Likethelemon

Oyster Culture by Gwendolyn Meyer and Doreen Schmid : a book about the rich intersection between oyster farming and culinary culture in the unique region of West Marin in northern California.Oyster Culture showcases oyster farms of West Marin and 18 delicious regional oyster recipes prepared for the home cook.

Featuring over 150 beautiful photographs that evocatively describe this singular part of California, complemented by absorbing text, Oyster Culture is sure to appeal to readers who have an interest in local food and the place of its production.

Visit the book web site for more information about events .

Fruit trees are the nicest places to take naps. Something about knowing that while you are there relaxing, the growing work continues. Plus the quality of shade is gentle and sublime. Several types of trees pictured: quince, plum, apple- all casting nap-able shade.

quince is ripening so fall is coming

Part of every summer should be spent on a farm. I did for the last 2 weeks in Big Sur. Inspiring.  Gardening  gives a definite and immediate sense of place.

just out of the ground they were literally glowing that pink red color- used a little flash to emphasize that color

If you have ever worked in a kitchen then you will know what this is.

From the garden. Beautiful. I see a summer potato salad in my future.

Pink salted eggs from the fantastic San Rafael Asian market and fresh crab being cooked at Gospel Flat Farms. Captured on the iphone.

Photographs from Lamu, Kenya appear in the spring issue of this wonderful culinary magazine of food and culture. < look for the egg on the cover.>
I have more work from Kenya and the Swahili coast on my web site.

.. when its a barbie doll? The winner in the 4H cake decorating entry in Western Weekend, here in Point Reyes, CA.

Granada, Andalucia, Spain. Winter.

I’d like to live in Spain for a year. I’d start in Granada, exploring the southern mountain areas, feeling the winds from Africa. Travel north and west to olive groves, further west to Cadiz soaking up its grand and dilapadated history and then for the late summer months, Barcelona and the Dalian Cap de Creus. Food would be a big part of this adventure. May even sail over to Ibiza or Canary Islands while I’m there, just to get the full range of cuisine.

The ancient city of Granada in Spain was renamed after the fruit during the Moorish period. Pomegranate motifs are everywhere .

My neighbor is an excellent horsewoman and she sometimes trains the horses of the rich and famous. I had the good fortune of joining her on a trip up to St.Helena, to her client at a private winery. In this delightful Shangri-la, I wiled away the afternoon roaming around the estate,  while the horsewomen rode out. Naturally I gravitated to the kitchen area. These mysterious jars crowded into a dark corner, a small collection of limoncello in the making. Turns out the owner has a penchant for it.  I hear it puckers the cheeks and gives a mean hangover.

Here is what wikepia says about it: Limoncello (or lemoncello): is an Italian lemon liqueur mainly produced in Southern Italy, mainly in the region around the Gulf of Naples, the Sorrentine Peninsula and the coast of Amalfi. Traditionally, it is made from the Sorrento lemon, though most lemons will produce satisfactory limoncello.

I love London for  its hot pastries, museums, the Thames and all the bridges over it, its architecture and narrow streets, and little surprises in corner deli’s like this one where i had a delicious sausage roll and a welcome break from walking – somewhere near Sloane Street.