The Literary Harvest and a Dash of K-Flavor
Chers rêveurs de goût, (Dear dreamers of taste)
As the autumn air deepens and apples give way to chestnuts, I’ve been thinking about how stories and meals both bring us together. In one world, writers are stirring up new tales set in France and Italy — full of kitchens, vineyards, and belonging.
In another (our very real kitchen here at C’est si Bon!), our young chefs will soon dive into Korean flavors echoed by the vibrant energy and popularity of K-Pop Demon Hunters. It’s all part of the same feast: discovering who we are through what we cook, read, and create.
🥖 Stories from the Kitchen of the World
Here are a few 2025 releases that remind me why kitchens — real or imagined — are portals to memory, love, and rebirth:
Crystal King – The renowned author of The Chef’s Apprentice has a new release coming out on December 2, “The Happiness Collector” Described as “Urban Fantasy, Unexpected Romance, and Mythology All Collide in King’s Latest. A Must For V.E. Schwab and Kate Robert Fans.” Verbiage from Booklist.
Donna Keel Armer – An author who I met via Global Girls Online Book Club. Ms. Armer divides her time between the Low Country of South Carolina and the Coast of Southern Italy. Her first book, “Solo in Salento: A Memoir” is steeped in southern Italian warmth, friendship, and the rediscovery of home. She also has a new release coming out, on November 15th. One Note Murders, “A suspenseful and sensuous mystery that weaves love, loss, and betrayal into crescents of murder beneath the Tuscan Sun.”
Kristy Cambron – The French Kitchen (released Aug 2025) Post-war France, a mysterious chateau, and a woman finding strength through the art of cooking.
Joanne Harris – Vianne (released Apr 2025) The Chocolat prequel that returns us to France’s most beloved kitchen witch and her spellbinding recipes of transformation. Check out her website.
Each of these stories, in its own way, reminds us that the act of preparing food is also an act of healing and imagination.
🍜 From K-Pop to Kimchi: Inspiration in Every Culture
Meanwhile, in our own kitchen, inspiration is striking from the other side of the globe!
On November 11, C’est si Bon! will host a Teacher Work Day Workshop where our young chefs explore the bold, bright world of Korean cuisine — dishes that pulse with the same energy that makes K-Pop Demon Hunters such a hit. And such a hit with our very own grandaughter, Izzy, who had a K-Pop theme for her 6th year party. Think flavors that dance like the best choreography.
👉 Join the Korean Teacher Work Day Small Plates Class
🥕 A K-Memory from My Own Knife-Skills Adventure
Years ago, Erick and I took a Thai fruit-and-vegetable carving class with a Korean chef up in Washington, DC. Oh, it was hilarious — Erick was the natural, skilled and precise with an eye for detail that is nothing short of stunning. OTOH, I spent most of the session trying to divert the teacher, James’s, attention from my misshapen and generally disastrous carved watermelon. Have you ever tried to hide a watermelon? Would James notice if I slowly tried to eat the evidence?
Next, we had a teen culinary week scheduled at C’est si Bon!, an early version of Taste the Adventure. and just to make it even more daunting we asked James to come on down to Chapel Hill to teach watermelon carving. We also invited the Executive Chef and Food and Beverage Director of the Washington Duke Inn. No pressure, right? But between the smiles and laughter, I learned so much: the patience behind every curved cut, the way beauty hides and is released - often in it’s imperfection.
C’est si Bon! Thai Watermelon Carving Class, 2004
That day also brought friendship. The chef, James, shared stories of being an adopted child, carrying secrets between cultures. It reminded me that every meal we make — whether a French terrine or a Korean bimbap — carries layers of story, belonging, and becoming.
🕊 The Legacy of a Lesson
Looking back, that class with James feels like the seed of something larger.
Erick’s steady hands and love of color found a new rhythm that day — one that later bloomed into his art of sushi, each plate of sashimi a small act of grace, garnished perfectly and simply. And who now teaches our students not just the art of flavor but how to transform a simple plate into a stunning elegance.
And now, watching Jaryd, in this photo too, of our huge watermelon carving class held at C’est si Bon! In 2004, reminds me how Jaryd tried his hand at making fruit into art, but went on to make more vitual art with dragons, and mythical creatures. And watching little Izzy dance to K-Pop, I see the same current of joy — a love of beauty that crosses oceans and generations.
Maybe that’s what the kitchen, and art, and K-Pop, teach us: that creation is contagious.
One spark — one beautifully carved watermelon — can light a path that leads all the way to Colorado, to California, to music, to family, and to home.
In Closing ….
Whether through stories or through art or food, the act of creation binds us.
Each recipe, each book, each song — another thread in the tapestry of how we share culture and care.
Here’s to new stories, new flavors, and always, the joy of gathering around the table.
With warmth and wonder,
Dorette
✨ PS: Share the Feast
If you’d like to share this newsletter with a fellow book or food lover, please forward it — the more seats at the table, the better.
📸 Suggested Images
A cozy autumn kitchen scene or an orchard shot for the intro
Book covers of your four featured titles.
The Mistress of Apples and Bécasse has arrived!
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