Category Archives: fruit

Whole Grain Blueberry Pancakes

12 June 2009 by local kitchen

I must confess: as someone who owns quite a few cookbooks (not exactly 101, but it’s getting there), and who actually does a lot of cooking, it seems odd that I don’t own the Joy of Cooking. I don’t own Bittman’s How to Cook Everything, I don’t own the Betty Crocker cookbook, I don’t even own Julia’s masterwork on French cooking. Considering that my cooking career began well before the Internet, it seems odd that I don’t have more of […]

Categories: 100% local, berries, breakfast, eggs, fruit, milk, summer, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: breakfast, cooking, food, recipes

Wild Blueberry & Grapefruit Scones

9 June 2009 by local kitchen

I still have some wild blueberries in the freezer, picked last August up in Minnewaska State Park. I also had a couple of pink grapefruits sitting in the fruit drawer, needing to be eaten soon. As my friend Melissa is coming up for a visit tomorrow, I thought it would be nice to have some yummy nibbles on hand, and scones are such a versatile nibble; perfect for breakfast, an afternoon snack with tea, or a meal-on-the-go in the car. […]

Categories: baking, berries, breakfast, citrus, dessert, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: baking, cooking, food, local, recipes

Tai’s Rhubarb Ginger Jam

26 May 2009 by local kitchen

As we’ve discussed before, Tai, although a pastry chef by training, almost never cooks. We have an agreement that he will cook dinner once a week, which, at this time of year is usually sausages on the grill, with some grilled asparagus or kale, and he is an awesome sous chef, especially when I am preserving the harvest. He stirs, chops, lifts, pours and does dishes with the best of them, but as for pulling out a cookbook and actually combining […]

Categories: jams, preserving, rhubarb, spring • Tags: canning, cooking, food, ginger, jam, local, preserving, rhubarb

Rhubarb Barbecue Sauce

21 May 2009 by local kitchen

Yes, yes, I know – who the hell makes barbecue sauce when it’s 85 degrees out? I the hell do, thank you very much. When you’ve had a seriously crazy couple of weeks, you worked last night until 1:00 am, and you still have 5 lbs of rhubarb wilting in the fridge, you make barbecue sauce when the sun shines. Despite the fact that it’s about 95 degrees in my kitchen right now, this sauce was a delightful surprise. Kind […]

Categories: canning, condiments, preserving, raisins, rhubarb, sauces, spring • Tags: BBQ, canning, cooking, food, local, preserving, recipes, rhubarb

Pork Chop Heaven

19 May 2009 by local kitchen

I’ve found Pork Chop Heaven. This is one of those meals; one of those meals that made me start this blog, so I wouldn’t longingly remember Pork Chop Heaven, yet have no memory of how to get back there. One of those meals that makes me think I can never go totally vegetarian. One of those meals that makes me bless the noble pig: a magical, wonderful animal. One of those meals that makes Tai say “How do you do […]

Categories: chutneys, cranberries, garlic, jellies, main course, pork, quick & easy, rhubarb, spring • Tags: cooking, food, local, pork, recipes

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Rhubarb Rosemary Two-fer

16 May 2009 by local kitchen

I tried out the Rhubarb Rosemary Jelly recipe from Gourmet (via VanillaGarlic). Of course I had to get all fancy-pants and macerate the rhubarb overnight in sugar (to release more juice), and then decide to use pectin instead of gelatin, for a firmer set and the ability to store at room temperature, and then realize that I couldn’t use pectin, because you need to add the pectin before you add sugar to the juice, and then dig frantically around in the […]

Categories: citrus, condiments, jellies, rhubarb, rosemary, spring • Tags: cooking, food, local, preserving, recipes, rhubarb

Mainely Rhubarb

12 May 2009 by local kitchen

Over the weekend, Tai & I drove up to Franklin, ME to visit family, namely, Tai’s grandmother, aunt & uncle. They live in a beautiful spot, along the water in Hog Bay in two houses separated by a grassy field, Louisa’s gardens, Charlie’s pottery studio, and a whole lot of rhubarb plants. Tai’s Uncle Charlie is a potter and his Aunt Sue is a weaver; their work is quite gorgeous and can be seen on the Hog Bay website, not to […]

Categories: rhubarb, spring • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes, rhubarb, vegetarian

Cranberry Roasted Turkey Breast

20 April 2009 by local kitchen

Easiest. Dinner. Ever. Seriously, this meal is a stand-by at our house and truly could not be easier (unless you’re calling for take-out, of course). Cranberries and turkey go naturally together and make everyone think of Fall; but cranberries are excellent for much more than just cranberry sauce, just as turkey should not be relegated only to Thanksgiving. Cranberries are naturally acidic, and in addition to tasting fabulous with turkey, will work to tenderize the flesh and makes the most […]

Categories: 100% local, citrus, cranberries, roasting, sauces, turkey, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes

Grilled Salsa Chicken & Fire-roasted Corn

16 April 2009 by local kitchen

Just in time for a gorgeous, sunny Spring weekend: quick & easy grilled marinated chicken and roasted corn – the flavors of summer (without the 98% humidity!). Given how simple this meal is, it’s unbelievable how flavorful it is. The corn is a revelation; pure summer, captured at it’s peak last August and roasted over smoky coals until the flavor makes you want to write an opera (Ode To Corn? A-Maizing Maize? Corn Cob Blues? OK, I’ll stop now). Seriously, […]

Categories: 100% local, chicken, fall, grill, main course, peaches, quick & easy, roasting, salsa, spring, summer • Tags: cooking, food, grilling, local, recipes

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Sunday Spring Cleaning: Trifle

14 April 2009 by local kitchen

OK, so I know it’s Tuesday, not Sunday. But I was away visiting friends for the weekend, and anyway, last week was rough in my kitchen. No cooking other than lots and lots of cake… (Also, I apologize for the lack of pretty pictures, but I still don’t have my camera back from Kami’s birthday party). Trifle is another of those things for which about a billion recipes exist. There are many good things about trifle: it’s truly quick & […]

Categories: berries, citrus, dessert, fruit, jams, jellies, peaches, spring, summer, year round • Tags: cooking, dessert, food, local, recipes

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Kami’s Birthday Cake: A Cautionary Tale

13 April 2009 by local kitchen

Those who have been paying attention know that I had been testing cake recipes for Kami’s birthday cake, which was due for her birthday dinner, last Thursday. Well, let’s just be brief and say “the best laid plans of mice and men (and crazy red-headed baking chicks)…” Let’s just review the cakes I’ve baked over the last couple of weeks: A mini-version of the Pink Lady cake over at Smitten Kitchen. I cut the recipe to 1/4 of the original […]

Categories: berries, dessert, spring, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: baking, cake, cooking, disaster, food, local, recipes

Homemade Granola

7 April 2009 by local kitchen

Tai had this for breakfast this morning and hasn’t stopped talking about how wonderful it was. I don’t even like granola, and I never eat cereal, but on tasting this, I was tempted to have a bowl; it is that good. And really simple to make – I don’t know why I didn’t do this ages ago. I’m always trying to get Tai to cut down on the boxed cereal he loves, because it contains so much sugar (not to mention the […]

Categories: breakfast, cherries, cranberries, fruit, nuts, oats, raisins, vegetarian, year round • Tags: breakfast, cooking, food, granola, homemade, local, recipes, vegetarian

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

6 April 2009 by local kitchen

I’ve been testing out cake (and filling, and frosting) recipes for Kami’s birthday celebration this Thursday. Kami is turning five years old this Thursday – and while her parents are certainly dear friends of mine, Kami and I are fast friends in our own right. She has very discriminating taste for an almost-5-year-old, so I generally try to pull out all the stops for her birthday cake. Not as easy as it sounds, when you consider that most “pull out […]

Categories: baking, berries, cheese, dessert, sauces, spring, summer, year round • Tags: baking, cooking, food, local, recipes, vegetarian

Raspberry Chiffon

16 March 2009 by local kitchen

What to do when your thawed red raspberries have turned to mush. This intensely flavored chiffon was paired with a deluxe pastry pie crust and glazed blackberry topping; the resulting pie earned rave reviews. Adapted from Strawberry Lover’s Chiffon Pie in The Pie & Pastry Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. ————————————————————– Raspberry Chiffon INGREDIENTS 1 lb frozen, unsweeted red raspberries 2 tsp lemon juice 3 tbsp filtered or spring water 2 tsp gelatin 1/2 cup heavy cream 6 tbsp sugar, divided 1 […]

Categories: baking, berries, pastry, pie, vegetarian, year round • Tags: cooking, dessert, food, local, recipes

Glazed Blackberry Tart

11 March 2009 by local kitchen

It’s March and I’ve been cleaning out the freezer of last season’s bounty, preparing for the new season’s bounty that is right around the corner. One of the recipes I’ve been experimenting with is a glazed berry tart, using local berries from my freezer. The first version was a strawberry-black raspberry-wild blueberry pie with concentrated juices from each of these thawed berries; the berries were delicious, and the pastry stayed perfectly crisp, but the glaze was too thin (not enough cornstarch […]

Categories: 100% local, baking, berries, pastry, pie, spring, vegetarian, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, dessert, food, local, recipes