My First Newspaper Interview!
Picture Courtesy: Deepa Pant
As I am writing this I am still on cloud seven from happiness. As my large fingers (true) are typing what I’ve been intending to share with you for a long time, but waited until it happened, my heart is beating fast and I don’t know where to begin.
When I had just started this blog in late January, I sat in front of my computer for hours pretending I was doing something important, but in reality sneaking a peek at my blog stats, counting the few comments I had received for the hundredth time hoping the number would increase every time I looked. Little did I know that all I needed was patience:) Thanks to blogging, today I have many loyal readers, I’ve made and hope to make many friends from around the world and I’ve just had my first interview published!
A month ago I received an email from Deepa Pant who asked me whether I would be willing to be featured on Arab Times Kuwait newspaper where Deepa was a freelance writer. Arab Times is the largest English language newspaper published in Kuwait. Deepa discovered my blog through the Internet, found it interesting and the idea to write an article about Azerbaijani food was born. An article about me, Azerbaijani cuisine, my recipes? - I thought. I’ve only been blogging for less than half a year, and honestly, I don’t have a whole lot of recipes on my blog yet. Needless to say, I was thrilled, ecstatic and was going around the house singing crazy songs and sure enough, bothering the rest of the family with my “soprano” voice 
Deepa and I emailed each other back and forth with questions and answers. I had to work out a nice Azerbaijani menu and we finally decided that summer dishes would be the most appropriate for this time of year. Our choices were: Pomegranate Salad (Nar Salati), Yogurt Soup with Fresh Herbs and Chickpeas (Dovgha. Coming soon), Stuffed Eggplants, Peppers and Tomatoes (Badimjan, Biber, Pomidor Dolmasi. Coming soon), and Tandoori Bread (Tendir Choreyi). It was so much fun to work on this project! Apart from being a talented writer, Deepa is an amazing person. We quickly became friends and promised each other to feast together whenever and wherever we meet:)
Deepa, thank you very much for the opportunity!
You can read the interview in PDF files below (in the second link, scroll down to the middle to read the rest of the article)
http://www.arabtimesonline.com/pdf08/july/6/page%2027.pdf
http://www.arabtimesonline.com/pdf08/july/6/page%2028.pdf
And these are the pictures published in the paper.
72 Comments Add your own
1. mimi | July 9th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
congrats on the article (and all those awards!) what a great story! i have to admit i don’t know much about azerbaijani food, but your menu and photos just look absolutely delish and i would love to try!
2. zarina | July 9th, 2008 at 6:22 pm
wow farida how great! congrats!
3. ungkue | July 9th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
oh nice, i don’t know much about azerbaijani food,
but already show the picture & menu
i would like to try taste the azerbani menu,
good luck
4. Mrs Ergül | July 9th, 2008 at 7:20 pm
Congratulations on your first interview! You look so pretty! And the food are çok güzel! Yummy yummy!
5. breadchick | July 9th, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Congrats on your first interview!
6. MAG | July 9th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
Congratulations Farida! You deserve the best! Keep up the good cooking and recipes
You’re pretty too 
7. Ben | July 9th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
Congratulations, that experience must be very rewarding, and the pics are just beautiful!
8. Swati | July 9th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
A big hug to you Farida for being yourself!! You are too cute!!
Congrats for featuring in the newspapaer..it is a big deal !!
The food is awesome and am so so proud of you !!
9. Aparna | July 9th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Congratulations Farida. I can imagine how good it feels to have your blog and work recognised. I think it is wonderful that the world is waking up to discover less known but great cuisines of the world.
I still remember discovering your blog and your beautiful Zebra cake. I have made it a few times and want t.o say thank you. I will post about it soon.
10. sunshinemom | July 9th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Congrats! One thing for sure - We now know Farida looks as good as her creations:)
11. Susan/Wild Yeast | July 9th, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Congratulations, Farida! The article, the photos, you.. all so lovely.
12. Rosa | July 10th, 2008 at 12:19 am
Congratulations! That’s ever so great! I love the pictures (nice portrait) and the food!
cheers,
Rosa
13. aisha | July 10th, 2008 at 12:20 am
Congratulations, that’s wonderful! You and the food both look amazing!
14. chriesi | July 10th, 2008 at 2:04 am
Congratulations! That is fantastic. Mmm and that bread is gorgeous!
15. Marija | July 10th, 2008 at 2:41 am
Wow, that’s great Farida! Congratulations!
16. Peter | July 10th, 2008 at 3:47 am
Congratulations Farida….your food, photography and writing are of a high standard and your efforts have been rightly rewarded.
17. grace | July 10th, 2008 at 5:46 am
many congrats to you! it’s a lovely article, and the food photography is stellar! of course, your delicious recipes don’t need much help being beautiful…
18. familiabencomo | July 10th, 2008 at 6:22 am
YAY! Congratulations! Is couldn’t have happened to a nicer, more talented person. I’m very happy for you & your success. I can’t wait for your book to come out. Can I pre-order now?
Big hugs & kisses,
Amy
19. sharon | July 10th, 2008 at 6:38 am
Congratulations! That’s some major press!
I want a huge hunk of that bread. Yum.
20. Deeba | July 10th, 2008 at 6:51 am
Congrats Farida…GOOD FOR YOU! That’s one great feature & I love the dishes you chose to showcase…DROOOOOOL!!! Your family must be awfully proud of you!!! YAY!!
21. Nicisme | July 10th, 2008 at 6:58 am
How exciting for you! Congratulations Farida!!
22. Marysol | July 10th, 2008 at 10:10 am
Oh Sweet Mother! I don’t know whether to click on the newspaper article or breath into a brown paper bag.
Farida’s finally hit the big time, and I guess my question is: what took them so long?
You know, you’re just as lovely as I imagined and now your work is finally being recognized. This calls for a celebration, but it’s too early in the day for alcohol, so I’ll make a toast with a tall glass of ice tea. Clink.
Congratulations my dear friend!
23. Erin | July 10th, 2008 at 10:49 am
Congratulations! That’s so cool! You must be very excited. I hope you’ve started a scrapbook. I’m sure there’s more good publicity to come.
24. farida | July 10th, 2008 at 11:41 am
MIMI: Thank you for your nice words. I’ll be thrilled if you try one of my recipes
ZARINA: Thank you!
UNGKUE: Welcome to my blog and thanks for the congrats!
MRS ERGUL: Thank you, dear. Oh, looking at my picture I just realized I need a haircut:)))))
BREADCHICK: Thank you very much!
MAG: Thank you, dear friend. I wish the same thing to happen to you! You have a very nice blog with great Lebanese recipes!
BEN: Thank you! It was indeed a great experience!
SWATI: Thank you for your very kind words!
APARNA: I too think there are so many cuisines in the world that yet need to be discovered. Something new is always good Thank you for your nice words!
SUNSHINEMOM: Ohh, I am flattered Thank you
SUSAN: Thank you, thank you!
ROSA: Thank you, dear!
AISHA: Thank you so much!
CHRIESI: Thanks a ton! Move close by and I’ll bake this bread for you
MARIJA: Thank you for your sweet words!
PETER: Thank you Peter. I very often draw my inspiration from your wonderful blog and recipes
GRACE: Thank you for your nice words!
FAMILIABENCOMO: You are so sweet My book is not published yet, I’m still working on it. No pre-ordering open yet
SHARON: Oh, I wish I could give you a piece, or, wait, the whole bread Thanks for your nice words!
DEEBA: Thank you, dear. Yes, they are happy and proud and still can’t believe I can cook
NICISME: Thank you so much!
MARYSOL: Querida amiga! Please do not overdrink You are so funny! Thank you for your nice words!
ERIN: It is cool! I wish all my fellow food bloggers to experience the same happiness soon too!
25. sunita | July 10th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
Farida, that is such great news…congratulations
26. Marie | July 10th, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Congratulations Farida! You look beauiful and so does your food!
27. bee | July 10th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
congrats, dear farida. i can’ stop drooling over that bread.
28. dondon | July 10th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
Congratulations!! Good luck with everything…
29. Kevin | July 10th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
Congratulations! I like those photos!
30. zenchef | July 10th, 2008 at 9:29 pm
Wow. A big congratulations to you! This is great!
You’re gonna get 100 times more readers now!
The pictures, the food, you… all look beautiful.
31. rachel | July 11th, 2008 at 4:00 am
Wo Farida..Great going.. Congrats on your interview..it is a wonderful feeling to get recognized right…I always relate your blog to the zebra cake and the lemon one…I am yet to achieve the stripes on my zebera cake..will post it when it’s perfect
32. Dee | July 11th, 2008 at 7:12 am
How exciting!
Congratulations on your interview, and I’m sure there’ll be more to come
PS
You’re as lovely as your creations.
33. Jeena | July 11th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Farida I am so proud and so very happy for you! You have done a fabulous job with your blog and I can truly see why someone would want to write about it. You are a great cook well done.
34. Cynthia | July 11th, 2008 at 9:49 am
This is great news! Hearty congratulations my friend! Your voice is unique and so is your food and that alone is cause for recognition and celebration!
35. Lynn | July 11th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Congrats on your interview! Your food looks amazingly delicious. Im gonna check your site more often now…
36. farida | July 11th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
SUNITA: Thank you so much!
MARIE: You are very sweet:) Thank you!
BEE: I wish I could bake that bread for you!
DONDON: Thank you for stopping be and for your nice words!
KEVIN: Thank you! You have an awesome blog, too. I am a fan:)
ZENCHEF: Thanks a lot! I’ll see if it it is true about 100 readers:)
RACHEL: Thank you! Oh, I am sure you’ll get better and better at zebrizing:) Let me know if you have any questions.
DEE: Thank you so much! I just fixed my hair nicely that day, hence is the look, hehe:))
JEENA: Thank you for your very kind words! I will be as proud of you as you are of me when one day I read an article about you in the news. That would be fantastic!
CYNTHIA: Thank you so much! I’ll be as happy for YOU when I see your book hitting bookstores!
LYNN: Welcome to my blog. Thank you so much for your nice words! Please do come back:)
37. JacqueOH | July 11th, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Wow, that is wonderful! Congratulations to you, your food and photos look fantastic.
38. Ferhad | July 12th, 2008 at 1:55 am
Hello Farida
congratulations! great photos of Azerbaijani foods and you also.
and I am so happy to hearing this good news from an Azeri blogger.
Az?rbaycan siz? f?xr edir
39. Elle | July 12th, 2008 at 8:35 am
Farida, How wonderful! Congratulations! What a beautiful photo of you, and also of your amazing food. Woohoo!!
40. Kitchen Goddess | July 12th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Farida how fabulous! Congratulations!!
41. norecipes | July 12th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
Congrats, that’s awesome!
42. vonsachsen | July 14th, 2008 at 6:28 am
Wow! That´s great news! Congratulations and I wish you many more newspaper articles in the future
43. Niamh | July 15th, 2008 at 6:07 am
Congratulations!
I can’t believe you have only been blogging since January!!
44. Clumbsy Cookie | July 15th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Congratulations Farida! You’re to cute and the photos are gorgeous!
45. Sam Sotiropoulos | July 15th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Farida, this is FANTASTIC news!!! bravo! Congratulations! You deserve it, your blog is excellent and I am pleased to have made your acquaintance through the blogosphere. Keep up the fantastic work!
Amiably,
Sam
46. Athisaya Divya | July 15th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Oh my Farida..Am so happy for you..I have been busy for a while and was not bloghopping as before..missed a lot of recipes from ur blog.really happy to read that u were featured in the newspaper..Hats off to u!!keep rocking always!!
Hugs!!
47. farida | July 15th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
JacqueOH: Welcome to my blog! Thanks for your nice words!
Ferhad: Chox sagh ol! Thank you!
Elle: Thank you, dear friend! I wish to see you in the newspaper sometime soon!
Kitchen Goddess: Thank you so much!
Norecipes: Thank you!
Vonsachsen: Thank you! I wish you the same!
Niamh: Thank you! Yes, I am a newbie:)
Clumbsy Cookie: You are too sweet:) Thanks a lot!
Sam: Thank you! It’s great to know you too. I learn a lot from your blog!
Athisaya Divya: Thank you so much for your kind words! I wish to see you in the newspapers too!
48. Hélène | July 15th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
Congratulations! I’m so happy for you.
49. farida | July 15th, 2008 at 10:19 pm
Helen, thank you! Welcome to my blog!
50. Seena | July 16th, 2008 at 12:25 am
Congrats, Farida!
Its a great achievement..
51. Leyli | July 16th, 2008 at 4:51 am
Well done, Farida!!! Congratulations!!!
Looking forward to the book
52. Mona | July 18th, 2008 at 10:11 am
Woe, Congratulations Farida, You must so thrilled dear. Keep it up, way to go gal!
53. Astrid | July 18th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
My goodness what appetizing pictures. And you look lovely too. Congratulations!
54. Asli | July 20th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Farida,
Congratulations on your first newspaper interview!
55. Medena | July 23rd, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Congrats!!! I am soooooooo happy for you!
56. Maya | July 25th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
Congratulations Farida!!!!! That is fantastic and a lovely picture of you!!!!!
57. leonine | August 18th, 2008 at 11:40 am
cool! congratulations!!
58. pixen | August 19th, 2008 at 11:34 am
Love your blog and recipes! Thank you for introducing Azerbaijani cuisine…
Please keep me posted when your new blog is ready!
Best Wshes
pixen
59. MAHSATI | September 17th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
WOW FARIDA..TEBRIK EDIREM….ESIL AZERI QIZISAN, MASHALLAH!!!
60. yasmeen | October 29th, 2008 at 5:51 am
Gorgeous gorgeous ! Congrats,Farida.
61. adeeba | November 4th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
congrats farida! i’ve been following your blog..love your dishes!
62. F?rid?nin Yem?k Kitab? &r&hellip | April 27th, 2009 at 11:14 am
[...] ?n iri h?cmli v? ?n çox oxunan ingilis dilli q?zetidir. O vaxtlar q?zetin jurnalisti m?ni bloqumu t?sadüf?n tap?b m?nd?n m?tb?ximiz bar?d? intervyu götürm?k ist?di. Sevincimin h?ddi-hüdudu yox idi. Bu m?nim üçün böyük ??r?f idi, çünki Az?rbaycan?n [...]
63. Ramil | November 26th, 2009 at 4:14 am
You deserved this attention, Farida! You are just great!
64. Afaq | December 7th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Ferish, tebrik edirem, cox boyuk ugurdur!
Allah goysa Bakida ne vaxtsa gorusherik, senin badimcan dolmani yeyerik :))
Afaq , norvecden
65. Konul Gulverdiyeva | December 9th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
Farida sizi tanidigima cox sevindim.Duzu inidye geder bele dediglikle ve sadelikle yazilan bir azerbaycan kulinariya kitabi gormemisdim.Sizi algislayiram.
Konul,London
66. Arlette | January 29th, 2010 at 9:37 pm
Wow Farida what a wonderful news to share.. My goodness I can feel your joy and proud ,
Sorry my friend been away for some time, I was busy with catering. this is my first week for blogging and friends. Missed you and your food and your news….
You have a beautiful face , and sweet smile…
my friend I am so proud of you… really am.
67. Ilkin | August 24th, 2010 at 1:35 am
Salam Farida,
I hope you saved those PDF’s somewhere locally. They have been removed from http://www.arabtimesonline.com.
68. KenuLka | September 3rd, 2010 at 3:33 am
T?brik edir?m, Farida!!! A??ll?m?zsan
69. Sevinj | December 25th, 2010 at 4:46 am
Hi Farida,
Did you save the article? The newspaper’s website let’s to see articles for 2 years only, meaning for 2009 and 2010. Could you please post the article in the blog?
Thanks,
Sevinj
70. yvonne | July 30th, 2011 at 5:26 am
Tebrikler Feride xanim (gec de olsa qebul edin)/ Fexr eledim sizinle
<3 you!
71. abigail | November 6th, 2011 at 10:15 am
hiya, love the article, absoloutely amazing. the pictures are stunning and so are you.
72. leyla | June 22nd, 2012 at 10:21 pm
it is great news.believe me you deserve it’is the most useful &needful site for me.because of you i loved cooking.thankssssssssssss
Leave a Comment
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed