Category Archives: herbs

Dark Days: Preppy Spring Salad

8 March 2010 by local kitchen

Ah, pink & green, every Prepsters stock wardrobe must, especially in Spring. While my days of popped Izod collars and matching Tretorn-stripe tennis shoes are long gone, I can still show my love the for Pink & Green – locavore style. Three days in a row of 50-degree temps, not to mention lots of fresh Spring vegetables at the farmer’s market this Saturday, inspired a crunchy, fresh and altogether delightful pink & green salad. The pink: crisp & crunchy radishes, […]

Categories: appetizer, citrus, Dark Days Local, parsley, quick & easy, radish, salad, scallions, spinach, spring • Tags: cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian

Chile Verde Carnitas

8 March 2010 by local kitchen

Sad to say, this recipe was pretty disappointing, so if you are looking for a great, authentic Mexican carnitas recipe, stop reading now. The recipe does have it’s benefits: it was easy, if lengthy, to prepare; it was not the cholesterol-and-fat-laden traditional carnitas preparartion; and, you did not have to go out and buy 3 pounds of lard. However… next time, I will probably buy 3 lbs of lard. I’ve never attempted carnitas before, and hadn’t really thought about it; […]

Categories: 100% local, cilantro, main course, pork, summer, tomatillos, year round • Tags: carnitas, cooking, food, local, Mexican, pork, recipes, summer

Cilantro & Mint-Infused Wheat Bread

2 March 2010 by local kitchen

This herb-infused wheat bread is lovely; soft, flavorful, excellent with dinner, as toast with butter, or on its own. I made two loaves yesterday, as part of the birthday dinner menu for our friend Alison. While it can be a bit of a challenge to knead (mostly because I am always too lazy to chop the pine nuts and they come popping out of the dough while kneading), it is an easy bread dough to make and a forgiving one […]

Categories: baking, breads, cilantro, grains & legumes, mint, whole wheat flour, winter, year round • Tags: baking, bread, cooking, food, local, recipes, whole grain breads

Dark Days: Roasted Leek Confit Pizza

28 February 2010 by local kitchen

This roasted leek confit was quite fabulous and formed the basis of an impromptu Saturday-night pizza dinner with friends, big and small. Handily for me, most of the elements of the pizza were also local, making it a perfect spotlight meal for this week’s Dark Days Challenge. I highly recommend it after a day of sledding and building snowwomen in the yard! ————————————————————- Roasted Leek Confit Pizza INGREDIENTS 1 recipe Quick(er) Whole Grain Pizza dough olive oil about 1 oz hard […]

Categories: 100% local, basil, Dark Days Local, leek, main course, pizza, vegetarian, whole wheat flour, winter • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes, vegetarian

Cajun Chicken Pasta

25 February 2010 by local kitchen

While I read The Pioneer Woman’s blog regularly, and truly enjoy her writing and photography, I think this is the first time I have attempted one of her recipes. Well, let’s face it: she lives on a cattle ranch – I don’t eat beef. She cooks for Marlboro Man, her 4 kids, and various and sundry cowpokes, relatives, Ranch visitors, etc. – I cook for me and Tai. Last, but hardly least, there is nothing particularly seasonal about her cooking, […]

Categories: chicken, corn, garlic, hot chile peppers, main course, parsley, stir-fry, tomatoes, wine, beer & liquor, winter, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, dinner, food, local, main course, recipes

Locavirgin: Thick Cut Pork Chops with Simple Pan Sauce

19 February 2010 by local kitchen

Pork chops can be frustrating. In my opinion, few things are as simply, wonderfully good as a pan-fried pork chop. Simple, she says? Ah, therein lies the rub. As with so many “simple” recipes, it is all about the quality of the ingredients and the execution of the technique. When a recipe has only 3 or 4 ingredients, each of those ingredients really needs to shine. And, when the whole point of the recipe is to allow those beautiful ingredients to shine, there will be […]

Categories: 100% local, fall, herbs, Locavirgin, main course, pork, thyme, wine, beer & liquor, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes

Dark Days: Herbed Whole Wheat Breadsticks

24 January 2010 by local kitchen

A local bread dough made with clarified butter, dried garden herbs and Wild Hive whole wheat flour makes a lovely bread. Cut into strips, given it a twist and a dip in 10-grain mix for some crunch, and 10 minutes later you have a delicious, crusty-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside breadstick, perfect for your Dark Days meal o’ the week. Served with 100% local Potato Leek Soup, this was a hearty but easy meal for a cold, drizzly Sunday night. Adapted from Quick(er) Whole Grain Pizza Dough; see that recipe […]

Categories: 100% local, appetizer, baking, basil, breads, Dark Days Local, herbs, mint, sage, side dish, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: baking, bread, cooking, food, local, recipes, whole grain breads

Chickpea Stir-Fry

21 January 2010 by local kitchen

I must confess that it has never occured to me to stir-fry chickpeas (or any bean, for that matter). I had cooked chickpeas in the fridge, leftover from making hummus the other day and I was looking for something quick & easy, yet delicious, for dinner. I also had some romaine lettuce (clam-shell packed and shipped from California, which Mom left here at Christmastime) that needed using, but somehow I couldn’t work up any enthusiasm for month-old-California-lettuce-mid-winter salad. (Shocker, that.) Enter chickpea […]

Categories: beans, carrot, chickpeas, cilantro, garlic, grains & legumes, hot chile peppers, lettuce, main course, quick & easy, salad, stir-fry, vegetarian, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian

Dark Days: Venison Chile Verde

18 January 2010 by local kitchen

Friends of ours gifted us with some venison this week, received from friends of theirs who had shot and butchered a deer. I’m not exactly sure where the deer came from but I’m pretty confident that it was somewhere in the Northeast; our friends live in Connecticut, not far from Mystic, and the deer probably came from either New Hampshire or the Adirondacks in NY. It seemed a perfect candidate for this week’s Dark Days spotlight meal. I’m not a […]

Categories: 100% local, cilantro, Dark Days Local, hot chile peppers, main course, meat & dairy, tomatillos, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes

Easy Homemade Hummus

14 January 2010 by local kitchen

I know what you’re thinking: “Hmmph. Easy. Says she of the 3-day pie crust and the day-long chicken pot pie.” But, really, this recipe is easy. Easy as pie. Well, way easier than pie, actually. Easy enough for Rachel Ray (although why make hummus when it’s so much more convenient to buy it in the store? And why do I pick on this woman when I’ve never even seen her show? I’m sure she’s a lovely person. Really.). Anyway, you […]

Categories: appetizer, beans, chickpeas, chives, citrus, herbs, quick & easy, spreads, vegetarian, year round • Tags: beans, cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian

Yogurt Cheese Scones with Lemon & Thyme

9 January 2010 by local kitchen

The latest entry in my scone obsession, these are a savory, tangy mini scone that I made to bring to dinner tonight at our friends Amy and Bob’s house. These are an appetizer scone, great nibbled with fresh slices of apple or a nice chutney. How lemony they taste depends on the depth of flavor in your cheese; a strong cheese will allow just a hint of citrusy freshness to come though, while with a milder cheese you will really taste the […]

Categories: appetizer, baking, breads, breakfast, cheese, citrus, quick & easy, thyme, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: baking, cheese, cooking, food, local, recipes, whole grain breads

Dark Days: Sausage & Pepper Pizza

28 December 2009 by local kitchen

Last night we had the happy coincidence of two friends traveling back home from Christmas celebrations, both of whom decided to stop and spend the night with us en route. We had a delicious, impromptu, and local dinner of sausage & pepper pizza, served up with Saranac ales, good conversation, and many laughs. Thanks, Frannie & Christina, for a great night! Happy holidays everyone! ————————————————————- Sausage & Pepper Pizza INGREDIENTS 1 recipe Quick(er) Whole Grain Pizza dough 1/2 lb smoked […]

Categories: 100% local, basil, cheese, Dark Days Local, main course, pizza, sausage, tomatoes, whole wheat flour, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, pizza, recipes

Black Bean Veggie Chili

27 December 2009 by local kitchen

As a nice respite from all of the rich, heavy holiday food, as well as a warm bowl of comfort food against the chill and dreary 39-degree rainy day, yesterday I made a big pot of chili. Packed full of veggies and protein-laden black beans, this dish is winter locavore cooking at its best: peppers chopped and quick-frozen back in August only need pouring into a measuring cup; sweet corn, blanched and cut off the cob, frozen at the peak of […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, carrot, celery, cilantro, corn, garlic, hot chile peppers, main course, parsley, stew, tomatoes, vegetarian, winter, year round • Tags: black bean, cooking, food, local, recipes

Asiago and Green Apple Omelet with Chipotle Bacon

18 December 2009 by local kitchen

Christimas is only a week away and it’s been a crazy week between cooking and prepping for our annual Christmas party, cleaning the house, decorating the tree, stringing the house lights, wrapping presents, writing holiday cards – phew! Add in a visit from Mom last weekend, my car breaking down (and the subsequent attempts at repairs by the long-suffering Tai), trying to get wedding thank-you notes out the door, and some last-minute jobs from clients, and it’s a wonder I’ve managed to […]

Categories: 100% local, apples, breakfast, cheese, eggs, main course, parsley, quick & easy, year round • Tags: cooking, eggs, food, local, quick & easy, recipes

Lemony Mint Tea

16 December 2009 by local kitchen

If you live in the Northeast you had the same wet, wet, wet summer that I did. Horrible for tomatoes but awesome for water-loving mint. I had mint coming out of my ears, both from my garden and my CSA. I am embarrassed to admit how long it took me to think of drying mint for tea; I love mint tea, in fact, peppermint tea is one of the few that I drink on a regular basis. So, back in July […]

Categories: 100% local, herbs, mint • Tags: cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes