Real Cooks from the big city find all they need in Walla Walla
You don’t have to be a seasoned chef to make an impact with food. Every day in kitchens across the country, Real Cooks create extraordinary meals for some very special guests: their own friends and family.
Through the years, Susan Newton’s busy career has kept her away from a lot of meals at home with her husband, Jim (and cherished golden retrievers). After returning from one of her whirlwind business trips, you’d think the last thing she’d want to think about was making dinner — but you’d be wrong.
“I was always on the road so much that I loved coming home to cook with Jim,” says Newton, who was born and raised in the Bronx in New York City. “I didn’t care about going out, and I loved that we could entertain at home. There’s not a thing I would rather do than cook with Jim and entertain friends.”
While her organizational consulting business continues to keep her running, she’s (thankfully) finding more time to spend in the kitchen these days. Having lived in New York, Ann Arbor and Seattle, the Newtons abandoned the commotion of urban living and built their dream home in Walla Walla three years ago. “We came here for the wine and ended up falling in love with the community. This is where we’re going to retire.”
Photo by Darren Ellis
Newton’s new life in a small town has been even better than she expected. And while she may not be within walking distance of a Whole Foods Market, this home cook is finding everything she needs right in her own back yard. Literally.
LIFESTYLES: Have you always been interested in cooking?
NEWTON: My mom was not a good cook. A little paprika on a chicken in the oven, and it was roasted chicken. But I was always curious about food and started experimenting by cooking for my family. Then when Jim and I got together … I mean, he’ll try anything, he’s like the perfect dinner guest.
LIFESTYLES: What’s your favorite cooking style?
NEWTON: I love to cook Italian. In my freezer right now I have a duck ragout, a veal ragout, a bolognaise sauce – a bunch of things we made with our own tomatoes.
LIFESTYLES: Your own tomatoes? Has this city girl gone country?
NEWTON: You have no idea. Last spring, we put in this 4,000-square-foot vegetable garden. First time ever, and we didn’t know what we were doing. We got so much produce it was a real inspiration for me in the kitchen. We donated a ton of stuff, but then we just cooked and cooked. I got to play with things I had never eaten, let alone cooked with. That was really fun.
LIFESTYLES: I’m impressed. So do you feel more connected with your food now?
NEWTON: Absolutely. My friends in New York are like, “Don’t they sell those things in stores out there?” But there’s a whole different sense of pride, you know? When people join us for a meal we can say, “Those are our carrots!”
LIFESTYLES: Do you and Jim cook often?
NEWTON: Just about every night. Our lives can get kind of hectic, so what we’ve always done is, sometime around 5 or 6 at night, we both turn off the computers and it’s what we call our “cocktail hour.” Even if we’re not having a cocktail or wine, it’s sort of our time to start prepping and cooking.
LIFESTYLES: Who cooks and who preps?
NEWTON: Well, I’m not allowed to use knives. I just draw blood. So Jim cuts and preps, and I usually cook. It’s become something fun.
LIFESTYLES: Ever have any kitchen disasters (that didn’t involve injury)?
NEWTON: Oh yeah. Let’s see … Once I was making this peppered steak with special gravy, and I don’t know what I did, but when I poured the gravy over it, the meat immediately sucked it all up. So I had this really moist steak and no gravy.
LIFESTYLES: Mmm … sponge steak.
NEWTON: That would be a perfect name for it.
LIFESTYLES: Secret kitchen weapon?
NEWTON: We recently picked up this really deep sauté pan. It’s about 5 inches deep. It’s nice because I make lots of pastas and sauces and now my stovetop doesn’t look like
a 6-year-old has been cooking at it when I’m done. I love it.
LIFESTYLES: What’s your kitchen “must-have?”
NEWTON: Well, my secret ingredient for every dish (short of cereal) is garlic. Outside of that, probably shallots and assorted stocks.
LIFESTYLES: Do you make your own stocks?
NEWTON: I have, but it sort of varies. I mean there are certain things I just have to acknowledge, “Why make it if someone can make it better?”
LIFESTYLES: Biggest surprise about Walla Walla?
NEWTON: Probably just that I can find all the things I need for cooking right here in town. That was a big misconception for us. Other than that, just how willing people were to welcome us. I wasn’t used to that. It’s been fantastic.
JOE GURRIERE is a freelance writer and marketing consultant living in Walla Walla. He can be contacted at joe@clearpathpr.com
