FROM SCRATCH CLUB

We eat a lot of beans in my house. I love beans. I love them on salad or in stir fries, pasta or soup.  They are versatile and good for you, as well as tasty.  Just about any bean can be made in to a “burger”.  I typically use black beans to make burgers, but [...]

Ramps entered my consciousness only a couple weeks ago, thanks to fellow blogger and farmers market master Jillian who suggested I pick some up as part of my first CSA share of the year. Since then I have learned to love them.  They are kind of a cross between garlic and scallions, although someone told me [...]

Maybe it’s being trapped inside at home with a new baby, but I’m prematurely feeling that mid-winter desperation about what to make for dinner every night.  This feeling worsens when we’ve skipped a week at the farmers market and have no fresh, local produce.  Local green vegetables are already becoming less prevalent and I can [...]

For the holidays my grandmother would make a dish that was simply called Cheesy Potato Casserole. It’s pretty much exactly what you would find at a Midwestern church potluck. I absolutely adored it and my brother and I would beg for it whenever we had a family holiday meal together. As my grandmother got older, [...]

For all of my adult life, I’ve been a big fan of Asian rolls. I didn’t grow up in the most food-savvy town and it’s nice to look back and see how my experiences and my taste buds changed as I traveled and moved farther away from home. At first I only knew about egg [...]

Food is much more than a series of nutrients and calories. Food brings people together to celebrate the good times and helps sustain us during the tough times. Some recipes are infused with memories and help honor important people and times in our lives. Food is at the center of any good get-together: a casual [...]

Summertime seems to find us hosting family, visiting family or meeting family at some intermediate location. Our extended family is large and we are close… we are lucky! Family gatherings generally mean food, and LOTS of it. One of my favorite meals to share, whether at home or otherwise, is pizza. When it comes to [...]

Usually, when it comes to cooking  I am the stereotype of a woman and depend on my husband to work the grill while I stick to the kitchen.  Although friends had claimed grilling pizza was easy, I was reluctant to try it myself.  I had happily devoured grilled pizza prepared for me in the past, [...]

Every weekend at our bakery over on Quail St. in Albany, my husband Nick prepares Specialty Focaccia Pizzas with fresh produce & herbs we get from our farmer friends at Farmer Jon’s Produce in Selkirk, NY and cheeses from R&G Cheesemakers in Cohoes or Palatine Cheese in Nelliston (in the Mohawk Valley). Jon and DJ [...]

Recently I’ve been trying to incorporate as many veggies as possible into our meals so that I don’t get too behind on all my CSA goodies. It’s amazing how much stuff I get each week so I really need to keep track and plan things out because I absolutely hate wasting food. This week I [...]

When I was young I remember my parents hosting dinner parties for their friends. I also remember them cooking fancy meals for each other. I will never forget them eating escargot and feeling totally freaked out as a five-year-old watching them eat it. I just always thought this is what adults did with their friends. [...]

Editor’s Note: Welcome FOODPRESS readers!  Our St. Patrick’s Day {theme week} continues with Dianna. I have NEVER heard of Boxy…bring it on Dianna! -Christina Boxty on the griddle, boxty on the pan, If you can’t bake boxty sure you’ll never get a man. Irish children’s rhyme (can’t you see the little girls jumping rope?) My [...]

Editor’s Note: This is the second of two posts highlighting additional recipes from our current cookbook giveaway, The Meal Makeover Moms’ No Whine With Dinner. We are trying not to push blog etiquette by posting ALL the successful recipes we tested, so these posts will be in “recap” format with links to the recipes on [...]

Editor’s Note: This is the 10th week of a 4 1/2 month challenge, Dark Days, a pledge taken by 88 blogs spanning the country, to eat one meal a week as sustainable, organic, local and ethical possible.  This week is yours truly and my miso obsession. – Christina Its miso madness month in my house. [...]

I have to credit my old landlady with this recipe idea (to clarify, she’s not old, but did used to be my landlady).  She suggested making quiche with a rice crust instead of buying or making a flour crust and, considering this makes the quiche both more nutritious and much easier to make, I haven’t [...]