The Secret Garden

After my idyllic Mother’s Day of inactivity, great food and wine - all enjoyed alfresco on the deck, I was given a lovely Mother’s Day gift, trumping every gilded macaroni cigar box ever. I was led, blindfolded, to my very own herb garden! How could I not have seen this?! Well, it is sort of secluded on the north side of the house and I tend to hang out on the sunny deck. Plus, I’ve been in China, and that’s when Michael and his ace landscaping team of Andrew and Delia put this all into place. Michael knows I’ve been stretching my culinary aspirations, from just admiring everything fresh and artisanal to being actually at the point of wanting to create some of these dazzling dishes. One of the distinguishing features of Napa’s cuisine is the use of the freshest, nearest-grown or sourced ingredients. This philosophy is increasingly popular in California and beyond – to the extent places can grow their own great food. There’ll probably never be a North Dakota artichoke that you’d want to eat, but I can go to Napa Farmers’ Market and choose from several exotic varieties. I love that!

Soon, I’ll be harvesting several types of basil, oregano, rosemary, sorrel, lavender, chervil, French tarragon, sage, lemon thyme and chives. It’s fair to say I’ll be limited to adding these herbs to potatoes and baked chicken until I become adept at more challenging applications. Michael and I joined a wine club that includes recipes with their quarterly shipments, and they have winemaker dinners to showcase the dish. One was a sauce for game hens – just fantastic! I decided to make it myself and quickly became exasperated as it took forevvvvvver! I can’t be the only wannabe dilettante chef with family and work responsibilities! My family and Red House must come first. And, after all, in NY, Michael and I lived on takeout before and after we were married, so it’s going to take some time, literally and figuratively, to channel my inner-chef. Here’s what I’m not going to do - follow the approach of a T.V. cooking show host whose initials are R.R. and buy a pre-sliced onion at the store. Not me! Somewhere between the 5-Can Casserole I grew up with and the 28-ingredient game hen sauce that threw me for a loop is where I’ll end up. I’ll let you know where (the spirit) takes me.