Feature story: "Paula Wolfert and the Clay Pot Mystique"
A gastro-scientific investigation into why some cooks believe food tastes better when it’s cooked in a ceramic pot. Our tour guide: Paula Wolfert, the legendary queen of American clay-pot cooking.
Dear Friends,
For those who prefer to spend the cold, dark months of winter in a warm kitchen, tinkering with the art and science of cooking, we have a special treat this week. From the simple premise that would become her motto — “food tastes better cooked in clay” — Paula Wolfert almost single-handedly launched a movement in American home cooking, publishing nine cookbooks and receiving the James Beard Foundation Medal For Lifetime Achievement, along with many other honors. Wolfert, who is now 85 and suffers from a form of Alzheimer’s, has mostly retired from the public eye — which makes this story (originally published in our pages in 2015) all the more valuable.
I hope you’ll enjoy reading, “Paula Wolfert and the Clay Pot Mystique,” written by yours truly and photographed by Claire Bloomberg. And don’t miss the sidebars, which include a scientific dive into how heat behaves in different vessels; and several other excerpts, including a recipe, from Paula’s seminal book, “Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009).
Each Friday throughout the Winter issue, which highlights some masters of stonework, we’ll release a feature story, short article, mini-documentary, photo essay, or podcast that relates to our mission, to “create a world built to last.” Along with stories that speak to each issue’s theme, we always have works on other topics, so please, stay tuned.
In the meantime, I hope you'll always find something intriguing to read, watch, or listen to within our pages. We welcome your thoughts via email, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Thank you for reading and sharing our stories, for donating to our cause when you can, and for being such a loyal part of the Craftsmanship community.
Be well,
Todd Oppenheimer
Editor & Publisher, Craftsmanship Quarterly
Winter 2023: The New Stone Age
When humans first embarked on their incessant quest for innovations, they began tinkering with little more than the rocks and stones at their feet. The Stone Age endured for more than 2 million years, and the stonework remains of ancient civilizations — from the Megalithic Temples of Malta to Stonehenge to the Great Pyramids — continue to awe and fascinate us today. Throughout the world, stone is still quarried for use in grand monuments, memorials, and much more. In this issue, along with other topics, we highlight some modern-day devotees of this timeless, prehistoric material.