Kim Vespa holds a copy of her new “Villa Vespa Cookbook.” (Photo provided — Naj Wikoff)

Kim Vespa has spent much of her life cooking for others. Shortly after college, she came home to Lake Placid to work alongside her father cooking at Villa Vespa, “A nice little Italian restaurant” her parents started in the 1970s.

Her dad, George Vespa, was 50 when he decided to pursue a long-held dream of opening an Italian restaurant. Before that, he was the longtime manager of the Hotel Marcy for owner and friend Jack Davis. When Davis sold the hotel in 1970, George shared his dreams with friends after and cast about for opportunities. Ron Butler, owner of Howard Johnson’s, alerted George that the Tick Tock was available. He wasted no time checking out the facility and making an offer.

George, an excellent manager, well versed in marketing and customer relations, had just one problem, he wasn’t very skilled at cooking, certainly not at a professional level required to operate a restaurant. So, he hired a chef from New York City’s Little Italy and then went about learning all he could from his new chef and by attending cooking classes in Europe and elsewhere.

George’s good fortune was having a daughter who was a natural in the kitchen. Kim had a well-developed palate, and a desire to learn about the emerging California cuisine movement through apprenticing at the Mudd’s Restaurant in San Ramon, California, a pioneer in using farm-fresh organic ingredients. An outcome of Kim’s California experience is that Villa Vespa became an early proponent of incorporating the farm-fresh, in-house-made cooking philosophy, increasing community support for the venture.

That philosophy is a hallmark of Kim’s recently published “Villa Vespa Cookbook.” The book is peppered with recommendations for fresh garlic, fresh basil, and freshly grated whole nutmeg. In addition, Kim recommends using highly rated Cento plum tomatoes, high-quality parmesan cheese or Pecorino Romano, and other quality ingredients. This approach helped build a solid fan base for the restaurant and, later on, her Villa Vespa takeout business on Saranac Avenue.

Sign at the old Villa Vespa restaurant in Lake Placid (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

But back in the 1980s, Kim wasn’t thinking about cookbooks or running a takeout business. Instead, she enjoyed working alongside her dad, honing her cooking skills. At the same time, she saw how her parents were masters at customer relations and building a hard-working and congenial staff. The staff also noticed that nobody worked harder than Kim and George.

Kim worked at the Villa Vespa until her parents closed it in 1997. After that, she worked for a couple of years as a private chef. She knew well that people missed the restaurant, a scope of work she wasn’t willing to take on. Instead, Kim opened Villa Vespa Pasta & Sauce Company, locally known as Villa Vespa’s or just Vespa’s. Her takeout business soon became a hit. So did her jarring and selling the Villa Vespa Marinara Sauce, which sold well throughout the Northeast.

Kim operated Villa Vespa Pasta & Sauce Company for 20 years. But after 38 years cooking for others, she decided it was time to hang up her apron. At the same time, she wanted to keep the Villa Vespa legacy going by helping people re-create the many fine dishes they loved at the restaurant and purchased through her takeout business. So Kim set out to create a cookbook, now available through the Bookstore Plus, other local outlets, and on Amazon.

“What inspired me to write the cookbook is because people kept saying, “Where are we going to eat now?” or “Where are we going to get our takeout?” or, “Are you going to keep jarring the sauce?” said Kim Vespa. I looked into it, but the upfront costs were too high. Then I started making the sauce at home. I thought anybody could do this; all I needed to do was put the recipe together, and they could make the sauce. I thought we needed to be proactive and get the book out as soon as possible. If something happened to me, my dad’s recipes could get lost. I didn’t want that to happen.”

As most of the recipes in her cookbook are based on the sauce, the next step was creating a cookbook that taught people how to make the sauce and all the recipes from the restaurant and her takeout business. Creating the book took about two-and-a-half months working three days a week with her friend Layla Wolfberg, who took all the photographs and helped lay out the text using a model provided by Gatekeeper Press.

“Villa Vespa Cookbook” contains 62 recipes written in a straightforward, no-frills manner. Kim’s number one message is make the marinara sauce. Do not use a store-bought sauce or go cheap on the tomatoes or other ingredients. The food will not taste the same. A good sauce is worth the time and effort.

“What makes the sauce special is they use good tomatoes and take the time to get rid of all the seeds,” said Barbara Rand, who worked with Kim in her shop. “You have to have the right tomatoes and let it simmer, or it won’t taste the same. Key also is prepping all the ingredients ahead of time before you start.”

Jess Ano, an early purchaser, agreed that following the recipe matters. She took a couple of shortcuts, such as using pre-diced garlic instead of fresh garlic. Even though she used the correct tomatoes, her sauce just wasn’t quite the same. Next time, she vows to take the time to chop up fresh garlic. Ano also advised reading Kim’s many tidbits throughout the book as they are entertaining, thoughtful, and helpful.

Another early purchaser is Kelly Hass, who has tried out several recipes with her husband, Ernest.

“We tried out the linguine with clam sauce,” said Kelly. “It was a huge success, and the recipe was easy to follow, as is true with all of them in the book. Plus, my husband used to work for George Vespa from ’85 to ’87. He said the customers were happy and the recipes fantastic.”

“I worked in the kitchen,” said Ernest. “I was the salad boy/prep cook. My shift would start at 2. I would bear witness if you will to the construction of the sauces and watch the pasta get made. Kim would always try things on me. She’d hook me up with delicious dishes saying, ‘Try this sauce, try this chowder.’ It was great; I learned a lot. The restaurant was popular because of that special touch that Kim and George gave to every dish. It was authentic cooking.”

On Saturday, Feb. 19, from 1 to 3 p.m., the Bookstore Plus, 2491 Main St., will host a book signing with Kim, a signing that will include samples of the marinara sauce.

(Naj Wikoff lives in Keene Valley. He has been covering events for the News for more than 15 years.)