It’s not often I brag on my blog about stuff like this, but I prefer to think of it as a congratulations. The James Beard Awards are coming up in May, and one of the books I published last year is a finalist — Gluten-Free Girl Every Day. What makes it extra special for me is that publishing the book felt like such a wonderful team effort. Of course I love working with Shauna and Danny. That’s a given. But the photo shoot in particular was a real treat, teaming up with photographer Penny De Los Santos, prop stylist Anne Trenner-Mishka, and food stylist Karen Shinto. Kara Plikaitis was the designer. It’s a gorgeous book, and clearly the recipes are pretty good for it to be a finalist for the Beards (it was a finalist for the IACP awards too!). I made one of my favorite dishes from the book the other night, the Chili-Lime Shrimp Stir-Fry.
It’s a forgiving recipe that allows for improvisation (my favorite kind of recipe). I substituted shiitakes for the chanterelle mushrooms, and I adjusted the spice a bit. That’s my kind of cooking, when you taste it along the way and tweak it. In fact I’m already thinking what I’ll do next time I make this recipe. Congratulations again to the whole team that worked on the book. I’ll have my fingers crossed at the awards ceremony.
