East of Eden Cooking

2014/09/212017/12/31

The Best Tomato Sandwich

It is almost time to leave.

“The sun crept down toward its setting place behind the Salinas River, and a bird began to sing wonderfully from the golden stubble of the field. It was as beautiful under the branches of the willow tree as anything in the world can be.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

I want to record a memory. Make a commitment not to forget. Let the time and place etch the grooves of the LP. It is a melancholy song I can’t chase away. The tune replays. It settles in, lingers, and yet I know there will be new words and music. Selfishly I write for myself. READ MORE . . .

2014/08/042017/12/31

Yeasted Waffles with Whole Wheat and Maple Roasted Figs

The allure of a famous recipe

“Gradually a perfectly natural thing happened.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Weekend mornings are made for Marion Cunningham’s yeasted waffles. With an easy prep the night before the batter can be finished while the waffle iron heats in the morning. I have made the recipe so many times that I now take short cuts, deviating from her famous recipe. Adding an extra half cup of flour to the original recipe makes a thicker waffle that still has the famous crispy exterior yet has a soft, pillowy inside. Simply voluptuous breakfast material. For the original crispy thin waffle, make a thiner batter with a total of two cups of flour. The nutty taste of browned butter stands tall in flavor with whole wheat flour and makes an appearance in these waffles. Dissolving the yeast in warm water and warming the milk are just extra steps in the original recipe. Mix cold milk together with the yeast and proceed with the recipe. It yields a batter with the same volume and texture as the original recipe. Make the recipe in a very large bowl as the batter at least doubles in volume. When the eggs and baking soda are stirred into the bowl the next morning a silky smooth batter is waiting for the hot waffle iron. READ MORE . . .

2014/07/212016/03/19

Brioche Plum Tart

Crusts and Perfection

“Adam asked, How is your mother holding up? Will leaned back in his chair and an affectionate smile came on his face. She’s a remarkable woman, he said. She’s like a rock.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

My mom is now in a local rest home. The journey from her home, the hospital and now the nursing home has devoured my time and energy. A failing heart valve leaves her often breathless and afraid. She is still mentally capable of making all her own decisions. Only last year, did she consider a heart valve replacement. In her weakened state it was too late. We ask so much of our parents. When we were children our expectations were defined by love, food, haven from a stormy world and if we were lucky a visit from Santa Claus. As adults we demand even more than when we were children. We expect perfection when we know we live in an imperfect world and our parents likely did the best they could with what they had. We hold our parents to a higher standard than we have for ourselves and refuse to consider the dreams and demons that propelled them through their lives. READ MORE . . .

2014/07/072014/07/10

Rose Marigold Flowerfetti Cake

Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open House 2014

“Think about it, Charles. You like it here? Yes. And you want to live here all your life?”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

A greenhouse filled with vibrant gerberas made a spectacular setting for the 2014 Field to Vase Dinner at Kitayama Brothers Farms. With a table overflowing with flowers arranged by Christina Stembel, founder of Farmgirl Flowers and a fabulous dinner by Original Sin Desserts and Catering the 5th annual Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open House began. Flowers and food were locally sourced reminding us that supporting our farmers and growers means a fresher product that also supports the local economy. As Chef Tanya DeCell described each dish we were filled with gratitude knowing that the Monterey Bay of central California shines as a producer of fresh produce and flowers. We spent Saturday touring the Greenhouses and came home with a dwarf Meyer lemon tree, two blueberry bushes, fresh produce, edible flowers and freshly cut roses. Filled with food and flowers this was my kind of weekend.

Essentials

Why use sprinkles to make a summer cake when edible flowers are so beautiful? When Cooking with Flowers was published I planned to make the beautiful Flowerfetti Cake on the dust jacket. With flower petals in the batter, frosting and as decoration the cake was a perfect fit for the Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open House. The recipe makes a huge three layer cake using nine eggs and a cup and a half of butter. It also includes a massive amount of yogurt yielding a cake similar in texture and heft to a classic pound cake. The only change I made to the recipe was to use marigold sugar in place of the granulated sugar. Marigold sugar is simply granulated sugar whizzed in the food processor together with marigold petals. The sugar turns a sunny saffron orange that faintly smells and tastes of marigolds. To make the mini cakes I baked the batter in a half sheet pan lined with lightly buttered parchment paper for twenty minutes. There was enough batter left over to make four large cupcakes. I did encounter an issue with the frosting recipe. The cake recipe called for “8 cups (1 batch)” of Flower Frosting whereas the recipe referenced in the book only makes 3 cups. With only one block of cream cheese, I improvised and used an equal amount of butter and more powdered sugar, adding half and half until I reached the desired spreading consistency. READ MORE . . .

2014/06/242017/12/31

Olallieberries and Sunflowers

The Whisper of Summer

“You aren’t planning to start preserving? Well, why shouldn’t we?

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Imprints of berry stained fingerprints slide across the first three weeks in June. Ripe Olallies are a vivid purple flourish marking the change in the season. I’ve been picking Olallie’s at Gidzich Ranch since I was a child and no matter how much or little rainfall or sunshine, the berries always ripen right after Memorial Day. I’m convinced it’s all about the Earth’s rotation bringing longer light filled days. I can see the change in the daylight but I wish I could feel it. Like a photograph that soaks up the light and leaves us an image that can never be replicated I want to capture the first whisper of summer. READ MORE . . .