Jan
24
In mid-September, our family began what has turned out to be a fun and educational adventure in local eating. After months of canning, drying, and freezing every fruit and vegetable we could get our hands on, after many talks with other local folks committed to eating Colorado-grown food, after many, many trips to the Farmer’s …
Dec
01
I’m a bit of a worrier. Combine that with the company Matt & I work for announcing huge layoffs, war dragging on abroad, friends losing their jobs left and right, the economy spiraling ever downward, and finances therefore tightening, all at a time when I’d rather be shopping for fun things for my children, and …
Oct
01
We have been immersed in preparation for our year of eating local and are happy to see The Eat Local Challenge blog join the mix of folks blogging about local eating adventures. The Eat Local Challenge is working on a challenge for the month of October and so, of course, we’re game! They’ve asked us …
Aug
19
Researchers at Cornell University released a study that confirms what we already knew: eating local is better for the planet and better for our health. The study found that the United States food production industry uses almost as much fossil fuels as our entire fleet of automobiles. This seems impossible until you consider that it …
Aug
12
This past winter, I tried hard to limit our grocery store fruit purchases to US fruit. That meant a lot of citrus from Texas and a lot of apples from Washington, which overall, was fine with us. Then, it happened. An insidious interloper appeared on the grocery store shelves. Something so seemingly-wonderful, and yet so …
Aug
07
There is nothing sweeter than home-made jam. And that’s not because it has more sugar. It’s because the fruit is fresher, the jam is less processed, and, well, because making it yourself always makes it taste better! If you are new to canning, please review Part 1 in this series, Home Canning for all the …
Aug
03
A couple of folks have asked me for a quick how-to on making jam. I realized I couldn’t jump straight into recipes & tips until I covered some basics on canning itself. What is home canning and how does it work? What do you need to get started? Do you really need to take a …
Aug
02
How can it possibly be August already? That leaves us less than 30 days to go to prepare for our year of eating locally. Granted, September is still harvest season here in Colorado, so it’s not like I have to have everything put by before the end of August, but still, the pressure is on! …
Aug
01
This year has been full of firsts in the vegetable garden. For starters, this is my first year gardening at our new home in Lyons. But I’ve also taken “the growing challenge” to try to grow some new types of veggies, including: Cherry Belle Radishes (spicy & oh, so delicious!) Pickling cucumbers (OK, not the …
Chatter