How ThIS Series Came To Be

Three is a powerful number. Just consider the Holy Trinity, the Three Fates, and Shakespeare’s Weird Sisters, those three witches in Macbeth. Working together on Preserved, our team of three wasn’t deterred by these dark and lofty associations; we decided our collaboration could be dynamic. Here’s the backstory.

Way back in 2015 Darra met Richard, then editorial director of Food Republic, whose parent company, Zero Point Zero, was launching a new magazine called CURED: The Art of Preservation. Darra was brought on as editor-in-chief to brainstorm with Richard, and they fermented some great ideas. But after a single, spectacular issue of CURED appeared, ZPZ pulled the plug, citing costs. Meanwhile, fermentation mushroomed, becoming an even bigger trend during the pandemic.

Richard and Darra stayed in touch, talking about reviving CURED, and decided to bring in Cortney. She and Darra had become friends in the Berkshires when Cortney moved east from San Francisco. Given the media climate these days, especially for print publications, the imagined magazine never happened. Instead, Jenny Wapner, the new publisher of Hardie Grant Books USA, suggested we turn our ideas into a series of small books. And so, here we are—a trio with expertise in media, recipe development, and food history. We hope you enjoy what we concoct.