The release of Santa Barbara-resident Michelle Carbone's lovely "Friday Evenings: Creating La Dolce Vita, One Bite at a time" (www.pentolapress.com) is a balm for the soul during these troubled times.
An illness in Carbone's family forced her to quit her job and reconfigure a new life "in the slow lane" when she discovered cooking and the joys and pleasures a simple meal with family and friends could provide. We especially love some of her "kitchen rules" such as "One really good knife is far better than several stupid gadgets that will probably break anyway."
Her recipes draw heavily on ingredients found at your local farmer's market, like Grilled Steak with Giant Heirloom Tomato, Eggplant Stew, Pea Soup and Red Cabbage with vinegar and apple.
Here is Carbone's wonderfully simple recipe for Pesto for Grilled Chicken:
2 cups fresh basil leaves, 1/3 cup pine nuts, 2 garlic cloves, 1/2 - 1 cup olive oil, 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper and 1 wedge of Parmesan cheese (grated).
Using a food processor, grate the Parmesan cheese and set aside. Put the basil leaves, pine nut and garlic into food processor and blend until chopped coarsely. With food processor on, add oil slowly until a thick paste has formed. Season with salt and pepper. Store in tightly sealed jar until ready to use. When ready to use, add cheese and mix lightly. Use immediately or store in refrigerator adding additional oil to cover all of the pesto. As you use the pesto, continue to add oil to cover so the basil will no brown during storage. When all the pesto is used, use the oil to make a salad dressing.
"Friday Evening" will surely inspire you to begin creating your own "sweet life"...it's a great armchair read as well as a guidebook for bringing more pleasure into your life and your mealtimes.
Until our next food find...may all your food finds be fabulous!
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