Walking on Walnuts

Nancy Ring

ISBN 10: 0553096648 / ISBN 13: 9780553096644

Published by Bantam, 1996

Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0553096648I3N00

Synopsis:

When Nancy landed her first job in one of Manhattan's hottest restaurants, she entered a world of long hours and hard work, where only the most talented and tenacious survive, let alone triumph. From the dangerously high-pressured kitchen of LaCoupe to the unheated, rat-infested kitchen of Toy to the cutthroat three-star kitchen of Acroama, backstabbing, fierce competition, stolen recipes, finicky customers, and hot-tempered chefs were all part of the brew.
Throughout her apprenticeship, Nancy is sustained by memories of her immigrant Jewish family evoked by recipes that have been handed down to her through a long line of strong women. The aroma of homemade blintzes, mandelbrot, taiglach, and rugelach comes wafting back to her in times of grief and celebration, recalling stories of relatives who fled Russia and found new lives in America, who sabotaged the Nazis and survived the Holocaust.
Meanwhile, Nancy struggles to reconcile the multitude of contradictions in her own life: putting off her painting while pursuing her pastry, withstanding abuse from men at work while yearning to meet Mr. Right, remaining close to her family while guarding her hard-won independence. Fortified by the wisdom of her forebears, she negotiates the maze of choices life offers her, determined to make it on her own terms - as an artist, as a chef, and as a woman.

From the Inside Flap: years as a struggling artist and waitress, Nancy Ring decided to find a "survival job" that would bring satisfaction as well as survival. Armed with only chutzpah and a love of baking instilled by generations of her family, she answered a newspaper ad seeking an assistant pastry chef. So began a roller-coaster ride of apprenticeships in New York's high-pressured, ego-infested, and sometimes rat-infested, kitchens.

In this culinary memoir, Nancy Ring combines funny and poignant stories of love and work with warm remembrances of a family that celebrates food with gusto and cherishes memories with passion.
Through it all, Nancy is sustained by her memories of her Jewish family, and the recipes that were handed down to her through generations. Blintzes, mandelbrot, fruit compote, all made in the steamy kitchens of her relatives, come wafting back to her in times of grief and celebration. It's what fortifies her determination to make it on her

Bibliographic Details

Title: Walking on Walnuts
Publisher: Bantam
Publication Date: 1996
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Good
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket