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The Central Coast, an agricultural oasis, is also a hotbed of literary talent. Stretching from Monterey to Santa Barbara, the region's crops, ranches, and vineyards provide plentiful fodder for food and beverage publications.
This year, notable industry books were published by a handful of local authors -- Lori Rice and Candice Custodio penned cookbooks, while Brigit Binns, Debbie Thomas, and Sean Weir released memoirs, all of which are compelling reads.
In the introduction to The California Farm Table Cookbook: 100 Recipes from the Golden State, author and photographer Lori Rice wrote that "the beauty of and accessibility to the food and drinks we have here will never be lost on me."
"Quite frankly," she continued, "I don't think I'll ever get over it. In December, I browse farmers' market aisles with a skip in my step, asking vendors the names of blood orange varieties. I pull my car off on the side of the road to capture photos of pomegranates and persimmons in the fall. I stop to marvel at trees loaded with lemons. ... I say all this to tell you that what you hold in your hands is the culmination of everything I am passionate about."
Rice's third cookbook -- following Food on Tap: Cooking with Craft Beer and Beer Bread: Brew-Infused Breads, Rolls, Biscuits, Muffins, and More, published in 2017 and 2020, respectively -- takes readers on a statewide journey via profiles, recipes, and beautiful color photographs.
Four of the 40 producers featured in the book are from Santa Barbara County, including Pico Los Alamos, Good Witch Farm in Lompoc, and Winfield Farm in Buellton.
The majority of the 100 recipes, however, were developed by Rice herself, whose vast experience and numerous accolades include nutritional scientist, educator, content creator, and winner of a 2019 food writing award from the International Association of Culinary Professionals.
Her platforms, courses, and regular publications include CreatingYOU, Substack: From Every Corner of the World, Chickens magazine recipe columnist, and Edible San Luis Obispo magazine contributor.
This year, author Sean Weir released a second, expanded edition of his acclaimed 2015 memoir, The Mad Crush: An Obscure California Vineyard and the Quest to Make One Great Wine. Chronicling his experience working Saucelito Canyon's 1995 harvest under the tutelage of renowned winemaker Bill Greenough, the latest version features 30 pages of additional storytelling, as well as a new afterword, cover, and subtitle.
"The Mad Crush is more than a book about winemaking," said Weir, a writer and brand strategist for wineries. "It's an indomitable tale of mentorship, natural history, and the countercultural heritage of California."
The memoir details the fascinating history of Saucelito's zinfandel vineyard, which was planted in 1880 in remote Arroyo Grande Valley, abandoned for decades, then rediscovered and restored by Greenough in 1974.
Weir's second edition marks the 50th anniversary of the family-owned vineyard, which continues to produce potent zinfandel and other wines, with a tasting room in San Luis Obispo.
Purchase a copy online or, better yet, grab one at the tasting room, sample the subject matter, and don't be surprised if you bump into 80-year-old Greenough himself.
Custodio's debut cookbook, The Versatile Chef, offers comfort-food recipes, clever tips for variations and leftovers, and stunning visuals courtesy of Los Angeles photographer Ariette Armella.
In addition to each recipe, "you'll delve into stories of my life that have served as an inspiration for them," wrote the private chef and caterer. "For me, food holds meaning when it evokes memories or forms new ones.
"Whether through the simplicity of a perfectly seasoned tomato soup or the dazzle of a rum cake, this book serves as a tribute to the joy of cooking."
Custodio's cookbook reflects her life experience as founder of Latin dining experience Club SupSup, resident chef at Kindred Oak Farm in Paso Robles, independent chef and instructor for events throughout Southern California, and contestant on the Food Network's Chopped series.
This month and next, catch her cooking at Sagrada Wellness in Santa Margarita for its year-end yoga retreats and at MCV Wines in Templeton on Dec. 11 for her roving supper club. She'll be whipping up a "fun (six-course) Puerto Rican fusion dinner," she said, "and I also have a great lineup for 2025."
Brigit Binns, author of 29 cookbooks, broke her streak this year with her first non-cookbook. The entertaining memoir, Rottenkid: A Succulent Story of Survival, details her dysfunctional upbringing "co-starring her alcoholic actor-father Edward Binns and glamorous but viciously smart, narcissistic mother," as noted on the back cover.
"Growing up as the child of an actor inured me to the knowledge that everything was mutable," she wrote. "There was no commitment, no special occasion, no birthday, nor graduation that could not be canceled in favor of The Work."
On the upside, she experienced hilarious interludes, such as when house guest and actor William Shatner lost his toupee in their pool, leading to the discovery of "a drowned rat."
With "a silver spoon in my mouth and a knife in my back," she reflected, she ultimately sought refuge and found self-worth in the kitchen.
Binns dedicates the book to her "third and final" husband, Casey Biggs -- "the guy who rode in on the white truck."
Biggs, an actor who has appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and several other shows and films, is known locally as the Paso Wine Man, creator of wine-related YouTube videos and member of the Paso Wine Man Band.
Binns will be featured in Cindy Hattersley's Ageless Style Blog in December and is also "hard at work on my next book, which is fiction," she said.
Debbie Thomas, founder and former proprietor of Paso Robles' Thomas Hill Organics, details the thrills and thuds of restaurant ownership in her memoir Fork Me! A Humorous Journey Through the Chaotic World of Restaurant Entrepreneurship.
Abandoning upper management roles at apparel companies including Foot Locker and Adidas, Thomas pursued her passion for locally sourced organic food, turning her Paso property into Thomas Hill Farms.
"What started as the simple planting of field greens, fruits, and nut trees burgeoned into a thriving farm with 900 trees and various row crops," she said.
Her vision snowballed into the launch of her own restaurant in 2009 that "quickly became a beacon of culinary excellence," she continued.
However, after 14 years at the helm of Thomas Hill Organics, Debbie passed the ownership torch to two of her employees and turned to storytelling and exploration.
Thomas currently writes for travel and food publications such as The SOMM Journal.