ABOUT THIS COOK:

I grew up at my family's restaurant, Nepenthe, in Big Sur, CA, where the magic of place influenced my passion for all things to do with food and art and gathering around the table. Professionally, I opened and ran Cafe Kevah at Nepenthe in my early twenties, operated a small catering company, and later worked as a pastry chef at the acclaimed Sierra Mar at Post Ranch Inn. I have a degree in visual art and an advanced degree in poetics; currently I write about food and work with it visually on the plate. I have just finished my first cookbook/memoir: My Nepenthe: Bohemian Tales of Food, Family, and Big Sur with stunning photography by Sara Remington.

• What is the strangest food you have ever eaten?
  Turtle

• What do you cook when home alone?
  Simple dishes, like pasta with fresh tomatoes, lots of salads, or short-grain brown rice, a favorite, with crumbled feta or goat cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

• Your most treasured kitchen possession:
  my sturdy wooden spoon

• The ideal number of guests for a dinner party is:
  However many want to come over; I like abundance.