September 2011 – East of Eden Cooking

2011/09/222017/12/26

Salad with Chicken and Curry Dressing

“He walked to Stone Street where the Catholic church is and turned left, went past the Carriaga house, the Wilson house, the Zabala house, and turned left on Central Avenue at the Steinbeck house.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

The Steinbeck House, John Steinbeck’s childhood home at 132 Central Avenue in Salinas is open for lunch and tours. The Valley Guild has published a cookbook with the much sought after lunch menu recipes, Steinbeck House Cookbook. A favorite is broccoli with chicken and a curry dressing, Poulet de Broccoli. I had thoughts of updating this Salinas classic and found inspiration in a salad I had at the The Portola Café at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. My recipe is a major shift from casserole to salad, and from broccoli to lettuce, but both recipes include iconic Salinas Valley ingredients with chicken and a curry dressing. READ MORE . . .

2011/09/152017/12/26

Raspberry Chicken with Goat Cheese

Elegant and easy!

“The chicken’s good, Lee. I don’t think I’ve been aware of the taste of food for a long time.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

I stepped outside of my comfort zone with this recipe. It’s not that it’s difficult, it’s actually very easy and fast to prepare. Everyone I’ve shared it with raves about it. I developed this recipe for a contest. I have never entered a recipe contest before and felt intimidated. Anyone could enter, including professional chefs. A professional won the grand prize last year. I entered and did not even make the semi-finals. I am feeling kind of silly about the whole thing. (I can’t wait to try the winning recipe for this year!) If you try my recipe I would love to hear what you think! READ MORE . . .

2011/09/082017/12/26

Zucchini Pancakes with Feta

Celebrate too much zucchini!

“Sometimes in the summer evenings they walked up the hill to watch the afterglow clinging to the tops of the western mountains and to feel the breeze drawn into the valley by the day-heated air.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Zucchini and summer, like peas in their pod. Early in the season we wait patiently for the plants to grow. As the summer progresses, we tire of too many vegetables to harvest. And then
what to do with the harvest? When there is an abundance of zucchini in the summer I make these pancakes. This recipe has evolved over time. When I first made zucchini pancakes, I just stirred in a few eggs to bind the mixture together. We lived in the county and had lots of zucchini and eggs. This was the recipe my mom taught me. My pancakes are now full of flavor and worthy to share. Recently I went to the local fish market to purchase salmon for dinner. Another customer came into the market and gave me zucchini from his garden. I had never met this customer, but I thanked him for his gift of zucchini. The poor man, he just had too much zucchini! It was time to make zucchini pancakes. READ MORE . . .

2011/09/042017/12/26

Salad for Dinner

Summer on a Plate!

“Well, right now you can buy fruit and all kinds of vegetables for two bits a lug.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

We often enjoy salads for dinner. I wanted to make a salad with the fruits and colors of summer as a main dish. The chicken could easily be omitted and the salad would still evoke summer on a plate. READ MORE . . .