Cookbook: Dinner from Echo Park’s New Green Grocer

Oct 01 2010

Locally-grown, organic and quality foods are hard to find in eastside neighborhood markets, so I was psyched when word came that Marta Teegan of Homegrown was opening a green grocer in Echo Park. When I finally stepped into Cookbook, I wasn’t disappointed. The tiny shop carries an abbreviated yet satisfying collection of fruit, veggies, cheese, and pantry staples like flour, sugar, green tea, coffee and various cooking oils. Spotted: very hard-to-find Matiz Sugared Tortas, Spanish olive oil crisps encrusted in sugar and spiked with anise.

But I wasn’t looking for sweets—my Cookbook mission was to find fixings for an effortless meal. I was directed to an incredibly tempting selection of fresh pasta and sauces catered by Heirloom LA (they also supply some pretty yummy-looking sandwiches in the deli case). After some tortured deliberation, I chose the Mushroom Ravioli, which had a hint of citrus flavor, and some very meaty Wild Boar Bolognese. To round it out, I grabbed a block of parmesan, served myself some Cerignola olives and asked for a small container of the picturesque roasted peppers and kale from the deli case.