All the mamas who let me witness their children’s births.
My grandmother Phyllis Diebenkorn, for bringing us all into the kitchen.
My grandfather Richard Diebenkorn, for showing me how to find beauty in the process, in the layers, in the chaos.
My grandmother Elizabeth Grant, for teaching me how to tell a story, how to make biscuits and peach ice cream, to always tuck a dollar bill into the bottom of my purse.
My grandfather Benjamin Grant, for his magnificent attention to language.
My mom, Gretchen Grant, for bringing us all to the table, for keeping us at the table, for defining comfort in terms of food and light.
My dad, Dick Grant, for teaching me to always take the high road, to never drink more than one martini, to always squeeze the toothpaste tube from the bottom.
My baby brother, Ben Grant, for keeping me laughing and grounded with all the chapter titles, for the ping-pong, for being proud of me.
My mother-in-law, Juli Teitelbaum, for reminding me that there is no rush, that I have time, that everything changes.
Anna Stein, for asking to be my agent before I even knew what a literary agent was, for fighting so hard for me, for always telling me the truth, for helping me kick that first lackluster book deal up, up, and away.
Emily Bell, for choosing my book, for her gentle and meticulous and beautiful editing, for telling me to stop saying I’m sorry.
Jackson Howard, for his bottomless patience, for never making me feel like an idiot.
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, for taking a risk on me and making every step feel so smooth.
Na Kim, for designing my just-messy-enough kick-ass pink cover.
Kenzi Wilbur, for reading so many versions of this book, for never letting me get away with anything, for sawing down lemon trees with me.
Emily Thelin, for recipe testing with so much love (and so many pregnancy hormones).
Nobu Matsuhisa, Michael McCarty, David Bouley, and Bill Yosses, for letting me, a hard-core beginner, revolve briefly in their extraordinary restaurant orbits.
Renee Cole Clyde, for telling me a week before she died that this book absolutely needed to be out in the world.
Erin Scott, for ten years of never-ending (phone) support.
Jeff Gordinier, for bringing so much beautiful writing into my life.
Jessica Carbone, for pushing me to write a memoir.
Stanley Love (RIP), for teaching me to dance.
Amy Cook, for always making me feel smart (even though she is the brilliant one) and for always knowing when I needed to cry, to eat, to sit down.
Marianne McCune, for walking that goat around the block in 1976 and never ever leaving my side.
And thanks to a few more cheerleaders: Kelley Kahn, Mike McCune, Marylee McCune, Claire Crawley Delgado, David Delgado, Anna Verwaal, Diane Dawson, Constance Rock, Tai Carson, Bill Isenberg, Margi Young, Michael Cecconi, Sarah Marchick, Rob Hallman, Anne Marxer, Chris Heine, Ken Weitzman, Simon Bertrang, Audra McDonald, Jen Bilik, Joanna Elliott, Jen Hofer, Trevor Carlson, Lauri Hogan, Yalda Modabber, Sarah Horwich, Laurel Leichter, Melanie Dunea, Molly Yeh, Lily Diamond, Nik Sharma, Sarah Kieffer, Carolyn Federman, Erica Tanov, Shoshana Berger, Kelly Duane, Leslie Jonath, Julia Cosgrove, Jeffery Cross, Penny Dedel, Julia Rhodes Davis, Hagar Scher, Margaret Jenkins, Johannes Sanzin, Mika, Geoffrey O’Sullivan, Reba Thomas, Geoffrey Thomas, Jen Todd, Sally Van Doren, John Van Doren, Andrea Liguori, Claire Dederer, Liz Prueitt, Jill Teitelbaum, Jorge Flores, Jennifer Durning, Morgan Oppenheimer, Samin Nosrat, Kari Stuart, Alan Ziegler, Elizabeth Minchilli, Elizabeth Gilbert, Jenny Rosenstrach, Kirk Ross, Patricia Liverman, Elissa Altman, Michael Wilson, Nikki Steen, Larry Steen, Christine Crawley, Kelly Snowden, Charlotte Druckman, Brian Bistrong.
And finally, to my kids, Bella and Dash, for being such patient, delightful, and empathetic creatures. I am never ever letting them move out of the house.
And to my husband, Matthew Ross, for saying yes when I asked him to marry me, for making me feel like a superhero, for always ordering the ragù.
A Note About the Author
Phyllis Grant is a finalist for the International Association of Culinary Professionals Award for Personal Essays / Memoir Writing and a three-time Saveur Blog Awards finalist for her blog, Dash and Bella. She has cooked in world-renowned restaurants, including Nobu, Michael’s, and Bouley. Her essays and recipes have been published in a dozen anthologies and cookbooks, including Best Food Writing in both 2015 and 2016. Her work has been featured in Esquire, O, The Oprah Magazine, The New York Times, Real Simple, Saveur, HuffPost, Time, the San Francisco Chronicle, Food52, and Salon. She lives in Berkeley, California, with her husband and two children. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Dedication
Epigraph
Begin Reading
Recipes
Tart Dough
Tarte Tatin
Crème Fraîche
Balsamic Reduction
Jammy Tomato Anchovy Sauce
Pesto
Jalapeño Quick Pickles
Avocado Bowls With Garlic Anchovy Vinaigrette
Caramelized Onion Tart With Anchovies and Olives (Pissaladière)
Braised Chicken
Spicy Beef Stew
Lamb Popsicles
Hazelnut Butter Cookies
Grandma’s Fudgy Icebox Brownies
Vanilla Bean Custard Ice Cream
Strawberry Balsamic Tart
Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Acknowledgments
A Note About the Author
Copyright
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
120 Broadway, New York 10271
Copyright © 2020 by Phyllis Grant
All rights reserved
First edition, 2020
E-book ISBN: 978-0-374-72075-9
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