Magazine Suggestion

Those of you who really know me are aware of my (small) obsession with magazines. I can't really explain why I love reading them so much, but I currently have a giant stack waiting for me since we've been so busy lately.

One magazine that I've discovered in different areas of the country that seems particularly relevant to this blog is Edible Communities. Published 4 times a year (with the seasons!), different versions are about specific cities or regions and the articles highlight things that would interest locavores - including local producers, farms, up-and-coming restaurants, shops, etc. There's always at least a few recipes in there as well. If you click here, you can see the most recent issue of Edible Boston in digital format. I didn't realize that it's free to read them online, I may now have to scroll through a few other regions as well!

My parents brought me several copies of Edible White Mountains which they got during their recent farm stay experience and I saw Edible Portland and Edible Seattle when we were away.

Other locations of Edible magazine that might interest some of you (or at least are interesting to me!):

• Edible Brooklyn
• Edible Buffalo
• Edible Cape Cod
• Edible Chicago
• Edible Columbus
• Edible Finger Lakes
• Edible Manhattan
• Edible Ohio Valley
• Edible Philly

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Reducing Waste

I'm going to be taking a short hiatus from the blog in a few days, as we're going on vacation to the Pacific Northwest. We've been planning this trip for almost a year, and I'm so excited to get away! I have a feeling that we'll be eating a lot of sustainable and locally grown food in Portland and Seattle, as they seem to be up-and-coming food cities with lots of great environmentally-focused chefs. I'll be sure to take lots of photos to share with you when we get back!

As I sit here dreaming about everything we're going to do, I can't help but wonder how to use up all of the veggies in my fridge before we head out of town. Since I'm guessing it's not going to be possible, I've been contemplating ways to save the produce for later use. I would love to can them, but I don't yet have the supplies to do so (I'm hoping to spend some time later this summer experimenting with it, but I don't think that now is the time).

I have been able to successfully freeze herbs in the past, so I think I may try that with the herbs we have left (dill, cilantro, and parsley). It's actually really simple - wash and cut the herbs, and then place them in ice cube trays. Fill the rest of the tray with water (or oil, or any other cooking liquid, i.e. wine!) and freeze. Then when you need some for a recipe, just defrost or add directly to your pan. It helps if you measure a specific amount into each ice cube tray, so that you know how much is in there when you need it later for a recipe. (as a side note, I also do this with leftover coffee, because then I can make iced coffee and not have to worry about it getting watered down when the ice melts!).

But I was wondering if it's possible to freeze other veggies, and I've discovered that it is! This website is a great resource for how to freeze specific types of produce.

I also think I'm going to make pickles out of the cucumbers we got from this week's harvest. My mother-in-law makes great refrigerator pickles, here's her recipe (I may even try to use fresh dill in them, although I've never done that before):

Pickled Cucumbers

INGREDIENTS:

- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp. celery seed
- 1/2 tsp. dill weed
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1-2 garlic cloves, crushed

PREPARATION:

1. Combine ingredients in a jar.

2. Slice 2 cucumbers and add to mixture.

3. Marinate in refrigerator. Best if at least 6 hours - 12 hours.

Any ideas on other ways to preserve our veggies if we can't use them right away?

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Free Cookbooks!

Some of you already know about my love for the public library, but for those of you who don't, I'm a big supporter of the library! Joining the library is almost always the first thing I do when I move to a new town - this move was no exception.

I discovered on Friday that our local library has a great collection of cookbooks, and I took these 2 out - I'm enjoying them so far! I'll keep you updated when I take out some more.

• Field Guide to Produce
• Vegetables Every Day

If you don't have a library card, you should get one - all you usually need to bring with you is proof of your residency in the town or city. It's free - why not?

While I'm on the subject, I recently discovered this blog which I think is awesome - check it out!

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Ethiopian Honey Yeast Bread

Sorry for the lack of posts this week, Dan and I moved into our new house on Saturday and it's been quite hectic around here. We've barely used anything from last week's CSA, but I'll update the blog as soon as I can... especially since our next harvest pick-up is today!

In the meantime, here's a recipe that my mom just emailed me. Her friend (an amazing baker) made this bread for their book club meeting last night (they like to eat food related to the book they've read each month - I love the idea). I haven't tried the recipe, but apparently the bread got rave reviews among my mom's friends. Enjoy!!!

Yemarina Yewatet Dabo (Ethiopian Sweet Bread)

INGREDIENTS:

1 yeast packet
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon coriander
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon salt (she used 1/2 tsp.)
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup warm milk (she used fat free)
4 to 5 cups flour (she used bread flour, King Arthur's)

METHOD:

1. Stir yeast in 1/4 cup warm water in small bowl, let stand for 10 minutes.

2. In large bowl, beat egg, honey, spices and salt until smooth (she used a whisk).

3. Stir in milk and melted butter and yeast.

4. Stir in flour 1/2 cup at a time until soft, smooth dough. Add more or less as needed;
Knead on board for 10 minutes.

5. Place in large, lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic; let rise 1 and 1/2 hours.

6. Remove to board, punch down and knead one minute.

7. Form dough into a round and place on oiled baking sheet.

8. Cover with towel and let rise 30 to 45 minutes.

9. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Brush top with egg and a little milk mixture.

10. Bake uncovered 45 minutes to 1 hour until lightly brown.

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Introduction

This blog is intended to be a record of our experiences with community-supported agriculture (CSA). My husband, Dan, and I joined Red Fire Farm's CSA this year; it's our first time participating in such a program. We've been considering it for a long time and finally jumped on the opportunity when our close friends, R and J, asked if we'd like to split a share with them.

We chose Red Fire Farm because we liked their philosophy and their literature was very comprehensive. They also seem to do a lot of community outreach and were very welcoming to those new to the idea of a CSA. Although the farm is located in Granby, MA (Western MA), we live in the suburbs of Boston. Luckily, the farm delivers to our area on Wednesday evenings!

As part of our share, we're also allowed to pick certain produce at the farm ourselves, including peas, green beans, and strawberries. We hope to make it out there a few times this summer, as we both love "pick-your-own!" They also have several festivals during the growing season - we'd like to go to their heirloom tomato festival at the end of August.

A little about me and my husband - Dan and I try to be as environmentally conscious as we can - we compost, recycle as much as possible, and bring reusable bags with us to the grocery store. I was a vegetarian for a long time, although I now eat kosher poultry and fish. We still don't eat meat very often, so we're excited to mix up our repertoire of vegetarian dishes!

Self-proclaimed "budding foodies," we like trying new things and are always on the look-out for good recipes. I LOVE to bake, so I'll be infusing the blog with some sweet recipes whenever possible. I also really enjoy reading magazines, so I'll post recipes from my favorite subscriptions when applicable.

Please also make sure to check out the links I've included to the right... they're websites I enjoy reading on a regular basis! I've also made a list of some cookbooks that I think may help us in this journey... feel free to suggest some for me to add!

I hope you enjoy reading this blog as much as I will enjoy writing it... thanks for coming along on this journey with us!

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