Art is good when it springs from necessity. This kind of origin is the guarantee of its value; there is no other ––Neal Cassidy In the middle of the night, partway through a cross-country drive, I unfolded myself from the driver’s seat at another random gas station. Someone special was waiting at the east end […]
Ari Levaux
Posted inFood & Drink
Intermittent Feasting
The New Year is often a time to contemplate one’s relationship with calories. After months of culturally sanctioned gluttony, we find ourselves suddenly facing a cold empty chasm with a familiar question: will we fill this void with purpose, or leftover eggnog? The pandemic holidays of 2020 were unique, of course. The usual peer-reviewed parade […]
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Herbal Soups
Waiter, there’s a salad in my soup
Last summer, I bought a pile of bitter eggplant at the farmers market. I’d never heard of it, but the green, red, yellow and orange wrinkled spheres drew me in. The farmer, an immigrant from the Laotian mountains, and the advice she gave me, sealed the deal. She recommended slicing two bitter eggplants in half […]
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Birds: It’s for the Stuffing
An unusual—and tasty—version for the upcoming socially distanced American holiday
Thanksgiving, as we observe it today, doesn’t have much in common with the original feast of 1621. The temperature of the vibe between the Pilgrims and Wampanoag was above comfort level at the dinner table, with some participants arriving ready to rumble. Come to think of it, maybe today’s Thanksgiving table hasn’t strayed too far, […]
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The Garlic Equation
The four seasons of one beautiful plant—
which starts with planting it right about now
Thick socks. Steaming soup. A warm spot by the heater. A crop of garlic in the ground. These are the stuff of wintertime cozy feelings. Like having meat in the freezer, or jars of peaches in the pantry. Garlic in the ground equals food security, long before it pokes above the ground. It’s fulfilling to […]
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Children of the Candy Corns
Beyond the corn-syrup variety, here are some other corny treats for this time of year
Halloween, more than almost any other holiday, is about fun. Unlike Christmas, Easter, Mothers or Fathers Days, all of which involve a certain amount of stress and sacrifice if not guilt, Thanksgiving is fun but it’s a lot of work. Halloween is a lot of play, nearly unmatched in its unbridled hedonism. It’s like New […]
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Dill Point in a Turning World
An easy take on so-called “Jewish Penicillin” chicken soup
Mom got her chicken soup recipe from her mom. It’s a simple, brothy affair with lots of dill, the kind of soup that’s popular throughout the Yiddish diaspora, often referred to half-jokingly as Jewish Penicillin, because it always makes you feel better, no matter what ails you. Yiddish is the native tongue of the Ashkenazi […]
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Herb Cookies at the Farmstand
Flavor bombs so tasty, they're bandit-worthy
On the edge of a field on the outskirts of town, a small roadside farm stand does a brisk business. Display coolers keep herbs, greens and other sensitive veggies properly chilled, as tomatoes, potatoes, onions and other room temperature produce sit there looking pretty in crates. The policies and electronic payment information are posted on […]
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Heirloom Addiction
Room temperature and raw is the way to go
The brief, glorious moment when tomatoes are everywhere marks the culinary apex of summer. This drawn-out, tomato-ey solstice is especially fleeting for heirloom tomatoes, the high-maintenance wing of the tomato clan. Too watery and delicate to preserve, heirlooms can only be enjoyed raw. Which means they must be enjoyed now. Heirlooms have shorter shelf lives […]
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Dillin’ like a Belarusian
Canning is a can-do activity, given the right ingredients and know-how
Canning the harvest should be a joyous and rewarding experience, but if you are in over your head it can be stressful and overwhelming, even dangerous. Aspiring or novice canners should not wait for the so-called Harvest Season to get started. Midsummer is a great time to ease into the groove, work on your skills, […]