From the kitchen window, I heard the companionable sounds of my pre-schooler Claire and her best friend playing in the sandbox. Their relationship could be tumultuous, so any time they got along was a little blessing. I was making dinner—I don’t remember the meal, but I remember the era. It could have been anything from eggplant parmesan (the year we went vegetarian) to stuffed pork chops (the year we raised a pig).
I reached for seasonings, but the cupboard was bare. I found the empty tins in the sandbox with the little girls. Mixing the spices with sand and water from the hose, they’d created an “experiment cake,” a forerunner of many Claire would taste and test throughout her childhood as she discovered her love of baking.
In high school, she worked at the Bovine Bakery and spent four summers making desserts at a dude ranch. After college, she was pastry chef at Chez Panisse, then moved to London, starting a small business selling cupcakes at a traditional outdoor market. She opened her own bakery in 2005. The Violet Bakery Cookbook is just out in the United States, and she’ll be talking about it with journalist and food writer Tanya Henry on Saturday, Oct. 17, at Sir and Star’s historic Olema Schoolhouse. Seasonal cakes and savory treats from the new book (No sand. Guaranteed.) will be served with English tea, champagne, and delicious stories about food, foraging, and Claire’s baking mentors.
It will be the first event at the schoolhouse, and it’s a benefit for the Point Reyes Farmers Market, presented by Point Reyes Books. Tickets at ptreyesbooks.com.