I went to an interesting book club event last night at Palace Ballroom. Turns out that Mariel Hemingway, granddaughter of Ernest, not only looks great but she can cook, too. She was in town to promote her new book, Mariel’s Kitchen, a lovely and intriguing cookbook that delves into her culinary ethos on healthy, seasonal eating. Tom Douglas’ crew turned out versions of her recipes, including a scrumptious black cod with snow peas and a zucchini and walnut spread.
Warren Etheredge of The Warren Report interviewed Mariel. If you haven’t seen him in action, he’s great. Funny, not intimidatedby celebrities, and willing to ask awkward questions when needed. Throughout the night, she tossed some great tidbits. Her mother went to Le Cordon in Paris, and Julia Child was the maid of honor at her parents wedding. She lived on air-popped popcorn for a year, she went through a big tofu phase. She worries about the mental instability that comes with having the Hemingway genetic code. She hasn’t touched sugar for nearly 20 years, and no longer drinks coffee or alcohol. “I’m an addictive personality,” she admitted. “If you know anything about my family, that shouldn’t surprise anyone.”
She’s refers to processed fare as “noisy foods,” a term I like, and appears to practice what she preaches. “I can’t control what my daughters eat anywhere else, but at home, they eat healthy, unprocessed stuff,” and then shared that her daughter used to hide junk food under her bed. “It freaked me out but then I guess I should be happy that it wasn’t heroin or something.”
I’m always a little dubious about Hollywood types who produce cookbooks. But in this case, I think that Mariel has pulled it off. You can check out one of her recipes here, Mariel’s Amazing Salad Dressing.
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