Formerly a Foodie

Maybe I was a "Foodie" in my former life.

Definition of Foodie:

noun, Slang.

1.  a person keenly interested in food, especially in eating or cooking.

And I am not particularly interested in COOKING food.  I do like to eat it.  Quite a bit, actually.

I enjoy READING about it. My cookbook collection isn't grand, by any means.  I do have a few.  I have a few random recipes, as well.  But the books about cooking and food and culture here in the library have just really caught my eye.  You may have noticed that from previous posts.

Currently, I am on a wait list to read The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan.  Recently I found a documentary film I rather enjoyed called "King Corn." It was available for free through the Utah's Online Pioneer Library.

Below is a description--a very detailed description-- of another of Michael Pollan's books called Cooked.  You might enjoy perusing it, as well.  IF you like food and/or cooking. If not, skip this one.

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Cooked : a natural history of transformation 
Pollan, Michael.

Personal Author:

Pollan, Michael.

Title:

Cooked : a natural history of transformation / Michael Pollan.

Publication:

New York : The Penguin Press, 2013.

Physical description:

468 pages ; 25 cm

Content Type:

text rdacontent

Media Type:

unmediated rdamedia

Carrier Type:

volume rdacarrier

Contents:

Introduction: Why cook? -- Part I: Fire : creatures of the flame -- Part II: Water : a recipe in seven steps -- Part III: Air : the education of an amateur baker -- Part IV: Earth : fermentation's cold fire -- Afterword: Hand taste -- Appendix I: Four recipes -- Appendix II: A short shelf of books on cooking.

Summary:

"Fire, water, air, earth--our most trusted food expert recounts the story of his culinary education In Cooked, Michael Pollan explores the previously uncharted territory of his own kitchen. Here, he discovers the enduring power of the four classical elements--fire, water, air, and earth--to transform the stuff of nature into delicious things to eat and drink. Apprenticing himself to a succession of culinary masters, Pollan learns how to grill with fire, cook with liquid, bake bread, and ferment everything from cheese to beer. In the course of his journey, he discovers that the cook occupies a special place in the world, standing squarely between nature and culture. Both realms are transformed by cooking, and so, in the process, is the cook. Each section of Cooked tracks Pollan's effort to master a single classic recipe using one of the four elements. A North Carolina barbecue pit master tutors him in the primal magic of fire; a Chez Panisse-trained cook schools him in the art of braising; a celebrated baker teaches him how air transforms grain and water into a fragrant loaf of bread; and finally, several mad-genius "fermentos" (a tribe that includes brewers, cheese makers, and all kinds of picklers) reveal how fungi and bacteria can perform the most amazing alchemies of all. The reader learns alongside Pollan, but the lessons move beyond the practical to become an investigation of how cooking involves us in a web of social and ecological relationships: with plants and animals, the soil, farmers, our history and culture, and, of course, the people our cooking nourishes and delights. Cooking, above all, connects us. The effects of not cooking are similarly far reaching. Relying upon corporations to process our food means we consume huge quantities of fat, sugar, and salt; disrupt an essential link to the natural world; and weaken our relationships with family and friends. In fact, Cooked argues, taking back control of cooking may be the single most important step anyone can take to help make the American food system healthier and more sustainable. Reclaiming cooking as an act of enjoyment and self-reliance, learning to perform the magic of these everyday transformations, opens the door to a more nourishing life. "-- Provided by publisher.

Summary:

"In Cooked, Pollan explores the previously uncharted territory of his own kitchen. Here, he discovers the enduring power of the four classical elements--fire, water, air, and earth--to transform the stuff of nature into delicious things to eat and drink. In the course of his journey, he discovers that the cook occupies a special place in the world, standing squarely between nature and culture. Both realms are transformed by cooking, and so, in the process, is the cook"-- Provided by publisher.