A rambling ode to spring and life in general...

So, it appears as though I may be inching steadily closer and closer to my goal of writing about food for a living. These past few weeks have been a beautiful whirlwind, and I am constantly reminded of how fortunate I am to live in such an amazing place. I thought that Asheville had it going on culinarily speaking before, but now I am truly blown away by the passion and thoughtfulness of the people around me that are making this place such a haven for foodies.

My morning began with an interview with the extraordinarily gifted Susi Gott Seguret, the force of nature that directs the Swannanoa School of Culinary Arts (SSCA) over on the grounds of Warren Wilson College. Susi spends much of her time in France (we spoke via web cam), but makes magic when she returns to Asheville. The SSCA is a yearly event that features all sorts of kitchen workshops headed by incredible (mostly local) talent. She spoke about the recent truffle festival in this area, and that led to a conversation about the culinary gold to be found in these parts. Though most of our markets don't exactly offer the selection of bizarre animal organs that can be procured in her neck of the woods, we do have access to an astounding array of humanely raised meats and heirloom veggies -- something to be proud of. Susi is bringing molecular gastronomy pioneer and mad chemist Herve This to Asheville to kick off this year's SSCA with some really intriguing demonstrations. Check it:

Already moving beyond the tremendous wave of inspiration he sparked with
Molecular Cuisine, his current innovations are with a new science called “Note by Note Cooking”, where each specific flavor in each dish represents a note which, coupled with other flavors, compose a musical piece and, together with a sequence of dishes, make up a symphony for the palate.

I can't tell you that I understand exactly what the heck that means, but it sounds fascinating. Susi says that all of the classes are very immersive and open to all skill levels. I highly recommend checking them out if you are in the Asheville area (or can manage to be this summer) -- and yes, registration is still open. http://www.schoolofculinaryarts.org/ Look for my interview with Susi in the next issue of Verve. http://www.vervemag.com/


I also spent the past few days kicking it around Green Hill Urban Farm interviewing a farmer, Mike Fortune, who has his hands very full with several acres of land where he farms bio-dynamically and organically right on the edge of urban(ish) West Asheville. Mike, at age 30, is part of a wave of young farmers in this area that are highly dedicated to the stewardship of the land that has fallen to them. We will be featuring Green Hill on the cover of the Mountain Xpress http://www.mountainx.com/ on July 17th, and it should be worth the read. Green Hill is just another one of those places in Asheville that feels like a bustling hive of creativity, and despite its serving a large number of CSAs, feels more like a thriving community center than a business. I'll likely post a podcast of the interviews from my session on the farm -- they will make an entertaining listen. Learn more about Green Hill here: http://greenhillurbanfarm.com/page.cfm?pg=113


Today I also had the fortune to visit with Sally Eason of Sunburst Trout Farms, the burbling trout streams of which are fed by waters that flow downstream from the pristine Pisgah wilderness. She was a pleasure to talk to, and the interview I had with her will form a great story for the upcoming food-centric issue of Verve. The farm itself is absolutely stunning -- the kind of place where butterflies are flitting around a backdrop of a million shades of green. Today there was even a double rainbow. It was almost stupidly beautiful. The trout that are netted in the streams on the property are gargantuan as far as trout go, and they are gorgeous in color due to a specially developed, patented all-natural hormone and animal byproduct-free feed that the fish are given. While many fisheries add all kinds of nasty things to the feed to give the flesh of their fish color, Sunburst gives their fish the same antioxidant found in blueberries to make them look like this:

This was tonight's dinner. Yes, indeed I said a blessing -- been blessing this food all day. Incidentally, everything on this plate is local, save the cooking oil and butter that I used. You better believe that there's some butter on this plate. What we have here is some gorgeous Sunburst trout (thank you, Sally!) with white wine and brown butter over local purple potatoes tossed with Green Hill dill and more butter. Over on the other side of the fish is some garlic-sauteed kale, also from Green Hill (thank you, Mike!). Yes, I eat like this by myself. There is absolutely no reason to reserve meals like this for special occasions, especially when there is so much good food around us. Plus, it only took 20 minutes tops to put together. Spring/summer food, especially fresh, just-from-the-ground food doesn't need much -- a little garlic, salt and pepper and -- yeah -- butter. Get yourself to the farmers' market! For dessert I'm eying that strawberry cobbler that I made from the abundance of berries in my garden. Thank goodness for simple pleasures.

Open letter to my neighborhood (written while waiting for the camera to charge)

Hi neighbor! Yes, you, the one with the lawnmower seemingly surgically attached to your hands. Well, I know that we haven't formally met yet, but I just wanted to tell you something. Your lawn? It's SPECTACULAR. I mean, really, really immaculate. It's so amazing that you can totally put the lawn equipment down now and give yourself a well-deserved break. Your grass could not get any more perfect, I swear to you. I know it's been raining an awful lot lately, and boy -- isn't it pesky how water makes things grow so quick? I know, but here's the thing. Every time that it stops raining and I want to go sit on the deck and listen to the birdsong that enticed me to move out here in the first place, there you are -- chopping madly at that brand new hundredth of a centimeter as though if you stop there will be a grass uprising. You know what? Your dedication is truly admirable, it really is, but I have to let you in on a little secret. Do you know how many times I've cut my grass this year? Once. Yep. And no one has gotten lost in the wilderness of my yard or been taken over by giant lawn bugs. I mean, most of you probably aren't that impressed by the state of affairs behind my house, but I don't mind. I've got other things to think about, but the problem is that it's kind of hard to hear my thoughts over your YardMaster5000. I have some ideas, if you're interested. What if you dug up that grass and planted other things...like food? Wouldn't that be a hoot? All you'd have do do is weed, pick and eat. Do you know what the best part of all that would be, besides the sheer enjoyment and the green factor? It's all done relatively quietly. Just saying.

No one ever said the NYT wasn't elitist at times...

I love the New York Times. I really do. I especially like Frank Bruni, the food writer for the NYT. However, this article kind of made my blood, well, not boil...but definitely heat up a bit.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/dining/25frank.html?scp=6&sq=dining%20challenge&st=cse

The premise: cook a meal for six for -- wait for it -- $50! I get that the chefs were trying to make some higher-end dishes and multiple courses which is in and of itself a challenge anyway. Come on, though, really? In today's economy the whole concept comes off sounding a bit ridiculous and short-sighted. Here's a quote from Bruni:

Less than $8.50 a person for a full dinner? I didn't see how this budget allowed for much strutting, not even from home cooks as gifted and resourceful as these two kitchen goddesses.

Sadie at http://www.jezebel.com/ had this to say about it:

Not only is $50 for six no challenge to a cook on a normal budget (see: any issue of Taste of Home), not only is such a "competition" an insult to those of us who adhere to such constraints, not only is the raillery of the contest precious and irritating, but, the menus are too intricate for the average working person to tackle. Not the point? Maybe not - but it's a further bit of alienation for those of us who cook as a daily
necessity.

Word. No, really, it's exactly this mentality that makes people nervous about getting in the kitchen. If it's so tough to feed a group of six for under $50 a meal -- and make it good -- why bother? For that matter, how do you think large families do it? Some of them are likely eating crap food (well, a lot, if the Duggars are a fair model), but many are subsisting on good food for much less. I know that the New York Times' target audience might not be the food stamp crowd, exactly, but how about a little awareness of the economic difficulties that a large group of people are staring down on a day-to-day basis? No matter what your target demographic, journalists should maybe start edging toward more responsible reporting to stay relevant in today's economic climate, no?

With that, check what I bought at the store for just a little bit over the budget of the chefs in the article. It's all organic, too. I'm gonna show you what to make with all of it, eventually:


All of this will make much more than a few meals. You'll notice a whole chicken back there, a New York strip and a pound of bacon from the meat case. Tons of veggies, fruits, a loaf of bread, a pound each of split peas, arborio rice and Great Northern beans. Yum. You know why the money went so far? The entire haul consists of whole foods. Whole foods are cheaper because with processed foods you're paying for the labor and processing, and with whole foods, the processing falls on you (I know, I said this wasn't rocket science). Time really is money.