Welcome to the latest edition of Food52 Founder Amanda Hesser’s weekly newsletter, Hey There, It’s Amanda, packed with food, travel, and shopping tips, Food52 doings, and other matters that catch her eye. Get inspired—sign up here for her emails.
A few weeks ago, I included a photo of me standing on heater vents during a photo shoot for Schoolhouse. I couldn’t say what it was for then, but now, happily, the news is out. We did a lighting collection called Bento with Roll & Hill creative director Jason Miller and their Design Team. Bento highlights both brands’ love of color and utility. There’s a chandelier in the collection that’s an ideal over-island fixture. It creates a brilliant task light for chopping and, if dimmed, a moody glow for when you have guests at a nearby table. The fixture works equally well, aesthetically and functionally, over a long dining table, spreading its light over a large expanse, and the reeded glass base means there are no glaring bulbs.
We did a home tour with Jason and his wife, Erin Pollard, the founder of Underwater Weaving Studio, and interviewed Jason for our new series, Designed, in which we have him walk us through designs from throughout his career, and how his style and interests continually evolve.
I’ve got a new episode of Amanda Messes Up – this time, I cooked a salt-and-pepper cod with turmeric noodles from Andy Baraghani’s excellent The Cook You Want to Be. This cook wants to be better at sauteing fish—the cod stuck to my pan, but the recipe was a total win otherwise. You can check it out here. And buy his book here.
Meghan Markle specializes in attracting haters. So I recognize that I may have insults hurled my way for saying the following: I like her show, With Love, Meghan! Meghan, or Meghan Sussex, or whatever she would like to be called, could just kick back in her lavish Montecito home and hang out with friends. But she’s got some hustle. She knows that every move she makes will be scrutinized, but still she persists. And if you watch her show, she clearly likes cooking and fussing around her guest-house kitchen. We live in a world of people committing heinous social crimes in order to be famous; Meghan’s self-promotion, by comparison, is like jay-walking.
I get sent a lot of new books and products to check out. Here are a couple of each that caught my eye.
• Pakistan, by Maryam Jillani, is a book that I want to cook from, but also one that I want to hold, as it’s beautifully designed, with chapter openers that look like they’re block-printed, an arresting debossed cover, and photos that bring you to the streets and countryside of Pakistan. Jillani, who was raised in Islamabad, runs the award-winning site Pakistan Eats.
• Family Style by former fashion designer and major home cook Peter Som. His recipes are unpretentious and cozy, with dishes like Pasta alla Lap Cheong and Miso Roasted Carrot Slab Cake.
• Ayoh! from the queen of mayonnaise, Molly Baz. Order “The Works” collections so you can taste them all—Hot Giardinayo and tangy Dijonayo are my top picks. In addition to advancing mayo flavors and textures, what I especially appreciate about Molly’s Ayoh! is the packaging. Most squeeze bottles constrain the amount you can squeeze out at one time; Ayoh! packaging enables a hearty squeeze!
• A friend who came to dinner brought these amaro-soaked cherries. And yes, I did put them on my morning oatmeal, and my first Zoom was great.
We catch some flak for our products being expensive. But if you live in New York you know that there are a lot of higher rungs on the price ladder. I was at Roman and Williams Guild this past weekend, ogling their artisan tableware. These plates by Danish ceramicist Robynn Storgaard start at $100. Each.
Homeward comes out this Friday—I look forward to seeing you in the comments!
Amanda
