Bill Gates on Nathan Myhrvold and Modernist Cuisine

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Can Science Improve Cooking? from bgC3 on Vimeo.

News of the “Former Microsoft CTO Publishes Giant Cookbook” has been heralded around the world since the launch of MC. But there’s no denying that, despite having a PhD and working with Stephen Hawking after turning just 23, Nathan Myhrvold got his start when Bill Gates hired him as Microsoft’s first chief technology officer. Watch Gates as he explains Modernist Cuisine and gives a little insight into his former colleague and lifelong friend.

For more from Gates’s perspective, check out the article and slide show on the gatesnotes.

Chris Young to Speak at Chicago Ideas Week

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MC coauthor Chris Young will speak at Chicago Ideas Week about a topic we have a lot of ideas about: food. Even more fittingly, he will be presenting the Modernist Cuisine perspective at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art. Chris will discuss how food “shapes our cities, our culture, and our bodies.” The line-up of speakers includes:

  • Colin Archipley: Co-Owner & CEO, Archi’s Acres
  • Karen Archipley: Co-Owner & Marketing Director, Archi’s Acres
  • Faith D’Aluisio: Former Award-Winning Television News Producer
  • Peter Menzel: Photojournalist, What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets
  • Kevin Pang: Reporter, Chicago Tribune
  • Ryan Poli: Executive Chef/Partner, Tavernita
  • Chris Young: Chef-Scientist & Coauthor, Modernist Cuisine

The event is Saturday, October 15, 2011, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Click here for tickets and more information.

For information about other MC events and appearances by the authors, head over to our events page.

And the Nominees Are…

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We are pleased to announce that Modernist Cuisine author Nathan Myhrvold has been nominated for an innovation award at this year’s StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress in the category for contribution to American cuisine.

While it’s always an honor just to be nominated, we are especially proud considering the steep competition. The full list of nominees includes:

John Besh
Daniel Boulud
Nathan Myhrvold
Marcus Samuelsson
Alice Waters

Wish us luck! And if you are going to this year’s Congress, be sure to check out MC coauthor Chris Young’s presentation on Monday, October 3, at 4:30 p.m.

Why a Book Was Needed

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In this video, Nathan passionately explains the need he perceived and is trying to fill with Modernist Cuisine. You may have heard his story before: having realized that no book included all of the science, techniques, and information out there on Modernist cooking, he strove to create the ultimate guide, including the best high-tech techniques from world-renowned chefs. But it’s different hearing Nathan tell it; his enthusiasm is catching. We bet you’ll be running to your set of books in no time.

If you would prefer to watch this video on YouTube, you can view it here.

Maxime Will Teach Modernist Cooking at Sur La Table

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Maxime tossing pad thai

Maxime Bilet, coauthor of Modernist Cuisine, will team up with the elite national cooking store Sur La Table for a one-day class. Max will present cooking demonstrations of the following dishes from MC:

  • Extracted Berry Juice Soda
  • Pressure-Cooked Carrot Soup with Coconut Cream
  • Brined and Slow-Poached Wild Salmon
  • Seared Sous Vide Steak with Creamed Spinach
  • Lemon Curd with Sliced Citrus

The class will be held on Wednesday, September 28, 2011, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Sur La Table in Kirkland, Washington. Tickets are $95 and can be purchased through Sur La Table. For tickets and more information, click here.

Poll: Help us choose prints for the third printing!

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We are going back to print! That’s exciting in and of itself, but it also means we get to choose four new 8″ x 10″ prints to accompany the volumes in boxed copies of Modernist Cuisine.

Help us select by choosing your four favorite photos from among those below. Polls will close Thursday, September 15, 2011. After all, we have deadlines to meet!

[poll id=”3″]

Toasting the Stars

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Nathan Myhrvold, author of Modernist Cuisine, recently shared some neat tricks for adding barrel-aged flavor to cocktails on starchefs.com. Nathan says:

“When you age a liquid in a wood barrel, whether it’s wine or it’s whisky, you wind up leeching some flavor compounds out of the wood, and those wood flavor compounds can be amazing. Until recently, those things have been the purview of the winemaker or the whisky maker, but there’s no reason you can’t do those extractions as a mixologist or cocktail chef or whatever you want to call it.”

Just last week, Star Chefs announced that Modernist Cuisine coauthor Chris Young will make another appearance at the Star Chefs Congress (October 2-4, 2011, at the Park Avenue Armory in New York City) this year. Chris will make his main-stage presentation on the afternoon of October 3. His talk will cover several techniques from Modernist Cuisine.

How Many Stars Would You Give Us?

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{a href=”http://www.saltyseattle.com” title=”Salty Seattle’s Our striped mushroom omelet.” target=”_blank”}Our striped mushroom omelet. Photo courtesy of Salty Seattle.{/a}

Restaurants, and therefore chefs, are usually rated in stars. MC is actually no different. If you have had the chance to plunge into all six volumes, please come tell us on Amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com, and give us your rating.