There is no good translation for “Lebensmittel” which is the German word for food. It really means “things that are alive” or better “things you need to stay alive”, which brings me to this week’s post which is all about what to do with all the dark leafy greens you find at farmer’s markets and which make up the bulk of your CSA box during this time of year. Even the most creative of us cooks might run out of ideas on just what to do with all that chlorophyl in our fridge. Be they raw, steamed, boiled or roasted, here are our reasons why we make sure these healthy vegetables are featured prominently in our diet, so go on and pick up a bunch of fresh wintery greens on your next grocery shopping trip. Come and cook with us! Continue reading “The Green Team”
Category: Featured Fruit and Vegetable
What’s in season and sounds good
Move over Wheat, Here comes the Millet!
After the holidays and a few intense weeks volunteering at my children’s school, my calendar finally opened-up, and I turned to my big stack of recipes that are waiting to be tested realizing that I had cooked on auto-pilot for the last few weeks. That’s not good for a food blogger ;-). To soothe my soul and to make things more interesting again for everybody, I ventured into a few unknown areas and, of the many new dishes I tried, I wanted to share my favorite with you this week. Once again, it is the result of my attempt to move away from the go-to-dishes such as pasta and rice. This recipe uses whole millet, which is savory in flavor, easy to cook and versatile in its many uses. The recipe as a whole is very versatile so you too can get inspired by what is in your CSA produce box, fridge or pantry. Come and cook with us! Continue reading “Move over Wheat, Here comes the Millet!”
Schwarzplenten… Memories of My Childhood
There are certain foods that I strongly associate with my home back in Italy. One of them is buckwheat, as it was grown on the mountainous hills of South Tyrol and is featured prominently in our traditional farmers’ cuisine. Whether in the form of breakfast cereal, “ersatz” burgers, dumplings, a cake or “riebel”, the strong, delicious taste of buckwheat speaks to me of home. If you are in for trying something new, come with me on a culinary trip to my region and give one of these recipes a try. Come and cook with us! Continue reading “Schwarzplenten… Memories of My Childhood”
Delicata-ly
Have I ever told you about my husband’s international food rule? It’s something his parents came up with when he was a young child to encourage him to eat everything except for one type of food of his choice (and he could change his one food once a year). Well, my husband’s consistent choice all through his childhood was squash and, while he has since found out that there isn’t really such a thing as an international food rule, to this day he and for some genetically probably easy-to-explain reason also his male offspring just don’t like that sweet winter produce that lightens up soups, salads, mashed side dishes and gorgeous pies at this time of year. In an attempt to woo my family over to the “other side”, I’m dedicating this week’s post to squash, and to be more specific, to one of the finest of them all, the delicata squash. Come and cook with us! Continue reading “Delicata-ly”
Long Live the Queen of Fall
We are creatures of habit. And this, more than anything, applies to what we cook and eat. In Northern California where the standard fruit and vegetable selection regularly includes ten different varieties of apples, three different types of kale, and citrus fruit to satisfy a city, habit can be a very healthy thing. Every so often, however, it pays to pair habit with adventure, and buy those special items that only come available once a season: pomegranates, chestnuts, and, my absolute favorite, persimmons. These little known fruits that make their debut in late October look beautiful, and if ripened to the right point, pack some of the most intense, delicious flavor that I know. And while I normally associate them with my hometown in Italy (where my father is currently harvesting them by the bushel), they are abundant in my new hometown, Marin, where my dear friend Kristine just dropped off her newly plucked crop. A toast to friendship and family! Come and cook with us! Continue reading “Long Live the Queen of Fall”
Come and Cook with Us 