ALL the Picadillo at the Blurb Books Food Fair

I am a Cuban mother. And I cook. I love that I get asked to cook at different foodie-type events. See here. I always love doing those.

But the real story is that I basically like to eat Cuban food, so I cook it. And I have a family to feed, so they appreciate that I cook. Also, I really enjoy oversharing, hence this whole blog thing. So, in a nutshell, I cook Cuban and I share my food and I write about making and sharing Cuban food.

I know that not everyone wants to print out every single recipe I have (and, believe me, it's all really good), so I've collected my favorite recipes along with the stories that go with them into a you-can-actually-hold-it-in-your-hand cookbook.

I self-published my first collection of recipes and called it My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cookbook through Blurb Books. I have made other personal books with Blurb and the quality is always wonderful. Publishing with them was a fabulous experience. I highly recommend them. Also, you should totally get my cookbook!

Last month, Blurb hosted a group of us foodie/cookbook/bookmakers for the Blurb Book Bash in San Francisco.

When I arrived at the Blurb offices I met the photo and video crew who would be filming me all day and can I just tell you that I fell in love immediately. Plus, they totally made me feel comfortable in front of the camera. I felt like I was just telling my story to friends.

Let me give a shout out right here to the fabulously talented folks at TR Proz for the gorgeous photos and video. You made me look so legit. (They also very kindly mentioned me on their blog. Thanks, guys!)

I cooked picadillo, people. Lots of it. Which meant lots of sofrito and lots of meat and lots of my favorite spices. Look at me go! I was a picadillo-cooking fool!

ON A SEMI-RELATED, BUT TANGENTAL SIDE NOTE: My eyes disappear when I smile or laugh. It has been like this my entire life. I still remember school photographers telling me to smile and then scolding me for closing my eyes. "No! They're open! I promise you!" These guys just let me be me. I'm so grateful for that.

Look at ALL the picadillo.

This beautiful video will give you a feel for how much fabulous food and fun was to be had at the Blurb Book Bash. (Look for your favorite Cuban Food Blogger at about the 17 second mark.)

These talented folks followed me around all day with all kinds of cameras like I was "somebody." (It was kind of surreal and totally awesome all at once.) The other author/foodie/bookmaker people who were also featured were quite talented and I was humbled to be included in this amazing group.

They interviewed me. I like to talk anyway, but let me tell you that it's weird seeing yourself talking (so much!) on camera. And I knew that I talked with my hands, but wow! I didn't know I was so....what's the word? Expressive.

I explained how much I love my Cuban culture and how I've tried to pass that on to my kids via our music, our language and of course, our food. I shared how family and food have always been intertwined for me. I talked (and demonstrated) the beauty of a perfect sofrito.

I'll be completely honest here, I was nervous about how I would come across on video, but you know what? This is me. This is how I look and how I sound. (Also, I was having a really fantastic curly-girl hair day, but that's not important right now.)

So here's Marta Darby, Cuban Cook. Unplugged.

Of course, the video happens to catch my weirdest face for the still. *sigh* So, I'm not quite ready for the Food Network, but then....maybe they're not quite ready for me.

Leave a comment and tell me your thoughts. Be kind.

Also, here's the recipe for Papi's Favorite Picadillo.

Thanks again, Blurb Books and TR Proz for an absolutely wonderful time.

Cuban Picadillo Recipe - Comfort Food

I love to cook and entertain and I almost always make Cuban food when we have company. People are usually surprised that even the simplest food is so flavorful.

In the early 60’s when we were new to this country, my mom experimented with all kinds of traditional, inexpensive American foods. We kids went along with it for a while, but it was my dad who got very vocal about getting his picadillo at least once a week.

The moment we began to smell the sofrito, all was right again in our little exile world.

Ingredients

I have been reluctant to serve picadillo to American friends because it is my absolute favorite comfort food and it’s a little difficult to explain that the incredible sweet and sour taste comes from pimiento-stuffed green olives and raisins. Then the explanation becomes more complex when I start raving about how tasty it is for breakfast the next day with a fried egg.

Raisins & olives

I figure…

If you just don’t “get it" - there's more for me.

PICADILLO

Papi’s Favorite Picadillo Recipe

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• ½ green bell pepper, diced
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, pressed
• 1 ½ lbs. Ground beef (I have substituted ground turkey and it’s still awesome)
• 1 tsp. Salt
• ½ tsp. Pepper
• 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
• 1 small can tomato paste
• ¼ cup dry white wine (the cheaper, the better!)
• 4 Tbsp. Pimiento-stuffed green olives, sliced
• 1 small box of dark raisins
• ½ tsp. Cumin
• ½ tsp. Oregano

1) Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion, green pepper and garlic until the onion is transluscent.

2) Add the ground beef and brown over medium heat.

3) Add the rest of the ingredients and continue cooking until meat is tender and completely cooked through. About 25 minutes.

4) Serve over white rice. And tostones.

5) Makes 6 servings.

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