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NCJ Preview: COVID-19 Update, Charlie Bean’s Legacy and the Joy of Everyday Cooking

Both Humboldt County’s Public Health office and the CDC recommend masking for both vaccinated and unvaccinated people in public indoor spaces. We’re breaking down why that is and Humboldt’s troubling increase in COVID-19 cases. From our cover story, we’ve got a look at the life of the late Charlie Bean, who dedicated his life to […]

Posted inEat + Drink

Pretty in Purple

The word broccoli conjures up the image of a dark green globe of close-knit florets but not all broccoli is created green. Some years ago, Janet Czarnecki of Redwood Roots Farm introduced me to purple sprouting broccoli as part of the farm’s winter CSA share and I will be forever grateful for that encounter. Many […]

Posted inEat + Drink

Bittersweet

Sure, everybody’s Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, but that doesn’t mean everyone loves the food. Corned beef and cabbage is fine comfort food, briny and piping hot with soft potatoes, and my family didn’t wait for March to cook it. But the heart-slowing food of ancestors who got up in the dark and worked until […]

Posted inEat + Drink

Straight From the Farm

On a light-drenched afternoon back in October, the pumpkin patch at Organic Matters Ranch on Myrtle Avenue was thickly dotted with pumpkins of various shades of orange and some green Marina di Chioggia squashes, too. Chickens dressed in lustrous feathers tasted pumpkin in front of their coop. Two shiny black pigs enjoyed the sunny weather. […]

Posted inEat + Drink

Crab.

Decadence does not have to be complicated. Christmas dinner in our family consists of three simple ingredients: homemade mayonnaise, sourdough bread and crab. That crab sandwiches have usurped ham and turkey at our table for close to a century is no surprise: The rosy-limbed crustaceans hold a special place in the heart of Humboldt County […]

Posted inEat + Drink

Nosh-giving

The planets and the calendars have aligned so that Thanksgiving falls on the same day as the start of Hanukkah. Go ahead, try out some Thanksgiving-Hanukkah hybrid names. “Thanksgiv-ukkah” is winning on the Internet, but follow your gut, because this cosmic convergence of family and feasting traditions won’t happen again for another 70,000 years or […]

Posted inEat + Drink

Can It, You!

There’s no way to sugarcoat this: Canning can be a long, hot and occasionally frustrating process, especially if you’re new at it. But is it worth it? I don’t know, how do you feel about having a rainbow of local fruits and vegetables all arrayed in vintage glass jars lining your shelves, fruits and vegetables […]

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