I learned about fiddleheads my first spring in Massachusetts, and one bite confirmed what I thought: These people will eat anything that grows out of the ground at this time of year, as long as it’s not that toxic. Fiddleheads can taste like lawn clippings. But then I parboiled them and sautéed them with garlic and oil and thought they tasted good. Continue reading
Asparagus and spring garlic are here! I almost cried when a dear friend brought me a bunch of asparagus from McGrath Farm a couple weeks ago. Something freshly grown to eat. And now they have spring garlic!
Spring garlic seems to be fussed over in places with long winters. We will eat almost anything with gusto if it comes out of the ground this month. None of my California friends even knew what I was talking about when I told them about my green garlic find.
It’s a warm day filled with energetic weed pulling and tomato planting and dirt hauling, so dinner is going to be light. Along with a hearty salad, I’m making green garlic and pistachio pesto crostini, with optional burrata on top. Continue reading
If you ask any of my three brothers to tell you about a time when they laughed the hardest as a child, they will either recount watching the Cheech and Chong “Up In Smoke” movie with my dad, or they’d recall one specific family dinner.
My mom cooked for our family of six every night, kept track of my three brothers and me, and did all the housework. This was before feminism came to our Los Angeles suburb, so my mom just did her job and tried to get us to help when she could. But sometimes we didn’t do our part (and who could blame us–we were 6, 8, 10, and 12 at the time of this memorable meal). My mom would yell and we might or might not be more helpful next time. Eventually she came up with a better strategy. Continue reading
cement truck kitchen 