In Season & Fresh from the Garden, the Fields, the Orchards & the Woods
Undemanding. Vigorous. Pretty in a blowzy sorts of way. Tall. You could almost be talking about me. But not quite: Helianthus tuberosus is what I mean. You know: Jerusalem artichokes, sunchokes, sunroots, earth apple, tobinambours. Look at them in that somewhat blurry September picture, towering …
Everyday meals throughout the year. Eating seasonally and locally. A pretty “collage”, no?
On February 2, in Punxsutawney, PA, Phil the Groundhog is most unwillingly thrust into forecasting the next 6 weeks’ weather (most unwillingly indeed as he is – apparently – wrong 61% of the time). But you know, no matter what poor Phil does or does not do, we are now halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox and receiving 10 hours of sunlight a day again! And that, ladies and gentlemen, is cause for celebration, even if only a modest one.
So whether you celebrate Ground Hog Day, Candlemas, St Brigid’s Day, Imbolc, or just want to have a fun family evening, I propose we make crepes. Listen: if you can make pancakes, chances are you can make crepes! The basic ingredients are the same after all (flour, eggs & milk), the proportions different. As when making pancakes, a cast-iron skillet is the most practical choice. There is absolutely no need for a special crepe skillet: I do not have one. Fun and easy to make, sweet or savory, sophisticated or homey, crepes are our friends – and they are coffee-friendly, hard-cider friendly and, without a doubt, wine friendly!
If you want to read more and get the recipe for Vanilla Crepes stuffed with Almond Creme and served with Maple Caramelized Apples (and suggestion as what to drink with that) please head over to the Virginia Wine Gazette On-Line where editor and wine expert Mary Ann Dancisin asked me to do a “Virginia Edible” blog post. Except for the almonds and vanilla, those crepes can be Virginia grown…
There is no season for ice-cream. Or rather I should say: it is always the season for ice-cream. And in winter we make ice-cream from frozen fruit (poached and pureed, and then mixed into the ice-cream base) or more often using spices. Ginger ice-cream is …
Just because it’s winter does not mean you can’t make jam from local fresh fruit.
Guess what kind of jam I am making?
Apricot you say? They are a chancy crop around here and I never get enough to freeze for later to make jam in the winter. Nope, it’s pumpkin – as bright a jam as apricot jam , indeed. Cooked with a little ginger, of course!
When I was growing up “Confiture de Citrouille” was made all around. The pumpkin was cut up in largish cubes (or sliced fairly thinly) and then simmered in syrup perfumed with a vanilla bean or two. Here in the US the primary use of pumpkin seems to be pumpkin pie or bread (a cake, really). But let me tell you that pumpkin is eminently versatile as a vegetable (whether roasted, gratineed, pureed, souped, or stewed; in lasagna and tortellini) and as a fruit (candied, tart, ice-cream, jam, cake, flan, soufflé) and – of course – as both (chutney). Does that make it a well-rounded denizen of the vegetable kingdom or a vegetable with multiple personality disorder? mmm… Continue reading Winter Preserve
In the colder months, we roast, braise, bake and generally use the oven without hesitation. Roasting vegetables is a great way to make their flavor really shine. For cauliflower (as well as for other members of the cabbage family), roasting also mitigates the “boiled-cabbage” odor …
We give thanks for being able to grow this food, for being able to cook, for being here, now, and for friends. This year, I am cooking most of Thanksgiving dinner – it has not happen in years, as we generally are celebrating elsewhere. And …
I have know for a while that autumn olives (Elaeagnus umbellata) were edible. I just never took the time to go after them. But this year seems to be the year when I started to forage more consistently (bird cherries, wineberries, elderberries, chestnuts, Japanese quince, pawpaws, wild grapes etc) and so when a shrub of autumn olives shimmering in yesterday’s morning sun called to me, I grabbed a bucket and I started to pick. Let me tell you what a nice way to while away an hour it was (and do something useful too!). Warm (but not too warm) sun on my back, the berries like little prayer grains under my fingers, my mind ticking all the reasons such a cursed plant (by some) provides for thankfulness. Because, truly, what’s not to like about autumn olives? Continue reading Ode to the Autumn Olive
I love love quince and was able to get one bushel this year from one of the local orchards (not counting Japanese quince which several friends let me have from their bushes)! So… once more in the middle of putting food by: roasting & can …