This is the time of year that I love best: the air is starting to get crisp but the sun still shines brightly, the corn has all been harvested and covers the farmers market tables, and I can spend an hour looking for the right pumpkin to display by my front door. Summer held on…
Tag: healthy ingredients
Roasted Chicken with Beet Greens, Corn and Cherry Tomatoes
Have you ever eaten beet greens? Most people only eat the bottoms, the purple and golden yellow taproot that grows in the ground. But the green leaves and purple stalks on the top can be eaten too, and they are crisp and taste like spinach. Like other dark leafy greens, they are high in protein,…
Kale, Cheddar, Avocado Quesadillas with a Fried Egg and Sliced Radishes
Crisp kale is still overflowing on tables at the farmers markets, along with chard, beet greens, and collards. All four leafy greens have similar nutritional value and they can all be cooked the same way. This recipe for cheesy quesadillas has a base of wilted greens and any of these four leafy greens can be…
The Mushroom Farm at Fungi Ally
Four years ago, Willie Crosby sat in his friend’s basement harvesting mushrooms from fruited sawdust logs. In a space that was only 8 x 16 feet, he could inoculate 200 logs per week with mushroom mycelium and bring them to harvest. Willie was a produce farmer but he was inspired to grow mushrooms after reading…
Panzanella Salad with Fresh Summer Tomatoes and Basil
It’s tomato season! And it’s garlic season. And basil, and, well, everything good basically. Panzanella salad is the ultimate way to combine the best summer ingredients. Panzanella, or panmolle, is a salad originating from Tuscany that has a base of bread and tomatoes. Other cultures have a similar salad, like the Mediterranean dish fattoush, that build a base from…
The Local Mix at Area Four
I first heard about Area Four while attending a #BostonTalks Happy Hour at WBGH last month. They make a fantastic pizza using twelve-year-old starter dough, fermented for over 30 hours, and handcrafted in their scratch kitchen. When I heard that Area Four (A4) sources most of their ingredients locally, I immediately set a date to…
Cleaning our Plates
On this day in 1862, President Abraham Lincoln established the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Most people associate the USDA with nutritional standards and food safety regulations, but the department also created the first federal food stamp program at the end of the Great Depression. Food was scarce during the Great Depression, and even before that,…
Choose Local, Eat Clean
Buying local is important to me for several reasons. I love supporting small businesses: both of my parents are small business owners and I understand how important it is for the local economy. I like knowing that my food was grown organically, and I like knowing where my food comes from. If you ask the…
Goodbye Blue Apron, Hello Farmers Markets
For over a year, my husband and I have subscribed to Blue Apron, the biggest name in delivery meal kits. I loved that the meals from Blue Apron included so many fresh, healthy ingredients, like kale and rainbow chard, and I loved that the box delivered to my house saved me a trip to the…
The Clean Food Club 