“I’m done with organic.”

by Jan on December 27, 2009

“I’m done with organic,” said my dear friend Clarissa when she and I were talking on the phone this week about our chickens. We were comparing what we feed them. The cost of organic grain, at $23 a bag, makes me clean out the fridge more often to feed the chickens. There is great pleasure [...]

What’s the holiday without a housemade pate in the fridge?

by Jan on December 12, 2009

It’s the season for hunting and slaughtering and my catering kitchen has become a butchering room.
In the walk-in refrigerator hang four sides of pork and two sides of venison.
Our neighbor, Bobby brought over the meat of a fresh killed buck as we will need the lean meat to add to our pork and pork fat [...]

Stocking up: Pigs in the Freezer

by Jan on December 10, 2009

We slaughtered our pigs this week. We raised two this year. They were brothers who were happy, easy going fellows; a cross breed of Old Spot and Tamworth. We had to take what we could get this year here on Martha’s Vineyard when it came to piglets. Since we prefer to get pigs bred here [...]

Giving Thanks to our food sources: Grateful for bringing local food to those that need it the most

by Jan on November 26, 2009

Recently, a group of us got together and gleaned a potato field at Morning Glory Farm, the largest farm on Martha’s Vineyard. Gleaning is the collecting of crops left behind after the farmers have collected what they need or want. There are many reasons farmers leave the crops behind, but mostly it is driven by [...]

Strawberry Season is Worth the Wait

by Jan on July 7, 2009

Strawberries…
I love them when they are picked still warm from the vine in the early summer.
But, today there is a stack of strawberries at my local grocery and I am not tempted…
The list of toxic chemicals to facilitate the growth of those hard tasteless red buds:

methyl iodide — a carcinogenic substance so dangerous that [...]

Maple Syrup, Sustainability and A Berkshire Destination

by Jan on July 7, 2009

A restful stopover in the Berkshires includes a stay at the Sweet Water Inn in Great Barrington. This is my third visit and when I arrive this time, I feel as though I am coming home. Andre and Lynda are the hosts of this 6 bedroom B&B just 5 miles outside of town. Here they [...]

Tomatoes and the Fight Against Slavery

by Jan on March 10, 2009

At our Purim celebration last night, families where gathered around tables of pizza and salad. The conversation came up about tomatoes, which happened to be in the salad. I thought for a minute about why I don’t eat tomatoes this time of the year?
They don’t taste good!
I do know that most of them are coming [...]

Vineyard Weddings…low impact on the environment

by Jan on March 5, 2009

Something borrowed… Something simple… Something beuatiful
It is an interesting time to be planning a wedding. Weddings are a big investment and so, it is an time to be especially aware of costs. But that said, I think it is a great opportunity for us to approach the whole process differently. You can have [...]

Cooking In Italy

by Jan on February 28, 2009

This past Fall we traveled to Italy for the Slow Food ,Terre Madre conference held in Torino, Italy. Terre Madre intends to foster discussion and introduce innovative concepts in the field of food, gastronomy, globalization, economics.
The weeks following the conference, we toured around Italy a bit and made some great connections with farmers, chefs, [...]

Thoughts About Food Policy