Rachel Laudan

The new Astor Center, run by Doug Duda, is a hospitable place for anyone interested in the history of food. In the Spring they will feature one of Barbara Wheaton’s eye-opening seminars on how to read a cook book as well as a forum with Gastronomica editor Darra Goldstein.

Speaking of Gastronomica, it just won a well-deserved award from the American magazine Utne Reader. Some of you may have already seen this. But for those like me who are a bit removed from large American bookstores here’s a link to a glowing review of Gastronomica in the American magazine Utne Reader. http://www.utne.com/2008-01-01/GreatWriting/Winners-of-the-2007-Utne-Independent-Press-Awards.aspx?page=6

And my latest copy of SaudiAramco World turned up today with a profile of Farid Zadi, the expert on Algerian food in the US, by Charles Perry, the distinguished historian of Islamic food.