Alexandra Guarnaschelli

1969-06-20

Quotes by Alexandra Guarnaschelli

• It's amazing the relationships you forge in a kitchen. When you cooperate in an environment that's hot. Where there's a lot of knives. You're trusting your well-being with someone you've never before met or known.

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• I think we love bacon because it has all the qualities of an amazing sensory experience. When we cook it, the sizzling sound is so appetizing, the aroma is maddening, the crunch of the texture is so gratifying and the taste delivers every time.

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• I've thrown vanilla beans into mustard. Nothing crazy or grainy, just normal dijon. It's great for duck. Smear some of that right on the duck, coupled with some roast plums, and it all comes together in that savory over sweet over savory over sweet way we all love.

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• I love the whole process of making, serving, and eating hearty soups like lentil, potato leek and carrot, to name a few.

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• I grew up in a house where I was a spectator to the sport of cooking. In that way, I just learned so much about what it really takes to make food.

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• I like all of McClure's pickles, but my personal favorites are the spicy ones.

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• To make fluffy scrambled eggs, the best trick is to whisk in a splash of water and nothing else. Cream, milk, and other liquids drag the eggs down!

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• I really cringe at the sight of pattypan squash. So pretty and cute and having no taste or exciting texture. Dull.

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• Stuffed cherry tomatoes are satisfying without being filling and make a great alternative to bread-based starters. You can assemble these appetizers ahead of time and refrigerate them until you're ready to serve.

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• I bent my head over a stove in my early 20s and picked it up in my 30s.

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• I like to take a day off and enjoy fast food for what it is. I have to say that in New York, I'm really partial about taco trucks. I mean, I really can't handle it. There is something about catching all those ingredients piled on top of each other: it puts me in a tizzy. I love it. I'm kind of a taco truck junkie.

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• Who doesn't love a stuffed cherry tomato?

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• If you're making a salad of any kind, cut the herbs, stems and all, and toss them into your mixed greens salad, a Romaine salad, iceberg, Bibb - it just adds a special touch.

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• The hardest thing about being a full time chef is leaving my work behind when I go home at night. I'll toss and turn about a menu item or forget to order produce and wake up at 4 A.M. in a cold sweat over some artichokes.

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• Sometimes I look up a recipe for chicken and tomatoes and end up cooking pork. The inspiration gets lost in translation.

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• If I want my daughter to try something, I eat it in front of her repeatedly without forcing the issue and, with some trial and error, the world is our oyster!

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• If I am making a spice rub or a spice mix for a braise or even just to crust a piece of fish, I'll use mustard seeds. If you soak them in a little bit of vinegar and let them get plumped and soft and then you puree them, they're delicious.

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• A splash of red wine vinegar can pull things together like a pinch of salt.

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• Every time I feel like something is missing from a dish, I think, 'Oh, I know, I'll add a pinch of dry ginger.' If it's not salt and it's not vinegar, it's probably missing dry ginger.

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• Red wine vinegar has some personality as well acidity.

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