• Last updated 2/16/10 by JackBlack

On a recent hot and humid eveni ng I was standing in my garden with an empty plate in one hand and a small juice-glass of wine in the other; I was looking for dinner. I set down the glass of wine on the edge of the porch and picked a few leaves of basil and a couple small chilies, and put them on the plate. A couple perfectly ripe tomatoes also went in the mix, as did a cucumber and small bell pepper. As is often the case, I nibbled herbs and vegetables as I foraged. And as I bent to look in ankle-high weeds for low growing herbs I absent mindedly bit into a chili.... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by JackBlack

For everything there is a seasonEcclesiastes 3:1 Walking into a grocery store recently I had to navigate my cart around a six-foot-tall display of beautifully crimson tomatoes that were still on their vines. They were unavoidable and the first thing a person saw when entering the store. They were beautiful…bright red, almost shimmering, and heavy for their size; they smelled nice, too. But I couldn’t help but feel a little disheartened. The problem I had was not with the quality of the fruit or how they were arranged, the problem was with what time it was. And by... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by ChefTalk.com

So you know how it tastes, but do you know anything else about Sauerkraut? What is Sauerkraut?Sauerkraut is cabbage that has been fermented in salt. Where did the word Sauerkraut come from? The word Sauerkraut means “sour cabbage” in German. Who invented Sauerkraut?Credit the Chinese for the creation of Sauerkraut more than 2,300 years ago. Originally it consisted of shredded cabbage that was pickled in wine. Workers building the Great Wall of China were among the first to enjoy it. Around the end of the 16th century, salt was used in place of wine in the fermentation... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by mvogel

Gregor Johann Mendel (1822-1884) was an Austrian monk famous for his seminal work in genetics.  He uncovered a series of laws that govern how genes are transmitted.  Mendel made these discoveries with the assistance of the common garden pea.  He repeatedly crossed varieties of pea plants in an effort to observe how specific genetic traits, e.g., height, color, seed shape, etc., were imparted to ensuing generations.   Out of these observations arose the laws that became the basis of modern hereditary theory.  Peas are legumes, i.e., plants with seed pods.  Originating... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by JackBlack

Tonight while making ziti and meatballs for dinner I added raw garlic and onions to the meatball mixture, and as a preliminary step for tomato sauce I sautéed onions and garlic. Yesterday for dinner I had an asparagus omelette with onions and garlic, and the day before that, an apple and cheddar cheese sandwich with raw onion. In retrospect it dawned on me that I, like many people, use garlic and onions a lot, either together or separately. They're the type of ingredients that you either love or hate. Thankfully, I fall into the former category. I'm no rare exception,... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by hbrody

Mythologically, they are associated with lighting bolts. Astrologically, they fall under the awesome powers of Mars, the god of war. On the human level, they strike fear into the palates of mankind. They are chipotles - jalapeno peppers that have been ripened to a red color and smoked until they are brown. They can be found dried, pickled and, most often, in the international section of a supermarket, canned in a spicy Mexican  sauce. According to Dave DeWitt in his remarkably thorough book, The Chile Pepper Encyclopedia, the jalapeno pepper has always been the... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by mvogel

The envoys of fall arrive to greet us well before the autumnal equinox.  Gourds, which include pumpkins, winter squash, and those warty, odd-shaped decorative miniatures, begin showing up in supermarkets and roadside stands in late summer.  Appearing even before the leaves start changing, they're a distinctive harbinger of autumn.  For the gourmet, they're a key ingredient in a variety of seasonal dishes.Squash is the fruit of plants from the gourd family.  Squash originated in the western hemisphere and was being consumed by man at least 5,000 years ago, probably... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by mvogel

Chefs and gourmets the world over eagerly await the arrival of spring.  No other time of year can match the bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables available.  Many will only be obtainable at this time.  Asparagus is available year round but it's peak season runs from February through June.  Thus, it is one of the earliest harbingers of spring and an indispensable commodity on all seasonal menus.Asparagus, a member of the lily family, probably originated in the Eastern Mediterranean.  Because it is found wild in so many areas of the globe, some uncertainty exists as to... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by mvogel

It's the Great PumpkinAccording to an Irish myth, one day a man known as "Stingy Jack" for his miserly inclinations had a drink with the devil.  True to his name, Jack convinced the devil to transform himself into a coin in order to pay for the drinks. The devil did so but Jack kept the coin for himself.  He placed it in his pocket next to a cross so the devil could not change back.  Jack then freed the devil under the conditions that he would not bother him for a year and could not claim his soul upon his death.  The following year, Jack trapped the devil in a tree by... read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by JackBlack

Super Sprouts It's interesting how a person's taste changes from childhood to adulthood, what they like and don't like. Personally, my tastes were like most kids when I was a child (you couldn't have gotten me to eat a vegetable for anything). As a teenager I thought that I was eating enough vegetables if I ate a hamburger that had a leaf of soggy iceberg lettuce on it. Ditto for the celery that came with chicken wings. Adulthood of course brought a more discerning view of vegetables. Their healthful properties go without saying, and as a professional cook I also enjoy... read more