sausalito cooking school, with recipes

Cooking school director Kelsie Kerr is a former chef at Chez Panisse, the restaurant owned by sustainable-food advocate Alice Waters. Kelsie has co-authored four books with Waters.

Classes cover heirloom produce and the triumvirate of chef, farmer, and vintner. "The opportunity to provide an empowering (and delicious) culinary experience and introduce people to our network of local producers marries what is most important to me," Kelsie says. Her day starts at the San Rafael market, a bustling hodgepodge of colors, fragrances, and tastes where home cooks and local chefs banter with farmers who are experts in organics. For tonight's menu, Kelsie gathers shelling beans for ragout, plump fresh figs, curly frisée, escarole, and just-ripe pears.

Recipes begin here.