One of the best chef demos this weekend at the Seattle Cheese Festival in Pike Place Market was given by one of our neighbors here at the Seattle Weekly, Diane LaVonne of Diane’s Market Kitchen. She made a wicked ricotta, asparagus, and zucchini sformato, which is a light-as-air yet cheese-dense, custard-like vegetable side dish from Sicily. (That’s 3 cups of ricotta and at least ½ cup of Parmesan.) She also explained whey and made the crowd do a shot of it before they could try her dish. “You’ve got to pay to play,” she chimed. Never have met her, but I like this woman. Diane runs an intimate cooking school with classes in basic skills, with a little Italian influence here and there. Her school is also available for private cooking parties.Diane, can I confess something to you? At least three times in the last few months I’ve walked by your quaint cooking kitchen only to be bombarded by the smell of delicious baked goods (the only palatable smell going on in that stretch of Post Alley). The chocolate chip cookies you left cooling on the stove looked amazing. You were working in the corner at your desk. The door was open. All I’m saying, Diane, is that you should really lock your door.Diane’s Market Kitchen, 1101 Post Alley, www.dianesmarketkitchen.com