April | 2011 |

Creamy Goat’s Milk Spaghetti with Wild Garlic Chives

28 April 2011 by local kitchen

Pasta is one of those things: quick & easy “fast food” for a weeknight dinner, a great base for showcasing your summer preserving efforts, but, unless it’s homemade, I rarely consider it spectacular. Tasty, filling, comforting, yes; but impressive enough to convince dinner guests of my kitchen prowess (she says, oh-so modestly)? Not so much. Until now. Add to my list of picky-eaterisms cream sauces, or heavy cream in general, unless it is whipped, baked or frozen. I’m not a fan of cream-based […]

Categories: chives, citrus, garlic, grains & legumes, herbs, main course, milk, pasta, quick & easy, side dish, spinach, spring, vegetarian, wine, beer & liquor • Tags: cooking, food, garlic chives, local, pasta, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian, wild foods

And the winner is…

28 April 2011 by local kitchen

Beth and the Devil’s Crock-Pot! My favorite recent DIY memory is from the day I purchased a pressure canner. I invited my mom and my best friend over for what was going to be an epic tomato sauce (some meat, some veg, hence the need for pressure over water bath) canning session. I always underestimate the time and effort that goes into this stuff. Eight hours and a few bottles of wine later, our shirts were ruined with tomato splatters […]

Categories: 100% local • Tags: book review, giveaway, hip girl's

Hip Girl’s Guide To Homemaking: Finalists!

26 April 2011 by local kitchen

It’s an exciting time here at Local Kitchen: comments are closed on The Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking book contest, and it’s time to vote for the winner! There were lots of great stories, savvy home tips, and inspirational comments (surf on over there to take a look if you haven’t yet): I enjoyed reading every one. But, as they say, there can be only one. I’ve narrowed the field to five contenders: people who shared preserving stories, home fix-it […]

Categories: community • Tags: book review, hip girl's, vote

White Bean Pesto Pizza with Linguica & Garlicky Kale

25 April 2011 by local kitchen

When I soaked the cannellini beans for pasta e fagioli last week, I used a whole pound, not thinking about quite how big runner cannellinis get (they are huge once soaked, up to 1 inch long!). I used only half a pound in the soup, so I had a lot of cooked cannellinis in the fridge, waiting for their day in the sun. I don’t know when I first thought of a pizza. I was musing on the idea of […]

Categories: beans, garlic, grains & legumes, heirloom beans, kale & leafy greens, main course, pizza, pork, sausage, spring, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: beans, cooking, food, local, pizza, recipes

Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking: Review + Contest!

18 April 2011 by local kitchen

My lovely friend Kate, of Hip Girl’s Home fame, has published a book: The Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking: Decorating, Dining, and the Gratifying Pleasures of Self-Sufficiency – on a Budget! While the official release date is tomorrow, April 19, her publisher, HarperCollins, was kind enough to send me an advance copy to review and an extra copy to host a giveaway on the blog! To tell you the truth, I was a little nervous about this review: obviously, I […]

Categories: community • Tags: budget, canning, crafts, decorating, frugal, gardening, hip girl's, homemaking, kate payne, preserving, sewing

Pasta e Fagioli

15 April 2011 by local kitchen

Back in my Boston days, I lived for several years in a tiny (300 square-foot) but adorable apartment in the North End, Boston’s version of Little Italy (but so much more charming, in my opinion, than NYC’s Little Italy). Boston’s North End was settled in the 1600′s and has all the requisite charm of history: twisty, cobblestoned streets, narrowly packed brownstones, tiny and ancient graveyards that pop out of nowhere, the Old North Church and Paul Revere’s house. Despite ongoing gentrification, and […]

Categories: beans, carrot, celery, grains & legumes, heirloom beans, main course, pasta, soup, tomatoes, vegetarian, year round • Tags: cannelini beans, cooking, food, Italian, local, pasta e fagioli, recipes, soup, vegetarian

Coconut Granola Bars

13 April 2011 by local kitchen

I’ve had this granola bar recipe sitting in my post queue for months now, waiting for me to get it right. Sadly, I’m still waiting. I’ve made it a few times, and tinkered quite a bit: thick bars, thin bars, more sugar, less sugar, different fats, different amounts of fruit & nuts. Don’t get me wrong, these are tasty: a lot less dry and sawdusty than your typical grocery store “health” bar, and a lot less sweet than the candy […]

Categories: breakfast, grains & legumes, nuts, oats, snack, year round • Tags: baking, cooking, food, granola, granola bars, local, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian, whole grain

Avocado Beeswax Hand Salve

7 April 2011 by local kitchen

Back before Christmas, when I was making the hand cream and body scrub for gifts, I stumbled upon a recipe for a hand salve made with beeswax. Naturally, I was excited by this, because beeswax can be local: emulsifying wax? Not so much. So I made a tiny batch, using organic avocado oil, as a gift for my friend Nadine, who, like me, has a tendency towards “difficult” skin, especially on her hands. In the holiday craziness, I never had the chance to take […]

Categories: home goods, year round • Tags: avocado, beauty, beeswax, hand salve, homemade

Smoky, Spicy Sweet Corn Chowder

5 April 2011 by local kitchen

A few weeks ago, I shared this wonderful-sounding recipe for sweet corn chowder, created by Cheryl Paff at At the Farmer’s Market, on the Facebook page. I’ve made it a couple of times since then and not only to clear out the freezer in preparation for the impending harvest season. This chowder comes together easily, without an excessive amount of chopping or prep, making it a good choice for an easy weeknight dinner. With potatoes and corn, it is very […]

Categories: corn, hot chile peppers, main course, potato, soup, summer, vegetarian, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, main course, recipes, soup, summer, vegetarian, winter

Flourless Chocolate Chipotle Cake

2 April 2011 by local kitchen

Have you noticed a lot of non-local ingredients cropping up on the blog of late? Citrus jam, orange chicken, honey roasted nuts? While I don’t make it a goal to eat 100% from my local foodshed (in part because I believe it is harshly restrictive for no good reason, but mostly, I suspect, because I don’t like rules) I do try to limit the non-local ingredients to occasional luxuries rather than every day ingredients. They’ve been showing up more often of […]

Categories: baking, cake, chocolate, dessert, hot chile peppers, year round • Tags: chiles, chocolate, cooking, dessert, food, gluten free, quick & easy, recipes

Local cooking and eating in New York's Hudson Valley.

Monthly Archives: April 2011