Latest news with #GretaPodleski
CTV News
31-07-2025
- Lifestyle
- CTV News
How to make every salad ever
Ottawa Watch We whip up some delicious, colourful, and healthy salads with best selling cookbook Author Greta Podleski.
Vancouver Sun
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Vancouver Sun
Cook This: 3 recipes from Every Salad Ever, including grilled chicken souvlaki with a double-duty marinade
Our cookbook of the week is Every Salad Ever by award-winning author Greta Podleski of Looneyspoons fame. Jump to the recipes: Grilled Chicken Souvlaki Salad , Berry Delicious Summer Salad and Italian Chopped Salad . Salads have come a long way since Greta Podleski borrowed her mom's Ford Granada on high school lunch breaks and hit the Wendy's all-you-can-eat salad bar with friends in St. Thomas, Ont. As much as she appreciated the chopped romaine, unlimited toppings and bottled dressings, those 1980s salad days are in the rearview mirror. 'Welcome to the new era of salads — you're going to love it here,' the Sarnia, Ont.-based author writes in her sixth self-published cookbook and second solo effort, Every Salad Ever (One Spoon Media Inc., 2025). Discover the best of B.C.'s recipes, restaurants and wine. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of West Coast Table will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Signalling a significant shift in what salads can be, grains, greens, pasta, beans, classics, 'in-betweens' and embellishments, including toppers and protein marinades, fill the pages. There's no shortage of homemade dressings, but you won't find Greta's teenage salad bar staple. 'You have apple cider vinaigrette. You have white balsamic. You have dark balsamic. You have sesame-ginger. You have peanut. You have Italian. You have ranch. I have no Catalina, though,' says Greta, laughing. 'I haven't figured out how to duplicate Catalina, but I'm not sure I'd want to. However, I would still probably like the Wendy's salad bar with Catalina. I bet I would still love it. It would bring me back to my high school days. It's just that I'm trying to level up my salads a little bit in 2025.' Greta is a longtime salad lover who believes most people are the same. They just want more ideas and inspiration. 'How many times have you been told by a friend, 'Oh, just bring a salad.' And then everybody goes into Panicsville, 'What do you mean, just bring a salad?! What kind of salad? Leafy salad, pasta salad, green salad, bean salad. What am I supposed to bring?'' With more than 100 recipes, Greta set out to prove that 'for every season and every reason, there's a salad for you.' In contrast to the simple and basic salads of her youth, today, the options are limitless. In Every Salad Ever, she put her imagination to work, 'keeping the ingredients accessible and the recipes doable, and that's the key. I would never want to write a cookbook that people open and say, 'Oh, I wish someone would make that for me.' I don't want that aspirational type of cookbook that sits on the coffee table that people love looking at, but they're never cooking from.' Greta attributes her cookbooks' success to their attainability. In Every Salad Ever, each recipe has a full-page photo and 'Sound Bite,' a QR code linking to one- to two-minute audio clips of Greta sharing additional details, 'like mini podcasts.' When readers contact her with questions about recipes, she's the one who answers them. After three decades of writing cookbooks, readers feel like they know her. 'I always say I'm the furthest thing from a food snob. I like everything, and I think people pick that up when they deal with me, when they meet me, when they read my books.' Starting with Looneyspoons , the 1996 cookbook Greta wrote with her sister, Janet Podleski, all her books have been No. 1 national bestsellers — an accomplishment she doesn't take for granted. Initially, the sisters self-published out of necessity, bolstered by the dream that Looneyspoons would be a hit. 'We felt like we didn't have anything to lose back then. We dropped everything, and we were so broke. At one point, I think I had $1.12 in my bank account. And that's not a joke.' With each title, the sisters built connections with booksellers and a reputation for putting out bestsellers. When Greta went solo with Yum and Yummer in 2017, she had no doubt she would self-publish it — she just didn't know how she would pull it off without staff. 'But you know, you do what you have to do, and sometimes you have to be Superwoman when you're running your own business.' Three decades after her first experience with self-publishing, Greta is 'thrilled' that people still love cookbooks. 'I was a little bit worried with book No. 6. There's so much free online and Instagram and everything, so many influencers, and are people going to want a hardcover book in 2025? And I think the answer is a resounding yes for me.' Playing the dual role of author and publisher, Greta signed an exclusive deal with Indigo for Every Salad Ever. She set her first print run aside for the retailer, anticipating it would last well into the fall, maybe even until Christmas. In just seven weeks, her warehouse was empty. Though she can't disclose quantities, Greta says they're 'huge by any standard.' When we spoke, she was on her way to oversee an 'emergency' print run at Transcontinental Printing in Beauceville, Que. 'It's important to me to produce an excellent book, and so somehow I feel it's going to be better if I'm there supervising and eating poutine.' In June, Indigo agreed to support the sale of the book at independent booksellers and extended its exclusive to Dec. 31. 'Indigo refers to my sales as 'wild.' That's the word they keep using. And I'm like, 'I'm okay with wild.' But I was nervous about the partnership because I'd never done it. Now it's truly one of the best decisions I've ever made,' says Greta. 'I'm a Canadian publisher. I print in Canada, and I'm selling through a Canadian retailer. So, it truly was a made-in-Canada story that people really embraced because they have been so supportive of the book.' With Double-Duty, Doubly Delicious Marinade Makes: 6 servings Marinade/dressing: 1/2 cup plain 0 per cent Greek yogurt 1/4 cup olive oil 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp liquid honey 1 tbsp minced fresh dill 2 tsp Dijon mustard 2 tsp minced garlic 2 tsp dried oregano 1 tsp dried basil 1 tsp grated lemon zest 1/2 tsp sweet paprika 1/2 tsp each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 lbs/907 g) Salad: 2 medium heads romaine lettuce, chopped 2 cups diced English cucumbers 2 cups halved or quartered cherry tomatoes 1 large red onion, thinly sliced 1 cup cubed light or regular feta cheese (4 oz/113 g) 3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives In a small bowl, whisk together all marinade ingredients until well blended. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. Cut chicken into 1 1/2-inch chunks and place in a large, resealable freezer bag. Add half the marinade. Seal bag and turn several times to coat chicken with marinade. Refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight for the best flavour. Refrigerate remaining marinade to use as the salad dressing. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Prep all salad ingredients and place them in a large serving bowl so they're ready to go. Thread chicken onto skewers (discard the used marinade). Gah! I hate this part. Kinda messy. Lightly oil grill racks. Place skewers onto racks and grill for 10 to 12 minutes, turning occasionally to ensure even cooking. Remove from grill, slide cooked chicken off skewers and add them to the salad. Pour reserved dressing over salad and mix well using tongs. Serve immediately. Switch it up: Trade the romaine lettuce for any type of salad greens you love. Jazz it up: Thickly slice the red onion and grill the rings with the chicken skewers. Delish! With Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette Makes: 6 side-dish servings Salad: 1 pkg (5 oz/142 g) mixed greens (see note) 1 1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries 1 cup fresh blueberries 1/2 cup walnut pieces 1/2 cup crumbled light or regular feta cheese (2 oz/57g) 1/3 cup very thinly sliced red onions Dressing: 1/4 cup olive oil 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 tbsp liquid honey 1 tbsp Dijon mustard 1/8 tsp each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together all dressing ingredients until well blended. Pour dressing over salad, using as much or as little dressing as you like. It's up to you! Toss salad with tongs until all ingredients are well coated with dressing. Serve immediately. (Greens go soggy quickly, so it's best to dress this salad right before serving.) Note: This basically amounts to a few giant handfuls of greens. It's hard to measure greens in cups, so just fill up a really big salad bowl with your favourite leafy greens. Swap it: For a vegan salad, replace the feta with diced avocados and the honey with pure maple syrup. Top it: Tastes great with maple-roasted pecans! With a Bright and Bold Red Wine Vinaigrette Makes: about 12 cups salad Dressing: 1/3 cup olive oil 1/4 cup red wine vinegar 2 tbsp light mayonnaise 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 tbsp pure maple syrup or liquid honey 1 tbsp minced shallots 2 tsp Dijon mustard 1 tsp minced garlic 1 tsp dried oregano 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper Salad: 6 cups chopped iceberg or romaine lettuce 4 oz (113 g) diced salami 4 oz (113 g) diced Provolone or aged white cheddar cheese 1 1/2 cups quartered grape or cherry tomatoes 1 1/2 cups diced English cucumbers 1 cup diced yellow bell peppers 1 cup no-salt-added canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives 1/2 cup chopped radicchio 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onions 1/3 cup freshly grated or shaved Parmesan cheese Whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl or shake them up in a mason jar. If you own a single-serve blender, whirl the ingredients to make the dressing extra silky. Refrigerate dressing until ready to use. Combine all salad ingredients except Parmesan in a very large serving bowl. Add dressing and mix well. Add the Parmesan just before serving, either mixed into the salad or sprinkled over individual servings. Swap it: I personally LOVE aged white cheddar in this recipe, but mini bocconcini would also work well. Top it: If you're a fan of nippy pepperoncini peppers, chop two or three and sprinkle them over the salad before serving. Recipes and images reprinted with permission from Every Salad Ever by Greta Podleski. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our cookbook and recipe newsletter, Cook This, here .
National Post
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- National Post
Cook This: 3 recipes from Every Salad Ever, including grilled chicken souvlaki with a double-duty marinade
Article content After three decades of writing cookbooks, readers feel like they know her. 'I always say I'm the furthest thing from a food snob. I like everything, and I think people pick that up when they deal with me, when they meet me, when they read my books.' Article content Starting with Looneyspoons, the 1996 cookbook Greta wrote with her sister, Janet Podleski, all her books have been No. 1 national bestsellers — an accomplishment she doesn't take for granted. Article content Initially, the sisters self-published out of necessity, bolstered by the dream that Looneyspoons would be a hit. 'We felt like we didn't have anything to lose back then. We dropped everything, and we were so broke. At one point, I think I had $1.12 in my bank account. And that's not a joke.' Article content With each title, the sisters built connections with booksellers and a reputation for putting out bestsellers. When Greta went solo with Yum and Yummer in 2017, she had no doubt she would self-publish it — she just didn't know how she would pull it off without staff. 'But you know, you do what you have to do, and sometimes you have to be Superwoman when you're running your own business.' Article content Three decades after her first experience with self-publishing, Greta is 'thrilled' that people still love cookbooks. 'I was a little bit worried with book No. 6. There's so much free online and Instagram and everything, so many influencers, and are people going to want a hardcover book in 2025? And I think the answer is a resounding yes for me.' Article content Playing the dual role of author and publisher, Greta signed an exclusive deal with Indigo for Every Salad Ever. She set her first print run aside for the retailer, anticipating it would last well into the fall, maybe even until Christmas. In just seven weeks, her warehouse was empty. Article content Though she can't disclose quantities, Greta says they're 'huge by any standard.' When we spoke, she was on her way to oversee an 'emergency' print run at Transcontinental Printing in Beauceville, Que. 'It's important to me to produce an excellent book, and so somehow I feel it's going to be better if I'm there supervising and eating poutine.' Article content Article content In June, Indigo agreed to support the sale of the book at independent booksellers and extended its exclusive to Dec. 31. 'Indigo refers to my sales as 'wild.' That's the word they keep using. And I'm like, 'I'm okay with wild.' But I was nervous about the partnership because I'd never done it. Now it's truly one of the best decisions I've ever made,' says Greta. Article content Article content With Double-Duty, Doubly Delicious Marinade Article content Makes: 6 servings Article content Marinade/dressing: 1/2 cup plain 0 per cent Greek yogurt 1/4 cup olive oil 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp liquid honey 1 tbsp minced fresh dill 2 tsp Dijon mustard 2 tsp minced garlic 2 tsp dried oregano 1 tsp dried basil 1 tsp grated lemon zest 1/2 tsp sweet paprika 1/2 tsp each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
CTV News
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Canadian cookbook author says ‘sham book' passing as her own was being sold on Amazon
A Canadian cookbook author says someone on Amazon is trying to pass off her latest recipe book as their own using the same title and advertising it with her name on it. Greta Podleski has been a cookbook author for nearly 30 years, publishing her first cookbook Looneyspoons in 1996 with her sister Janet—a national bestselling book. Since then Podelski has published three other cookbooks with her sister, selling more than two million copies combined, and has started publishing books on her own. The Ontarian's latest book Every Salad Ever hit Indigo's shelves in April in an exclusive deal Podleski says she made a point of penning, as she wanted to keep this project completely Canadian. Podleski even published it through her own company, One Spoon Media. She says Every Salad Ever has been flying off store shelves since then and has been getting good reviews on Indigo's website. That is why Podleski says she was taken aback when she received an email from a reader who shared their skepticism about buying the recipe book after coming across a purported paperback version of it on the massive online marketplace. 'I had an American email me and say, 'I got wind of this cookbook, Every Salad Ever, so I put it into the search at and up popped up this book',' the author shared. Misleading cookbook A screenshot of the 'sham book' Greta Podleski saw was previously on sale on Amazon's marketplace. The author says this book tried to pass off as her latest cookbook 'Every Salad Ever,' which is exclusively sold through Indigo. The title of Podleski's sixth book is plastered across it with some images of leafy greens, radishes, and an avocado on the cover. The words 'Cookbook Inspired' are written in smaller print underneath the title, and the synopsis says it is 'inspired by the wholesome, flavor-forward style of Greta Podleski.' But even still, Podleski's name is advertised in the book despite having another author's name at the bottom. Every Salad Ever is not available for sale on Amazon, it should be noted. 'My stomach dropped. ... I couldn't believe that someone put my name on the cover of my exact book title with the clear intention of tricking people into believing it was something that I produced,' she told CTV News Toronto. At one point, Podleski says she saw the book crack the top 100 books on Amazon's marketplace, coming in at 60th overall. 'I mean, (it) doesn't sound amazing, until you realize that Amazon sells millions of titles and it's number 60. That means people were getting scammed and buying it, and that's when I just decided to let everybody know about it—to protect Canadians from being ripped off,' she said. Some Amazon customers, who bought the book believing it was Podleski's latest, left one-star reviews. 'The title of this book is misleading, leading you to think it is Greta Podleski's Every Salad Ever book. The title and cover page is intentionally deceptive. Very disappointed,' one review reads. Another said she bought this book after seeing Podleski on TV, talking about the salad recipe book. 'First of all, not a picture in the book, salads are mostly for 1 or 2 people and a lot of the salads are just variation of the same salad. Would send it back but shipping will cost me more than I paid for the book,' the review reads. Others flocked to the review warning other readers against buying the book, as it was not Podleski's original version. Review A screenshot of some of the reviews on the cookbook before it was taken down Amazon's marketplace. Amazon says it has 'content guidelines' and removes books that don't follow them In a written statement, Amazon said that it has 'content guidelines governing which books can be listed for sale, and we have proactive and reactive methods that help us detect content that violates our guidelines, whether AI-generated or not.' 'We invest significant time and resources to ensure our guidelines are followed, and remove books that do not adhere to those guidelines. We aim to provide the best possible shopping, reading, and publishing experience, and we are constantly evaluating developments that impact that experience, which includes the rapid evolution and expansion of generative AI tools,' a spokesperson wrote. 'We continue to enhance our protections against non-compliant content, and our process and guidelines will keep evolving as we see changes in publishing.' Author says she contacted Amazon to remove 'sham book' Podleski says she contacted the online marketplace about the book on Monday and has been told to expect a response within 48 hours. As of around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, the book appeared to be removed from Amazon's platforms in both Canada and the U.S. That said, another book by the same author—not Podleski—has popped up on Amazon's marketplace with a similar name: 'Every Salad Ever Cookbook With Images.' Podleski's name is nowhere attached to this book. The paperback book is on the market for $19.16, more than $24 cheaper than Podleski's book sold on Indigo at its original price. Outside of the reputational damage that this 'sham book,' as she calls it, has brought, the author is most concerned about having her supporters being duped by scammers. 'It just goes to show that people have to be careful now with what they're buying because there's just so much fraud out there and a lot of duplicate products, not even the real thing,' Podleski said. The pitfalls of online shopping David Soberman, a marketing professor at U of T's Rotman School of Management and the Canadian national chair in Strategic Marketing, tells CTV News Toronto that this listing is 'clearly an effort to deceive people.' He pointed to the addition of the other author's name as an indicator of it not being the original, despite the title of the books being similar. 'I guess what Amazon does is, when they're notified of these things, they take them down, but there's still—there can often be a time lag between when things get taken down and when they first went up. That's the problem,' Soberman said. The marketing professor adds these types of listings are becoming more common in online marketplaces—and with as massive a platform like Amazon, Soberman says a lack of policing may come into play. 'A lot of this falls (to the wayside…) it's sort of the rule with copyright rules. The government doesn't go around and confirm all copyright rules, it's the person who owns the copyright that has to police this because they, of course, have something to lose. They have skin in the came,' he said. And for those who are buying items online, taking the time to research what product they're purchasing can help and Soberman says online shoppers are less likely to be defrauded buying more common products online.
