Pastry chef Carla Corona’s home kitchen

By Mary MacVean When pastry chef Carla Corona says she loves her kitchen because it's so big -- big enough to move around in -- her perspective is essential. "This kitchen is the size of our whole apartment in Chicago," she says.

By Mary MacVean
When pastry chef Carla Corona says she loves her kitchen because it’s so big -- big enough to move around in -- her perspective is essential. “This kitchen is the size of our whole apartment in Chicago,” she says.  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)

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Carla Corona, pastry chef at M Street Kitchen in Santa Monica, and Patrick Costa, chef at the Stella Rossa Pizza Bar next door, rented their Venice apartment in May, sight unseen. To highfalutin minds, their kitchen might seem ordinary. But to these California newcomers, these 100 square feet and a door opening onto a sunny patio are part of what make their new home “magical.”

Pastry chef Carla Corona's home kitchen

“I always wanted a window above the sink. And there’s a full-size refrigerator,” Corona says. In her previous kitchen, a tiny spot in Chicago, she had to straddle a butcher block over the sink to create counter space. The Venice kitchen has room to breathe -- and a cornflower blue door that’s reflects onto the Frigidaire.  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)

Pastry chef Carla Corona's home kitchen

The windowsill is a perch for the lord of the manor: Giuseppe.  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)

Pastry chef Carla Corona's home kitchen

The tools of their trade hang on a magnet strip: two chefs’ knives, two paring knives, a bread knife, measuring spoons and a corkscrew.  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)

Pastry chef Carla Corona's home kitchen

Shelves are stuffed with cookbooks.  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)

Pastry chef Carla Corona's home kitchen

“We cook all weekend and sit outside,” Costa says. Corona makes ice cream and scones. They eat bread and cheese, and use the herbs and tomatoes growing on the patio.  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)

Pastry chef Carla Corona's home kitchen

Giuseppe perches on a coffee table. As proof that there’s perfection in simplicity, Corona says she and Costa have almost everything they need. Almost. “I would like a hood,” she says. “We set the smoke alarm off so many times I can’t tell you.” To read the full text of the article, click to our L.A. at Home blog.

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  (Christina House / For the Los Angeles Times)