A Rising Star Comes to Ojai: Profile of Chef Michael Otsuka
Eating What's in Season: A Community Challenge
The Changing Face of the East End
For The Love of Lavender: A Profile of Sandy Messori of Rivendell Aromatics

A RISING STAR COMES TO OJAI:
Profile of Chef Michael Otsuka

By Tracey Ryder

Spending time with Michael Otsuka, newly hired executive chef at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, feels more like spending time in the presence of a seasoned Zen master than a young, sophisticated chef with first-rate credentials. Easy-mannered and entirely accessible, this chef lacks the over-ramped ego and pretentiousness many of his contemporaries display. Instead, he is grounded, thoughtful, kind and focused.

Upon graduation from high school, guided by a nudge from a friend's mother who noticed his passion for cooking and the restaurant business, Otsuka made some fortunate connections. He trained early on with several prominent California chefs, including Joachim Splichal and Claude Segal, both of whom influenced him greatly. Other influences came from his family's culinary roots and cultural heritage. The son of a Japanese-American father and a Viennese Jewish immigrant mother who died when he was 10, Michael spent time in the kitchen with his paternal grandmother who cooked traditional Japanese dishes. He always loved his grandmother's cooking even as a child, and today appreciates having been introduced to Japanese cooking at an early age.

During the 1990s, Otsuka was the executive chef at the Pan Pacific Hotel in San Francisco, and was awarded a three-star rating by the San Francisco Examiner. He also held positions of executive chef and chef de cuisine at noted Los Angeles restaurants including Chasen's, Pinot Bistro and Patina, and was nominated by the James Beard Foundation as one of five rising star chefs in the country.

After his initial tenure in American restaurant kitchens, Michael headed to France where he furthered his culinary education with such masters as Michel Bras and Jacques Maximin. "Michel [Bras] had a big influence on me. He lives on this mountain in France and we would go out jogging in the morning. He would pick a wild herb from the side of the road and rub it into his hand and have me smell it-take in the fragrance of it. Later on, in the restaurant, that herb would end up in a dish and it would transport you with its smell," says Otsuka with a quiet excitement in his voice. "That is why today I would infuse a sauce or polenta with something like wild black sage-it is one of those things that transport you outdoors, no matter where you are."

In 2001, Michael joined his wife, Diane Forley at Verbena, the New York City restaurant she had been running for seven years; together they collaborated on perfecting their vision of what critics called "a contemporary approach to fine dining in a relaxed atmosphere." Diane Forley, a prominent chef in her own right, is the author of Anatomy of a Dish, a stunningly beautiful and innovative cookbook that looks at foods through the lens of their botanical family trees. She plans to bring this interest in botany to the gardens of the Inn as well, where she will work as a consultant once she and the couple's daughter, Olivia, get settled into Ojai.

In his role as executive chef, Otsuka will be in charge of the Inn's five restaurants, as well as all room service and banquet facilities. His other responsibilities will include the recruitment and training of staff, restaurant development, synthesizing each of these food service departments into a unified core program and creating menus. Once the property's major renovation is over and the restaurants are up and running, Otsuka hopes to include time in his days for other culinary interests such as researching new products and teaching cooking classes.

"Our overall food philosophy," says Merrill Williams, Public Relations Director for the Inn, "is to focus on the terroir-the sense of place that is specific to Ojai. We want to acknowledge the authenticity of each of the local ingredients we use-to acknowledge that they each have their own flavor."

Otsuka shares this philosophy whole heartedly. In fact, the California native has already been eying the wild watercress that grows in a stream along the 13th hole of the Inn's golf course. "What about a 13th Hole Watercress Salad on the menu?" he asks, with a smile that let's you know he's only half kidding. Other local ingredients Otsuka intends to use are fish, fowl, vegetables and some of the herbs grown on the property that can be distilled on site and used for culinary purposes-in sauces and desserts.

Otsuka's mentor, Michel Bras, has said: "What matters is to be who you are, without cheating." It's obvious this attitude informs Otsuka's sensibilities on a deep level as well.
Proving his commitment to honest, authentic food, Otsuka pauses while he carefully considers whom he would most like to eat a meal with if the options were limitless: "I would love to sit down with the grandmother of an Indian, Thai or Chinese person…from a family with a rich history of food. Yes, that's it. I would like their old, family-style food with all the unfamiliar flavors…and an interpreter." Let us all hope that with his sincere appreciation for home cooking, paired with exquisite skill and culinary vision, Michael Otsuka calls Ojai home for a long time to come.

Editor's Note: Restaurants at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa are scheduled to begin reopening around mid-June. Visit www.ojairesort.com for more information, or call (800) 422-6524. You can read a profile on Michael Otsuka's wife, Diane Forley, in the summer issue of Edible Ojai.

EATING WHAT'S IN SEASON: A COMMUNITY CHALLENGE

Story by Steve Fields, Recipes by Sims Brannon

A few months ago, in the dead of winter, a food magazine arrived in the mailbox that launched me into a tirade. On the cover was a dish that featured tomatoes and eggplant. This was supposed to be comfort food for a cold, snowy day? How could a reputable food magazine propose preparing such an entrée when the main ingredients were so far out of season?

The answer sadly is that we no longer think about what fruits or vegetables are in season. Supermarkets now offer nearly every produce item all year long. Most people probably didn't even bat an eye at the cover of the food magazine. They knew that they could drive down to their local market and pick up all of the ingredients listed.

As a result of this lack of awareness, consumers have completely lost touch with the wonder of eating produce at the peak of freshness. In order to indulge the "luxury" of having every type of produce available throughout the year, we now are offered items that are grown thousands of miles away and often harvested when they are unripe so that they can survive the journey. Or we get produce that has been stored for months in suspended animation in giant refrigerated warehouses.

Of course, neither answer will result in a high quality product. Oh, don't get me wrong, the produce will look beautiful-probably perfect-but I bet you every one of those fruits and vegetables that are out of season will suffer in taste, texture, and nutritional value.
The answer is really simple. We should as a community say that we will only eat what is in season. I issue this challenge. And I am here to help with information about what items to look for and recipes and guides to help in the kitchen.

But first, it is important to recap why it is so important to eat local, seasonal produce:
o Save Energy-Think of the enormous amount of wasted oil, electricity, manpower, and other resources it takes to get a box of berries from Chile so that you can have them in January. And then when you get them, they clearly aren't as sweet and juicy as the ones you get in the summer that are grown nearby and haven't been stored or shipped thousands of miles.

Savor Unique Varieties - Industrial farmers have developed varieties of fruits and vegetables for their looks and their ability to be stored for long periods of time and shipped long distances. They don't pay any attention to taste. Many long-time favorites have fallen by the wayside because they don't look perfect or store or travel well. But if you focus your purchases on what is in season, you can still find these wonders in farmers markets or at some local stores.

Get More Nutritional Value - Nearly all fruits and vegetables have the most nutritional value when they are harvested at the peak of ripeness. That is why nature made them taste the best at that moment. Immature fruits and vegetables that have been gassed to speed up the ripening process don't have all of the natural goodness that would be found with field ripened produce.

Save Money - Almost always, you will find the cheapest price for a fruit or vegetable when it is in its prime season. That is when it is most plentiful and the laws of supply and demand helps drive down the price. Compare the price of out of season corn or berries or tomatoes to those you would find during the heart of their seasons.

We in Ojai are blessed to have wonderful local, seasonal options available all year long. It really isn't hard or too restricting to focus on what is seasonal. But, it does require a change in mindset.

First, go to the farmers' market on Sundays. The best and freshest produce is there, ripe for the picking.

Second, go to the market with an open mind, not a preconceived menu. All traditional cooks in France or Italy (or really everywhere else throughout the world) pick the produce at the market that is at the peak of the season. Then they develop menus to incorporate those items.

Third, ask the farmers at the farmers market for suggestions of what is best that week. They know what conditions favor individual crops and will be happy to guide you in making a selection.

Fourth, have some general knowledge of what is in season. Even in California, there are clear seasons, although they sometimes blur a bit at edges. Springtime, for example, starts out with a huge variety of vegetables that like relatively cool weather, such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, chard, and peas. It is also the prime time for more exotic items like asparagus, artichokes, radicchio, fava beans, rapini, and green garlic. For fruits, it is still the time for many citrus varieties, especially our beloved Pixie tangerines. And despite what is being preached by some local growers, spring into summer is the peak time for strawberries.

Spring is not the time for tomatoes, eggplants, peaches, or plums. You may find these, even at the farmers' market, but they will not taste like those you will have later in the summer. Wait, you will be glad that you did.

So, I challenge all of us. Focus on what is in season. Don't be tempted by looks. You will enjoy your food more. You will be eating better. And you might even save some money. What more could you ask for?

THE CHANGING FACE OF THE EAST END

By Emily Thacher

A lot of folks know that Chumash Indians previously inhabited Ojai and some may even know what the first major agricultural crops in Ojai were. But I would venture to guess that a majority of the people who have lived in, visited, or currently reside in our valley have not thought much about the transformation of Ojai from a sage-filled, rocky, Chumash-inhabited valley to the orchard filled valley that it is today.

A mere 130 years ago there was not a whole lot in this valley in terms of structures, roads, pipelines, people or agriculture. I won't delve into the history of Chumash Indians and their food supply, a story that someone else would be more adept at telling than I. Things in this valley began to change in the late 1800s, those who settled here began to transform the Ojai Valley into an agricultural valley. It was not an easy task.

In the mid 1880s the U.S. government opened much of the Ojai Valley to homesteading. People came to Ojai for various reasons, a majority coming from the east seeking a better life, others gave up looking for gold, and some simply had a yearning for a better climate. Settling in a new area wasn't easy. Nowadays many people think that Ojai is a wonderful place because it is somewhat isolated. Imagine how it must have been when the only connections to the rest of the world were horse trails to Ventura and over the mountains towards the great Central Valley. It would have taken a half-day to ride to reach Ventura. Aside from being removed from society there were many unknowns about settling in a new spot. How would the winters be? Was the soil okay to farm? Which crops would do well? And most importantly, where was there water and how could it be obtained?

In the late 1800s there were quite a few farms in California, although they were rather different from farms in this day and age. Settlers grew what they had experience growing and what those before them had had success with farming in the region. Cattle had a long history in California, so hay, grains and cattle were prominent as well as sheep. All of these could be dry farmed, a very important attribute as the limiting factor to living and farming in southern California was, and still is, water availability. Families of Ojai's settlers also farmed for household use and consumption, fruits and vegetables as well as hogs, chickens, and horses were raised. The first tree crops in Ojai included olives, apricots and almonds, requiring minimal water. Sites with available water were planted to crops that needed it, such as citrus, which was planted in small amounts as early as the 1860s. As accessibility to water was gained, the farming of crops needing it increased. But before being able to plant anything the land had to be cleared.

Not many of us know what clearing land entails. Can you imagine taking an acre, cutting the trees down, removing the sage and scrub brush, moving the rocks aside, flattening the land and then trying to plant into soil you didn't know anything about? The labor force doing this in Ojai changed the face of the Ojai Valley. Ojai is a river valley, seasonal streams flow through the east end, draining the steep mountains to the north, taking the silt and sand to the sea and leaving the rocks behind. These rocks had to be moved in order to make flatland for homes, orchards and in less rocky spots, room for the tines of plows to move through. Ojai's East End is cross-crossed by evidence of many years of rock moving, the rock walls. These walls often delineate properties and were used as trash piles before trash service was available. As the land was worked and reworked new rocks appeared and were piled atop the walls. In this way the walls have continually gained rocks and grown into quite sizeable structures of the valley. Rock piling for Ojai farmers is a constant. My grandfather used to say that he had moved every rock in this valley at least twice. Anyone who has tried to clear all the rocks from a spot in Ojai knows what he was talking about and how much work has gone into clearing the Valley to make way for crops!

Once the land was cleared and farming underway, the settling families began to recognize the potential for selling their crops to the growing population in the west. Concerted efforts to sell crops outside the valley started as early as 1860. Transporting agricultural commodities from Ojai to the rest of the world is still not an easy task; there is no consistent direct transport to railways or wholesale markets. Now imagine how it was before there was a paved road, cardboard boxes or refrigeration. Roads had to be built. There are still signs of the builders of Ojai's roads, literally; McAndrew Road, Mercer Avenue, Thacher Road, Carne (pronounced Carn, not like the Spanish word for meat) Road, Fordyce Road, Tico Road and others. Most roads in this valley are the last names of the people that settled the land and built the roads in order to access their parcels and transport their agricultural commodities out of Ojai.

One of the first crops in Ojai to leave the valley was citrus. Settlers began to plant Valencia oranges in the valley in earnest in the 1880s. Each farmer had to pick and pack his own oranges and haul them by horse and wagon to the pier in Ventura where they were usually transported to the Bay Area. Oranges were individually wrapped in tissue paper and packed into wooden crates, which were nailed by hand. It must have taken several men a long day's work to pick and pack a load of oranges, then an entire day to transport the load to Ventura and return. Things became easier in 1908 when the Ojai Orange Association was formed and a railroad line from Ventura to the end of Bryant Street in Ojai was built. (The Ojai Bike Trail follows the route that the railroad tracks once did).

The success of oranges in Ojai, as well as the wonderful climate attracted more people and the population of the Valley has been growing since. Until very recently agriculture has changed little in the valley and has been dominated by Valencia and Navel oranges. Those who are working the land now have fewer impediments in terms of having to clear the land and accessing water and transportation compared to those that farmed 100 years ago. Hindrances to today's Ojai farmers are mainly economic and regulatory. A farmer today would never be allowed to enter a pristine sage-filled valley and level it and crisscross it with rock walls and roads. Those of us farming in Ojai and those who enjoy the fruits of the valley should be thankful that that work was done for us.

There are only a handful of people left in Ojai who have lived through the transformation of the valley from sagebrush to orchard, but they are out there and they have interesting stories to tell. These people have lived in Ojai throughout their lives, are well past retirement age and are still lucky to live on the land that they or their families transformed into the beautiful agricultural valley that Ojai is. If you have been reading past issues of Edible Ojai you will have heard change is again afoot in Ojai. Valencia orange farming in California is on a rapid decline, resulting in the swift removal of orchards in Ojai and the Santa Clara Valley. As a fourth generation Ojai citrus farmer it is hard for me to accept that the hard work of my ancestors is literally being torn out. It is even tougher for those members of our community that have worked their entire lives as citrus farmers. Yet even if all the orchards go, we still have some things those hard workers left for us; they cleared our land, moved some rocks, built our roads and in turn made money off the land that fed the mouths and economy of this valley for many decades.

So next time you take a drive or stroll in the East End, think of the amount of work that went into transforming this valley into what it is today. Look at those rock walls and consider the amount of human effort that was spent in moving the rocks to build them. Consider the thousands of trees that have been planted and replanted across the valley and the work it took to build the roads to transport their fruit. Most of this work was done by hand; much of it orchestrated by people whose last names you know by looking at their names on road signs. People whose goal it was to farm, to feed people, to ship a great orange or apricot and make the long haul to get it to the consumer. If you know any long-time Ojai residents take a moment to ask them about how the valley was when they were young, learn from them. There are still a few farming families left in the Ojai Valley whose sole income comes from growing food, their lives are being changed as is the face of Ojai's agricultural landscape. I ask you to take the time to inquire about these changes, the transformation of this valley will not only affect the scenery but your food supply, the history of this valley and the lives of those that live here.

FOR THE LOVE OF LAVENDER:
A Profile of Sandy Messori of Rivendell Aromatics

By Tracey Ryder

It's a gorgeous spring morning when I meet up with Sandy and Roland Messori at Rivendell, their 40+-acre ranch of avocados, lavender, cherimoya, and other fruits and herbs, that is situated on a ridge along the Casitas Pass between Ojai and Santa Barbara. Today's visit is because of the lavender. I park my car in front of the garage and head toward the house. I'm immediately overwhelmed by the pungent lavender fragrance that seems to be coming from every direction, although the actual plants are not even in bloom this time of year.

Roland Messori greets me at the front door, along with another giant waft of lavender fragrance. We move into the house, toward Sandy, who invites us all to sit at their dining room table and I can't help but stare at the jaw-dropping view of the ocean, well off in the distance, yet perfectly framed by their dining room window. Between the dazzling view and the lavender-infused air I'm breathing, I begin to understand the real meaning of the words breath taking. Just when I think I have regained control of my senses, Roland offers me a bite of a perfectly ripe cherimoya (commonly known as a custard apple) and another sensory overload signal goes off in my brain. Focus. Ask questions. Take notes. Appear intelligent.

I somehow regain consciousness enough to listen to what Sandy is telling me. "It was Roland's sister-in-law who introduced me to herbs, she says. I went to an Italian class she was teaching and she offered me some fresh mint tea. It was so delicious, I couldn't believe it. I had just graduated from Cal Poly and was propagating bedding plants. But after the mint tea, I was really hooked on herbs."

A trip to Rome in 1980 only reinforced Sandy's love of herbs. She adds: "In Europe, people use herbs medicinally more than they do here. They are just part of life. Everyone uses them." Upon returning from that trip, Sandy says she looked for something she loved and that was still a bit unusual to grow, which is why she gravitated toward lavender. Here, Roland smiles and rolls his eyes at how a few dozen plants have turned into a few thousand plants over the years: "She buys them and I plant them. That's how it is around here." This remark sends Sandy into laughter as well and I get a glimpse of the spark that has kept this pair together for so many years.

Sandy and Roland married in 1978, each with degrees from Cal Poly-his in Agricultural Engineering, hers in Ornamental Horticulture. They have one child, a son Tyson, who is currently studying Italian art and history in Italy for a semester before he comes back and heads off to carry on the family's Cal Poly tradition. In fact, the Messori's will all be together in Italy this April when they meet up with Tyson and some of the other members of Roland's large, extended Italian family.

For Sandy, working full time in a career that keeps her surrounded by incredible fragrance and beauty has proven rewarding over the years. She has been selling her products at local Farmers' Markets since the early 1980s, and also held a job in landscape management at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa from the mid-1980s until 2000. She was instrumental in designing and buying plants for their gardens and created the labyrinth that guests still enjoy today. She left the Inn four years ago to pursue her own business, Rivendell Aromatics, full time and it seems she made the right decision. "This work is rewarding and it's a wonderful lifestyle-the best there is. It can provide you a decent income too, but you have to understand that you'll be working for fifty to sixty hours a week for it," she says without a tinge of regret in her voice.

With a deep encyclopedic knowledge of lavender, Sandy's decades of experience with the herb shines through as she launches into a list of lavender varieties-in both Latin and English-and then explains the features and characteristics of each. She is scientific in her approach yet tells their stories in terms of their unique personalities: "Buena Vista is a new one I like. I'm trying it out because if its intense fragrance and because when it dries the flowers stay a dark, dark blue. Then there's Alba, it's white; and Provence, which a lot of people like to grow." She continues on with to say that lavenders which were traditionally grown at higher altitudes are the ones largely grown for their perfume, while those grown at lower elevations were more medicinal in use. Now, there are intermediate lavenders that blend both characteristics, such as grosso, which is becoming a very popular variety since it produces lots of oil, is a vigorous grower and resists disease.

The list of Rivendell Aromatic's products is impressive as well: sachets, handmade soaps with essential oils, comfort pillows, dried lavender bundles, wreaths and wands, scented beeswax candles, jars of culinary lavender and even a line of greeting cards. And although growing and creating your own lavender products might sound like a wonderfully romantic idea, Sandy cautions the novice grower: "prepare the soil properly, keep the plants weeded, don't over water." It seems simple enough but Sandy has seen her share of lavender failures. The good news for those who still want to give it a try is that Sandy has a generous nature and will probably be willing to share a tip or two. But please, ask her before you start.

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