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.