Appetizers with Judith serves up 80+ recipes for dips, crostini, sliders, seafood, cheese, warm bites, and more, along with shortcuts, variations, and entertaining tips for turning little plates into a seriously delicious gathering. What is it about appetizers that makes them such an enjoyable category of food for you?

I’ve always been a fan for appetizers—the starters the sets the stage for a gathering. Sometimes they are quite simple with crackers and cheeses … other times cooking and setting a platter of tasty bites. For me, an entire meal of a variety of appetizers is perfect. I’ve even done dinner gatherings with friends that “dinner” is all appetizers. Sometimes, I’m the creator and cook … other times, it’s a potluck from others sharing their choices. One time I declared the theme as “Tapas Around the World”—what a variety showed up!

You describe yourself as someone who might open the refrigerator and create something based on what looks good. How does that spontaneity influence your recipes?

Whatever my eye lands on first is usually the starting point. I pull out the drawer the has cheeses … different types of nuts I’ve already roasted … check out what’s in the veggie drawers or in any of the “meal left overs” … then it’s to the freezer and possibly a bag with frozen baguette pieces … or to the pantry for something else to add.

What’s important is to be open. What tastes good? What could I add to it?

Which kitchen skills or techniques give home cooks the biggest return for the effort required to learn them?

Curiosity … understanding the power of salt and pepper as basics –getting the right knives, pans and tools –i.e. a fish spatula is a must have; I use wood cutting boards; my tools everyday tools are not hidden in drawers—knives are on magnetic tips I can easily grab, same with pots and pans—most are hanging. In the back of both Appetizers with Judith and Cooking with Judith, I take the reader into my kitchen—pantry, spice drawer, tools.

Many of the stories in the book connect particular foods with friends and gatherings. Why are food memories so powerful?

Food memories bring in the five senses — taste of course; add in feels/texture of the food—that first bite; the smell and aromas of cooking; the sight of the plate and presentation; even the hearing of sizzles, plates coming together … and always the gathering of others that bring in the stirring of it all.  The perfect gathering.

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