August 25, 2016
Corn hardly needs an introduction. Nothing says summer more than fresh corn on the cob with a little butter and a generous sprinkling of sea salt. A corn feast of eating a bunch of corn freshly picked that morning and bought directly from the grower is the best food memories of our summers. Leftover cobs can be stripped of their kernels with a sharp knife and the kernel used on their own with a little... View Article
August 1, 2016
Part of the fun of cooking is discovering what fruits and vegetables are in season and focusing on seasonal produce while it is available and in its best form. Although today we can get almost all produce all of the time, fruits and veggies are best when they are local and in season. One of the summer pleasure are beets in all their varieties. Lusciously red and golden or playfully candy striped beets are available... View Article
August 22, 2015
It is hard to describe peppers as summer food since they are available all year and in fairly good quality, but peppers grow in warm climates and are best in the summer bought at a farmers market from the grower. Red, yellow, orange, purple and green, sweet bel peppers are indispensable part of summer cooking. Chopped into salads, cut in strips for a stir fry, roasted over open flame, stuffed with grains and baked or... View Article
July 9, 2013
It seems that fava beans, also known as broad beans, are the less known variety of beans for home cooks. Several of my friends have never cooked them. This is unfortunate as fava beans are buttery-delicious and are readily available in farmers market in spring and summer. Fava and green pea crostini with goat cheese Maybe the problem is that fava beans are a little time consuming to prepare because you have to shell each... View Article
October 6, 2012
If I had to be a fruit I’d be a pomegranate. What a beauty! Exotic and elegant, sweet and mysterious, with layers of treasures hidden inside for those who dare to venture, wrapped in protective layers of soft golden skin. Yes, I’d be a pomegranate. This beauty is in season during fall and early winter and my kitchen counter is piled with mounds of this versatile fruit. I break it open, release the seeds, toss... View Article
July 12, 2012
I intend to post a few recipes using peas in the next few weeks so I thought I’d talk a little about peas first. Indulge me. Fresh green peas begin to appear in the market in late spring and remain until mid summer. If you have only eaten frozen peas up to now I hope I can persuade you to venture to your local farmers market, pick up fresh peas in their pods, return home... View Article
April 18, 2012
Artichoke is truly a spring treat. Available for only a short time in early spring (let’s forget the dehydrated specimen lingering in the produce section other times of the year), you have to watch for it and catch it when it’s in its prime. I always think of an artichoke as a mysterious vegetable. Round and plump, enclosed in a protective thorny armor it challenges you to get close and discover what’s inside. One of... View Article
April 17, 2012
Ahhh, tomatoes. Red and juicy, sweet and plump, tomatoes are the sine qua non of my kitchen. Asked to choose between cream or tomato sauce, tomatoes would lure me every time. Originally named Pomme d’Amour (Love Apple in French) tomatoes have had a love affair with culture and cuisine for thousands of years. They are believed to have originated in Mexico and were taken back to Europe on the explorers ships around the 1500’s. Italy... View Article
April 14, 2012
Asparagus – spring One of the sure sign of spring is beautiful, crisp and green asparagus popping up at the farmers markets. It’s true that you can get asparagus almost all year but there is nothing like farmer’s market asparagus in season. Asparagus is a branch of the lily family. It is planted deep in the ground and has a short growing season limited to a couple of months, barely. Asparagus is planted in trenches... View Article
April 13, 2012
Chestnuts – Winter Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Isn’t it an alluring imagery? Roaring fire, Hermes wool blankets, a good glass of wine and warm, sweet soft chestnuts. Even winter has its blessings. Chestnuts are truly seasonal and don’t really appear in the markets here until late September or even October. Thankfully, they stay until the end of January so we have a few months to enjoy this delicacy. If you are lucky and... View Article
April 12, 2012
Apples It’s hard to think of an apple as a seasonal fruit because a good selection of apples is available all year round, flown in from wherever they happens to be in season. The apple, however, is a fall fruit and if you have ever seen an apple orchard, those trees laden with golden, red, green or pink fruit in September and October are as exciting as anything I have ever seen (I live a... View Article
April 12, 2012
Cactus pears arrive at the market in early fall and remain there, keeping an eye on the going on, until springtime. Like it’s name indicates, a cactus pear is the fruit of the cactus plant and true to the origin, it is protected by sharp and prickly thorns from the would be cactus pear assassins. Do not give up though. By the time the cacti fruit makes it to the market it has been stripped... View Article
