AWE = Art, Wellbeing and Edibles.
What to do with old food magazines? For years they sat on the shelf and I would occasionally peruse them to search for a new concept or favorite old recipe, but mostly they just sat there taking up space. Last winter I declared them …
My friend and former housemate Carrie O used to often make a version of this dip to serve with a stir fry or other group dinners at our house. This was decades ago, so I’m leaning on a 30 year old memory to reenact …
This salad is a great side dish with a little kick for a hot summer’s day, and another step for me to learn more about the marinated quick pickles of Korea. They also say this salad is a good substitute for kimchi if you’re needing a fix and …
This is one of those recipes that I have no idea who to credit other than the many Peoples of Argentina. It’s a national condiment, used as a marinade or eaten with grilled beef or other meats for which Argentina is also well known. …
After visiting friends in the Bay Area last fall and being introduced to and discovering that I love Korean home-cooking, folk music, and bar food, I came home vowing to learn more. A gifted Korean cookbook happened next, and now I’m finally getting around to …
Looking out my window at the mid-April snow drifts it seems hard to believe that within a few weeks we might be seeing local radishes here in the upper midwest. Thank goodness for hoop houses and determined farmers! We seem to be in a …
Skis without skiers and skis with skiers at the North End Classic. It’s a small but sweet classic-only race organized by the North End Ski club, complete with the Cookie Classic for shorter people. And while we’re on the subject of ski racing… I’m …
Spice mixtures, they are limitless! Chinese 5 Spice, Za’atar, Harissa, Shichimi, Jerk, Chermoula…like musical notes creating an infinite number of songs, the combinations and variations of spices are equally endless. Baharat is the Arabic word for ‘spices’, and spices they are. Generally the …
I recently came across a recipe for Vegan Nacho Cheese at Brita Britnell’s food blog: Life, One Meal at a Time. Always looking for special-diet options for catering I gave this a try. Yum! I did make a few modifications to increase the creamy …
Are you in need of some simple meals during this season of heavy holiday feasting? Rice and steamed vegetables with this sauce could be your dinner tonight. Maybe add a little tofu or chicken for protein. Then drink some tea, take a walk, breath good air. Sleep …
Chermoula is one of my favorite flavor bombs of all times. To quote a comment from my friend Heather on my Chermoula post of years ago: “One word…MAGIC. This little gem creates magical alchemy with anything it touches. And I have been introducing it …
I’m seeing so many of these ingredients at the Farmer’s Market it seemed like a good time to re-post this little chutney treat from November of 2011. Enjoy! Chutneys-–pungent enough to raise your eyebrows, but sweet and savory enough that you close your …
Oh, just a few more flowers. And butterflies. It’s the time of year when summer has peaked and you can feel the pendulum heading the other direction, when sunlight and flowers feel finite. At least that is what we’re feeling here in the north …
When creating a catering menu that highlights locally grown ingredients there is a certain amount of ambiguity that is necessary, especially if the menu must be decided upon months in advance. No one can possibly know what will be available at an exact date so I cannot promise any …
A quick jaunt to Colorado on Amtrak helped me remember that trains are an awesome way to travel. Everyone is relaxed, friendly, unparanoid, and relatively diverse. The leg room in coach is luxurious and the small stations have free long term parking. Perhaps it’s time you consider an Amtrak adventure? …
I referred to this pickling recipe in the Carrot Flowers post a few years ago and the Quick-Pickled Vegetable Salad last year, but I thought these beauties deserve their own page. These are one of my favorite stand-byes for antipasto trays—they’re surprisingly bright and zesty, and the …
Also known as ‘Seven Flavor Chile” because there are usually seven ingredients (shichi = seven), shichimi is a Japanese dried-spice mixture that can be cooked into dishes or added at the end for a complex punch of flavor. Though regions and families have their own ingredient combinations and proportions, most shichimi contains chiles, …
Black Bean paste is a Chinese condiment used in many a dish (hoisin sauce, stir fries, Asian BBQ, noodles), and a secret ingredient of those from Team Umami. It’s bold and tangy and can bump the flavor factor of your sauces manyfold. It can be really difficult to …
More wax!! For any of you partial to vintage ski paraphernalia here is Something Old and Something New in side-by-side Reds: years ago Swedish wax company Lind-Ex changed their name to SkiGo and here they are together. We bought the new SkiGo Red this year because …
An extraordinary project has been happening in our little town this year. Our resident English stone-guru Ted Wilson is building a dry-stone arch bridge with the help of Sean Smyth from Missoula, MT who travels around the country working on complex stone projects like this. Dry-stone is an ancient building …