Ancient Grains for Modern Meals - Maria Speck [1]
I would like to thank Lisa Ekus-Saffer, who connected me, a first-time author, with my dynamo of an agent, Jenni Ferrari-Adler. Jenni not only grasped my vision for this book in an instant, but she also pushed my proposal out the door at lightning speed—while I honed my French cooking skills at the Culinary Institute of America. Jenni patiently helped me understand the U.S. publishing world and provided support whenever a crisis hit. To top it all off, she made the time in her busy schedule to try and test some of my whole grain recipes.
My passion for food I owe to my Greek mom, Theochanthi, who has always cooked for us, regardless of how difficult life would turn at times. And she continues to do so. Her single-minded obsession with the beauty and simplicity of good food ignited my own love affair with all things edible. As I’m writing this, I miss my German dad, Paul, who was one of the very few dedicated carnivores I know who embraced whole grains for what they are—delicious. Last but not least, my late Greek grandma, who, for lack of space, covered the furniture in her elegant living room with her own handmade made phyllo dough, and whose craft is my inspiration.
As a first-time book author, I am especially grateful to my testers, who provided their feedback on many of the recipes, first and foremost the tireless Karen Levendusky. Karen and her husband, Joe, have literally eaten through this book with a curiosity and openness to whole grains that I will never forget. From the moment she learned of this project, Karen said in her understated way, “Send me whatever you have and I’ll try it.” With an editor’s eye, she pointed out missing teaspoons, ingredients, or any other matters that inevitably got jumbled during the endless testing, retesting, and tweaking of recipes. And she worked with the precision of Sherlock Holmes, measuring the size of bulgur kernels, timing the seconds for grinding sesame seeds, and providing uplifting feedback throughout. Thank you.
My thanks go also to Vivian Liu, whose critical palate challenged me more than once to go back to the drawing board. Many more people lent a hand in the process: my sister-in-law Yasmin Dharamsi, Dharni Vasudevan, Diane Asadorian, Myrna Greenfield, Lindsay Haugland, and—who knew—even our own amazing real estate agent, Marsha Price, who, along with her daughter Gabrielle Rosenfeld, kept my spirits up.
Personal support came from people who believed in this book—even as the rejection letters from agents kept streaming in: my friends Bea Giersig, Lucia Glahn-Kussel, and Jutta Werner. Edward and Lisabeth Weisband were convinced that my whole grain passion would ride out the tough years when the nation went low-carb. My friend Katrina Heron intently listened to all the obstacles and always came up with new ideas on how to move on. I thank my Italian friend Alessandra Campana for her fun-loving approach to making pasta and immensely good cheer throughout, and Thomas Peattie, who kept the wine coming (one with violet notes!) for our dinners together. And Hildegard Eisenmann who brought the whole grains of my childhood back into my life—little did she know at the time what a profound transformation would follow.
I will be forever grateful to master baker Greg Patent, whose late career change inspired my own. He saw a first draft of my proposal, joyously prodded me along, and provided support throughout; and to my colleague and super-talented pastry chef, Julie Usher, for her friendship.
More than anything, a cookbook writer needs eaters: thank you to enthusiastic dining companions and friends Marion Fremont-Smith, Oonagh Breen, Jane Nelson, Vera Coelho, Michelle Johnson, Golnaz Tabatabai and her son Hassan, Kate Scott and her daughter Jiao Jiao, and the Khwaja family with Sehr, Asim, Aman, and Nuriya; and to Ali Asani and Bapa, who always picked at his dinner plate like a bird until he died at the age of eighty-one, but ate every whole grain dish I put in front of him, surprising even himself. And