NOVEL THOUGHTS
………
1939
(available in paperback from Penguin, 2002)
ONE OF THE GREAT CLASSICS of American literature, The Grapes of Wrath is the story of the Joad family’s migration from the Oklahoma Dust Bowl of the 1930s to the promised land of California. But California’s verdant valleys are a harsh place for migrant workers. The Joads pick fruit for pennies a day, and fight hunger and despondency while trying to maintain their dignity and humanity.
First published in 1939, The Grapes of Wrath has been called John Steinbeck’s crowning achievement. Steinbeck won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Grapes of Wrath in 1940, the same year that the film version, starring Henry Fonda, was released. In 1962, after publishing twenty-five novels, John Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Food, and its absence, plays a big part in The Grapes of Wrath. The Joads eat salted pork, convenient for travel, and potatoes as they head west, and enjoy a spare but solid meal of meat, bread, and coffee after their first day of picking peaches. But most of the time they are consumed with a relentless hunger. When the family pulls into a truck stop and asks to buy bread, they’re told that the diner sells sandwiches, not loaves of bread. “We’re hungry,” Pa replies. Daughter Rose of Sharon worries that because she has no milk to drink, her gestating baby is suffering. “This here baby ain’t gonna be no good. I ought a had milk,” she laments. Hunger and the fear of starvation stalk the Joads.
In contrast to their meager rations, an abundance of Salinas Valley produce—lettuce, cauliflower, artichokes, prunes, cherries, plums, nectarines, peaches, pears, and grapes—greets the Joads when they reach California.
The fertile land of the Salinas Valley, comprising more than 640,000 acres, was central to John Steinbeck’s life and work. Born and raised in Salinas, Steinbeck set several of his novels—most notably, The Grapes of Wrath, Of Mice and Men (1937), and East of Eden (1952)—in the Salinas Valley, still an agricultural mecca. Today more than $2 billion worth of agricultural products stream out of the valley annually.
We wanted to take advantage of this rich, varied produce for a Grapes of Wrath recipe, so we turned to the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas. Built in 1998 just blocks from John Steinbeck’s childhood home, the National Steinbeck Center provides educational experiences related to Steinbeck’s work that inspire visitors to learn about human nature, literature, history, agriculture, and the arts.
The One Main Street Café, at the Steinbeck Center, specializes in foods—particularly fresh fruits and vegetables—associated with the Salinas Valley. The café contributed the following recipe for a spicy artichoke spread on rounds of sourdough baguette. With our Tomato Bruschetta Topping, these warm toasts capture a small measure of the valley’s rich offering of produce.
NOTE: For a less filling version of this appetizer, place the spread in a shallow casserole dish, warm in a 350°F oven, cover with the tomato topping, and set out with crackers for your guests.
Wear plastic or rubber gloves while handling the chiles to protect skin from the oil in them. Avoid direct contact with eyes, and wash hands thoroughly after handling.
3 jalapeño chiles (see note) 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened 1 13- to 16-ounce can water-packed quartered artichokes, drained 1 tablespoon minced garlic Tomato Bruschetta Topping (see below) |
¼ cup shredded mozzarella 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese 1 tablespoon heavy cream Salt and freshly ground black pepper Sourdough baguette |
Roast the chiles directly on a gas burner set to medium-low, turning as needed with tongs until the skin is black and blistered on all sides. If no gas burner is available, place the chiles on a broiler pan and broil approximately 4 inches from the heat source, turning as needed with tongs, until the skin is black and blistered on all sides. Remove each chile as it is done and place in a sealed plastic or paper bag. Allow to cool in the bag for 15 minutes. Remove the skin, stems, and seeds, and coarsely chop peppers.
Place the chiles, cream cheese, artichokes, garlic, mozzarella, Parmesan, and cream in the bowl of a food processor. Blend to a paste, about 30 seconds (the spread should have a chunky consistency). Add salt and pepper to taste.
Top slices of sourdough baguette with the spread and bake until bread is crisp and the top is bubbly. Serve with Tomato Bruschetta Topping (see below).
Yield: About 2 cups, or 8 appetizer servings
2 pounds ripe tomatoes 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1½ tablespoons good-quality balsamic vinegar |
Sugar Salt and freshly ground black pepper |
Seed and chop tomatoes and place in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar. Add sugar, salt, and pepper to taste and combine. Let sit 1 hour before serving.
NOVEL THOUGHTS
World events and the personal experiences of group members find their way into discussions of the Heritage Library Reading Group, based at the Dakota County Heritage Library in Lakeville, Minnesota. One of their best dialogues came on the heels of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The group read and discussed The Grapes of Wrath and found that some of the book’s central themes resonated strongly in the wake of the attacks. “The migrant workers in The Grapes of Wrath are viewed as outsiders,” says moderator Luann Phillipich. “And after 9/11, Americans became so uncomfortable with ‘the other,’ with people who are different.” The group discussed how the gulf between the haves and the have-nots, vividly portrayed in Steinbeck’s 1939 novel, still exists. “It surprised us that things still seemed relevant when the book was written so long ago,” says Phillipich.
Life experiences also guided the discussion. Older group members recalled their lives during the Depression; those people from small towns or with farming backgrounds identified with the book’s setting. “That’s what’s nice about our age range,” says member Joni Lafky. “Our discussions relate to our lives and the varied life experiences that we bring to the group.”
More Food for Thought
Their proximity to Salinas, the home of John Steinbeck and the setting for many of his novels, has inspired the East County Mothers’ Club Book Club of Contra Costa County, California, to read several of his works. For their Grapes of Wrath meeting, the group watched the film version of the book and enjoyed casual California fare, including taco-style appetizers, grapes, wine, and margaritas.