I’m a huge salad fan — I build them with spinach, beets, lentils, you name it. But the piece that really pulls all those fresh veggies together is the perfect dressing. For a mix of spinach and sprouts and strawberries and pecans, I have long enjoyed this Poppy Seed Dressing. Then I remembered how well balsamic vinegarContinue reading “Balsamic Vinaigrette”
Tag Archives: eating local
Ham Roast With Blueberry Sauce
We often roast a cut of local pork for our holiday dinners. It feels festive but not fussy, and it leaves lots of room for sides. This ham-blueberry-honey dish has graced more than its share of celebratory tables, often alongside scalloped potatoes, mashed butternut squash, corn pudding and apple pie. But it works just asContinue reading “Ham Roast With Blueberry Sauce”
Eating Local Is My ‘Diet.’ What’s Yours?
To any of you who’ve been reading what I write for awhile, the story of how I cleaned up my eating act is a familiar one. In a nutshell, several forces converged to push me toward a healthier, more plant-based life than I’d grown up with: my husband and I put in a garden and weContinue reading “Eating Local Is My ‘Diet.’ What’s Yours?”
Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing
When the lettuce is tender and the pea shoots are popping through the soil, the chives have appeared out of nowhere and the cilantro is inching upward, there is nothing better than snipping a bit of this and chopping a bit of that until there’s a plate full of goodness waiting for the right dressing to pullContinue reading “Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing”
Hooked on Homemade Yogurt
After college, I traveled abroad, landing in the little-known Mediterranean capital of Tirana, Albania. There, I lived with a lovely, tiny woman who cooked all the time — in a kitchen the size of a closet, with electrical power that was spotty at best. And yet, her food was wonderful — layers of phyllo dough, richContinue reading “Hooked on Homemade Yogurt”
Surprisingly Good Corn Soufflé
Recently, I was staring down a bag of corn I’d blanched and frozen the summer before. And seeing as how the hens were laying like crazy, I reached back in my memory to a dish my mom used to make. She called it Corn Pudding. It had eggs and corn and onions and butter and milk. AndContinue reading “Surprisingly Good Corn Soufflé”
Scratch-Made Sloppy Joes
If you’re a parent of certain aged kids, you know the drill: From school to swim practice for one kid, a swing by the ballet studio for another and a stop at the track to fetch a third. All this in the crucial 5 to 6 o’clock hour when it would be helpful to actuallyContinue reading “Scratch-Made Sloppy Joes”
Slow Cooker Shredded Pork With Cilantro-Ginger Sauce
Most years, we buy a local half hog in the spring and another in the fall. We place the butchered, vacuum-packed cuts — thick, uncured bacon, flavorful sausage, tender pork chops — in our deep freeze and we plan our meals around this meat until it runs out. Which means we sometimes have to getContinue reading “Slow Cooker Shredded Pork With Cilantro-Ginger Sauce”
Potato Pancakes
When I say, “potato pancakes,” you likely head right to, “Hanukkah.” But I think March is the ideal month for frying up a batch. They bridge winter and spring, a hearty comfort food that pairs perfectly with an early season salad — a few spinach leaves, some lettuce from our cold frame, sprouts we’re growing on ourContinue reading “Potato Pancakes”
Classic Zucchini Bread
I love to bake with zucchini. Adding it to muffins and cakes and quicks breads makes them all the more moist — and nutritious. The flecks of veggie in my baked good give it a lovely color, a nice chew, a good density. Then there’s the whole using up the (sometimes) copious amounts of zucchini thatContinue reading “Classic Zucchini Bread”