If some books take a village, this book took a small city.
Thank you to everyone at Stonesong and my wonderful agent, Alison Fargis, who nurtured a book proposal out of me with tough love and well-seasoned patience. She was a huge emotional crutch for me as I wrote this book, convinced as I was that I’d never be able to cook with 50 chefs and test 150 recipes before my deadline. I’ll be forever grateful for her kindness, humor, and constant availability.
Judy Pray, my editor, is any cookbook author’s dream editor: a delight to be around, but absolutely ferocious on the page. She pushed me to do great work not only in the writing of this book but over the whole cookbook-writing process, engaging with me about chefs and recipes every step of the way. Thank you to Kevin Brainard, who designed this book, and to Susan Baldaserini, Michelle Ishay, Laurin Lucaire, and Nancy Murray, who brought it to its beautiful completion. Thanks to my copy editor, Janet McDonald, and Sibylle Kazeroid, my production editor, for going over this book with a fine-tooth comb. Also thanks to Ann Bramson and everyone else at Artisan for making this experience so pleasant. And thank you to Peter Workman for his early vision that set this book in motion.
My constant companion over the course of my cookbook journey was Elizabeth Leitzell, this book’s snapshot photographer. Together Lizzie and I flew on planes, rented cars, and stuffed our faces side by side in the kitchens of the nation’s best chefs. Lizzie became not only a great friend but also a terrific collaborator and adviser, helping us navigate from one chef’s home to the next without ever losing her sunny disposition (and keeping me awake when we drove from the Seattle airport to Portland late at night with games of G-H-O-S-T and “Would you rather?”). I’m so happy to provide her a showcase for her brilliant work. To the talented team who worked on the styled food pictures for this book—Johnny Miller (photographs), Justin Conly (who assisted), Lesley Stockton (food stylist), Johanna Rockwell (her assistant), and Michelle Wong (prop stylist)—I had so much fun working with you all. And your hard work speaks for itself. The beautiful props came from Le Creuset, ABC Carpet & Home, and dbO Home.
Tyla Fowler volunteered to be my “cookbook intern” before I was sure what my cookbook intern would do. Turns out, she did a lot: from researching potential chefs and travel options to joining me in my kitchen to test recipes. Tyla is a talented writer in her own right; one day I’ll be interning on her cookbook.
We couldn’t have visited as many cities as we did without the generosity of the following friends and kindhearted souls who let us stay with them as we crossed the country: Robin Lasher and Vaughn Sterling; Benson Wright and Andy Cole; Molly Wizenberg and Brandon Pettit; David and Celia Russo; Nicole Miller; Chris, Liz, and Katie Herron; and Kristen, Felix, and Anders Lo.
The recipes in this book wouldn’t work as well as they do if it weren’t for the many recipe testers who tried them out in their own kitchens. Many thanks to Anthony Jackson, Sarah Landrum, Katya Schapiro, Catherine Hull, Yelena Malcolm, Paula Lee, Chris Killoran, Lisa Lacy, Graye Pelletier, Gabrielle Amette, Susan Stromberg, Becky Goldstein-Glaze, Jason Greenberg, Melissa Holsinger, and Alejandra Guanipa. Also thanks to Diana Fithian, Patty Jang, Lauren Gutterman, Morgan Tingley, and Leland Scruby, all of whom lent a hand in the kitchen during my recipe-testing process.
This paragraph is devoted to the endless list of people who offered suggestions, tips, advice, and connections that helped form this book’s roster of chefs and home cooks. There are too many people to name here (from food writers to bloggers to folks on Twitter, Facebook, and my blog) but, obviously, I couldn’t have written this book without their help. I will enthusiastically thank them all in person.
Thank you to Jonathan Rubinstein and the good people at Joe (New York’s best coffee shop, located on Waverly Place just off of Sixth Avenue) for letting me commandeer a table as often as I did over the course of writing this book. Joe was my office and my refuge when writing became too tedious at home.
A big thank-you to my family for their constant support and enthusiasm. My mother and grandmother may not cook, but they treat meals with as much passion and dedication as any of the chefs in this book. In doing so, they make everyone feel loved and well cared for. And my father, while pretty unadventurous at the table, has expanded his horizons for my sake—and for that I’m very grateful.
Endless thanks to Craig for being there every step of the way, from the early days of “Will I ever finish this book?” to the final days of “What will I do when I’m done?” Craig was the ultimate arbiter of whether these recipes work for the home cook. If he was happy, I knew you’d be happy too.
Finally, and most important, a bottomless thank-you, once again, to all of the chefs and home cooks who shared their kitchens, their stories, and their recipes for this book. My time spent with all of them was positively life-changing, and I hope one day to do for others what they did for me. I’m honored to include them all in these pages.