Freelance Spain - Janet Mendel

JANET MENDEL
Journalist and Author

jmendel@activanet.es

Janet Mendel, an American journalist based in southern Spain, writes about food, travel, people and events for newspapers, magazines and travel guides worldwide. She also cooks.

The foremost expert on the cuisine of Spain, Janet Mendel is the author of several cookbooks. The newest, My Kitchen in Spain--225 Authentic Regional Recipes, published in 2002 by HarperCollins, received top reviews and was featured on cookbook pick-lists by Food & Wine magazine and the New York Times.

Janet Mendel has appeared on radio and television programs in the U.S., including a segment for Planet Food, filmed in her kitchen in Spain, which aired on the Food Network.

She served as moderator for seminars at the 2002 Worlds of Flavor Conference at the Culinary Institute of America in Greystone, California, and has been a panelist and speaker for other culinary events.

Janet Mendel lives in an olive grove overlooking the Mediterranean. She loves Spanish tapas. She cooks everything in extra virgin olive oil from Spain.

Janet Mendel - Showcase

Looking for Dulcinea
by Janet Mendel

Four-hundred years after Don Quixote went looking for his ladyship, Dulcinea, in the town of El Toboso in La Mancha, I followed in his footsteps. While I never found “Princess Sweetie-pie”, I found a land rich in history, culture and natural beauty. Add to that Spain’s best cheese-Queso Manchego, many superb wines, and good and simple dishes such as shepherds’ stews. Oh yes, and sweets.
[MORE] Photos by J.D.Dallet

Paella Where It Grows
by Janet Mendel

Just south of Valencia, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain, lies the Albufera, a freshwater lake separated from the sea by a spit of land. More than a thousand years ago, the Moors introduced the cultivation of rice in the marshy wetlands surrounding the lake, and rice is still grown here. This is the home of paella, Spain’s famous rice dish.
[More] Photos by John James Wood

Back to the Future: Organic Wines Begin to Take the Prizes
by Janet Mendel

More and more wine connoisseurs are looking beyond quality and value when selecting wines. They are beginning to want wines that are organically produced from ecological vineyards. In 20 years, Spain’s organic wineries have grown from zero to more than 100, with every wine producing region represented. These wines-quite a few of which are available in the United States-carry labels that identify them as wines made from organically-grown grapes.
[MORE] Photos by J.D.Dallet

More in the Freelance Spain Showcase

Comments, suggestions, questions, complaints? Drop us a line at jdd1@spainview.com