Editor: Laura Dozier
Designer: Erin Gleeson
Production Manager: Denise LaCongo
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018958266
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3812-8
eISBN: 978-1-68335-651-6
B&N Edition: 978-1-4197-4440-2
Text copyright 2019 Erin Gleeson
Illustrations/photographs copyright 2019 Erin Gleeson
Photographs on pages (2nd row, 2nd from left)
by Meckenzie Behr
Photograph on (top right) by Ryan Gleeson
Photograph on by Ethan Prosnit
Photograph on by Jim Prosnit
Photographs on pages (bottom right),
by Jodie Porges
Photographs on pages
(bottom right), (bottom
right) by Jonathan Prosnit
Photos on pages are of the regulated zone of Park Gell and
have been taken and published with consent from Barcelona Serveis
Municipals, SA and the Barcelona City Council.
Cover 2019 Abrams
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In the fall of 2017, my family and I set off for a journey through Spain, Italy, France, and
Portugal. Its a privilege to be able to travel at all, but to be able to take three months off
and go to Europe was a dream. My husband Jonathan had a sabbatical from work, and as an
artist and author I am lucky to have a flexible schedule. Our kids are not in school yet, so
we decided it would be the perfect time to do an extended trip.
We chose these destinations because I wanted to do recipe research for a Mediterranean-style
cookbook I had been dreaming about. Even though the recipes in my previous books have a
strong California influence, my style of cooking in general could be considered Mediterra-
nean. Still, I was interested in learning more and tasting regional dishes in select parts
of the Mediterranean firsthand
everything from tapas in Barcelona to pesto in Genoa.
During the trip, we visited countless restaurants and markets and I took endless notes and
photos. And then after returning home, I set out to re-create my own vegetarian versions of
the food we experienced on the trip, the best of which are featured in this book. While not
necessarily authentic to each region we visited, the recipes in the pages that follow are
inspired by the local dishes and ingredients we saw.
I was twenty-five when I met Jonathan, and after just a few months of dating, we took a big
trip around Central America together. We found that we traveled well together and havent
really stopped since. But for this trip, with the luxury of time on our side, we realized
that this adventure offered us a unique opportunity. We had the chance to really soak up
a lifestyle far removed from our day-to-day and seek out inspiration for where our lives
should go next. Its hard to believe its been seven years since we moved from New York
City to the woods of California, and in a way, we have missed city life. We miss walking
everywhere, public transportation, and the rich culture that urban life offers. The cabin
where we live, with its magical outdoor forest light, has been an amazing influence on my
work and helped me produce three books, but I was ready for new inspiration.
I love to eat tapas-style, tasting many different flavors in a single meal, so Spain seemed
like a natural place to start our trip, and the fact that Jonathan speaks Spanish was a
bonus! I studied art for a year in Italy and also wanted to go back there (mostly for the
gelato and pasta). Id traveled a lot in Italy, but not much in Sicily, so we added it to the
itinerary and I got to practice my rusty Italian. We couldnt pass up a stop on the stunning
French Cte dAzur en route to Italy, so we spent a week in Antibes. And for years wed been
wanting to visit Portugal, so we allotted about a month there. In three months, we visited
four countries (five if you count a brief drive through Monaco), took six flights, rented four
cars, took countless trains, and stayed in eleven different Airbnbs. Initially I was wary of
moving around that much, but in the end, I wouldnt want to skip any part of it.