From the Desk of Alicia Kennedy

Articles

For Consistency

5 days ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

The most interesting thing I’ve learned about being a writer is that I have to remember that I have a body. This week, for example—the actual matter of when I’m writing this is insignificant—I’ve been sitting down to my desk without a shower. I’m out of step with my usual process. While I’m writing a lecture on “the food essay,” I’m excited: drawing lines from 16th century France to Virginia Woolf to xoJane will do that to a person.
On May (2025) ūüóď

1 week ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

I have never advertised the fact that I‚Äôm available for editorial consultation, but folks have found this out on my website and it‚Äôs been really enjoyable to have some nitty-gritty, focused conversations with other writers on what they want their publications, careers, and books to look like. We talk about what they can do to better communicate their projects, grow their audiences the right way, and I get really transparent about my own experiences in a way that I can‚Äôt do publicly.
On Editorial Voice

1 week ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

I grew up wanting to be a magazine editor, coveting magazines—any of them I could get my hands on, whether Q or NME (British music magazines) at Borders Books, my mom’s Vogue, teen magazines from the supermarket, the Food & Wine and Travel + Leisure that arrived to our house and were seemingly read by no one else but me.
On Conversation

2 weeks ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

I don’t use the word “community” lightly, and I’ve repeated this often. It wasn’t a goal of mine with this newsletter to “build community”; in fact, my goals for this newsletter were nonexistent at the time of its launch and have only emerged over time, organically (pieces on this forthcoming).
‘We’ve Won a Certain Kind of Argument’

2 weeks ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

I’ve been a massive fan of Between Two Waters by chef and author Pam Brunton ever since it was brought to my attention for a blurb pre-publication. I chose it for the Desk Book Club because I knew it would strike a really great chord with this audience for its historical perspective and imaginative reach. We hosted Brunton for a Salon discussion of the book, and it follows as video, audio, and a text transcript, so you can choose your favorite style.
Plant-Based Is Not a Trend-Yet

2 weeks ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

I blogged about my travel to this conference and thought I’d share my full talk today.
How Do We Define a National Cuisine?

3 weeks ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

HOUSEKEEPING: You can enter to win an annual subscription to this newsletter (and many others) by participating in Now Serving’s fundraiser to restore cookbook collections lost to the L.A. fires. Indie bookstores are a passion of mine and my book collection is my pride and joy, so it was a no-brainer to participate. Check out all the possible prizes and enter at their site. It runs through the 22nd. On Sunday, May 18, we’ll have the Salon plus Book Club discussion with chef and author Pam Brunton.
On Food Media

3 weeks ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

An art magazine called Spike, to which I’m an avid subscriber, put out a “food” issue for spring 2025. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t groan when I got the email announcing this as the theme they’d be pursuing: For the most part, food is a subject that everyone thinks they’re an expert on, and because of this, they don’t dig too deep into the multi-faceted questions that emerge when one considers the reality of how what we eat gets from seed to plate.
The Monthly Menu: I ❤️ Barbajuans

4 weeks ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

There are foods I always forget about until they’re right in front of me on a menu, and one of those is barbajuans—a fried savory pastry filled with cheese and greens, often ricotta, spinach, and chard. I’d like to see them on more menus, because this just isn’t something I’m likely to make at home and they’re a lovely little vegetarian appetizer moment. Where did I eat them this time? Well, you’ll have to read on in order to find out…!
On Francis

1 month ago | aliciakennedy.news | Alicia Kennedy

The week that Pope Francis passed, I was talking to a lot of people about how to eat in a way that might staunch the bleeding of our shared planet. I use a little stigmata imagery for obvious reasons. Father Jorge Bergoglio, a Jesuit, chose the name Francis as his papal moniker, a first ever, though Saint Francis of Assisi died in 1226.