Category Archives: seasons

Whole Wheat Rosemary Focaccia

15 April 2009 by local kitchen

This is another one of Peter Reinhart’s two-day whole grain bread recipes; this one for whole wheat focaccia bread. I’ve been tinkering with this recipe for a while – it appears that you need the right volume of dough, as well as the right hydration, in order to get a good rise and a nice, airy structure. I think I’ve finally got it right; this one was nicely browned, chock full o’ holes, and had fabulous flavor. I’ll spare you […]

Categories: baking, breads, rosemary, vegetarian, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes, whole grain breads

Roasted Vegetable Stock

15 April 2009 by local kitchen

I picked up three(!) new cookbooks this weekend, while visiting Melissa & Erik down in PA. Yes, I probably need new cookbooks like I need new holes in my head, and I have no idea where I’m going to fit them (cookbook annex in the loft, perhaps?), but I couldn’t resist. They were all (all!) 50% off (such a sucker for a bargain); it was an independently-owned cooking store (the Cookery Ware Shop – why, oh why, don’t we have one […]

Categories: 100% local, celery, parsley, radish, roasting, soup, spring, stock, vegetarian, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes, soup, vegetarian

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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

Mac. And. Cheese.

8 April 2009 by local kitchen

I can think of but one response to snow (yes, I said snow) on April 8th – mac and cheese. There are about a gizillion recipes out there for macaroni and cheese (actually Google informs me that there are “about 1,420,000“); this one is a classic version, with a bechamel-cheese sauce, a little salt, pepper & nutmeg, and not much else. I like a lot of different varieties of mac & cheese – the Half King in Chelsea makes a great version […]

Categories: 100% local, cheese, pasta, year round • Tags: cheese, cooking, food, local, main course, pasta, recipes, vegetarian

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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

Sunday Spring Cleaning: Smoky Black Bean Dip

6 April 2009 by local kitchen

In the grand tradition of Spring, I’ve been doing some spring cleaning of late. Since the weather has not been optimal for cleaning windows, and it hasn’t yet been warm enough to transition to the summer wardrobe, I’ve been concentrating on cleaning out the larder: using up canned goods that are approaching one year old, making room in the freezer for a new season’s bounty, and digging way back into the recesses of the food cabinet for those long-forgotten items; […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, cilantro, hot chile peppers, pork, side dish, year round • Tags: black bean, cooking, food, local, recipes

Goat Cheese Pizza with Garlicky Kale

4 April 2009 by local kitchen

Quick & easy, flavorful and healthy; perfect for weekend Pizza Night and a nice change from the tomato-sauce-and-mozzarella variety. Serve with a nice glass of wine and vintage Woody Allen – perfection! ————————————————————- Goat Cheese Pizza with Garlicky Kale INGREDIENTS 1 recipe Quick(er) Whole Grain Pizza Dough OR 12-Grain Pizza Dough about 1/4 cup olive oil 4-5 large kale leaves (5 oz), washed & coarsely chopped (with center stem) 1 stalk fresh/green garlic, well-washed and sliced fine, OR 4 large […]

Categories: cheese, fall, kale & leafy greens, pizza, spring, vegetarian, whole wheat flour, winter • Tags: cooking, food, local, pizza, recipes

Herby Grilled Potatoes

1 April 2009 by local kitchen

A gorgeous, sunny spring day, a rock scramble/hike in the woods with your honey, top down on the convertible on the way home – what could be better? I’ll tell you what – the First Grill of the Season. These grilled potatoes are fluffy inside, like a french fry, but crisp and smoky on the outside from the grill. Serve with Flying Pigs Jamaican Jerk sausage, grilled bell pepper and ice cold Sam Adams. Spring is a wonderful thing. —————————————————————- […]

Categories: 100% local, chives, dill, fall, grill, parsley, potato, side dish, spring, summer, vegetarian • Tags: cooking, food, grill, local, potato, recipes, vegetarian

Spring Stir-Fry: Chicken, Radish & Green Garlic

30 March 2009 by local kitchen

I’m always on the lookout for interesting radish recipes. Radishes are one of the first things to show up in the farmer’s market in spring that is not a leek, squash, potato or leafy green, hence, I always pick some up (look! they’re pink! crisp! new!) and then, after about three fresh salads with sliced raw radishes, wonder what I’m going to do with the other dozen pink wonders. I was a bit suspicious of stir-fried radish, but this dish was […]

Categories: chicken, cilantro, citrus, garlic, hot chile peppers, main course, quick & easy, radish, spring • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, garlic, green garlic, local, main course, quick & easy, radish, recipes, stir-fry

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Quick(er) Whole Grain Pizza Dough

26 March 2009 by local kitchen

Even the most ardent defender of processed foods would have to admit that for all the reasons we eat food, whole grain flours are vastly superior to refined white flour: whole grain flour contains more protein, vitamins, minerals and fiber than refined white flour, is lower on the glycemic index, and avoids the bleach and other chemicals used in the refining process. Did you know that a cup of whole wheat flour, from say, 2 large pieces of pizza, contains […]

Categories: breads, grains & legumes, pizza, vegetarian, whole wheat flour, year round • Tags: breads, cooking, food, local, pizza, recipes, whole grain

Mini Zucchini Quick Breads

25 March 2009 by local kitchen

Ah, zucchini. The magical summer squash that proliferates in every amateur green thumb’s garden each August, resulting in gigundo green monsters, bigger than your head, and the inevitable question, “What the hell am I going to do with all this zucchini?” So why am I torturing you with thoughts of zucchini, when asparagus and sugar snap peas are still weeks away and summer squash is a mere pipe dream? Maybe I am just reminiscing on the long, lazy days of summer, […]

Categories: baking, breads, citrus, eggs, fall, summer, vegetarian, winter • Tags: cooking, food, local, recipes, whole grain breads

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Lemon Basil Pesto Pizza

24 March 2009 by local kitchen

Really, amazingly, deliciously, incredibly, mouth-wateringly good. Really. ————————————————————– Lemon Basil Pesto Pizza INGREDIENTS Pizza 1 recipe 12-grain pizza dough OR Quick(er) Whole Grain PIzza Dough 1 tbsp olive oil 2 tbsp grated hard cheese, such as parmesean or Sprout Creek Barat or Ouray 4-6 tbsp lemon basil pesto (recipe follows) 4 oz mozzarella, homemade or purchased 1 head roasted garlic 4 oz cooked chicken breast, such as lemon chicken freshly ground black pepper 1/2 tsp dried lemon basil Lemon Basil Pesto […]

Categories: basil, cheese, chicken, herbs, pizza, summer, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, pizza, recipes

How to Roast Garlic

23 March 2009 by local kitchen

Garlic is a wonderous thing. Spicy & flavorful, when roasted garlic becomes sweet & smoky, like candy that’s good for you. Mashed on bread, tossed in pasta, as a pizza topping or tossed into any number of soups or stews, I can always think of a way to use roasted garlic. Since there are only two of us eating in this house (well, outside of the friends who visit often), I don’t often want to roast 6 or 8 heads […]

Categories: 100% local, garlic, roasting, year round • Tags: cooking, food, garlic, local, recipes