Lunches at home can be challenging. I find myself craving something healthy and satisfying but don’t want to spend a lot of time putting it together. When I changed my diet, the default sandwich or quick cheese and hot sauce tortilla fell off the lunch list. In their place I have started to make large batches of whole grain salads. Hearty and full of flavor, grain salads only get better as the week goes on- the perfect solution to a fast and healthy lunch. (more…)

Two weekends ago we set off in search of wild asparagus. It was a sunny Spring morning and we piled into the car with my parents on our first spontaneous adventure since Anna arrived. I had visions of tender young spears poking up through brown field grass and adorable photo ops of a baby and fists full of asparagus. Mr. B recalled seeing a large patch of asparagus on public hunting ground last fall. So with a map in hand we set out to find the asparagus mother-lode. (more…)

Did you know that watercress is considered one of the top super foods? It surprised me too! Apparently this tiny little green is a relative of broccoli and is filled with all kinds of health benefits, including cancer-fighting compounds, lutein, carotenoids, and a host of vitamins and minerals. In addition to what is in watercress it is also notable for what it lacks- namely calories. A cup of watercress only contains 4 calories. That’s right, 4! Of course it takes a braver dieter than I to stick to raw watercress, but even with a drizzle of dressing and sprinkling of Parmesan cheese the health benefits cannot be denied. (more…)

Just a week ago I bemoaned boring green salads. Where did that come from you might wonder? Well, I was raised in house where a green salad almost always accompanied dinner, a habit that I carried into my own home. The concept is virtuous and it does help meet the recommended daily intake of vegetables, however the practice often becomes routine. No one is to blame other than myself. Typically I find the main dish much more intriguing, spending my time and energy preparing unique and different meals. The perfunctory dinner salad, becomes just that- a last minute attempt to eat more vegetables. It is the worst in the winter, when the farmer’s market is closed and I’m left with grocery store basics. Waxy bell pepper strips, green onions, watery tomatoes, and a few token mushrooms are thrown on top of pre-washed lettuce. A drizzle of olive oil and various vinegars and the salad is ready to serve. Basic, quick, and boring when consumed five out of seven nights a week. (more…)

Last year I fell in love with kale, featuring it in a spicy vegetarian kale and wheat berry salad and loving it tender in a braised kale with white beans and turnips dish. Yet in all my flirtations with this leafy super food I never strayed from the stove. Until now. (more…)

I have a tortured relationship with persimmons. Only a few short years after discovering their intoxicating sweetness, the joy of eating a warm hachiya plucked from a tree, and the sensual texture of ripe persimmon sliding down my throat- I up and moved to the Midwest. Pure torture I tell you! Persimmon trees, laden with orange orbs begging to be picked and eaten on the spot are nowhere to be found. (more…)

When it comes to vegetables that invoke strong opinions beets are right behind brussels sprouts and cauliflower- you love them or you hate them. Growing up my exposure to beets was limited to thin slices of canned pickled beets on top of a salad. To my young palate the jury on beets was still out. They were neither distasteful or delicious and I probably ate them just because they turned my salad pink (a selling feature for any seven-year-old girl). It was only years later when dining out more frequently that I began to consider my opinion of the beet. Mr. B fell squarely into the “hates them” category, declaring that they taste like dirt. However after encountering roasted beets mixed into fresh salads with goat cheese, I decided that I rather liked the earthy flavor of beets. Still, with our difference of opinions, beets never made it home from the grocery store. Then enter the CSA- otherwise known as the forced-program-to-eat-more-vegetables. Each week this summer we received a huge box of assorted vegetables that had to be eaten or face a slow death in the crisper. Since I hate to let any vegetable die a slow death, I found myself faced with the challenge of cooking fresh beets. (more…)

When I stepped outside this morning the wind whipped past with a cold bite for the first time in months. Instead of a warm damp humidity the air has dried out along with the cottonwood leaves. Despite sunshine and 70 degree temperatures I dare say that summer is starting to slip a bit. September is always an interesting month when it comes to produce. The cooler temperatures make you think of apple cakes and warm bean soups but for gardeners and those who frequent the farmer’s market early September means a bounty of tomatoes, fall lettuce, carrots, and more. (more…)