The Saturday Post, Washington DC, May 10, 2012. Here is the link to my interview.
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BBC Good Food, India edition, April, 2012
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Top 50 Food Website in the world, chosen by The Independent newspaper in the UK.
Stunning photography, beautiful food and evocative writing, Shayma Saadat’s Pakistani/ Afghan/Persian blog is a treat,’ says Nick. ‘Very original recipes from a blogger who is keen to offer a much-needed dose of humanity and romanticism to the countries of her heritage.
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My winning recipe for Borani Esfanaaj published in a Harper Collins book, October, 2011:
The Food52 Cookbook: 125 Winning Recipes from Exceptional Home Cooks
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Interviewed by Herald, one of Pakistan’s most prestigious and widely-read English-language magazines for their September, 2011 issue. Here is the link to the three-page feature.
With her Afghan, Irani and Pakistani heritage, Saadat’s gastronomical proclivities are diverse — even as she writes of “clotted cream-like burrata cheese” or “gamey venison pâté with juniper berries,” she craves daal with a tarty tarka. While nostalgia guides her tastes, Saadat’s fusion of sensibilities (the daal is scooped up with pizza bianca, a bread sprinkled with olive oil, salt and sprigs of rosemary) lends a twist to our most beloved and ordinary foods.
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Chosen as one of twenty best links of the year by Guernica Magazine’s Blog, “A Year in Digital Discoveries“, December 30, 2010.
A gourmand, economist, photographer, and storyteller, I often think of Shayma Saadat as a bit of a goddess.
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One of three Finalists in a publishing group of 60+ Edible magazines in the US/Canada for Best Editorial/Food or Cooking Focused: WHERE THE SUN COMES FROM, 2010.
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‘The Kitchn’ (90,000 unique visitors/day).
Featured in their Breakfast with A Blogger series, December 14, 2010.
Shayma has just done the impossible: she reinvented a simple egg preparation, spinning a simple recipe into the realm of the seriously delectable sublime…
Shayma cooks as a way to connect with her roots, finding comfort in the dishes her grandmothers prepared, especially while living far away from family members. This common thread within most of her recipes makes the blog a joy to read; we are invited to delve into Shayma’s amazing culinary family history through delicious foods and lovely photographs.
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‘The Kitchn’ (90,000 unique visitors/day).
Interviewed for feature on Ramadan, September 8, 2010.
When I asked Shayma about her favorite Ramadan memory, she wistfully spoke of a year in Pakistan where the month coincided with the hot summer mango season.
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‘The Kitchn’ (90,000 unique visitors/day).
‘Kulfi Popsicles’ featured in ‘Delicious links for 9.2.10′.
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Featured on Food52 August 17, 2010.
The Spice Spoon is really as much a memoir as it is a blog. Shayma lovingly recounts all of the foods of her heritage, and pays true homage to her mother and father with beautiful old photographs…Shayma shows a talent for writing straightforward and easy-to-read recipes.
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CBC Radio One, Canada, August 11, 2010.
Interviewed for for the segment, ‘Here and Now’ on Ramadan and ‘iftar’.
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Food News Journal- Best of the Blogs, April 19, 2010
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The Globe and Mail (Canada’s largest English-language circulation newspaper). Featured on the front page of the ‘Life’ section.
Cooking as therapy, Wednesday, March 31st, 2010.
…Shayma Saadat is one of a long line of women who find transcendence in cuisine.
Rather than writing about dishes she’d mastered in Italy (where she worked for the UN), Ms. Saadat decided to conjure the smells and tastes of her childhood.
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Winner of ‘Food52′ Competition
The Spice Spoon’s ‘Borani Esfanaaj’ recipe to be published in the crowdsourced ‘Food52′ cookbook by HarperStudio.
The interview link here.
The winning recipe link here.
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The Irish Times, Magazine (paywall for article)
Web Watch, February 13th, 2010.
She is an ace cook and photographer and her relatively new blog – started just last autumn – is bursting with promise.
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Interview for Qype, London
…she chats to us about her gypsy lifestyle, her cooking advice to Qypers, trying alligator meat and eating cold Chinese-takeaway noodles for breakfast.
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‘Editor’s Picks’ awards on Food52- for three four five of The Spice Spoon’s recipes.
Jeweled Couscous; (link here).
Roasted Figs in a Red Wine Cardamom-Infused Reduction with Vanilla Ice Cream; (link here).
Dill Rice the Afghan Way- Chelo Shibit; (link here).
Farina in the Manner of Pakistani Halwa; (link here).
Yoghurt and Beet Salad in the Persian Manner; (link here).
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The Spice Spoon’s Khagina recipe chosen for Food52′s Jenny’s in the Kitchen feature. Jenny is the Los Angeles Bureau Chief for The New York Times.
You know that exciting feeling when your dish looks exactly like the picture? That will happen to you. Each bite will be a revelation of flavor and heat against the backdrop of something so creamy and warm, you will imagine that you are somewhere, living the Pakistani way, instead of staring at a pile of laundry and wondering if you can leave it until morning.
Food52 is a crowdsourced cookbook development project created by Amanda Hesser (ex-New York Times Magazine Food Editor) and Merrill Stubbs (food writer and recipe taster) for talented homecooks.
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Listed as Liberty London Girl’s Top Ten Blogs to Follow in 2010. (Link here).
A truly exceptional new cookery blog, which combines excellent food writing, an evocative sense of place, delicious recipes and good photography. Head & shoulders above the competition. Quick! Someone give this woman a book deal & a TV show.
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Listed as Mrs Trefusis‘ ‘My Blogs to Watch in 2010′. (Link here).
I’m mad about this site, which is more of a food memoir than a typical food blog…
