“I just want to cook good, simple, healthy food that’s full of colour, and that people enjoy eating together,” says the Brooklyn-based personal chef, Mina Stone of her culinary practice. It's often said that food absorbs a cook’s demeanour – and this certainly rings true for Stone. Wholesome and inviting, her Mediterranean-inspired dishes are void of fuss or pretence and are best enjoyed by a large gathering of loved ones. “I don’t have a strict philosophy, but I do believe that cooking should be easy and stress-free… as long as it tastes good,” she explains warmly.
Perhaps even more satisfying is that Stone’s career of choice was almost entirely spontaneous. After graduating as a fashion designer in 2006, she began to cooking for busy, affluent New Yorkers in order to support her fledgling fashion label, which she deems: “a small, simple line of modern dresses”. As luck would have it, her clients included the influential gallerist Gavin Bown and artist Urs Fischer and his staff, whom she regularly prepared lunch for. “It was amazing because I enjoyed it so much,” she reveals. “I don’t think I could have developed my own style of cooking so naturally under any other circumstances.” Word of Stone’s nutritious, home-cooked fare spread quickly, and she soon became the toast of New York’s art scene.
So, when Fischer proposed that Stone culminate her signature dishes into a cookbook four years ago, she jumped at the chance. “When Urs suggested it, I almost immediately said yes,” she says excitedly. “We had actually never created a book before, so it was quite a challenge because we really wanted to get it right, to create the right representation of what my food is all about. It took a while, but I feel like we got there!”
That they did. Published earlier this year under Fischer’s imprint Kiito-San, Cooking With Artists is a beautifully considered manifestation of Stone’s outlook and aesthetic. Containing forewords by Fischer and Brown, artworks by Cassandra MacLeod, Spencer Sweeney and Elizabeth Peyton, alongside concise recipes and photographs of Stone’s own family meals, the resulting tome feels inspired and authentically personal. “I dedicated the book to my Greek yiayia [Stone's grandmother, aged 86]”, she adds. “I learned almost everything from her, she’s the most incredible cook and has definitely been a huge influence and inspiration.”
Below, to accompany AnOther's favourite spring recipes from the book, Stone offers a pinch of culinary wisdom and reveals the essential ingredient that no meal should be without.
“To me, salt is the soul of every dish. It's the one ingredient I couldn't be without. Proper seasoning really does makes a world of difference – that, and really good olive oil.”
“Cabbage salad is really tasty and light recipe for spring. I also like serving Aginares Me Araka – which is basically artichoke hearts, peas, potatoes and other seasonal vegetables with lots of lemon juice and oil, cooked in a pot until it’s really soft. So good!”
“Whether I'm preparing a starter, main or a dessert, colour is always very important to me. I think that vibrant colours have the power to make any dish look beautiful – as does texture. I like throwing different or unexpected textures into the mix.”
Cooking for Artists by Mina Stone is published by Kiito-San and is out now.
