(mailing, James Berry)
[[invoke. page:newsletter1 # These are some of the fields that may be used # ============================= # leadimageid: # leadtext: # story1id: # story1text: # story2id: # story2text: # recipe1id: # recipe1text: # recipe2id: # recipe2text: # vad: (html for vertical ad) # hitBucket: (name used to track delivery) # ============================= leadimageid: 337325 leadtext: !fmt/block | h1. Dear readers, Many of the interviews on Culinate in the last few years have been conducted by a writer named Ellen Kanner. Back in 2010, Ellen wrote one of the more friendly queries we've ever received (without, I might add, using a single exclamation point). Happily, the buoyancy I saw in that first note has characterized all of my long-distance exchanges with her. Ellen lives in Miami, and as you probably know, we're in Portland, Oregon; unfortunately, our paths have yet to cross. But after a few years of back and forth, and after reading much of Ellen's generous, gentle, and radically soulful new book, Feeding the Hungry Ghost, I feel as if I know her just a little bit. If I were a betting gal, I'd say the optimism and, yes, love she sends out to the world are the real thing, folks. Her book is full of sentences like this: "The simplest meal is in truth a deliciously collaborative effort, a mystery both divine and earthly." What's not inspiring about that? That's the thing about Ellen's book: It's a 200-page reminder that food "opens our hearts. It gives us faith. It gives us energy to go forward." A Buddhist (no surprise there), Ellen adds a prayer: "May we accept this food for the realization of the way of love and understanding." Finally, there's the element of gratitude: "I have faith enough to be grateful for now, to know, as Wordsworth did, 'That in this moment there is life and food / For future years. And so I dare to hope.'" I am feeling my own measure of gratitude today … to Ellen indeed, but also the rest of you food-focused readers and writers out there. Thanks for the "deliciously collaborative effort." Kim Carlson Editorial Director # The lead text story1id: 417936 story1text: "In France, Meredith Escudier and her husband enjoy cooking all-black food for dinner — but it takes some know-how." story2id: 444953 story2text: "Megan Scott argues that cooking and eating together as a household is valuable on many levels." recipe1id: 445752 recipe1text: "Darina Allen's version of the classic will appeal to St. Patrick's Day enthusiasts — and others who just love beef." recipe2id: 67184 recipe2text: "This simple, soft classic is good for everyday — but it dresses up well for special occasions, too." # The ad vad: | <a target='blank' href="http://howtocookapp.com/"> <img src="http://ads.culinate.com/htce/HTCE-iPad-Skyscraper.png" " width="120" height="600" alt="" border="0"/></a> ]]