First Step

Dear Friends,

For several years, I have wanted to write a cookbook using my mother's recipes and the recipes I have taught in my cooking classes. However, my hectic life leading tours in Vietnam and shuttling back and forth between Vietnam and Canada has made working on a book impossible  So now I have decided to settle down in Canada for a while so that my dream of a cookbook can finally happen. As my first step, I want to create a "playground" on the internet where you can join me and comment on the recipes so I can make them better. Thank you all in advance! 

Special thanks to my dear friend, Amelia Hard, a great American chef from Portland, Oregon, U.S.A., who has been working with me since my first cooking class in America and will continue to work with me until the book is finished. My wonderful friend Mary Pierce in Portland introduced me to Amelia, who gave me great help with my "Beyond Pho" cooking class at the In Good Taste Cooking school.  Amelia and I are eager to bring together our knowledge and energy to create a cookbook that will introduce English-speaking cooks to delicious, healthy Northern Vietnamese Cuisine. I will use the profits from the book to continue to build traditional houses and schools in a remote region of Vietnam, a project which my sisters and I, with the help of my American "sisters" Sarah and Faith Fisher, started a couple of years ago. 

I look forward to your comments and help as I move forward on this new adventure!

Best wishes,

Diep