Author, co-host Podleski used to clip out recipes
courtesy of food network
Greta Podleski, co-host of Eat, Shrink & Be Merry.
Greta Podleski, best-selling cookbook author (Looneyspoons, Crazy Plates). She co-hosts Eat, Shrink & Be Merry Tuesday nights on the Food Network with her sister Janet
Q: What is your fondest memory from your family kitchen?
A: When I was six-years-old, I’d push a stool up to the kitchen counter and watch with fascination as our mom turned plain white sugar, flour and eggs into a heavenly masterpiece. It was a thrill for me to hold the electric mixer. Janet and I fought over who got to lick the bowl. I usually won.
Q: What kitchen aromas bring back fond memories?
A: Our mom made the best pasta concoction ever. It was our favourite meal in the whole world and we still love it to this day.
Q: What is your favourite food to cook?
A: I enjoy making homemade pizza. I love the challenge of creating a healthy pizza that tastes as good as (or better than) a high fat one.
Q: Do you use cookbooks?
A: This may sound like a strange answer, but I cook from my own cookbooks all the time. I do read other cookbooks as a hobby. I enjoy reading recipes and learning from others’ expertise.
Q: How did the first meal you prepared turn out?
A: My mother tells me that I used to clip recipes from magazines when I was very young and that I’d make the finished dish look exactly like the picture. My first creation came from Seventeen magazine. It was Sweet ‘n’ Sour Fish Bites.
Q: What kitchen gadget can’t you live without?
A: Since I put lemon in just about everything I cook, I’d find it hard to live without my Microplane zester.
Q: What rituals from your background involving food do you partake in?
A: When we were little, we had to eat the traditional Polish Christmas Eve dinner before we were allowed to open our presents. On the menu: fried smelts, prune soup and sauerkraut pancakes. Our mom springs these foods on us around the holiday season. Over the years, we’ve actually grown to like them.
