Mother's Day with The Cook's Warehouse

Mother’s Day has a way of reminding me that the nicest things in the kitchen are often the simplest ones: a beautiful bottle of olive oil, fresh seasonal produce from the local farmer’s markets, and time together around the table.

When my mom comes to town, one of the first places we go is The Cook’s Warehouse. My daughter loves it too. There’s something about walking through a store full of tools, gadgets, cookware and beautiful dishes that makes you want to cook immediately.

One ingredient that you’ll always find in my kitchen is Liá olive oil from Messinia, Greece, made by my friend Christina Stribacu. The artwork on the bottle, inspired by her mother, Mama Constantina, symbolically depicts the transition of the original grove of 19 trees to its current size, boasting more than 3,000 trees! This simple white bottle reminds us that the best food traditions are passed lovingly from one generation to the next.

After years spent working with olive oils from producers around the world, I’ve learned that the best ones don’t complicate cooking, they make the simplest dishes taste extraordinary. I use Liá in my kitchen over greens, roasted vegetables, tossed with pasta, or drizzled over grilled fish and meats. Liá. Sometimes all you really need is good olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, and a pinch of Maldon salt.

One of my favorite ways to serve olive oil is in a small Spanish terracotta cazuela that lives permanently in my kitchen. It’s perfect for setting a little pool of olive oil on the table with warm bread, but it is brilliant to prepare simple tapas. Gulf shrimp and sliced garlic gently sizzling in olive oil is about as good as it gets, prepared and served right on the table in my casual. If I close my eyes for a minute I am transported to the bar at Casa Alberto in Madrid, a place I recommend and return to often.

I’m also devoted to a few simple tools that make cooking easier: a Dreamfarm Fluicer to juice my lemons, a bench scraper for prep, and a stack of Euroscrubbies to make the cleanup afterward a breeze.

Cookbooks are always at the top of my wish list. I love learning about my favorite chefs and reading about their upbringing and back-stories. Lately I’ve been cooking my way through Chef Duane Nutter’s, Cutting it Up in the Kitchen which was a recent recommendation by Slow Food Atlanta’s Cook Book Club. One recipe I keep returning to is his garlic oil, simple, fragrant, and endlessly useful. Drizzle it over that Gulf shrimp ajillo we were just talking about for extra oomph, or over fish or grilled veggies. Add a pinch of Kosher salt and a touch of lemon sumac from another of my favorite purveyor’s, Burlap and Barrel. These spices deserve a place in your pantry. Their spices, from small farmers, make even the simplest dishes shine.

In the end, the best celebrations are rarely elaborate. What most moms really want is a little more time with you. That's about as simple as it gets.

So keep it light. Keep it easy. Keep it delicious.

Olive you, Mom! 
Lori Jean Levy, My Global Table

This article was originally written for The Cook's Warehouse.