The Malaysian Insider :: Books
The Malaysian Insider :: Books |
| Art Smith shares weight-loss tips in latest book Posted: 17 Sep 2013 10:08 PM PDT Smith, known for his Southern-inspired cuisine, has six restaurants dotted around the United States, including Table Fifty-Two in Chicago and New York's Joanne Trattoria, which is a joint venture with the parents of pop star Lady Gaga. Before opening his own restaurant the Florida native spent 10 years as the personal chef of media mogul and actress Oprah Winfrey. He has also cooked for President Barack Obama and other world leaders. Smith, 53, spoke to Reuters about healthy living, losing a television job and cooking for former South African President Nelson Mandela. Q: There are so many diet cookbooks out there. Why did you decide to do one? A: With this book, it was first one that the publisher allowed us to include calories counts in. Before they wouldn't do it... That showed how people have changed. When they asked me to write another book I said I don't want to do a diet book. I want to show people more of a lifestyle, and how I eat and how I would like to eat. And what I did was that I put together a lot of delicious, healthy recipes. Q: What were your food nemeses? A: When I was diagnosed with adult diabetes, the doctor said, 'Control your diet or I have to put you on medication.' So I went on medication rather than address the diet. I did that for a year or so but I wasn't getting better. One of the biggest problems with my diet was that I would use sugar and caffeine to keep my energy level high. I am a bit of a high-strung person. I would be drinking six packs of diet sodas every day and eating huge amounts of food at night because I hadn't eaten anything else during the day. Q: So your diabetes came at a crossroads in your life? A: At 49, I saw myself in a not very good place with my health. I've cooked for billionaires, celebrities and all kinds of people. I was used to cooking food more on the healthy side for them. I have been doing it for years. Whatever diet they brought to me, I did it for them. I never liked diets. I don't think they will work. The word diet and the word gourmet really bother me because they segregate people from the table and from food. One is like 'I'm not going to eat enough' and the other one is too fancy to eat. I felt like I wanted to bridge the two together because I want to show people that they could have their health and feel comfortable about it. Q: Do you think your weight loss affected your image? A: I literally lost a television show with a major cable news network because of my weight loss, because they wanted a heavy-set chef just eating food across America, and I wouldn't do that. I'm not going to be one of the types who is going to eat 50 doughnuts. That's not the type of message I want to put out there. Q: You have cooked for former South African President Nelson Mandela. What did you make for him? A: I cooked for Mr Mandela three times. The first time I cooked for him, Miss Oprah said, 'Mr. Mandela will come and visit.' I don't get star-struck but I was pretty star struck. I called his chef and asked him what he liked. He said he liked oxtail and he liked biryani (an Indian rice dish). Then Oprah called me and I was such a mess. At 35,000 feet or wherever they were in Oprah's jet, she said Madiba (his clan name) just wanted to tell you the oxtail was pretty stellar. "Did we pack any on the jet?" I just feel grateful that I had the opportunities to cook for him and he enjoyed it. - Reuters, September 18, 2013. |
| Boyden leads 2013 Scotiabank Giller Prize longlist Posted: 17 Sep 2013 05:54 PM PDT Joseph Boyden is the list's only previous winner, for Through Black Spruce in 2008, though Lynn Coady was a finalist in 2011 with The Antagonist. Wayne Johnston was a finalist in 1998 and 2002 (The Colony of Unrequited Dreams, The Navigator of New York) and later longlisted in 2006 and 2011, while Lisa Moore is another double finalist with appearances in 2002 and 2005 (Open, Alligator). Michael Winter was longlisted in 2007; Claire Messud joins him in having served as a Giller Prize juror prior to nomination. There are links, too, between some of the debutant authors: Wayne Grady, of Emancipation Day, translated Louis Hamelin's October 1970 from the French; both are recognized by this year's longlist. On the jury, previous winners Margaret Atwood (1996) and Esi Edugyan (2011) are joined by American author and National Book Critics Circle Award-winner Jonathan Lethem. Scotiabank Giller Prize 2013 longlist: Dennis Bock - Going Home Again The $50,000 prize, open to Canadian authors published in English, will have its shortlist announced on October 8, with the other finalists awarded $5,000. - AFP Relaxnews, September 18. |
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