The calendar says it’s September. How did it happen? As an ardent lover of summer, the month that marks the end of my favorite season takes me by surprise. A part of me wants to dislike September, but how can I, when our landscape is awash in golden light and the farmers’ markets are overflowing […]
Simona Carini
Posted inEat + Drink
Got Fruit? Make Cobbler
My vegetable pipeline flows unimpeded in winter and spring. Brussel sprouts, various leafy greens, root vegetables, purple sprouting broccoli, leeks and spring onions provide ample material for dishes. And I always manage to stretch my stash of winter squashes until the early months of the year. In the fruit department, on the other hand, come […]
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Hooray for Carrots — for Once
Have you ever been excited to find carrots at the farmers market or in your CSA share? Have you ever picked up a bunch of carrots by the stems and smiled at the uncombed ponytail of greens? Until a couple of years ago, I would have answered a puzzled no to both questions. Getting excited […]
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Easter Egg Bread
I used to go egg hunting as a child. When visiting friends with chickens, I would go into the henhouse to look for an egg for myself. I was wary of hens and the rooster, but the lure of a fresh egg steeled me. Sometimes the egg would be guarded, sat upon by its owner. […]
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Make It Green
March is a difficult month. No longer winter and not yet spring, it is a kind of limbo in which the promise of spring may be curbed suddenly by bites of cold. The memory of cherry tomatoes exploding juicily in my teeth is as faint as Big Bang’s echo. Counting the months that separate me […]
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A Good Start
If we think of January as the morning of the year, then breakfast is a perfect topic to consider now. I can see the words “New Year’s resolutions” blinking bright red in your mind, but that’s not where I meant to go: I am thinking more in terms of “New Year’s suggestions.” Step into my […]
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Orange Salad
The holidays remind me that I grew up elsewhere. I enjoy watching children working at their gingerbread creations, but I don’t have my own personal experience. While I have no urge to recreate familiar Italian traditions wholesale, I like to pay homage to my roots, even it it’s just with a dish on the table. […]
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Winter Glow
Asian persimmons are festive: in shades from yellow to red-orange, depending on the variety, they glow in the crystalline light of the final months of the year. In neat rows at farmers’ markets and grocery stores, persimmons look like lanterns lit for a street celebration. Due to a poor season, local supplies are short, so […]
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Baking Beauties
Cosmetically challenged,” read the politically correct sign on a case of apples I saw at a farmers market a few years ago. I applaud the farmer for promoting the blemished or not-perfect-enough, but I would like to propose something bolder: I hereby launch the campaign to focus on those apples’ virtues, labeling them with names […]
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Ode to Summer’s End
Summer produce is still abundant and fall favorites are already making an appearance. It’s a barrage of luxurious colors (bright yellow peppers, blood-red strawberries, dark purple eggplant), deep flavors (sun-ripened tomatoes, peaches, figs) and enveloping smells (dewy lettuce and greens, earthy potatoes and root vegetables). Walking around the farmers market, I try to avoid filling […]
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The Bounty Around Us
“It’s that time of the year,” sang Len Barry, and I echo his words. He meant summertime, but I mean Local Food Month, when we officially celebrate the food grown or made in our county — a month-long party featuring special events and chances to meet local food producers and taste their products. Providing an […]
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Tout Sweet Corn
My memories of eating freshly harvested corn as a child in Italy involve a field and fire, but no pot or butter. I ate corn at most once a year, if, on harvest day, we happened to visit family friends who grew some to feed their chickens. We roasted ears of corn over an outdoor […]