local ingredients and 'she saw that I was very serious about cooking [and] took me under her arm.'

In that, I take heart in what I hope to be true — that persistence in my serious pursuit of high-quality science will reveal my passion. In the coming months, I will continue to seek out master scientists and fine-tune my approach, knowing that I am capable of the hard work that is required to become one myself."

To read these and other articles, visit our Media Room here.

"Great to get your e-Newsletter! Just wanted to tell you that my new PBS series 'Baking Magic' (www.bakingmagic.com) has started to air around the country and will be airing in New York WLIW Channel 21 for the holidays starting in December at 7:30 am, 1:30 pm, 7:30 pm, and 1:30 am. Since you travel so much, I also want to alert you to a big bread story I just finished for the February 2005 issue of Hemispheres — United's in-flight magazine. (It will also be available on the net.) Thank goodness bread is no longer the enemy! Happy holidays!"
—Rose Levy Beranbaum, author, The Cake Bible, The Pie and Pastry Bible, et. al. / New York, NY

"Wow — it was so great to read your comings and goings. I feel like I get my 'inner circle glitz and substance' fix from you two!"
—Susan Davis, Capital Missions Company / East Troy, WI 

"I love your newsletter....It is so fun living vicariously through your adventures....It is truly a foodie's must-have."
—Pat Eich / Walnut Creek, CA

"I enjoyed your November e-Newsletter very much.  This was my first, and I especially enjoyed reading about Spain.  My daughter studied there for a semester through her college and is planning on going back, she loved it so much.  I am a professionally trained chef and am also looking forward to visiting Spain when she returns in the spring.  I am so looking forward to the wine, the food and the people.  Thank you again,"
—Cynthia Fakhry, The Art of Cooking (www.art-of-cooking.com) / Virginia

"Thanks for all the newsy stuff."
—Jeannette Ferrary, author, Out of the Kitchen: Adventures of a Food Writer

"I am a WCR member who was unable to attend this year's conference. Is it possible for you to send me a copy of your speech or is this something I should try to get through WCR? Thanks,"
—Margaret Fox, Culinary Director, Harvest Market / Mendocino, CA

[NOTE: Many thanks for your interest, Margaret. In the weeks to come, we'll post copies of our handout from our popular keynote "ENERGIZE! Yourself, Your Life, and Your Career in the Restaurant Business" on our Web site.]

"I just got your book and wanted to thank you for it. Congratulations on what looks to be a delicious accomplishment.  I can't wait to try out some of the recipes!"
—Kathy Freston, author, Expect a Miracle: 7 Spiritual Steps to Finding the Right Relationship / New York, NY

[NOTE: We highly recommend Kathy's book Expect a Miracle to everyone we know who is still looking for Mr. or Miss Right! As bestselling author Dr. Andrew Weil has written of it, "Kathy Freston gives sensible, practical advice for advancing spiritually in order to allow love and right relationships into your life."]

"I love your work. I'm a photographer who specializes in culinary and food subjects. I would be very interested in contacting the designer(s) who work(s) on your projects. I have tons of black and white culinary and kitchen photography they might want to see."
—Eric Futran, photographer, www.chefshots.com / Chicago, IL

"Thanks for another e-Newsletter full of actual news! If you haven't seen it, you should take a look at EAT, the foodies' bimonthly newsprint guide to British Columbia (www.eatmagazine.ca). A home-grown product, full of passion. Incidentally, your CULINARY ARTISTRY was among the books named in their survey of BC chefs' favorite cookbooks."
—Angie Jabine, Managing Editor, Northwest Palate magazine: Food, Wine & Travel of the Pacific Northwest (www.nwpalate.com) / Portland, OR

"It was great meeting you at the WCR conference, and to make the connection between Charleen [Badman, of Inside restaurant in NYC] and you! I completely enjoyed your seminar!!  And I felt very good to know that all my effort at 're-training' myself these past three years has paid off (in response to your questionnaire about 'self-care'). It's hard work but makes a world of difference. Thank you for sharing your insight with all of us. Enjoy the holidays and say hey to Charleen next time you see her!  And please give her this message: 'FOCUS...RUN WITH SCISSORS...EXTRA BUTTER' (which translates to our shared motto:  'Be intense...Be dangerous...Be excessive!')"
—Chrysa Kaufman, chef, Rancho Pinot Grill / Scottsdale, AZ

"The chef of the old Patio restaurant Eric Korsh has been the sous chef at Cafe des Artistes [the legendary restaurant in New York City] for the past eight months."
—Ken Korsh, proud dad

[NOTE: Thanks for letting us know, Ken — we loved Eric's cooking at Patio, and have been meaning to re-visit Café des Artistes, so now we have one more reason to do so...soon!]

"I can see by your e-Newsletter you are very busy....I loved the article on Spain."
—Mercedes Lamamié, Foods from Spain (Trade Commission of Spain) / New York, NY
(www.icex.es)

"Whew — I don't know how you do it. I get full and tired at the same time reading of your travels and dining!"
—Ray Petersen / Concord, CA

"Thanks for sending me your e-Newsletter. It's full of great info and joie de vivre!"
—Patty LaNoue Stearns, Author of Cherry Home Companion and Good Taste: A Guide to Northern Michigan Cuisine / Traverse City, MI