Visual artist
Kija Lucas came for a visit last week. We have been working on a project for over a year, documenting the seasonal ingredients I use in my meals, with the goal of creating a unique Montalvo-centric book with recipes and stories that play off her incredible images. Those special ingredients come from my travels to the farmer’s markets, from excursions into the woods, from dives into the sea, from walks on the beach, from my garden, and sometimes from the side of the road or plucked from a tree and into a basket. For me, finding food is an adventure.
This week I thought it was important to document many of the edible flowers I use. I find them in my spring garden and at this time of year, the herbs are flowering. I especially love the flowering purple sage and the bright red pineapple sage flowers. But I can’t forget the wild garlic flowers and the red clover or the abundance of bright orange nasturtiums. The garden is full of calendula volunteers and flowering purple chives. All these flowers are ingredients. They not only decorate the table but can add depth of flavor and color to many dishes, surprising many who have never really eaten a flower before. On Friday, Kija and I went to the garden and picked a series of flowering and herbal staples. Below is what she captured.
See more of Kija’s work here and check out her instagram here .
Click on the images below to see enlarged versions.
************************************************** Andrea’s first cookbook,
Ciderhouse Cooking , will be released in July 2018.
Visit Andrea’s website
here and be sure to follow her on
Instagram to see what’s cooking!
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