Can you hear the waves crashing around you and feel the cool ocean breeze in your hair? That’s just me sending you good vibes and reminding you that my new book Going Coastal: 200+ Seafood Recipes from Around the Globe is now available in digital and print on Amazon.
It seems like I’ve been promoting the book everywhere other than my website! I’ve been busy doing TV appearances, interviews and working with Amazon on promotion. Things continue to ramp up and my schedule is becoming increasingly more exciting. I’m getting a lot of questions from the media and readers about how it all came together so I thought it would be fun put together a Q&A. Here we go!
What does the title Going Coastal mean?
This book is meant to transport you to different parts of the world through sustainable, approachable seafood recipes that feature a host of lively ingredients. It’s a celebration of the coastal regions around the globe. I aimed to cover as much territory and reference as many places as possible.
I have thoughtfully curated dishes inspired by my travels and food tours to coastal regions. You’ll find recipes shared by families along the seaboard who opened their homes to me for private cooking lessons; seaside chefs who shared their secrets for creating restaurant-quality seafood meals; and seafaring friends who have gladly shared their cooking traditions and favorite family recipes with me.
I heard the book is as big as The Bible. Is this true?
I’ve mentioned this on my social media channels and it’s worth mentioning again, Going Coastal is a whale of a book – a full color 569-page masterpiece complete with an image for each recipe. The first 50 pages is focused on education with fun edutainment sections called “Posh Pointers.”
It took me about 3 years to create Going Coastal and I had a lot of help. From book design and editing to food tasters and PR. My intention was to write a cookbook that represented coastal communities from every part of the world, especially those parts of the planet that I’ve had a chance to visit. Six months before going into book design I printed out the manuscript and realized that I was at 500 pages and still going. With the looming deadline and feeling the need to wrap things up, I wrote the last section of the book on raw seafood and put down my pen. And then began the long journey of food photography.
Does the book have food photos?
Every recipe in the book has a photo. This was a hard but very conscious decision because I know the amount of time and energy needed for food styling and photography, not to mention the resources. Luckily, I’m passionate about this type of work. As a visual person, it was important to me to have an image for each dish I like to know what to expect once the dish is finished. My hope is that you will find the photos to be realistic, achievable, and mouthwatering.
In some cases I had to style the same dish several times to make it photogenic.
My kitchen prepping station served as the backdrop for the photos. I used the natural light from a large window and a silver reflector to help bounce the light. There were only a few hours during the day and a few at night where the light was really good and made photos pop.
I borrowed a few photos from friends like Red’s Best for the Boston blue fish and skate wings images because it was nearly impossible to find skate wings locally during the pandemic, plus I really like Red’s Best frozen seafood.
All of the food in the book photos was enjoyed by friends and family.
Who’s on your team?
Making this massive pescatarian manual would have been impossible were it not for a host of talented, internationally based artists and professionals. My creative and promotion squad are spread all over the word – Florida, Hawaii, Spain, Vietnam, and Ukraine. We accomplished this project in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Forced to be indoors for such a long stretch of time was beneficial in a lot of ways, but it also stifled creativity and limited access to ingredients.
Where can we buy the book?
The digital and print versions of the book are available on Amazon for $16.99 and $108 USD respectively. The reviews are great so far and I’m looking forward to every buyer leaving one.
Some of my favorite Amazon feedback so far
“An all encompassing seafood lovers cookbook!”
