Meeting Deborah Madison – enlightening and entertaining

For nearly a year, I’ve had the opportunity to work with the Lewes Public Library and Browseabout Books on a series of virtual interviews with authors of new cookbooks in a program called Cooks and Books. Because of the pandemic, most if not all book tours were canceled, leaving Zoom meetings as the way to introduce the public to authors and their new offerings.

Last week was one of my favorite conversations, as I met one of my cooking idols, Deborah Madison. She is an award-winning author of 14 different cookbooks, and this interview was on the subject of her recently published memoir, “An Onion in My Pocket.” She opens the book by sharing the backstory for its title, describing the various things that have found their way into her pockets, including an onion.

She illustrates the unusual trajectory of her life that brought her to a Zen monastery for 20 years after college, followed by her introduction to restaurant kitchens, including a stint at the well-known Chez Panisse. Her first book, “The Greens Cookbook,” features recipes for the foods served at her restaurant, Greens. As you may imagine from its name, it was a vegetarian restaurant with ingredients sourced from a local farm, Green Gulch.

In an early section of the book, Madison introduces her family with anecdotes from her childhood, including her need to steal Hostess cupcakes and Twinkies from the local market “because my parents would never buy them.” Her parents were early adherents to what we now know is a healthy diet, free from sugary soft drinks, candy and processed snack foods.

Madison’s parents were very frugal, especially when it came to groceries, so she didn’t have an introduction to luxurious ingredients until much later in life. These circumstances seem to have informed her evolution into someone who completely loves food, both in its simplest, purest form and when it is transformed into a beautiful dish.

Later in the memoir, Madison lists the things she’s learned in a chapter titled Kitchen Lessons. They range from things like “treating everyone the same” (not hoarding a special dish for an important customer) to “be forever gracious” (accept thanks and compliments without demurring). My favorite was “don’t apologize.” In this case, it was about a dish that came out differently than expected, but left one diner in raptures. He didn’t need to know it was from a mistake in the kitchen.

Her final chapter includes descriptions of a selection of her most memorable meals, and a collection of touching stories of kindness, generosity and connection. The most delightful moment was the dinner party hosted by poet Jane Hirshfield shortly after the publication of Madison’s book about her restaurant, Greens. After thoroughly enjoying the meal, Madison complimented her host, who said she had cooked every dish from recipes in the new book.

My first introduction to Deborah Madison was through one of her earlier books, the lavishly illustrated “Local Flavors.” This collection of 350 recipes is based on her visits to farmers markets across the country, celebrating ingredients and the farmers who grow them. The corn fritters (appearing somewhat deconstructed) in the photo were made with her recipe, in which I failed to add “as much flour as can easily be absorbed.”

Without enough flour, the batter was quite loose, but the goat cheese gave the dish wonderful flavor and texture. I’ve included a few of her recipes for you to try, and be sure to collect your ingredients at the farmers market, just as she would want you to.

Cheesy Corn Fritters*

3 ears sweet corn

1 beaten egg

2 scallions, finely sliced

1/4 C chopped parsley

1 T shredded basil

1 C crumbled goat cheese

1/4 C flour

1/4 t salt

2 pinches pepper

1 t olive oil

1 T butter

2 C arugula

In a large bowl, trim off the corn kernels, then run the knife along the cob, pressing to release the juices; discard the cobs. Stir in the beaten egg, then add the scallions, parsley and basil to the bowl. Add the cheese and stir to combine. Stir in as much flour as can be easily absorbed. Melt the butter in a skillet with the olive oil over medium. Spoon generous tablespoons of batter into the skillet. Cook until golden, about 3 minutes, turn and brown the other side. Arrange arugula on 4 plates and top with two cooked fritters each. *Adapted from “Local Flavors” by Deborah Madison.

Apple Oat Pancakes*

2 eggs, separated

1 t vanilla

1 C buttermilk

3 T melted butter

1/4 C rolled oats

1/2 C flour

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t cinnamon

1/4 t salt

1 large apple, peeled and grated

1/2 C grated Cheddar cheese

Separate the whites of the eggs into a small bowl. Beat on high until soft peaks form; set aside. Combine the egg yolks, vanilla, buttermilk, butter and rolled oats in a large mixing bowl; set aside. Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir the dry ingredients into the oat mixture. Add grated apple and whipped egg white; fold to combine. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium. Pour 1/3 C batter for each pancake, topping each with 1 T grated cheese. Cook until golden, then turn and cook the other side. Serve with maple syrup. Yield: 8 to 10 pancakes. *Adapted from “Local Flavors” by Deborah Madison.

Farmers Stew*

3 T olive oil

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

3 thyme sprigs

3 T chopped oregano

8 skinny eggplants

1 1/2 lbs summer squash

2 T tomato paste

1/2 t salt

1/2 C white wine

apple cider vinegar (optional)

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high. Add onions, thyme and oregano; cook, shaking the pan occasionally until onions have wilted. Cut the eggplants into 2-inch lengths; cut the squash into large wedges. Add the eggplant and squash to the pot; continue cooking for about 12 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally. Stir in tomato paste, salt and wine; cover pan and reduce heat to low. Cook for 10 minutes. Add a few drops of vinegar, if desired. Yield: 4 servings.

*Adapted from “Local Flavors” by Deborah Madison.