FROM SCRATCH CLUB

It has really happened, Spring is finally here after a loooong winter. This time every year I fall into a cooking funk caused by lack of inspiration, lack of fresh produce and a deep yearning for sun filled days and warm nights on the patio. What could cure this funk…Tequila, of course! Tequila is often […]

April is a transitional month in my neck of the woods. At the start of the month, cold winds still blow and snowflakes dot the air. By the end of the month, the tulips and daffodils are in full blossom, and everything appears a bit hazy from the delicate buds that start to pop open […]

Whether you are throwing a big holiday shin-dig, or you just want to keep a well-stocked cabinet of libations, it is good to know how to create a home bar to suit a variety of tastes and palates. You don’t need to spend tons of money or buy-out an entire liquor store to achieve this… […]

Can you believe it we are in the heat of the holiday season, the past year has gone so quickly for our family, as I’m sure it has for most of you.  My kitchen is relaxing after an amazing Thanksgiving food bonanza and I am preparing for some major homemade gifting this year. Between family, […]

My friend Julie turned me on to homemade infusions years ago. She has a big shelf in her amazing kitchen/dining room filled with homemade bitters, digestifs, infusions, shrubs, and the like. It’s like walking into a delicious apothecary. Julie recently attended the FSC Schenectady Food Swap and brought with her a bunch of her homemade bitters […]

  This summer my husband and I made a visit to Finger Lakes Distilling in Burdett, NY while we were on vacation wine tasting on Seneca Lake. He has been a big fan of the bourbon for a while, so he was very excited. I had previously read about the distillery in local and national […]

A few times a year, I try to do a complete walk around the perimeter of my farm. It’s nice to take inventory of how the farm has changed with the seasons (or, more generally the case, what needs fixing). A few weeks ago I stumbled upon four rather large black elderberry trees. After harnessing […]

For a recent anniversary celebration, my love surprised me after work with this cocktail. While I would like to take credit for it, I really didn’t do much other than ooh and ahh and slurp it down appreciatively. Mint seems to get all of the glory when it comes to muddled herbs for cocktails, but […]

Editor’s Note: Drink week has turned into Drink Week and a Half! Woo Hoo! Not only do we have our first sangria recipe on FSC (how is this possible?) but we also eagerly welcome another new guest contributor, longtime Food Swapper and voice of the Capital Region Dining Blog, Emily Lemieux-Welcome! -Christina +++++ Sangria is […]

Editor’s Note: This edition of drink week continues with Gina’s cocktails-of-the-past-journey, where she shows us how to make the non-alcoholic Grenadine from scratch, for both alcoholic & non-alcoholic drink creations! Gina kicks-in a Black Currant Syrup variation (YES!). Thanks Gina, I have thoroughly enjoyed your trip down cocktail history! -Christina +++ When I was testing […]

Editor’s Note: Drink Week rolls on with Veggie Bouillion star (see Sean’s Three Things Thursday on Punk Domestics!) Gina. She has a two-part piece on drinks, first up, liquor & drinks inspired by Downton Abbey & Boardway Empire. Tomorrow Gina will treat us to a non-corn syrup homemade grenedine & black current syrup for all […]

Editor’s Note: Swapper and FSC Academy teacher, Leah, has given us Swap Fever w/ her swap loot recipes of Spiced Nuts, Magic Shell and now for our {drink week}, she gives us Cucumber-Infused Sake. I can tell you from personal experience that the June swap was alive with cucumber sake. Everyone wanted it. So much […]

Editor’s Note: Before I begin I need to get something off my chest: can you believe its the first day of August 2012 already? Wow. Okay, I’m back & focused. To continue our drink week, we have a brand-spanking-new Guest Contributor, Wendy of the Wendalicious blog and from the Board of the Schenectady Greenmarket (and […]

Editor’s Note: What relaxes and recharges us from a long hot summer day, and keeps things interesting in the kitchen when you don’t want to turn on the oven, than drinks made with melon, plums, watermelon and the other in-season fruits, herbs and vegetables the Northeast harvest bounty can offer? Get out your blender, cocktail […]

There are two things that we do well here in Upstate New York come summer: Eating watermelon and racing horses. From late July to Labor Day, the population of one of our beloved towns swells to accommodate horse racing aficionados from around the world. And of course, you can’t watch a good running of the […]