Forest Street Kitchen

During holidailies, I am writing on Fridays about blogs that I love. There are several that I read regularly that you probably do, too: Orangette, Becks & Posh, The Homesick Texan, Michael Ruhlman, Chocolate & Zucchini, Smitten Kitchen, Simply Recipes…these are not exactly “discoveries” on my part any more than “Citizen Kane” is a cool, under-appreciated, retro movie I am going to introduce to the American viewing public. They are pretty much the “industry standard.”

There are other good food blogs, though, that are not yet on the world’s  radar. I am not really all about the recipes, although I sometimes use them. I am attracted and brought back by really great writing, and a sense of a recipe or food story placed in the context of the world - I don’t just want to know how to make goulash; I want to know where the recipe came from, and if it was changed, and whether it was brought from Hungary on a scrap of paper or relayed by a dear friend.

Recently I discovered “One for the Table” (really more of an e-zine than a blog) which is written and edited by some of the finest writers in America, and interwoven with information about the writer’s strike. Featuring essays, recipes, restaurant reviews, cookbook reviews and pretty much anything else a foodie might want to read, the site’s editor is Amy Ephron,  Laraine Newman is a contributing editor, and writers include Joan Nathan, Amy Sherman (creator and executive producer of “Gilmore Girls”), both of Ephron’s daughters and her sister Delia.

For me, part of the lure of the site is that the essays are beautifully written (of course) and evocative not only in terms of food, but of family and community. At the moment, there is an article about Chanukah that remind me of my mother’s family, and another about my favorite french fries in the whole entire universe, those that come in the paper cone from Benita’s Frites on the Santa Monica Pier. There are beautiful pictures of Paris, and a very funny piece by Jonathan Kass about the eating habits of his family of origin. I find that the (excessive amount of time) I spend reading “One for the Table” is like hanging out in a really great deli with the smartest and funniest people I know, all of whom happen to love food and some of whom know a great deal about cooking it.

“One for the Table” states that it is “[d]edicated to the notion that one of the things that’s wrong with the world is that there aren’t enough waffles in it and everyone should sometimes, not all the time, but sometimes order ‘one for the table’.” I feel that by passing along this great internet tip to you, I am ordering a cyber-waffle for all who dine at my table. Have lots of syrup and butter; you only live once.