Hi. I’m Robin Damstra Salant, the writer and photographer of Caviar and Codfish. I like bourbon, chocolate chip cookies, and lard. I’m an ethical meat eater, which means I do my best to only buy meat from local, humane farms. I eat a lot of local produce. In summer, I tend to overdo it on the berries.
I live in Stockton, New Jersey, with my boyfriend fiance husband, Jim Salant. He’s a writer. And damn good at it. He was written up in the New York Times Book Review, and I can boast about it, because he’s my man. We run an ice cream shop together, The Half Pint Kitchen.
I started to cook seriously in 2006, when I met Jim. I wanted to impress my boyfriend, but ended up finding a passion. In 2007, I started my food blog, again with the hope of impressing the boy, this time with my writing. Since then I’ve been constantly striving to better my food, writing, and, most recently, photography.
I’ve been living with chronic back pain since an accident in 2008 and, unfortunately, it more often than not dictates how I go about my day. But I still get to spend an awful lot of time in the kitchen, where I’m happiest.
In 2009 I quit my full-time job so that I could spend more time doing things that make me happy. Since then, a day hasn’t gone by without a long hug from my boyfriend fiance husband and we can settle into nice talks and long kisses (and sometimes a neat glass of Scotch) each night. We don’t have much, but manage to live a charmed, loving, delicious life together, with our dog Champ and two kitties, Lillian and Muntz. It’s an American dream… of sorts.
This blog chronicles what’s coming out of our apartment kitchen and, sometimes, the glorious experiences we having eating in someone else’s. I post the food that I’ve loved, and will tell you about the farms I frequent, and maybe even bore you with my moods. It’s my kitchen diary, for you to peek in. I was never much for keeping secrets, anyway.
Caviar and Codfish has been mentioned on:
CNN’s Eatocracy – Northeast Blogger Directory
Savuer “Sites We Love” (two separate links)
The Kitchn (Dark Gingerbread Pear Cake)
The Kitchn (Avec Eric’s Cod Basquaise)
Smitten Kitchen’s “Good Reads”
You can find Caviar and Codfish on:
You can find Robin writing about the food of Hunterdon and Mercer counties, NJ at:
Plus, there’s always:
Janel Zuffi of Bella Designs created the (gorgeous!) template for Caviar and Codfish. Bella Designs is the web manager of this site. To contact, please click here.
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May 12, 2007 at 12:52 pm
wonderfull website!
June 11, 2007 at 10:05 am
Like the changes! page looks great!
March 4, 2008 at 8:26 pm
:)
March 24, 2008 at 11:54 am
I also commented on your most recent post about going on vac to the outer banks. I was reading your bio and some old posts and see that you live in NJ – I saw some references to Hopewell, Lambetville and Princeton. I live in Hamilton and grew up in Ewing, always going to Lambertville and New Hope in the summer. Also if you want some pointers on the Outer Banks I look for any chance to talk about that place.
Really nice blog and interesting posts!
Mary
March 24, 2008 at 11:57 am
I think a new blog name for the future could be:
BelieveInBacon?
Seems appropriate…
April 13, 2008 at 5:09 am
Cant just got changing the name on me!!! haha just kidding I Like it…
September 20, 2008 at 1:17 am
I just — finally — read your ‘about’ page and I think it’s awesome. You are awesome :)
October 21, 2008 at 10:37 am
Hi Robin, I just found your site and I don’t know how I have missed it before! I too am a “very liberal, very open-minded atheist” in New Jersey. So, how much fun are you having with all the R’s admitting that maybe things haven’t been going so well…HA! I’ll keep checking in!
Erin
March 23, 2009 at 6:22 pm
I love the pictures of your dog – and am happy to see he is given credit, name and all. Now I’m wondering who the lovely feline is. What is that little one’s name? Such a sweet face it has! Great site!!
April 9, 2009 at 4:32 pm
Hey name is Lily… and she is very happy that you asked. (And giving me the cold shoulder for not mentioning it earlier!)
She’s an adopted cat that I save from an abused home over 5 years ago. She’s just now gotten over her past, and within a year, has gone from a scared, angry cat to a lovable, sit on your lap and cuddle cat, though she still thinks she owns the place. So do we.
April 18, 2009 at 12:45 am
so fun and inspiring! just started following but i look forward to reading/daydreaming about said dishes in the future.
April 21, 2009 at 8:25 pm
Hello Everyone
I just joined this forum.
Great job by the admin, mods and seriously every member around.
Just recently I read that there is a cure for diabetes on http://www.healthcaredaily.org
Can diabetes seriously be cured? The source looks like a reliable healthcare news website
Could you someone tell me if this healthcare information is for real?
Thanks a lot
Boomotalent
May 5, 2009 at 7:36 am
Hey Robin and Jimmy!! So fun to meet you guys… I have never read this “about us” page. makes me think you guys are even cooler than i thought you were last night! hopefully we’ll all hang out again. i’m so getting dirty jersey so i can really get more dirt on you guys ;)
i’m feeling like a$$ right now and can’t wait to spend a full day w/ an annoying boss and many loud 17 year olds.
amy and jonny
weareneverfull.com
May 18, 2009 at 11:45 pm
Hi! Just stumbled upon your blog! Great pictures and very yummy looking recipes! Will be back to visit again! -Chris Ann
June 7, 2009 at 11:45 am
So happy to find your site, living nearby I was happy to find some local farms I did not know about. You might want to check out Thorpe’s Farm (buffalo) in Newtown and don’t forget the Trenton Farmer’s Market (Ewing). Can’t wait to try some of your recipes! Happy Cooking…….
June 26, 2009 at 11:02 am
Just found your blog. It is great. I am quite a foodie and live in Mass. and Paris. Having a collection of about 3,000 cookbooks has enabled my passion for food. Will continue to look forward to your column.
August 10, 2009 at 4:55 am
Hey there, I’ve been reading your site for the past month and this last entry is sooo good! I’m making that duck! Anyway, just wanted to say that I’m enjoying your writing and your photography… looking forward to your next post!
August 12, 2009 at 11:28 am
Thanks, Sean. I’m so glad you’re enjoying it… and you must make sure to make the duck once you get home from touring!
August 31, 2009 at 9:55 pm
I just came across your blog while searching about brown butter and why everyone loves it. I found my answer and have also found a gorgeous new blog to bookmark! I love the clean feel of your site and your writing. I’ll be back for sure!
September 6, 2009 at 9:42 am
thanks for recommending podere di’ mello!
we drove down to the farm yesterday and it was great fun.
i can’t wait to make the duck and chicken i got from them.
October 13, 2009 at 10:54 pm
I pray (or am just trying to hold a positive thought) that you take a basic grammar and writing course. My gracious.
“Your liable, honestly, to get your comments deleted by saying anything nasty here.”
I honestly will not be offended if you delete this comment. But truly, TAKE A BASIC GRAMMAR CLASS. LEARN TO WRITE. Your pictures are gorgeous, but your writing is atrocious.
I’m really surprised that a “New York Times Reviewed Author” blah blah blah wouldn’t have worked with you on improving yourself. Seriously.
October 13, 2009 at 11:39 pm
take a basic grammar and writing course. TAKE A BASIC GRAMMAR CLASS. LEARN TO WRITE.
Only people who don’t know what grammar is would follow the one thought with the other. But ignorance is everywhere. What’s interesting to behold is the angry dork, suddenly empowered by technology to take out his frustrations on strangers. My gracious, indeed.
October 13, 2009 at 11:41 pm
Yeah! You tell’em Jimmy. Stupid nerfball! I don’t needs none of that fan-cee “GRAMMAR” that ol’ four-eyes is talkin’ bout!
October 14, 2009 at 7:31 pm
Robin,
I told you I fully expected you to remove the post. It really was meant to wake you up. I see that you have gone back and changed many things. Give my thanks to your boyfriend/fiancee/??? (I’m unsure where you are in that process at this moment.)
But I do assume, from your angry defensive attack on me (by the way, anyone can see above that I did not follow one statement with the second. Why would y ou try to suggest an error where none was made, when it’s obvious that none was made?) along with the fact that you changed the item mentioned and posting “Wordless Wednesday” that my words woke you up.
I’m sure it’s nice to have all your friends saying “Yeah, you right good,” but frankly it wasn’t helping you at all. Unless you want to write like Robin’s (joking) statement?
October 14, 2009 at 9:07 pm
MJ,
You could’ve just pointed out the typo.
November 13, 2009 at 5:16 pm
Hey!
Well I love your writing! I guess just writing a blog about FOOD and not GRAMMAR can’t be fun anymore. Well do you have this guys email or page. I feel like its time to critque someones personality.
October 14, 2009 at 10:37 am
Great site, and we’re neighbors! I’ve just recently started blogging but have been cooking all my life. I have a stand at the New Hope Farmer’s Market (Highland Gourmet is right across the aisle!!) and I’d love it if you’d stop by and introduce yourself sometime. Keep shopping local, there’s so much for us right here!
October 14, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Robin,
It wasn’t just a typo. Really. Here’s the first paragraph of your October 12 blogpost:
“I have a few favorite people in this world, who probably don’t know they hold such a place in my heart. There’s Dee, at Highland Company Gourmet Market, who raises her own cattle, cattle that provide the best beef I’ve ever tasted. There’s Carol, at La Maison du Cheese (yes, that’s “The House of Cheese” in French, err, French-American) who bakes like a dream, a really, really delicious dream, things like croissants with brie and roasted pear inside, and pecan sticky buns.”
The comma in your first paragraph is extraneous. It doesn’t not belong in that sentence. And the entire sentence, if you are a native English speaker, is not the way that would be stated. (Are you a native English-speaker?)
In the second sentence, the first comma is extraneous. The “who raises her own cattle” is correctly set off by a comma, but the second comma should not be there. And the sentence is incorrectly written and runs on.
The paragraph should look more like this:
I have a few favorites in this world. They are people who probably don’t know they hold such a (warm/deep/beloved?) place in my heart. There’s Dee at Highland Company Gourmet Market, who raises her own cattle, which provide the best beef I’ve ever tasted. There’s Carol at La Maison du Cheese (yes, that’s “The House of Cheese” in French, err, French-American), who bakes like a dream: a really, really delicious dream. She bakes things like croissants with brie and roasted pear inside; she also bakes (insert your descriptor here) pecan sticky buns.
It was never about one typo. I wouldn’t have been so shocked if it was one typo. You clearly have some fans. Do them a service and read your writing aloud before you post it. You have some passion about this, obviously, but maybe you could make it easier for your readers to understand if you learned the basic, simple rules of grammar and punctuation. It would be much more considerate because you have things you want to share. Don’t make it so hard for people to understand. Because of your typos, poor grammar and punctuation problems, your readers have to read and reread several times to understand what you are saying.
You have a lot to offer. But throwing it all in the wind in a jumbled and unkempt fashion, as you currently do, will limit the willingness of those who show up here to understand and enjoy your passion.
October 14, 2009 at 11:27 pm
American Heritage defines “fatuous” as “Foolish or silly, especially in a smug or self-satisfied way.”
Running Robin’s prose through your Strunk & Whiter is like running oysters through a Cuisinart.
Two reading suggestions before you apply for that job at Iowa:
1) Anything by Richard Lanham (for a lesson on style),
2) Any linguistics textbook (for the meaning of “grammar”).
October 14, 2009 at 11:10 pm
“Because of your typos, poor grammar and punctuation problems, your readers have to read and reread several times to understand what you are saying.”
MJ – Please speak for yourself. Not the rest of us.
Robin – I’ve never had any trouble understanding what you have to say. It’s perfectly clear from all of the hard work you put into this blog that you’re passionate about everything you write and cook and share with us. And that’s all that matters. Keep on doing what you’re doing — you’re an inspiration.
October 14, 2009 at 11:25 pm
Thank you Jacqui. You’re a sweetheart. :D
October 15, 2009 at 12:42 am
Wow. Sounds like MJ’s mother was a strict grammarian who would spank him with a wooden spoon for an extraneous comma. Oh, crap, I left out the subject in that sentence. My knees are trembling in anticipation of MJ’s wrath.
Robin – Ignore the “extraneous” BS. You rock.
October 15, 2009 at 9:02 am
It really doesn’t matter if you attack me. What would be helpful is if you encouraged Robin to learn to use proper grammar and punctuation. That way, more people might flock to her blog and enjoy her pictures, recipes and personality.
October 15, 2009 at 11:35 am
I guess I’ve always believed proper grammar is valuable when it makes communication clearer. Is that so silly? So Robin, since I’d say you’re communicating quite well, as is evidenced by your loyal following and the responses here already, if you use an extra comma or make a typo once in a while (who doesn’t?), you are just proving that sometimes those things are not what’s most important. Three cheers to you for leaving up these comments, by the way. It only strengthens my good opinion of you.
October 15, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Hmm…MJ, have you ever read a blog before? The idea is we’re writing in our own voice—literally. I’m a food editor and the way I write my own blog is completely different from my published work. Each blogger has their own in-house style guide, so to speak. The words are not just there to be grammatically correct. They are there to engage the reader. To make us feel as if the story is being told first hand. If you don’t like a certain person’s style, then it’s a big blogosphere. I’m sure none of us will miss you here.
October 15, 2009 at 6:36 pm
Well, now that other commenters have joined the thread, I should probably point out that there are no grammatical errors in the opening paragraph of Robin’s latest post. It’s a stylistic decision to put commas around the phrase “at Highland Market Gourmet Company” (and a good one, if you consider the whole paragraph’s pleasing rhythm); grammar has nothing do with it.
October 15, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Oh, and it’s generally safe to disregard anyone who uses the phrase “the simple rules of grammar and punctuation.” The rules of grammar are not simple, but luckily you don’t have to be able to articulate them to write well.
October 15, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Oh lordy, lookee here – what a mess! I think that in general, if you feel the need to correct someone, you should drop them an email, in private. It’s the same as correcting someone in company – whether deserved or not, public chastising reeks of sour grapes / an axe to grind. No matter how valid or astute that correction/observation is. Your best hoped-for accomplishment is nothing more than causing someone discomfort.
My second point is that as bloggers, we are flawed human beings. We write, we scan, we hit publish. We sometimes could use an editor, but we’re all busy people. We have jobs, lives, commitments. Most of us do not get paid for this and we write about and photograph food because it’s our passion. If you don’t like it – stop reading. If you want to make an observation – take it offline.
October 18, 2009 at 4:17 pm
MJ,
Robin is a very gifted writer. She also takes stunning photographs of food that I love to try. And I can try it, because she gives us the recipes as well as lots of tips and observations about food. She is providing you with a wonderful service, and all you do is criticise her. It’s clear you know nothing about language; why on earth are you chattering about commas and typos? It’s nonsense. You seem to think an education in language begins and ends with a close reading of Strunk & White. How ironic! You don’t realise that Robin has all the help she needs. Jim Salant, as well as being a remarkably insightful critic of writing, is an expert in linguistics. Whereas what you have written is completely beside the point of this blog and it’s beside the point of good writing. Go away.
October 19, 2009 at 3:47 am
Here, MJ, listen to this, you might learn something.
October 20, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Jim Salant…is an expert in linguistics.
That’s perhaps (profoundly) overstating things. But thanks, Crown. I don’t imagine I’ll be hearing that very often in my life.
October 20, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Oops, I (jamessal) just commented as Robin.
October 24, 2009 at 7:37 am
Jimsal: I don’t imagine I’ll be hearing that very often in my life.
Well, only if you’re not listening.
November 6, 2009 at 9:43 am
Cool blog – will have to come back and write something more meaty later – gotta make some of my clients happy ‘-)
December 6, 2009 at 3:30 pm
I Robin,
I found your blog while searching ideas and interesting histories. Really lovelly and I will bookmark it!
You are an example for me… maybe I will follow my dream soon.
Kiss from Barcelona
December 30, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Very impressed with your recipes. Very nice blog.
January 8, 2010 at 8:24 pm
Hi, I just finished James’ book “Leaving Dirty Jersey”. Picked it up in my local bookstore on Waiheke Island, New Zealand, because it was based on my hometown of Riverside and looked interesting (and it was!). Then just googled him to find out what else he’s written and found your site on food! Great site, will keep it in my recipes bookmarks. You two look very happy! Cheers.
March 2, 2010 at 9:33 am
i did the same exact thing. Used to live in jersey but now im in Boston. but i JUST finished Dirty Jersey which i read in practically two days! couldnt put it down, i feel like i know him. He describes things perfectly and lets you into his head, and its so sad ’cause he seems like an awesome guy (funny as hell too) but just got caught up in rough times, buy hey bad sh*t happens to good peeople. Robin you seem so cool, down to earth and i too am very glad you found each other and wish you both nothing but the best!
your pic of the dog is adorable!
March 20, 2010 at 5:54 am
Hi Robin,
I tryed to make a copy of your Vanilla bean pound cake. My printer doesn’t seem to print your recipe clear. You can hardly read it.
Thank You Very Much,
Gale
Pearlrose@aol.com
March 22, 2010 at 8:34 pm
Hi Robin
I just came across your blog and was stopped on my track by your beautiful photographs. Are you a photographer or a graphic designer? I love the feel of your whole blog and your philosophy on cooking. I can’t wait to cook from your recipes once I have my own place. Thanks for sharing with us.
March 30, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Hi BB,
No, I’m a total amateur, but thank you for asking. Made my day, and then some. :)
Robin
March 31, 2010 at 3:20 pm
Just came across your website and have to tell you I love everything about it. Your cooking, local food, philosophy and the photographs are beautiful. Was a photographer for many, many years and have to tell you that yours are absolutely beautiful. Keep this up! I am inspired!
April 13, 2010 at 5:56 am
I have to say, I really like the look of your site, your style of writing, and I quite enjoyed your story. I’m glad I found you! As someone with similar passions and the will to do what makes me happy, your blog has left me inspired!
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