Recently In The Gardening Section
Do you have an abundance of citrus and regularly squeeze up a pitcher of orange juice? Your countertops are likely filled with a pile of squeezed out orange skins. They do compost well, but you might consider another route. Candy them! Candied orange peel is a nice finisher for a garlic-laden meal. It cuts the…
This is hands-down the best chicken seasoning I have ever come across. Have something to mop up the juices on the plate or you will end up licking it! I found this rub on All Recipes. The full post includes a seasoned couscous that you may be interested in. We had our chicken with some…
Frederick and I are embarking on an ice cream adventure. Every week that he has done his chores without being asked, we make ice cream. Being a former (former?) educator, I approach all activity as time to explore and discover. Ice cream making is no exception to my rule. Frederick: “You can COOK a banana?”…
Are you looking for a spring tonic, possibly an almost-free spring tonic? Stinging nettle can be your answer. We have decided that it is on the top of our list for staying healthy. With renewed focus and dedication to nettle, we are tracking it’s life cycle and finding new stands of it. By far, the…
Does the thought of olive oil in ice cream make your nose wrinkle? Before this past weekend, that was my experience but having used olive oil in cookies and cake in these past months, I was feeling more adventuresome. Check out olive oil recipes online and you will find them all pretty much the same….
I love Elise over at Simply Recipes. She has a masterful sense of food. I trust her. That’s the only reason why I considered putting balsamic vinegar and black pepper in these muffins. What a combo! It makes me want to plant another row of strawberries in the garden. Months later Frederick convinced me to…
Last year I was inspired by Heidi Swanson’s post to make my own citrus salts. The process is such a no-brainer, drop-dead easy one! Heidi offers suggestions on how to most enjoy these salts as “finishing” salts on things like avocado slices. I was inspired. It took me a whole year to work on the…
Greens soup has become a staple in our diet, so much so that we continually develop new recipes to avoid greens soup boredom. If you are going to eat healthy, densely green soups on a regular basis, you will want some variety in the flavors. Enjoy every spoonful. Thai cooking bursts with flavor, so it’s…
Are you looking for a salad dressing that will wake up your senses? That will turn the simplest dishes into gourmet fare? That will cause your dinner guests to never forget their meal? Here it is! Your own…rugged garlic dressing! This dressing has been a family favorite for almost 25 years. It comes from Julie…
Realizing the sticking power of acorns in any recipe, I now view pancakes through a different prism. Pancakes that always seemed more like “fluff” to me have now become an actual meal. Acorns are a “no-fluff” ingredients to add to almost any baked good. (Read more about foraging for and cooking with acorns.) You can…
How could anything this healthy be so totally delicious? Nettle soup has a growing fan base across the country and for good reason. Nettle leaf is delicately flavored and cooks to a smooth silky texture. The prickly little needles are completely gone. No other vegetable in our experience provides the texture that nettle does. Use…
I love glorious cool days filled with outside projects. The air is exhilarating and the exercise invigorating. What can make me cranky on a day like this is to have to stop and cook. Surely you’ve also noticed the appetites that accompany such work projects. Here is one of my answers to the problem —…
This is a bright fresh-tasting show-stopper of a salad. If you already have roasted beets, then the ease and speed of putting this salad together will be a delightful surprise. Leave out none of the ingredients, if at all possible. This is one of those combinations where all the parts sing in harmony. Leave one…
This cookie is surprisingly popular in our household. I am surprised at its popularity in part because the presence of a chocolate chip within in a cookie sets up expectations for a “Tollhouse”-like experience. The fact is, like most human beings, I would love to live on Tollhouse-like cookies for at least three meals a…
One of the outstanding traits of white beans is their creamy texture. Why not accentuate that creaminess by turning them into a creamy soup? It’s delicious and satisfying — almost decadent. This recipe calls for dill but you can substitute fresh basil or use a dill and mint blend. Parsley and chives are a tasty…
This delectable dipping sauce whips together in a jiffy. Try it once and you will find other uses — sauce for stir-fry, a base for an Asian salad dressing, or to baste for shish-kebab. We enjoy it as a dipping sauce for grilled vegetables. It is a great food to enjoy around a table while…
Remember one of our cardinal time-saving tips? Any time you cook beans, cook enough for three different meals, three different recipes. It just takes a little planning. No big deal! This white bean dish is so quick and simple you will be making it often. The beans are already cooked in broth and seasoned, so…
Once you’ve tasted the perfect roasted green bean, you may not want green beans cooked any other way — ever! The key is reaching that “perfectly roasted” state. If you haven’t found that point yet, here are some considerations. Choose the rounded slim beans that grow to about 6 inches long. Most filet beans fit…
It’s been years since I’ve made granola, years since I’ve eaten it. Lauren’s post on granola making caught my eye because we had a gallon of oats in the pantry. When I got rained out of a morning of gardening, I knew this was the time, if the time was ever to be. Two questions…
Are you getting a bit bored with cauliflower or at least bored with the way you have been cooking it? Be bored no longer! Take this salad recipe for a spin and see if you don’t get a fresh new insight into that big white head of vegetable goodness. This cauliflower is seasoned and roasted…
The Traditional Foods site comes to you from the Sequoia National Forest in a house designed by Irving Gill. We are a mother-daughter team strong in both the science and the art of cooking. We chronicle our cooking here and our adventures in the forest at Gill on the Hill. Read more about our background and food philosophy.
