*Featured Farmer* - Jose Baer & "The Amazing Walnut Oil Salad Dressing"

A secret food weapon sits quietly in my semi-clean fridge. Behind the organic hot sauce and agave-sweetened ketchup hides a delicate bottle of unrefined walnut oil that turns every salad leaf it touches into pure gold. Guests come to dinner and fall madly in love. I share the secret, but most brush past and lavish praise on the cook. Bewilderedly accepting the glory, I breathe a heavy sigh and quietly acknowledge evidence that the applause doesn't always reach it's proper recipient. Ask a book editor or film producer. They'll tell you.

I'm guilty of writing with a bit of melodrama. I took acting classes in college, for frog's sake. The classic acting teacher. Hot pink tank tops, black spandex pants, big, big blonde hair, bigger ta-tas and a raspy, sultry, cigarette-induced voice, Ms. Sandra Dorsey carried me through my dry, technical university by providing a creative outlet for my unsettled soul. I adored her and her classes. She is responsible for opening my Pandora's box of drama.

But drama appropriate, this walnut oil is no joke.

Always looking to meet a new farmer and spend time in the great outdoors, John and I hit Highway 1 on a perfect California Wednesday, headed towards the man who makes me look like a culinary rock star.

Tall and thin, Jose Baer of Rancho La Vina shook our hands with a smile and graciously offered to show us around his gorgeous land. He seemed thoughtful and smart, plugged in. I liked him. The season was winding down; it was the final day of harvest. We strolled beneath the canopy of walnut trees, now bare of fruit, and listened to the multi-step process that brings beautiful premium walnuts to our homes. Jose pointed to a fallen walnut, but we didn't see it. Another point. Still nothing. Jose picked up a kelly green fruit. Nothing registered. Because... The shell that we recognize as an un-cracked walnut is actually the pit of this bright green stone fruit! Like the black sheep brother of an apricot or plum, walnuts are an inedible stone fruit that stain dark ink on your unassuming hand. But like most black sheep, it's protected core houses delicate, untouched beauty.

Jose explained that like Italian olive oil or French wine, the specific soil and climate of his land are largely responsible for the delicate flavor and creamy texture of his walnuts. I find the land's controlling force a most fascinating aspect to growing food. Even with near identical growing practices, no two walnut farms are the same. It's about reading your land and learning from the farmers before you. There is no sense sticking a square peg in a round hole. Flow with the land and reap the reward. The great farmers seem to know that they are merely talented and imperative shepherds of their land's success, not the ultimate master. Jose then suggested we take a ride to the top of his hill to absorb the view from his vineyard, which overlooks the walnut orchard.

Piled three wide in Jose's pick-up & headed up the windy dirt road past acres of walnut trees, John and I stumbled upon something we couldn't believe. When asked why the trunks of the walnut trees dramatically and suddenly changed textures. Jose explained that most quality and prolific walnut trees are native to dry arid middle eastern countries, like Afghanistan and Iran. But, those middle eastern trees won't last in the foreign California terrain, vulnerable to diseases for which they have no defenses. So growers, using a completely organic method, chop the top off a hearty, native tree, chop the roots off the prized, but delicate foreign tree and tape them up with who knows what. My mental image says duct tape. Result? They grow together. The technique is called grafting. Can you imagine? How... does that happen? But, it does. And it has for thousands of years. Jose has acres of grafted Afghanistan walnut trees to prove it. John snagged a picture for you.

On the way down from the amazing vineyard view, Jose and I got to talking about GMOs. In sketchy science layman's terms, GMOs are foods that have been tweaked in a lab - inserting, say, an insect repellent gene from a tomato plant into an avocado plant's DNA to improve the avocados susceptibility to a certain insect. My instincts have always led me quite strongly away from them. I am very much aware of the allergies that they may cause, read The Unhealthy Truth by Robyn O'Brien for a mother's tale of the sharp rise in our nation's allergies. And being affected by a soy allergy myself, it is not something that I take lightly. Could a gene of soy be housed within the DNA of another unsuspecting whole food, in turn making me allergic to it? It's a scary thought. I mostly buy from the organic label, which doesn't allow for genetically modified foods. But Jose, an organic walnut farmer and former physicist, explained that he supports genetic modification in farming and disagrees with it's exclusion from an organic label. He calmly and patiently explained that farmers have been using methods of selective breeding since the dawn of time; genetic modification is simply more accurate. I asked him, already knowing the answer following our time spent together, if he considered himself an environmentalist. I felt his immediate "Yes" to my core. I don't know the answer to such an enormous question, but I do know that I want thoughtful, talented and humble people leading the charge - on both sides. And, I am guessing the answer lies somewhere in the grey. It usually does.

John and I waved good-bye to Jose after getting his okay to wander and picture take. And later that afternoon, John and I arrived home, sun-kissed and relaxed, dreaming of the small farm in our future that we would like to call home.

As parting gifts, I have three things for you. First, I leave you with the website where you can buy your own can of Jose's walnut oil. I didn't even get to what makes this walnut oil so special, but there is a distinct difference in Jose's approach. I hope to convince him to let us film a walnut episode for Farm to Table on his farm one day, and if so, I'll tell you all about it.

La Nogalera Walnut Oil - http://lanogalerawalnutoil.com/

Secondly, a recipe for the walnut oil salad dressing, for which I selfishly receive all of Jose's kudos:

The Amazing Walnut Oil Salad Dressing

Ingredients:

1 tbsp diced shallot

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

4 drops stevia or 1 tsp raw honey

8 tbsp La Nogalera Unrefined Walnut Oil

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk well.

And finally, we part with a picture, just for kicks, of Ms. Dorsey and I, circa 2001:

Achieving Tree

Well, there we have it. Ever since my mom dressed me as a homemade strawberry, I have loved full regalia on Halloween. This year, as my husband put it, "Molly achieved tree." On my head sits an over-sized bird's nest. If this tree is built to scale, whatever gigantic bird laid those eggs must sway that tree like a rubber spatula. And check out the legs on that strawberry. I bet Tigger got a little spring in his step when he saw that outfit. (see picture)

Our southern California neighborhood came out in full force this year. Downstairs neighbor Travis dressed as a Banana. Floating high above the crowd, his banana stem acted as a beacon for all forgotten fruits. Nicole & Dino went as a very cute Bert an' Ernie. The Rivera family teamed up as the cast of Alice in Wonderland, and John rocked a Cop costume, complete with bullet-proof vest. I find nothing more enjoyable then hanging in my courtyard with my neighbors. It looks like Bert n' Ernie were having a good time, too.

I have been recipe testing like a crazy person lately. Since Halloween was pot luck and the nature of pot luck is the unknown, I cashed the opportunity to try out a few new recipes: Creamy Corn Chili, Mulled Apple Cider and Maple Syrup Carrot Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting. It was a good day. All three turned out. Lucky for my neighbors.

Given that all three recipes are for the cookbook, I am going to hold out on you, but I've got another post-halloween treat of a beverage that I discovered while dressed as a tree.

For starters, I'm not much of a drinker. Alcohol usually makes me feel like I ate a whole grocery store cake with extra icing, which offers a hangover surprisingly similar to a bottle of vodka. Plus, I experienced Lost in Woonsocket, a beautiful film about alcoholism that my husband directed. A haunting story that reminds me to serve something non-alcoholic at parties. It's for real. Just like a single cube of tofu breaks out my face like a 13 year old, I watched a single sip of alcohol turn a normal human being into a drunk.

Of course many, myself included, enjoy the occasional celebratory drink or two, thankfully unharmed. And while in New York for culinary school, I learned about the delights of sake. Light, fresh and not overly sweet, sake is a fermented rice alcoholic beverage that you sip rather than glug. It's tasty and warm. Special and delicious. Slow...

I mentioned recipe testing Mulled Cider, right? Dots connecting... You're right! I made sake spiked mulled ciders for myself and my neighbors to rave reviews. Just an inch of sake, fill it up with warm crock-pot cider and enjoy! Plus since you mix each glass to order, there is an entire pot of mulled cider for anyone who is opting out. Someday I will certainly pass along my mulled cider recipe, but for now, here's two links to other sites I trust for inspiration:

Eating Well Magazine - Fireside Mulled Cider

Cooking Light - Hot Mulled Cider

May your fall be filled with warmth and love. Thank you for being you and for reading my blog.

The Color of Crack

Last year, I went to our neighborhood Halloween party as a Martian. Neon green body pain and all. I am certain the body paint was the opposite of organic. My post-party shower lasted a solid hour before I crawled into bed with raw speckled green skin. This year, I'm a tree. The thought came to me late one night. In bed and about to drift, my eyes flew open and I said, "John (shake, shake, shake), John - I'm going to be a tree." He's not certain that a girl of 31 should be dressing up in the first place, but he liked the idea, too. I'll let you know how it goes.

I tend to dive into projects. I currently have yards of felt and safety pins that are slowly becoming a tree. It's not about perfectionism. It's about the love of a great project. I get consumed. I remember a college roommate saying that her Molly description involves coming home at 3am to find me, paintbrush in hand, furniture centrally stacked... painting my room green, just because. I don't mind that description. In fact, I might be proud of it. But years later, after a new doctor listened to me rattle off my health history, she replied, "Well, first off, I can see you are ADD." What? I thought my problem (if considered a problem) is over-focusing, not under...

I do feel that ADD exists. I have watched children who bounce off the walls in very erratic and seemingly abnormal ways. But, I have also noticed the link between that wall bouncing and the Coke they drank 10 minutes prior. My experience from simply feeding people is that diet can offer major, major changes for a number of behavior imbalances: ADD, depression, anxiety and more. If you have a bad diet, try changing it and watch. It's rather amazing. And the most empowering part is... it doesn't take a doctor's prescription to choose real food.

I also feel that creativity and what is labeled as ADD are very closely intertwined. The positive side of ADD is an ability to hyper-focus on things that are found intriguing. My humble opinion is that many children who are pumped daily with Ritalin would benefit from a good Art class and an intuitive teacher. Or maybe a 3AM paintbrush.

I also understand that for some kids, a diet evaluation and art classes alone may not fix their little bodies' imbalances that led to the the disassociated, sad and jittery feelings of a real case of ADD. And for those special situations, I wholeheartedly respect whatever hard decision has been made.

So, I don't know if I have mentioned it before, but I bake on Mondays for a client. This week, I was asked to bring a few Halloween themed treats. Smelling a cool project from a mile away, I spent 3 hours researching natural food coloring. Knowing that I was already going to be using tons of organic white sugar for my fluffy frosting, I didn't want to throw the fuel of artificial food coloring on my white sugar flame. Artificial food colorings are simply not good for us. They most definitely aggravate hyperactivity and ADD, plus digestion, asthma and more. Besides, I just don't feel good creating food with something so artificial.

Luckily, there are natural food colorings that work really well! The colors are more delicate, but they are made from things like tumeric, burnt sugar and plant chlorophyll... how cool is that!

I wanted to pass on a few sites that I found and used. If you guys have any luck with anything, let me know. I'm eagar to learn more about how plants can color our cupcake world.

Food Coloring:

Seelectea Food Coloring - I tried their Annatto Orange and Forest Green. Both worked great. I also got the droppers, which I found to be kinda useless.

India Tree Decorating Colors - I haven't tried these yet, but don't they look pretty!

Sprinkles, Jimmy's and other Decorations:

Keep in mind that conventional toppings have tons of artificial coloring in them as well.

India Tree Decorative Toppings - I ordered two different types of Orange Sprinkles from this company, and they were beautiful.

Natural Candy Store - This candy store is quite a find! All-Natural, plus they offer candy varieties for all sorts of diet needs. I tried their chocolate jimmys (called Chocolatey Sprinkletz), and they looked really cute on top of my annatto orange colored frosting. The site offers tons of more natural options for Halloween goodies, too. Maybe too late for this Saturday, but keep it up your Halloween sleeve for next year.

Now, let's be frank... everything listed above will still aggravate ADD tendencies due to loads of white sugar, but at least the added chemical crack is avoided. And for the times when I'll be baking a sweet regardless, I like knowing this is a step in the right direction. Plus, these colors can be used to color popsicles, homemade play-do, fun drinks and more. Happy Halloween!

Alkalizing Las Vegas

Two weekends ago, John and I went to Las Vegas for a screening of Rock Prophecies at the Mirage, and this past weekend, we camped at Catalina Island, attempting to cleanse Las Vegas from our frightened souls...

Have you ever spent much time in Vegas? I hadn't. Only 2 day trips in the past, in and out, for specific reasons. This time, we crossed the throngs of foggy people to the check-in desk on Thursday afternoon and didn't haul tail out of there till Sunday morning. A short drive out of Vegas lies many of nature's wonders, but while heading out for a walk Friday morning, I asked the concierge which direction I could walk to experience a bit of nature. His reply, after searching for it on the ceiling, was no. Just no. Here's me below... staring out the smokey window of our suite... plotting my exit strategy. Fruitlessly. Check out the slouched shoulders... hahah... poor girl.

We did see the Bellagio fountains on that walk, which are spectacular! Seriously, take your breathe away, live up the expectations - cool. Maybe not a reason to head to Vegas, but definitely a to-do while you're there. And another diamond was a Cirque de Soleil show called Beatles LOVE. A show that I would send you to Vegas to see. And you bet your tail it couldn't be less than earth-shatteringly amazing for me to subject you to being trapped like a rat in a smokey maize of slot machines desperately searching for the rubber cheese known as the lobby of your stinking hotel. (Maybe it was just my hotel, but I truly felt like a science experiment.) As for the show, it was absolutely 2 hours of pure joy. The music, the colors, the talent... wow. I loved LOVE. And I want to see it again. I haven't figured out that conundrum yet.


So... just like I hope to do for you in the second half of this blog, John and I took the very next weekend to cleanse our spirits with a little camping. Catalina was the choice... an interesting and ultimately very like-able place. Funny enough, it sorta feels like Vegas rolled like a dog on top of a magical, tropical island. There's a little of that. But overall, nature wins. The first night, John and I hiked to "that" point. The ridge we had chosen from our campground below. Excited to find it, we chose a rock next to the rugged cliff's edge to make a delicious cup of caffeinated tea. A treat for me (too much caffeine oddly makes me grind my teeth), I enjoyed every sip and every bit of my chatty tea buzz with my favorite friend. And as John promised, I was so relaxed that I didn't even roll over that night, let alone grind my teeth.

Unfortunately, mid-day two, John came down with a little something. Not too harsh, but he was just really tired. And luckily, we had all the time in the world for him to sleep it off. I took the quiet time to build a fire. The prior day, we had biked directly uphill the six miles to our campsite, so my body and mind tucked in to a good book by a warm fire with a loving husband snoozing nearby. His bed was a tent that opened to a view of the ocean, soundtrack included. The good book I actually want to recommend to you. It's called The Ultra-Mind Solution, by Mark Hyman. It's about healing broken brains with whole foods: depression, Alzheimer's, ADHD, it's all in there. To me and maybe you, it's a page-turner.

While John napped, I also discovered a new favorite camping "dessert". We had brought along a jar of peanut butter and some currants to add to our morning oatmeal. Here's my creation... not exactly fancy, but when you've been eating "just add water" camping food, it tastes like a bon-bon.

On Sunday, we hitched a ride with the kayak rental guy, Chip, a third generation Catalinian, back to the harbor where our ferry was departing. Harbor within eyesight, Chip abruptly stopped his pick-up on the dusty road, while telling a story about his grandfather selling "buffalo chips," no relation to the potato. Kayak Chip had something to show us. See, buffalo roam the island since a Hollywood film crew left a few there many decades ago (see what I mean about the Vegas thing?) The huge animals have actually become a bit of a tourist draw. Well little did we know, we had hitched a ride with the grandson of the man who thought to dip the poo from those buffalo into a bit a resin and sell it. With a little gold paint, Grandpa Bo made himself a couple thousand dollars. As Chip (not to be confused with buffalo chip) ran around the grassy cliff searching for a sample, he explained that, "not any old buffalo shit will do. It's got to have character."

John and I nearly peed ourselves watching 'ole Chip in all his buffalo poop glory. His story-telling was spot on. And with that... the final memory of 8am slot machines and the tart smell of alcohol vomit, faded like a buffalo chip in the Catalina summer sun.

Guest Blogger Jen Wittman: Italian Beans on Fettunta

Introducing my dear friend Jen Wittman with her adorable son Bodhi. Below is her helpful personal story about learning to eat on a budget and improving her health along the way!

Dining on a budget - healthy, wealthy and wise!

As we're all too aware, many of us, our friends and family are being affected by the current economic crisis. In my family, we've had to tighten our belts due to the birth of our sweet baby, Bodhi. As I am providing his main source of nourishment, it's important that I eat as healthy as possible. This can be difficult, as new moms know, because I'm ravenously hungry most of the day. I'm constantly grabbing the most convenient food available and just shoving what's around in my face to keep myself full.

When Bodhi was first born, it seemed I couldn't eat enough food to sustain my energy and caloric needs. We started purchasing more processed and convenience foods. Our expenses skyrocketed, but our income remained the same. Something had to change quickly. So, we looked at our budget and discovered that our food expense was the best place to start cutting back and saving money. What I discovered through this process amazed me. I could save money and feel fuller just by eating healthier!

This is how it started...

I realized that we needed to stop eating out altogether and keep our grocery bills to $100 or less per week. For us, that meant 42 meals a week under $100. I started to think back to a time when our grocery bills were minimal. I remembered that when we lived and studied in Italy we ate so well and for pennies. What do Italians know that we don't? - how to cook "peasant" foods and stretch ingredients. I took myself through a culinary memory game and this is what I remembered - legumes, grains and vegetables are the least expensive foods out there and combined they make for some scrumptious, hearty meals.

So, I devised a weekly menu to see if we could buy only all-natural or organic ingredients on this budget. We eat oatmeal or yogurt and fruit for breakfast and made large portions of dinner so we'd have already prepared leftovers for lunch.

Below was our first menu:

Monday: Italians Beans on Fettunta, Side Salad
Tuesday: Turkey Tacos
Wednesday: Mediterranean Tuna Salad with Chickpea Spread on Whole, Multi-grain Bread
Thursday: Roasted Veggies with Lentils & Brown Rice
Friday: Chicken with Citrus, Spiced Quinoa
Saturday: Vegetable Ravioli with Homemade Artichoke and Olive Marinara Sauce
Sunday: Leftover Ingredient Surprise (usually when inspiration really strikes)

Did we pull it off? We sure did! The first month, we averaged $96.50/week in grocery costs. What's better is that I started to feel better while eating less quantity. I was eating healthier, had more energy and the creative juices started flowing to the better use of ingredients. Throughout the next weeks we added recipes like, Chicken in a Vegetable Vindaloo sauce with coconut brown rice, Roasted Fig and Goat Cheese salad with Sweet Pea Pesto Toasts, Vegetable Risotto, Spicy Blackened Fish over pineapple rice and much more!

All in all, I'm so happy that we had to take stock and make some changes in our lifestyle. I didn't want to compromise on natural and organic ingredients and I didn't have to. My creativity was harnessed and my body and budget felt better. Who knew that cutting back would mean gaining more in health, wealth and happiness!


Italian Beans on Fettunta

Born as a way of enjoying the year's new olive oil, fettunta is a slice of crusty bread toasted and rubbed with a peeled garlic clove. It is then doused with a generous pour of olive oil and sprinkled with salt. Fettunta literally means fetta unta, or "oily slice." Forget the Ramen Noodles - if you're really in a pinch for a hearty inexpensive meal, try my simple version of this Tuscan "peasant" dish.

Ingredients:
1 can of Organic Cannelini Beans (or take dried beans and make them yourself - even better!)
1 sprig of Rosemary
2 cloves of Garlic
Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper to taste
Organic or All-Natural Multi-Grain Country Loaf

Drain and rinse beans, set aside. Chop rosemary and 1 clove of garlic. Combine beans, garlic, rosemary, salt, pepper and little olive oil. Leave to sit and marinate while preparing toasts.

Slice bread to desired thickness. Toast bread in toaster, on grill, in non-stick pan or in oven until golden. Take peeled, whole garlic clove and rub over warm toasts. Top toasts with bean mixture and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with a side salad and voila, dinner is served!

Note from Molly - Thank you Jen! Can't wait to try this recipe myself! I love your perspective on "peasant food." I think it would do us all a bit of good to incorporate more of that simple whole foods diet into our own kitchens. Also... could Bodhi be any cuter?

Those Pumpkin Muffins - gluten free

I am so dag-gone busy.

Seriously. I mean, when I was 16, and I had to stay after school to work on the yearbook and then go to school again the very next morning, I thought I was swamped. And I guess I was. But, I certainly didn't wash my own clothes, make my own lunch, pay my bills, deal with credit card fraud (yes, john's identity got stolen this week), wash my car so the bird poop doesn't eat the paint, read the instructions for the file cabinet that needs put together, water the tomato plants and figure out why the tomato plants are producing tomatoes that taste like water: all while still getting up the next day to go to "school." And I don't even have kids. God bless all the parents in the world.

Parents must laugh at kids when the door shuts for the night and they are crawling into bed with their significant other. I know my dad tells a story about my brother and his grass cutting business. Matt (my brother) ran the business with Zack, our across the street neighbor. Zack owned a beat up turquoise truck that was cool because it really wasn't cool at all, and one day the truck literally caught on fire from the grass cutting gas while they were driving down a subdivision road. The truck hit a tree; the tree went up in flames with the decrepit truck and later that night, Dad found Matt crouched over sitting on his water bed (hello 80's), a little teary. Dad lent a hand, and Matt said, "Dad, you just work and work and work and you can never get ahead." He was 16. And here I am 31, no kids, no overwhelming worries at all, fully healthy and happy, talking about how busy my life is. We're all a little nuts, aren't we?

Sometimes in these full times, a gem just shoots out sideways, unexpected. You wing it a bit, and it works. It's like the cherry on top of a hard days work. A beacon that reminds you to trust your instincts. These pumpkin muffins fall into that "alright!" category. I have been baking for a client on Mondays and dropping off 5 recipes a week. I love this job. They would like half of the recipes to be gluten-free, which is a great challenge. I am beginning to learn the world of xanthum gum and bob's red mill gluten-free flour mix. At first, I thought I would never make something that weighed less than a hockey puck, but now, I am proudly sharing my very own creation below. I found a recipe on-line and liked the texture, but I wasn't happy with the way the muffin rose. I played with it, and it worked! It's hard to tell it's gluten-free, and the moisture from the fresh baked pumpkin keeps you thinking about "those pumpkin muffins" all day long.

Those Pumpkin Muffins
Makes 11 muffins
Dry Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp xanthum gum
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 cup agave nectar
1 cup fresh baked sugar baby pumpkin, well packed*
2 large eggs
2 Tbsp melted coconut oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with paper liners; you'll only need 11. In a blender, combine agave nectar, pumpkin, eggs and melted coconut oil. Blend thoroughly until combined and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients. Whisk until thoroughly mixed. Add wet ingredients to dry and whisk until just combined, but do not over-whisk.

Scoop 1/3 cup of batter into each muffin tin. The batter will be rather thick. Bake for 18-22 minutes until tops are browned and toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before carefully removing from the pan.

Enjoy, and if you're busy like I am right now, remember to breathe... it works.

* Sugar baby is an heirloom variety of pumpkin, but any small baking pumpkin will do. To bake a pumpkin, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds and set it cut side down on a roasting rack of a small roasting pan or on a cookie cooling rack set within a sheet pan. Fill the bottom of the chosen pan with 3/4" of water. Carefully place in the oven. Bake for 45 minutes - 1 hour until a fork easily pierces the flesh. Remove from the pan, allow to cool on a cutting board and then scoop out the flesh. Cooked pumpkin flesh can be refrigerated for several days until you are ready to bake the muffins!

Insecurities & Avocado Toast

I tried something new today. Not avocado toast. It's a faithful friend, which we'll get to later. Something completely new. I put myself out there in order to put a nagging cooking insecurity to rest.

A few weeks ago:
After stopping in for a solo steak at a delicious farm-to-table restaurant in Santa Monica called Rustic Canyon, I asked to speak to the Executive Chef, Evan Funke. During the dinner rush of course, which is a restaurant no-no I remembered a few seconds after I asked. But towards my last few bites of steak, he agreed and asked me back into the kitchen.

As I carefully pushed open the swinging black door into the hot and buzzing kitchen, I faced a ring of line cooks surrounding a large, tatooed man (Chef Evan) making homemade pasta... quickly. The conversation was brief, but it basically consisted of me asking to work for free to gain kitchen experience and Chef Evan, after a quick grill about my experience, agreeing. Working for Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes seemed to seal the opportunity because once he heard that, he relaxed into the idea. I guess he figured I would at least not drop a knife on someone's foot. Which is probably true, unless I've had too much sugar or caffeine, then all bet's are off.

At 8:30 this crystal blue California morning, I jockeyed my way through the Santa Monica farmers' market looking for a chef I had met only once. I found him negotiating with a wonderful heirloom tomato farmer, whose sun-dried tomatoes, by the way, I would eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

It's now 9:30pm, and I just got home. Tired feet and smelly hair, yes, but satisfied and relieved that I survived a day in a professional kitchen. The balloon of my insecurity has just been pricked with a pairing knife.

I learned a lot today, and I suspect I might have experienced a few universal kitchen truths in one very condensed day.

For instance:
The professional kitchen hormone scale is quite obviously tipped towards testosterone.
Kitchen work is hot. It's tough, and it's fast.
The technique is not overly complicated, but it's clearly difficult to master.
The f-bomb is the most commonly used adjective within 5 feet of industrial kitchen stoves.

And I learned a few things about myself:
I don't want to become a professional restaurant chef.
I can hang.

I actually got to stand next to and study the line cook who was cooking the meat for the dinner rush. The day's worth of scrubbing mussels with a brillo, prepping 20 bunches of kale and roasting 3 cases of tomatoes was worth the 2 hours I was parked next to him. It's easy to say that now... while I was earning a blister with the brillo, I contemplated walking. But looking back, I will probably sign up for this arrangement another time or two, if they will have me. It was an amazing education. I am very grateful to Chef Evan for opening his doors to me.

With all that said, I want to offer a new experience to you, too! A simple recipe for Avocado Toast. I eat this before big days, like today, because avocados are filled with healthy fats, which keep a belly full for hours.

Avocado Toast
2 pieces whole grain bread (I prefer a sprouted variety like Ezekiel 4:9)
organic butter, softened
1 ripe avocado, pitted and diced (See instructional video below)
1 Tbsp flax oil, hemp seed oil or extra virgin olive oil
sea salt & fresh cracked pepper

Toast the bread. Butter the top side of each piece. Distribute diced avocado evenly over the two pieces. Gently smash with a fork. Drizzle oil over the avocado on both pieces. Sprinkle with sea salt & fresh cracked pepper. And enjoy!

I made a video for you of the best way I've found to peel and dice an avocado: