Today’s guest has a diverse journey to share: that of being a writer, recipe developer, pastry cook (not chef, cook, because he never ran a pastry department), private chef, cookbook author—and then there’s also a bit of kitchen designer to throw in for good measure.
Fresh out of college, Brian wanted to write for food magazines, and he thought that restaurant experience would help him in that endeavor. So, he worked in France at a bistro-style eatery that served a wide range of foods. He then worked at the Michelin-starred Babbo as a pastry cook in New York.
After that, Brian worked in the kitchens of inns as a private chef and in the fields of farms. He enjoys using and developing different parts of his brain, so he also learned about architecture. Leveraging his artistic ability, he worked on kitchen designs, from traditional to communal. His goal was to put his interests together in a unique way although it didn’t quite work out as he envisioned.
Veering a bit from his path, he began creating digital illustrations, which ultimately led to his interest in fruit-inspired pastry. This twist in Brian’s journey occurred when he ate a mango. (Seriously!) He realized that he wanted to make a dessert that focused on fruits and other natural sugars without actually adding sugar.
He made a mango custard, and the response to this dessert was positive. He then started looking for recipes that used fruit and other naturally sweet ingredients, but he couldn’t find what he was looking for. There were plenty of recipes with reduced or alternative sugars, but none of them matched his vision. He also found recipes that used fruit juice concentrates, but they didn’t have the whole food-based focus he was aiming for.
Through a process of experimenting and researching, he created the recipes he wanted to use, and he shared them in his 2022 book, Good & Sweet. His focus on health played a subconscious role in the development of his recipes and cookbook, a book that the Los Angeles Times calls “one of the best cookbooks of the year.”
Listen to the rest of his story in his own words in our Farming for Health podcast, Iodine, Egg Yolk Enzymes, and Miso.
Past Episodes of our Farming for Health Podcast
If you’ve missed any of our previous episodes, you can find them here:
- Episode One: Keto, Cruciferous Vegetables, Salt and Your Mindset
- Episode Two: Cooking, Conviviality, and Preserving the Harvest
- Episode Three: Ferments, Food Insecurity, and Wasted Food.
- Episode Four: Anti-Cancer Diet, Food as Medicine, and Vegetables.
- Episode Five: Plants, Happiness, and Mindful Neglect.
- Episode Six: Whole 30, Sustainable Habits, and Loving Vegetables.
Stay tuned for more!