Creative cooking and living in the fertile Salinas Valley, east of Eden, along California's central coast
“Well, right now you can buy fruit and all kinds of vegetables for two bits a lug.”
East of Eden, John Steinbeck
We often enjoy salads for dinner. I wanted to make a salad with the fruits and colors of summer as a main dish. The chicken could easily be omitted and the salad would still evoke summer on a plate.
“There was always some little delicacy, very special and good—foie gras or a tossed salad, pastry bought at Lang’s Bakery, just across Main Street.”
East of Eden, John Steinbeck
The Salinas Valley is just inland from Monterey Bay. The mouth of the Valley begins at the Pacific Ocean in Moss Landing. From this ocean portal, the fog pushes up the valley and settles into the cradle of Salinas located on the valley floor. A cooling moist blanket of fog envelopes our early summer. The traditional summer months of June and July are more foggy than sunny. Perfect for growing lettuce and strawberries. Our summer is late, beginning in August. September is our most consistent summer month. By the first week in November, it becomes cooler and we know fall has arrived.