My good friend Les Cooper, owner of Coeur d’ Olives,  lives in Carmel, CA  and makes the best plain and infused olive oils I have ever tasted. I am not biased just because he is my friend. I met Les about 7 years ago when I first started my pressed flower glassware business. We met at  a promotional event at one of our stores and hit it off. Since I decorated olive oil bottles with pressed flowers and he made fantastic olive oils we decided to partner and sell our products together. For years we shared booths at festivals and sold side by side at the farmer’s market. When I sold my glassware business I carried Les’ products in my food repping business. I  still sell  for him occasionally, conduct product demonstrations and am always coming up with new uses and recipes for his diverse line of oils, balsamics, rubs, tapenades and spreads. I used his habanero infused oil to make  a Manhattan clam chowder and entered it in the Santa Cruz Clam Chowder cook-off and I won. I also make habanero brownies and  cookies. Recipes for these are included with purchase.  I tell customers that using Les’s oils and vinegars makes creative cooking easier. Pour his basil walnut dipping oil on pasta and get instant pesto. Use his aged balsamics to marinate chicken,  fish and vegetables  for a gourmet flair.