Saveur #66 pp. 45-54

A good cookbook is not just a collection of recipes set down in formulaic prose. What makes a cookbook unique is how the writer makes a procedure his or her own and then translates it into terms that the reader can understand. It is also the way the writer remembers certain tastes and textures and all that is associated with the savoring of a dish.

Today it is more important than ever that we have mentors in the cookbooks we use because hardly any of us grew up learning to cook at someone's knee. We need the voice right there in the kitchen with us, telling us which ingredients to choose, carefully describing a technique, and pointing out the little details that make all the difference. That's the only way we'll learn how to attain the balance of flavors that every dish requires. It doesn't have to be fancy, as Scott [Peacock] and Edna [Lewis] often say. It just has to taste good.