At one point in this delightful book, Tod Davies says, "Paying attention to what's right in front of you is what life is about. No other way." Cooking with what you've got is part of that worldview, and her aim is to help you figure out how to do that and have fun. She doesn't present recipes as much as food possibilities. There are instructions, yes, but they're open to interpretation and imagination. When she decides to cook a perfect lamb chop, she follows Nigel Slater's directions, then adds some steamed kale, alongside diced tomatoes marinated in balsamic vinegar, a bit of marjoram and salt. "The tomato juice sloshed deliciously into the kale, but not quite into the lamb . . . quarter of lemon on the side to squeeze over the whole at will. Glass of Spanish Tempranillo. Ripe figs for dessert. One of the most utterly delicious solitary dinners I've ever had. Thank you, Nigel Slater." Or this, when talking about a salad of chopped parsley, celery leaf, tarragon, tomatoes and avocado, which she served with bucatini with sage and garlic: "That kind of salad is really good arranged in a crescent on a plate covered otherwise by some kind of simple pasta dish. . . . The vinaigrette kind of sloshes under the noodles and adds another dimension which can be very satisfying, especially if you have a glass if wine, too." Obviously, sloshing foods (and a glass of wine) figure heavily into her meals, and why not? Isn't that the way most of us experience food, at least by the third bite?
Her chatty style draws you into her kitchen, where she writes about the times her vegetarian husband (film director Alex Cox) is away, and she makes Eccentric Dinners for One. She says, "When it turns cold, one's thoughts turn naturally to polenta. At least, that's where my thoughts turn," and you want to be there with her to find out what she's serving with the polenta. Many of her meals are served on shredded salad greens--omelets, steak, brown rice casserole--with a wedge of lemon, which is a great way to spark up the usual salad and main dish fare.
She's my kind of cook. "When you're by yourself and feeling blue, it always helps to think about, prepare, and eat just exactly what you feel like eating." In her case, it's bacon, mushrooms and eggs on an avocado-spread whole wheat tortilla. She describes her process, then says to top up your wine glass, carry the dish to the table and eat slowly while reading a comforting book. Jam Today is a very comforting cookbook, and a gently inspiring one.--Marilyn Dahl
Shelf Starter: An inspiring and chatty cookbook, written by a woman who values food, family and friends.
