Holiday Reading: Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Take a food TV host, specializing in, (what else) comfort food, turning 50, a next-door neighbor who has a scandalous past, two troublesome daughters in their 20s, and a new, younger, ex-model Spanish rival and you get Kate Jacobs' Comfort Food (Penguin 2008), a fun, fast-paced read, perfect for any die-hard foodie fan. Thankfully there are no recipes included, just spicy cat fighting, romance, and real-life chefs and celebrities. Not to mention, Porter explained, but he'd heard that all the well-known cooking personalities were retooling their programs on all the cable channels: Nigella Lawson was doing a thirteen-episode series devoted to the barbecue, that most un-English of meals, and while wearing a designer tankini no less. Gus's longtime rival, the incomparable Barefoot Contessa, was turning her program into a musical, sharing recipes set to lyrics and score. (p. 52) Now, that would be fun and funny food TV. Too bad this is just a novel because it would be great to see the heroine, Augustus (Gus) Simpson's show, watch her on the Today Show and her rival, Carmen Vega, on Good Morning America OK, (that is in the book). What the story captures are what we expect are the kind of battles that happen between the Food Network's hosts. Gus displays that kind of strength we want to see in any woman turning 50 who is being challenged by the (male) powers that be. Besides all that, there are great descriptions of food to keep even the most weight-conscious reader hungry for more. Previous articles: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Kate Jacobs, comfort food --> back to Super Chef