Jonathan Gold; LA Community Garden; Cookies; Grass-Fed Meat

Jonathan Gold is a food writer for the LA Weekly and Gourmet Magazine. He spoke about::

Golden Sheep, which specializes in barbacoa

2403 Whittier Blvd

East LA

Emily Greene is an LA Times staff writer. She spoke about the LA Food Bank's 14 acre community garden at 41st St and Alameda in downtown Los Angeles.

If you'd like to weigh in on the proposed demolition of this garden, you can write to your councilperson.

Corby Kummer is a writer for The Atlantic magazine. He is also the author of The Pleasures of Slow Food. Here's his article on grass-fed beef.

Sources include:

Lasater brisket and other cuts can be ordered online or at 866-454-2333

Tom Gamble and Bill Davies's fajita strips and fancier cuts, 707-963-6134

Information for ordering Pasture Perfect steaks and other cuts, and also on grasslands farming as practiced by members of the

New England Livestock Alliance, 413-528-3767

Go to

EatWild.com to find grass-fed meat in your Area

Corby Kummer's Mom's Brisket Recipe

• Medium brisket

• Ac'cent (optional)

• Olive oil to coat pan

• 1 or 2 medium onions, chopped

• 2 or 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced

• 1 large tomato, skinned, seeded, and chopped

• 1 bell pepper, peeled, ribbed, and sliced

• 1 medium clove of garlic, peeled and minced

• 2 cups of water or stock

• 1 cup button mushrooms

• 1/4 to 1/2 cup red wine

• 1/2 tsp of Gravy Master

For my family's recipe, season both sides of a medium brisket-Lasater's are just the right size, three to five pounds, and well trimmed-with salt, pepper, paprika, and, if you truly want to revisit the sixties, Ac'cent.

Heat the oven to 350-F. In an uncovered heavy Dutch oven sear the meat fat side down over medium-high heat in a film of hot olive oil. Turn it when it is quite brown and remove as much fat as possible.

Strew onions, carrots, tomato, bell pepper (green for period authenticity, though I prefer red); and garlic over the meat. Add water or stock (my stepmother makes fresh, unsalted chicken stock for this dish). Cover and cook in the oven for 3-1/2 hours.

After two hours, add potatoes if you wish, being careful not to crowd the pot lest they steam rather than roast. An hour later add mushrooms (my mother used canned sliced mushrooms, drained-a practice my stepmother follows despite her Californian emphasis on freshness), red wine and Gravy Master. When the pot liquor is skimmed, it makes an incomparable gravy for a dish that will ever withstand the test of time.

Tip

You can omit the Ac'cent, of course, now that we know about MSG headache, and water is fine in place of stock. But you should really add the Gravy Master.

Clemence Gossett is the owner/baker of Malcolm's Munchies. Her bakery is opening soon on Venice Blvd, near Venice High School. Until then, you can find Malcolm's Munchies at Velocity Caf- (2127 Lincoln Blvd in Santa Monica) or order her cookies, cheesecakes, brownies and bars by phone at 310-382-4692 or MalcolmsMunchies@yahoo.com.

Toffee Cranberry Cookies

• 1/2 lb butter

• 1 1/2 cups sugar

• 3 medium eggs

• 3/4 cup toffee chips (homemade or store-bought)

• 2 cups oatmeal (not quick-cooking)

• 1 1/2 cups flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 2 tsps baking powder

Cream butter and sugar in a mixer. Add eggs, one at a time. When mixture is smooth, add toffee chips. Mix in oatmeal, flour, baking soda and baking powder. Drop tablespoons of dough onto parchment-paper lined un-greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350oF for 10 minutes, or until sides are golden brown.

Blueberry Muffins

• 1/3 lb butter

• 1 3/4 cups turbinado sugar

• 3 large eggs

• 3/4 cup buttermilk

• 2 cups flour

• 2 tsps baking powder

• 2 cups wild blueberries

Cream butter with sugar in a mixer with the paddle attachment. Add eggs and mix until smooth, then add buttermilk. In a large mixing bowl, mix the wet ingredients with flour and baking powder, until just combined. Add blueberries. Drop with ice cream scoop into baking-cup lined muffin pans and bake for 35 minutes in a 375oF oven.

Tips:

Don't use vanilla as it takes away from other flavors.

Don't melt butter when making muffins. Creaming the butter makes them fluffier.

Luisa del Giudice is the Director of the Italian Oral History Project at UCLA. Luisa will be giving a talk at the Downtown Central Library for the Culinary Historical Society on March 13 at 10:30am. She will talk about the St. Joseph's Day tables and feeding the poor in Los Angeles.

St. Joseph's Day is celebrated on March 19. Public St. Joseph's Day Tables are on display from March 17-19 at:

Casa Italiana

1051 N. Broadway

Los Angeles