I recently did a presentation at UC Davis. They had a great conference on Latino cooking and I was lucky enough to be a part of it. Napa's own Pica Pica restaurant provided the incredible lunch and my fellow speakers were Ken Albala and Leopoldo Lopez Gil.
When I grow up, I want to be Ken Albala. He's a great teacher, nice guy and he does a wonderful presentation without any help from Powerpoint or photos. He spent a lot of time explaining the migration of food, using Mexico and the Yucatan as examples. I can listen to him talk all day!
I did a presentation on the different ingredients we grow, import and market.
All the way from Caracas came Leopoldo Lopez Gil. He's a restrauneur and promoter of his native Venezuelan cuisine. His chldren have found incredible success with their Pica Pica restaurants (in Napa and San Francisco) and he shared his fascinating story.
Speaking of education (sort of), if you had to recommend the one great book on Mexican cooking to a cook who is not unfamiliar with good Mexican cooking but is looking to take it “to the next level”, what would it be? Rick Bayless and Diane Kennedy have been prolific- I don’t know where to start. So, your top Mexican cookbook, please?