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

1-2-3-4 Citrus Jam

14 March 2011 by local kitchen

I’ve been sick since Wednesday’s epic 9-hour air travel adventure coming home from Toronto. (Yes, Toronto to New York. Nine hours. Did I mention there was curling and bad airport beer involved? Sigh.) Nothing major, just a cold I’m sure, but since I’m almost never sick, I’m completely impatient with the whole process. Like I figure a 2-hour nap and a tall glass of OJ ought to fix me right up. And when it doesn’t, I’m totally cranky: What? You’re […]

Categories: breakfast, canning, citrus, jams, preserves, preserving, winter • Tags: canning, citrus, cooking, food, local, marmalade, preserving, recipes

2010 Dietary Guidelines: Fat 102

11 March 2011 by local kitchen

2010 Dietary Guidelines is a series in which I discuss the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 released by the UDSA and US Department of Health and Human Services at the end of February. In the series, I attempt to untangle the facts from the political rhetoric and scientific jargon, to translate the key data & recommendations into plain English, and to investigate whether the document truly reflects the best and most current food science available today. Need to catch up? Dietary […]

Categories: Dietary Guidelines • Tags: cholesterol, cooking, diet, dietary guidelines 2010, fat, food, trans fat

Use It or Lose It! Strawberry Chipotle Turkey Breast

7 March 2011 by local kitchen

Happy Monday, everyone. I am working on the next installment in the Dietary Guidelines series (Fat 102: trans-fats, hydrogenation and cholesterol, oh my!), but in the meantime I thought I would share my latest poultry-cooked-in-jam adventure: strawberry chipotle braised turkey. Despite the fact that daylight savings time starts this weekend (!) and that Biblical amounts of rain fell yesterday, washing away all but the most stubborn patches of snow, winter still has us in her grip, and there is still comfort […]

Categories: berries, braising, turkey, Use it or Lose it!, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, main course, recipes, strawberries, turkey, winter

Strawberry Chipotle Preserves

4 March 2011 by local kitchen

Can you believe that I don’t have a single jar of strawberry jam left in the garage pantry? I feel like I spent half of last summer preserving strawberries, but in reality, I guess not: there was this Ferberesque strawberry rhubarb jam, but I made it in San Francisco and left it with my friend Christina; there was this Can Jam strawberry rhubarb & caramelized onion jam, but I made that way back in March with frozen berries (sensing a trend, here?); there was a […]

Categories: berries, canning, dessert, hot chile peppers, preserves, preserving, spring • Tags: berries, canning, cooking, dessert, ferber, food, local, preserving, recipes, spring, strawberry

2010 Dietary Guidelines: Fat 101

2 March 2011 by local kitchen

Fat. Saturated fat. Unsaturated fat. Monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, partially hydrogenated, trans fat. Lipids, fatty acids, triglycerides, cholesterol, omega-3, omega-6. No wonder we’re confused! What does it all mean? From the OED online: Pronunciation:/fat, / noun 1) a natural oily or greasy substance occurring in animal bodies, especially when deposited as a layer under the skin or around certain organs, 2) a fatty substance made from animal or plant products, used in cooking 3) any of a group of natural esters of glycerol […]

Categories: Dietary Guidelines • Tags: chemistry, diet, dietary guidelines 2010, fat, fatty acids, food

Use It or Lose It! Apple Walnut Parmesan Crumble

1 March 2011 by local kitchen

Sometimes I am lazy. Often, especially in late winter it seems, I just can’t work up the motivation to put together a fancy dessert, or even to roll out a pie crust (I blame the lack of Vitamin D). But, even in winter, friends come to visit, or Tai works a week of 15-hour days back-to-back and I can’t just crack open a box of Entenmann’s and say “Here you go, kids!” It’s just not my style. But I can do the next […]

Categories: apples, baking, cheese, dessert, fall, oats, quick & easy, whole wheat flour, winter, year round • Tags: apples, baking, cooking, dessert, fall, food, local, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian, winter

2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans: A Series

27 February 2011 by local kitchen

Food media outlets were abuzz a few weeks ago with the release of the once-every-5-years update of Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 (released on January 31, 2011 just so we could all make the requisite slow-as-the-federal-goernment jokes), prepared by the USDA and the US Department of Health & Human Services. I read some of the news bits, and caught some reactions on Twitter, but I deliberately held off on reading the full policy document because I basically knew what my reaction would be: […]

Categories: Dietary Guidelines • Tags: diet, dietary guidelines 2010, food, USDA

Sausage & Swiss Chard Lasagna

26 February 2011 by local kitchen

Do you know how hard it is to take an appetizing picture of lasagna? Well, let me tell you: it’s hard. Especially in dreary, grey, rainy February afternoon “daylight.” There’s a reason that lasagna photos are always tarted up with fresh basil or a white-aproned chef, proudly bearing the baking dish: lasagna is ugly food. Lest that dissuade you from making this dish, however, let us remember The Kitchenette’s cardinal rule: ugly food is delicious. (And on a completely unrelated note, […]

Categories: 100% local, basil, main course, pasta, sausage, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, food, lasagna, local, pasta, recipes, sausage, winter

Bourbon-Glazed Cinnamon Buns

24 February 2011 by local kitchen

As promised, Bourbon-Glazed Cinnamon Buns! (Or, you know, cinnamon buns. Whether or not you dress them up with a boozy, sugary topping is entirely up to you. But I’ll never tell.) The bourbon glaze on these buns was entirely serendipitous: a friend of Tai’s has been visiting for a couple of days, so they could spend some quality time climbing frozen waterfalls in the Catskills before the dreaded Spring thaw. Last night, just as I was taking the buns out […]

Categories: baking, breads, breakfast, whole wheat flour, wine, beer & liquor, year round • Tags: baking, bread, breakfast, cooking, food, local, recipes, whole grain breads

Texas Grapefruit & Tahitian Vanilla Bean Marmalade

21 February 2011 by local kitchen

I had such high hopes for this marmalade: the flavor of the Rio Red grapefruit from G & S Groves was nothing short of amazing; the aroma of the fruit, simmering on the stovetop with Tahitian vanilla bean, was glorious; I was determined to add enough water this time, and enough sugar, to achieve the perfect trifecta of taste, appearance and texture. Well, as they say: 2 outta 3 ain’t bad. Marmalade set is notoriously tricky: even experienced jammers have difficulties. The […]

Categories: canning, citrus, preserves, preserving, winter • Tags: breakfast, canning, condiments, cooking, food, grapefruit, local, marmalade, preserving, recipes

Easy Cranberry Sauce

20 February 2011 by local kitchen

I know, I know – Thanksgiving was months ago. But I don’t need a holiday to enjoy cranberry sauce slathered on a turkey sandwich, dolloped onto mashed potatoes, or glazed over a roasted chicken. I also don’t need a holiday to enjoy this cranberry walnut galette, which I brought to a party a couple of weeks ago. What I do need, apparently, is a way to keep track of what is in my own fridge. Specifically – cranberries. Thawing. Waiting to be used in […]

Categories: condiments, cranberries, holiday, preserving, sauces, wine, beer & liquor, winter • Tags: condiments, cooking, food, local, preserving, quick & easy, recipes, winter

Use It or Lose It! Glazed Blueberry Tart with Lime Curd

17 February 2011 by local kitchen

We had a dinner guest last night, a former colleague and my former boss, in fact. We’ve both moved on in our careers since then, but I’m not above trying to impress the old boss, nor above trying to impress anyone who tastes my cooking for the first time, if truth be told. I wanted an impressive dessert, but I’ve been absolutely swamped with work this week, so it needed to be fairly easy to throw together. I had made […]

Categories: berries, citrus, dessert, Use it or Lose it!, winter, year round • Tags: baking, berries, blueberries, cooking, dessert, food, local, recipes, tart

Homemade Hand Cream

15 February 2011 by local kitchen

I am a crocodile. Well, not literally, obviously (opposable thumbs being a great boon to typing ability) but my skin is so dry, especially in winter, that it feels more true than not. Given that both of my grandmothers were Irish and one grandfather was Scottish, 75% of my DNA is used to a moist, mild climate. Not the description I would use for this buried-in-snow, always-below-freezing New York winter. Just before Christmas, I stumbled upon this recipe for homemade […]

Categories: home goods • Tags: body lotion, frugal, hand cream, homemade, quick & easy, recipes, thrifty

Happy Love Day

14 February 2011 by local kitchen

I’m not a big fan of Valentine’s Day. It’s such a hokey, Hallmark, twee sort of holiday, and unlike other holidays, it seems so much more difficult to make it your own: to celebrate love in your own way, with or without chocolate, or flowers, or cheesy red hearts. Maybe it’s just my contrarian nature: the mere fact of someone telling me that this is the one day that you must celebrate love makes me feel, well… unlovey. Love, however: love […]

Categories: community • Tags: cooking, food, love, valentine's day

Use It or Lose It! Marmalade Chicken Fingers

11 February 2011 by local kitchen

Once you’ve had your fill of spicy marmalade on toast, whip up these easy marmalade chicken ‘fingers’ for a quick weeknight meal. Empty a jar, do a little victory dance, and enjoy a delicious dinner. Leftovers are fabulous in a cold chicken sandwich (or straight from the fridge, washed down with OJ from the carton. Not that I would ever condone such a thing. Put it on a plate, son: you’ll enjoy it more.) Inspired by this great article in […]

Categories: chicken, main course, quick & easy, roasting, Use it or Lose it!, winter, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, local, preserves, quick & easy, recipes