Davis Life Magazine

On Friday night, I sealed 2010 with a kiss, wrote down my disappointments and regrets on a slip of paper, burned it, got out another slip of paper, and made a crisp, fresh shopping list for my first trip to the farmers’ market of the New Year.  I was curious about what I would buy—I [...]

Farmer Lloyd Johnson has a quiet kind of enthusiasm, but it’s unmistakably strong and so earnest.  He patiently weighs his organic produce, his die-hard tomato aficionados handing him bags brimming with heirloom fruits, while I pester him for information.  He grew up in Illinois to a family steeped in farming tradition.  He has been farming [...]

Last week was the autumnal equinox, believe it or not, and now summer is gone; it’s technically fall.  I had originally intended to write this week’s column about the delicious Sharlyn melon that Short Night Farm grows, but instead, I would like to dedicate this week’s column to them, and write about saying goodbye. Being [...]

Last week, I bought a basket of Black Mission figs from Cadena Ranch at the Saturday market, and nearly died and went to Shangri-la, they were so good—a get-down-on-your-knees-and-cry kind of good.  I’ve found that it’s oddly difficult to find a really good fig.  Many figs for sale are picturesque, but under-ripe.  And some have [...]

As a pastry chef, I spend an inordinate amount of time contemplating eggs—how they work in recipes, how delicious they are, and how I can get my mitts on the most delicious ones possible. Prior to specializing in pastry, I never really gave eggs too much thought…