Wallace - Corked & forked: four seasons of eats & drinks

A lthough every word is mine, I didnt write this book alone.

First and foremost, I must thank Alana Zerbe. In my mind, she is the uncredited co-author of this book. Alana somehow managed to translate my grease-stained notes into exceptionally vivid recipes, coax my occasionally chaotic ideas into manageable prose, and generally keep me on the straight and narrow.

Four others stand out as being instrumental in turning a great idea into an actual book. First is Josh McDonnell, who championed Corked & Forked from the very beginning. The second is Brian Freedman, who inspired me to begin writing. The third is Joy Manning, who risked our longstanding friendship by offering her frank opinion of my first draft. Finally, there is my editor Kristen Green Wiewora, who was my lifeline throughout the publishing process.

There are so many more who helped in ways big and small. There are the brave souls who attended my monthly Corked & Forked cooking classes; my staff at the Wine School of Philadelphia who kept the place running smoothly while I wrote; and my friends whom I callously used as guinea pigs for some of my more extreme culinary ideas.

There are two others I want to acknowledge. Originally, their names were listed at the top of this page, but it was pointed out that they really didnt help with the book at all. In fact, they arent even human: they are my dogs, Rosie and Coco. What can I say? I love them to bits.

E ating and drinking came first. Before we became lawyers or journalists or architects, we were chefs and brewers and winemakers. Every animal eats and drinks, but we prepare meals, and we always have. Way back in some prehistoric cave, our ancestors were roasting meat, brewing grain, and fermenting fruits to nourish the clan.

Suppertime is literally in our DNA.

In our modern world, the magic of a perfect food and beverage pairing is one of the first lessons we learn. It arrives with the first bite of a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie followed by a sip of milk. The flavors sparkle and flicker, then hit something gooey and primal in an ancient corner of the brain. Immediately we think: I want more of that. I MUST HAVE MORE!

The perfect pairing is an irresistible force that begins with little fingers and sippy cups and eventually graduates to forks and corks. While most meals demand beverages a bit more sophisticated than 2% milk, great pairings dont have to be complex: often they are as simple as serving Champagne with potato chips.

Corked & Forked isnt meant to be your typical entertainment guide. The goal is to create great meals in the simplest of ways. The recipes are designed to take advantage of everything a given season has to offer, and the menus work together seamlessly. The dishes are not hard to prepare; most are inspired by the stripped-down recipes I used as a professional chef. Even better, almost all the ingredients are easily found at a local grocery.

The book isnt strictly about cooking either: its about experiencing gustatory epiphanies, preferably with the most important people in your life. That means popping open a bottle or two or twenty. For each dish in this book, I offer a selection of pairings that will throw open the door to the full potential of a meal. This allows you to understand the keys to pairing, and will lay the foundation for discovering lip-smacking synchronicities of your own. To paraphrase Alexis Lichine, if you want to learn about wine or beer or cocktails, grab a corkscrew and use it.

Above all, this book is about experimentation. It might be very pretty, but it was not made to sit politely on a coffee table. It will have a fit if you try to put it on a dusty shelf with other cookbooks. It wants to share an adventure with you. There should be stains on at least a dozen of its pages; illegible notes scrawled in the margins; and a scattering of torn corners.

After all, Corked & Forked is dedicated to a singular and primal act: breaking bread with your clan. Enjoy.

Keith Wallace

SUMMERTIME IS ALL ABOUT FLASH: The glittering flash of a white sail over blue water, the spicy flash of a jalapeo pepper in a crisp salad, the reflected flash of a smile in the rear-view mirror. The days are long and languid, promising glittering moments of white-hot laughter and half-remembered dalliances.

Of course, there will be unhappy moments of either scorching heat or torrential rains. But most days will be just sunshine and blue sky and dinner plans. ITS TIME TO LIVE, EAT, AND DRINK FOR THE MOMENT. Could there be anything better?

Days on end of pure sunshine turn us all into little kids. Its nearly impossible to be taken seriously when wearing flip flops and eating seafood from a bucket. And thats okay, because one of the greatest gifts of summer is the playfulness of its food. Bright colors pop off the dinner plate. FLAVORS SIZZLE AND SING ON THE TONGUE. Farmstands overflow with bright reds and shiny greens. An instantaneous high is delivered just by sinking your teeth into fruits and vegetables that are dripping with ripeness.