Yossy Arefi - Sweeter off the Vine: Fruit Desserts for Every Season

Blackberries grow like weeds in the Pacific Northwest, and when I was a kid, my family picked the blackberries from the bushes behind an elementary school near our house every summer. My parents taught my brother and me to only pick the berries that slid easily from their stems to collect in our little plastic containers, and Im pretty sure we ate all of the berries that we picked, staining our fingers and faces while leaving the majority of the actual collecting to the adults. When we got home, my mom would make a simple jam in our largest pot, with just blackberries and sugar.

My parents also loved to garden, and when we moved into a house with a yard, my dad built garden beds out of old railroad ties and filled them with fruit and vegetable plants. My mom planted an entire bed full of raspberry canes that looked like dried-up sticks; when they grew up tall and strong, they produced the most gorgeous berries. We picked them by the fistful every July and we turned our harvest into preserves and piesand snacks, of course. I would stand in the kitchen and help my mom fill pies with mounds of fresh berries, sugar, and a bit of spice; we rarely measured, but the results were always delicious. She would bake up little scraps of pie crust sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar for me to snack on while the pies took what seemed like an eternity to cool on the counter.

The kitchen in our home was always busy and warm, and my dad cooked just as often, mostly savory dishes from his homeland of Iran. He introduced me to the flavors of Middle Eastern cooking that have become so comforting to me as an adult. But maybe more importantly, his cooking taught me how important it is to balance flavors in both sweet and savory food. In Iranian cooking, rich meat stews are tempered with cool, tart yogurt mixed with cucumbers and mint, and all sorts of pickled vegetables. Bitter tea is served with sweet dates and saffron candy.

When I moved to New York from Seattle, I thought I might go to culinary school to hone my home-cooking skills into professional ones, but after graduating college with a mountain of debt, taking on more to go to culinary school seemed like the wrong choice. Instead, I decided to get a job at a restaurant and figure out a way to get myself into the kitchen. I quickly found myself a job as a reservationist for a busy chain of teahouses, where I spent most of my time consoling frustrated customers who couldnt get the brunch reservation they wanted. It wasnt exactly the professional restaurant experience I was looking for.

I still baked at home for fun and leisure, and every once in a while Id bring in the treats I made to share with my coworkers and boss. When a position in the bakery of the restaurant opened up, I convinced my boss that I could handle the kitchen (anything was better than answering the phone all day!) and pick up the skills I needed on the job. He gave me a chance.

That chance turned into many years of apron- and clog-clad early mornings making scones and icing cakes, and of coming home from work smelling sweet and floury. I had burns all over my arms from the broken oven doors that swung closed unexpectedly, but I was strong from lugging around fifty-pound bags of sugar and cases of butter. I learned how to make the best buttery pie crusts and tall, frosting-covered layer cakes. I loved the work. Sometimes I miss those early morning walks across a quiet Central Park to bake hundreds of scones before the city even woke up. There was magic in those hours, and even though I dont work as a baker anymore, I have returned to baking at home for fun, and I share it all on my blog, Apt. 2B Baking Co., which celebrates seasonal desserts and preserves.

Although my current life in Brooklyn involves a garden of a few potted tomato plants and herbs on my fire escape, I make sure to embrace the seasons at my local farmers market. Im always looking for new, interesting dishes to cook and bake, but what I love most is reflecting seasonality through the ingredients I use, all while keeping the idea of balanced flavors in mind. I eagerly anticipate rhubarb in the spring, berries and stone fruit in the summer, apples and squash in the fall, and glorious citrus to brighten up cold East Coast winters. Then I celebrate the seasons finest produce by tucking it into pies, cakes, and whatever else I can dream up and I also preserve the season with my own homemade jams. This book is filled with just those types of recipes.