The Malaysian Insider :: Books
The Malaysian Insider :: Books |
| UK artist, St Trinian’s creator Searle dies aged 91 Posted: 03 Jan 2012 04:22 AM PST  Actresses Talulah Riley (L), Caterina Murino (C), and Gemma Arterton pose at a photocall for the film 'St Trinian's' at the 60th Cannes Film Festival in this file photo of May 20, 2007. British cartoonist Ronald Searle, best known for his spiky drawings of the tearaway pupils of the fictional girls school St Trinian's, has died in southern France aged 91. – Reuters pic Searle, whose anarchic St Trinian's characters spawned a series of movie adaptations, died on Dec. 30 at a hospital near his home in Draguignan, in France's south-eastern Var region. "(He) passed away peacefully in his sleep, with his children and grandson by his side," Kate Searle said. His spindly schoolgirl creations, which first appeared in 1941, hit the big screen in 1954 as "The Belles of St Trinian's", with Alastair Sim starring in drag as headmistress Millicent Fritton. The film franchise was revived in 2007, with Rupert Everett taking over the headmistress role, with a follow-up, "St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold", appearing in 2009. Searle was also known for his comic illustrations in a series of 1950s satires on British private school education, written by author Geoffrey Willans, including "Down with Skool" and "How to be Topp". The books featured the thoughts of schoolboy Nigel Molesworth, and his advice on how to survive the trials of term-time at the crumbling St. Custard's, ruled over by terrifying headmaster Grimes, head boy Grabber and the school dog. Searle's cartoons also appeared in magazines and newspapers, including Britain's Punch and The New Yorker. His work was recognised internationally, and he won a number of awards from America's National Cartoonists Society. In France, where he lived since 1961, he was awarded the country's prestigious Legion d'Honneur. Searle was born in Cambridge in 1920 and attended the Cambridge School of Art. Serving with Britain's Royal Engineers in World War Two, Searle was captured in Singapore by the Japanese and spent three and a half years as a prisoner of war in Changi and working on the Thai-Burma railway. During captivity he secretly made sketches of the hardship of camp life, hiding the drawings under the mattresses of prisoners suffering from cholera. He published the drawings after his liberation, with many of the pictures now kept at the Imperial War Museum in London. – Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| World Chefs: Cookbook digs into Italian-American cuisine Posted: 03 Jan 2012 03:46 AM PST  File photo shows diners being served in an upscale restaurant in the northern Italian city of Turin. Chef, restaurateur and television personality Lidia Matticchio Bastianich says the biggest difference between Italian cuisine and Italian-American cuisine is that the latter uses more meat. – Reuters pic Her eighth book, "Lidia's Italy in America," gathers 175 recipes from the dishes served in the many Italian neighbourhoods across the United States, from the deep-dish pizza of Chicago to the Muffuletta sandwich of New Orleans. Bastianich, who lives in Long Island, New York, spoke about Italian-American cooking and how through their cuisine Italian-Americans proudly honour their homeland, even as they create something new. Q: Why did you write this book? A: "In the 20 years that I have been preparing regional Italian food I noticed that Italian-American food was thriving all over America. I began to understand these Italian-Americans still felt very Italian. I thought, 'this is a vibrant story. It's part of the way America evolved'." Q: How much of the Italian-American food in your book is actually Italian? How much American? A: "You might find maybe five or 10 per cent of this Italian-American food being cooked in Italy. So you could say it is not Italian and it is not. Italian-American is an adaptation of the Italian immigrants. It's more a part of Americana." Q: What's the biggest difference between Italian cuisine and Italian-American cuisine? A: "The excessive use of meats. Take the Sunday sauce. In Italy they made it with a piece of pork, maybe shoulder or skin, so the tomato sauce had a taste of meat. It was delicious and everybody got a little bit of meat in the second course. Here it comes with meatballs, braciole (rolled beef) and more. Why? Because finally these poor people had meat on the table and they couldn't get enough of it, I guess. " Q: How do you explain the universal appeal of Italian food? A: "It's not only the food. Everybody loves the Italian style: the music, the art. I think it has to do with our positioning in the middle of the Mediterranean: great water, sun, temperature and a diversified topography. Enjoying life, food, family, beauty, all that permeates through and I think that's what Americans love." Asparagus Fritters – Fritelle d'Asparagi Makes 10 to 12 fritters 2 bunches medium asparagus spears, peeled at the base (about 22 spears) 5 large eggs 1/2 cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano 1/2 small onion, finely chopped 1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs 2 tablespoons all- purpose fl our 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning Vegetable oil, for frying Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the asparagus spears and cook until tender but not mushy, about 8 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool. Drain and dry the spears and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Whisk together the eggs, grated cheese, onion, bread crumbs, flour and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the asparagus pieces. Heat 1/2 inch vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. (The oil is ready when a drop of batter sizzles on contact.) Drop 1/4-cup rounds of the batter into the hot oil, flattening if necessary, to make flat cakes. Cook until golden on the underside, about 2 minutes, then flip, and fry until the fritters are cooked through, about 2 minutes more. Drain the fritters on paper towels, and season with salt. – Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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