Category Archives: herbs

Dark Days: Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast

14 December 2009 by local kitchen

Ever notice how when one thing runs out in your pantry everything else seems to follow? I had one of those weeks. We have a Christmas party every year, and I’ve been prepping all week. In making pastry dough for this apple pie and mini swiss chard quiches, I ran out of Wild Hive pastry flour and had to pick some up from the store (and let me tell you – Bob’s Red Mill is SO not the same!). Then I noticed that the all-purpose and […]

Categories: 100% local, Dark Days Local, herbs, main course, roasting, turkey, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes

Cranberry Sauce with Rosemary & Juniper Berry

12 December 2009 by local kitchen

This is a beautiful sauce, a gorgeous cranberry color flecked with deep purple bits of juniper berry. The juniper gives a hint of piney bite to the sauce while the rosemary adds a mellow, savory note. And I got to use the oh-so-cute, short & squat Ball Elite jars that I found up in Maine (they are impossible to find near me). The recipe is an amalgamation of several cranberry sauce recipes I’ve tried in the last couple of years, but was mainly inspired by this […]

Categories: 100% local, canning, cranberries, fall, holiday, preserving, rosemary, sauces, wine, beer & liquor, winter • Tags: canning, condiments, cooking, cranberry, food, local, preserving, recipes

Dark Days: Rhubarb Rosemary Pork Cutlets with Onion & Beet Sauce

4 December 2009 by local kitchen

Some meals are a revelation. Strangely enough, I often find that when I’m not really thinking about it, throwing something together from the contents of my fridge on a busy weeknight, is when I make my most startling discoveries. This meal fits the bill. I had those pork cutlets, of the not-cutlets-but-scones fame. They were thawed a couple of days ago and really needed to be cooked. (Not only am I completely obsessive about not wasting food, there has got to […]

Categories: Dark Days Local, jellies, main course, pork, rhubarb, roasting, rosemary, sage, spring, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, pork, recipes

Dark Days: Goat Cheese, Chive and Cranberry Scones

29 November 2009 by local kitchen

I had every intention of making a local dinner of Flying Pigs pork cutlets stuffed with CSA frozen arugula, Nettle Meadow chevre and Cranberry Hill organic cranberries. Tai was drooling at the mere thought. However, as the afternoon waned I realized that I was just not in the mood for meat, even though the pork was thawing away on the counter. So I stuck Flying Pigs back in the fridge for tomorrow and made the same basic flavors (and ingredients) into […]

Categories: 100% local, baking, breads, breakfast, cheese, chives, cranberries, Dark Days Local, fall, herbs, quick & easy, whole wheat flour, winter, year round • Tags: baking, cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes, whole grain breads

Dark Days: Apple Cider Chicken with Sage Mashed Potatoes

21 November 2009 by local kitchen

About a week ago, I signed up for the Dark Days Challenge, hosted by food blogger (not so) Urban Hennery, in which locavores strive to keep in touch with their local foodshed throughout the long, cold, dark days of winter and to “cook one meal each week focused on SOLE (sustainable, organic, local, ethical) ingredients” and write about it on their blogs. Shouldn’t be such a challenge for a self-styled Local Kitchen blogger, no? Well, you might be surprised. Atlhough I have a chest freezer stocked full […]

Categories: 100% local, apples, chicken, Dark Days Local, fall, main course, sage, tomatoes, whole wheat flour, winter • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes

Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Crispy Sage

8 November 2009 by local kitchen

I keep trying new pumpkin soup recipes, and I keep coming back to this one. Rich, hearty, creamy without a drop of cream, it derives it’s depth of flavor from the roasting of the vegetables, the interest of cardamom and cinnamon spice, and the lemony flavor and textural contrast of crispy sage leaf garnish. Delicious! Adapted (barely) from Pumpkin Soup with Crispy Sage Garnish in Homegrown: Pure and Simple by M. Nischan ————————————————————— Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Crispy Sage INGREDIENTS one […]

Categories: appetizer, fall, main course, sage, soup, winter, winter squash • Tags: cooking, fall, food, local, pumpkin, recipes, soup, vegetarian

Spicy Black Bean & Chickpea Soup

2 November 2009 by local kitchen

When it comes to habanero peppers, I never seem to learn. I always think, “Well, it’s a small pepper, and I’ll take all the seeds out – it won’t be too spicy.” Yep. That’s what I always say, usually about an hour or two before I’m pawing through the cupboards, looking for an additional something that will absorb a bit of the excess heat. Tonight was no exception. I set out to a make a spicy, but not killer-spicy, black bean soup. […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, chickpeas, cilantro, fall, hot chile peppers, soup, tomatoes, vegetarian, winter, year round • Tags: black bean, cooking, food, local, recipes, soup, vegetarian

Linguica Pizza

29 October 2009 by local kitchen

I grew up in Gloucester, MA, at the tip of Cape Ann on Massachusetts’ North Shore, then mostly a commercial fishing town and a summertime escape for wealthy Bostonians. Like many fishing towns or villages in New England, Gloucester had, and still has, a large community of Portuguese immigrants and their Portuguese-American descendants. If you grew up in Gloucester, or New Bedford, Fall River or even East Cambridge, you already know the wonder that is linguica (pronounced “lin-GWEE-sa”). If you did […]

Categories: basil, cheese, main course, pizza, pork, sausage, tomatoes, whole wheat flour, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, pizza, pork, recipes, whole grain breads

Kaela’s Garlic-Herb Mashed Potatoes

17 October 2009 by local kitchen

In my senior year of college, my friends and I were scattered about various off-campus rental houses in the neighborhoods surrounding the university. We used to gather for big, casual pot-luck dinners; lots of pasta, huge bags of snack food liberated from the school cafeterias, and boxes of wine. Today, it makes me shudder to think of drinking white zinfandel, let alone zinfandel in a box, but my memories of those dinners are always happy: lots of food, friends, music, movies […]

Categories: 100% local, herbs, potato, side dish, vegetarian, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, potatoes, recipes, sides

Tabouli

9 October 2009 by local kitchen

In keeping with the Middle Eastern theme of late (oh-so appropriate while I am traveling through the wilds of the Canadian Rockies, I know, but there is not a lot of elk or bison to be had in Northeastern America), this is a tasty, cool salad, using up lots of end-of-garden parsley and mint with the zest of lemon and the heartiness of bulghur wheat. Simple and delicious. Adapted from Authentic Lebanese Tabouli at Epicurious ————————————————————– Tabouli INGREDIENTS 1 cup bulghur wheat […]

Categories: citrus, grains & legumes, herbs, mint, parsley, quick & easy, salad, side dish, summer • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, local, recipes

Lemon Yogurt Chicken Kebabs

6 October 2009 by local kitchen

Absolutely delicious. Really. Try this one. Adapted from Grilled Lamb Kebabs by Deb at Smitten Kitchen ————————————————————– Lemon Yogurt Chicken Kebabs INGREDIENTS Marinade 1 and 1/2 lbs boneless chicken breast 1 lb plain yogurt, preferably Greek style (I used Fage Total) 1/4 cup Kalamata extra virgin olive oil zest of 1 medium lemon juice of 2 medium lemons, about 1/4 cup 2 tbsp Greek seasoning (or 1 tbsp dried marjoram and 1 tbsp dried oregano) 1 tsp Kosher salt 1/2 […]

Categories: chicken, citrus, grill, herbs, meat & dairy, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, local, recipes

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

2 October 2009 by local kitchen

Before tomatoes completely disappear, along with the sun and warmer temps, make this festive, easy and complete-protein salad for your next back-deck barbeque or weekend picnic in the park. Simple, stores well, and is equally delicious served warm, cold or at room temperature. Adapted from Quinoa and Black Bean Salad, Gourmet, July 1994 ————————————————————– Quinoa and Black Bean Salad INGREDIENTS 3/4 cup quinoa 1 and 1/2 cups cooked black beans, rinsed (or about 1, 15-oz can) 1 tbsp red wine vinegar salt and freshly ground black […]

Categories: beans, cilantro, citrus, corn, grains & legumes, quick & easy, quinoa, salad, side dish, summer, tomatoes, year round • Tags: beans, cooking, food, local, quick & easy, quinoa, recipes, salad, summer

Chile Verde Base

29 September 2009 by local kitchen

Throughout the year, I make a kick-ass chile verde, a Mexican stew of roasted tomatillos, jalapeño peppers, cilantro, garlic and slow-cooked pork shoulder. My recipe is only slightly adapted from Elise’s version on Simply Recipes, courtesy of her friend Arturo Vargas, and it’s a staple over the long, cold months of winter. Tomatillos, however, the main ingredient in the vegetable base, have a short season here in the Northeast: they ripen at the tail end of tomato season and, if […]

Categories: 100% local, cilantro, fall, freezing, hot chile peppers, preserving, summer, tomatillos • Tags: cooking, food, local, Mexican, preserving, recipes, tomatillos

Tzatziki

21 September 2009 by local kitchen

I’ve had a massive craving for good Greek food lately. What happened was this: Tai & I stole a day out of our crazy schedules to go climbing last week. We spent a gorgeous Tuesday afternoon on the cliffs of the Gunks, up in New Paltz, NY. Before heading home, we decided to try a new Mediterranean restaraunt in town. Well, the most I can say is that is was disappointing. Not horrible food, per se, but totally tasteless; for […]

Categories: cucumber, dill, fall, sauces, side dish, summer • Tags: cooking, food, Greek, local, quick & easy, recipes, sauces, summer

Fresh Peach Salsa

13 September 2009 by local kitchen

Can you tell I’ve had a lot of peaches in the house? And there are still nectarines in the fridge… stay tuned. Tai’s first comment on tasting this salsa was “How can this be possible?” Followed shortly by “Maybe I’ve just never had a good peach before.” Granted, Tai is not difficult to please (one of the reasons he is so much fun to cook for), but I have to agree with him – this salsa came out really good. Fresh, […]

Categories: 100% local, appetizer, cilantro, citrus, fruit, hot chile peppers, peaches, quick & easy, side dish, summer • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes