How to Build A Kitchen Altar

And a recipe for sweet pea and burrata toast because spring is not so far away.

The beautiful pea toast (recipe is after the paywall)

Hi cheese sluts!

I hope you’re keeping cozy and staying as regulated as you can over there! I spent the last couple weeks in Los Angeles visiting my best friend and searching for a little warmth and respite. We adventured out to the desert where we soaked in hot springs, watched The Traitors over indulgent cheese plates, and spent lazy days on hammocks reading Just Kids by Patti Smith.

We also took a little time for my favorite LA ritual: the farmer’s market. Despite the palpable shadow caused by the devastating wildfires and depressed film industry, the city’s ever present farmer’s markets remain magical and filled with the jewels of the season. We made salads out of perfect blood oranges and gorgeous heads of lettuce and riffed off of this miso sweet potato soup from my favorite restaurant’s cookbook.

A cheese plate made featuring lemon pepper marcona almonds, Contralto from Andante Dairy, tangerines, blackberry jam, olives, Olympia Provisions salami, OG Kristal Gouda, Bobby Sue’s olive nut mix, dried Angeleno plums, honey, and Fourme d’Amberts with pocky sticks and chocolate pretzels.

The hammocks at our very good airbnb.

There’s something reinvigorating about cooking in someone else’s kitchen. I spent the last year pouring over several all-consuming projects, which left me burnt out and resentful of making meals, but cooking in a different space made me realize that I needed to refresh my own. I don’t have the time and energy for a deep clean right now, especially since I’m about to flee Chicago’s cold-snap to visit my snowbird parents in Florida, so I decided to reset by refreshing my kitchen altar.

I did not take pictures of the salad or the soup, but here’s the shot from The Lula Cafe Cookbook.

Maybe you also need a little grounding, beauty, and joy in your day-to-day life, and a kitchen altar will do just that. Think of it like an energetic spring cleaning to prepare you for the season ahead as winter draws to a close. It’s an easy creative act that will make kitchen chores more enjoyable and nourishing.

Below I’ve included a step-by-step guide on setting up your own kitchen altar and a recipe for sweet pea toast with burrata for a little taste of spring. I hope these offerings bring you a much-needed dose of dopamine.

Cheesus bless!

XO

Erika