From the category archives:

In the Kitchen

Stocking up

August 25, 2010

As I mentioned last week, I’ve been busy filling my freezer for the fall and winter. Actually, it’s not just for the cold months — school starts today and my husband’s and my work schedules kick back up from their easier summer schedules, so life in general gets busier for our family. Having lots of [...]

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Late August bounty

August 19, 2010

My garden is going gangbusters this month.  But then again, isn’t everyone’s?  Like Susan’s garden, I have tomatoes coming out of my ears, but I’m not complaining.  Instead, I’m whipping up quick batches of tomato sauce and freezing them for the cold months. I planted a number of varieties of tomatoes last May — including [...]

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Tomato Harvest

August 16, 2010

This past week we harvested more than 60 purple calabash tomatoes, all grown from seed (purchased from the Monticello Garden Shop!). Who knew that in my tiny suburban townhome back yard I could have such abundance? Remember when I was starting out (see post here). Well, they ended up growing like crazy. Being that I [...]

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A local 4th of July feast

June 29, 2010

It’s hard to believe that the 4th of July is this weekend. Where did June go? Continuing our theme of eating local foods for the holidays, here are my thoughts on a locally-sourced Independence Day cookout: For the main dish, I personally am partial to burgers and will get the beef from Wolf Creek Farm [...]

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My favorite herb — basil

June 17, 2010

One of the great things about gardening is having an herb garden just a few steps from my back door.  I have a dedicated area that is 4′ x 10′ where I grow all the standards — rosemary, oregano, thyme, chives, sage, and more. What you don’t see on that list is basil.  I actually [...]

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Local Flavors

June 15, 2010

I’ve mentioned here before that we here in my family are big fans of farmers’ markets.  Even though we have a good-sized garden just steps from our back door, we still like to head downtown on our bikes every Saturday and see what our local farmers have for us that week.  We invariably pick up [...]

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Berry easy

June 8, 2010

With berry season upon us, now is the perfect opportunity to preserve some of the bounty for the cold months.  The easiest way to do this is by freezing. Freezing is simple, simple, simple.  Wash the berries and let them dry.  Put them on a baking sheet and stick them in the freezer.  Later on, [...]

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Ice cream and popsicles, oh my!

June 3, 2010

Now that June’s heat is upon us, my thoughts have turned toward cold frozen treats.  I went to the grocery store recently and made the unpleasant discovery that a lot of the ice cream and popsicles available are loaded with high fructose corn syrup and other undesirable ingredients. Luckily, I have an ice cream maker [...]

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Strawberry fields forever

May 13, 2010

One of the many great things about early May in Virginia is that it’s strawberry season. Strawberries might just be one of Nature’s most perfect foods.  They’re at their best when they are grown organically and then eaten right after they’ve been picked.  Strawberries grown in California (or further afield) and then shipped to your [...]

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A momentary crisis of confidence.

May 11, 2010

I’ve been gardening for about 15 years now, but didn’t really have much of a kitchen garden until a couple of years ago.  Last year, my family moved into a new house with a blank slate for a yard, which gave me the opportunity to imagine all the possibilities and just how big my kitchen [...]

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