Food Network Host and Chef Daisy Martinez |
Born in Brooklyn NY to Puerto Rican parents, Daisy Maria Martinez lived at her grandmother's house until she was five years old. Between her grandmother and mother, she learned that when filled with love, family and delicious Latin cuisine, the kitchen is the happiest room in the house.
After raising her family, Daisy attended cooking school - a dream that she had always wanted to pursue. She matriculated at the French Culinary Institute and after graduation worked as a prep-kitchen chef on the set of PBS' Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, as a private chef in New York City and as owner of a small catering business.
In 2005, Daisy launched a new career on PBS with Daisy Cooks! and a cookbook, Daisy Cooks! Latin Flavors that Will Rock Your World. A chance meeting with Rachael Ray lead to Viva Daisy!, which debuted on the Food Network in January 2009. She is also a regular columnist for Every Day with Rachael Ray and Selecciones magazines.
We interviewed Daisy at the Mohegan Sun Winefest.
When did you first develop your love of cooking?
I have been cooking since I was tall enough to reach the stove; my mom and grandmother used to help me!
When did you start cooking professionally?
I started cooking professionally at 40 years of age, after attending the French Culinary Institute in New York City.
What was the first dish in which you recall using an egg?
When I was a little girl, my family and I would visit my grandmother in Puerto Rico. When the children woke up in the morning, she would send us out into the henhouse in the backyard to collect eggs for our breakfast. She would then soft boil them, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil, and give them to us with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice (from the tree outside) and a piece of toasted bread…heaven!!
What is your favorite dish to cook using eggs?
One of my favorite ways to eat eggs is exactly the way my grandmother used to make them for me, soft boiled with a pinch of salt, a dash of black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. I must confess, however, that after learning to make French style omelets (seasoned simply with herbs), I have become a huge fan of this method! Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever met an egg I didn’t like!
Have you ever had an egg disaster, or something humorous happen with them in the kitchen?
I think the worst thing that has ever happened to an egg in my kitchen was when I bought my first microwave. My children attempted to surprise me with breakfast in bed one weekend and tried to make eggs in the microwave… oh boy, what a mess!!
How are eggs used in Puerto Rican cooking?
Eggs are used extensively in Puerto Rican cooking. Of course, we enjoy them for breakfast (oh, those memories of fresh eggs from my grandmother’s hen house!) in any number of styles, but we also use them as garnish in our beloved Salt Cod “Serenata” Salad. We use them in our Budin de Pan (bread puddings), in our Pastelon (a sweet plantain/picadillo lasagna that is bound with beaten eggs), in our Flans, in our delicious hot corn meal breakfast cereal… I could go on and on, but one of my favorite ways to eat it is a lightly adobo seasoned scrambled egg served with white rice. So simple, but so delicious!
Does your family have any traditions around eggs?
My children and I have always decorated eggs for Easter, which would then be used in an exhaustive hunt throughout my 100 year-old Victorian home. Those egg hunts were EPIC!!
How did you use our heirloom eggs at the Mohegan Sun Winefest?
I used the Heirloom eggs to make a very traditional Puerto Rican dessert called “Tierrita Dulce” which means “sweet earth/dirt”. Rumor has it that it is called this because Puerto Ricans love their island so much they think even the soil is good enough to eat. It is a mousse flavored with dark chocolate, rum, and coffee…what could be bad?
Did you notice a difference between our heirloom eggs and commodity eggs?
The difference between “over the counter” eggs and your heirloom eggs is night and day. Even before you taste them, you can see how tight the whites are, how “tall” the yolks sit, and how red the yolks are. Once you taste them, though, they seal the deal, because I am instantly transported to my grandmother’s table in Puerto Rico, with my delicious country breakfast. It doesn’t get better than that!!
Thank you, Daisy!
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Food Network Host and Chef Daisy Martinez
Community Servings Executive Chef Brad Stevens
Eataly chef Felipe Saint-Martin
Seaport Boston Executive Chef Richard Rayment
Flavor Concepts Executive Chef Evan Hennessey
Chef, Author and PBS Host Mary Ann Esposito
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