One of the joys of summer is growing my own basil – which means that fresh Pesto Genovese is always an option for dinner. My favorite way to turn pesto into a full-blown meal worthy of company is to add cubed Yukon Gold potatoes, stringless green beans, and oven roasted tomatoes, before topping my ...
Herbs
Enhancing Quorn Turk’y Roast for your Thanksgiving Table
If you've read my blog before, you know that Quorn Turk'y Roast is my go-to plant-based protein for holiday dinners. And I'm always trying to find new ways to make it more appealing to carnivores. A couple of years ago, I created a marinade that included extra virgin olive oil, maple syrup, ...
Get Your Greens with Chimichurri Sauce
I discovered this weekend that making chimichurri sauce is even easier than making pesto. This potent fresh green sauce from Argentina combines fresh basil, mint, flat leaf parsley, and cilantro with olive oil, lemon, and garlic and can be made in less than five minutes in a food ...
Fresher Produce Means Less Waste
In a previous post on the problem of global food waste, I admitted that the very first place to eliminate food waste is in your own kitchen. I have a bad habit of seeing so much wonderful produce at the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market that I tend to overbuy on Saturday mornings. I also try to ...
Why Forcing Students to Eat Vegetables Backfired
Was anyone besides me not surprised to learn that students are throwing away more of their vegetables and fruits now that schools are required to include them in school lunches? Researchers found that students were throwing away fruits and veggies at a rate that was 56% higher than before the foods ...
Autumn Fix for Pesto Lovers
I don’t know about you, but I LOVE pesto. That’s why we grow so much basil in our herb garden every summer. Only this year’s basil crop was disappointing – to say the least. I don’t know what it was about our Carolina weather, but I had the worst basil crop I’ve had in the past two ...
Herb Gardening Made Easy
I've been lazy about my posts because I've been outside gardening! My first Herb Gardening Made Easy class was a big hit at the York Public Library on April 5th. People asked great questions and enjoyed taking home samples of my dried herbs, like rosemary, tarragon, oregano, and Bay ...
Are Four Extra Steps Needed To Make Great Pesto?
As a veteran pesto maker (35+ years and counting), I was intrigued by Cook’s Illustrated’s promise of gentler, more well-balanced pesto, without the “bite” of raw garlic. After making their recipe tonight, I have to tell you to not waste your time. My pesto takes about 20 minutes to make – Cook’s ...
