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Right Food for the Season -
Late Winter
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Written by Jane Ward
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 February is the home stretch of what feels like, to me, a long winter season. And yet this shortest month often feels like the longest and makes me itchy for spring. We have been eating wintered over, cold-storage root vegetables for so long that I almost forget what a fresh pea tastes like. And boy, do I want to taste a fresh pea again! Cooking can be a challenge in these winter months. Finding a lighter and brighter tasting dish to serve in between all the heavier stews and braises is a real struggle. More so if you are the person responsible for putting a meal on the table every night of the week. If that is you, or if you’d just like to expand your mealtime options, say hello to my secret weapon: the orange juice-balsamic vinegar reduction. |
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Features -
Farmers and Markets
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Written by Kyle Alspach
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 When you buy milk from a Massachusetts grocery store, you probably have a good idea what it’ll taste like year round. But that’s not the case for the raw milk produced at Terri Lawton’s (pictured right) dairy in Foxboro. There, the cows feed on different grasses depending on the season — and the change in grasses changes the flavor of the milk, which is not pasteurized. “In May and June, the grass is really growing very well, and the nutrients are very dense in the grass,” says Lawton. “When the cows eat that, the milk has a smoother, creamier taste.” Lawton’s Family Farm, home of Oake Knoll Ayrshires, is one of 25 raw milk dairies in Massachusetts. Located about a mile off Route 1, the farm is a neighbor of Gillette Stadium and the closest raw milk dairy to Boston. But what is raw milk, exactly? Lawton sums it up this way: it’s the milk people drank up until about the 20th century, only today, it’s highly regulated and proven to be safe for consumption. |
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Features -
The Home Farmer
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Written by Alicia Ghio
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 I’m cold. It’s dark. I am in desperate need of more long underwear. It is winter in New England after all. It could be worse, but that doesn’t stop me from complaining. I’m just not a fan of the cold, dark days of winter. However, this year is a little different. I have a project to fill my head with dreams of warmer days. I am planning my very first vegetable garden. I should probably point out that I am FAR from a green thumb. Right now I’m looking at the plant in my office – it’s one of those you can’t kill it kind of plants – yeah, it’s dying. |
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Features -
The Craft of Cooking
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Written by Lizzy Butler
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 Cheese has always held a special place in my heart. Ever since I was barely tall enough to sneak handfuls of cheese from my Mom’s cutting board at the kitchen counter, I have been a true fanatic. It’s salty, it’s savory, it’s just plain delicious. Not only have I always loved the taste of cheese, but the world of cheese has always fascinated me as well. The styles, flavors, and applications seem utterly infinite. Cave aged? Smoked? Fresco? With a layer of ash? How does one begin to choose? It seems to me though, that in the grand scheme of things, cheese mainly falls into one of two categories: there's cheese, and then there is good cheese. Let me explain. On the one hand, there’s cheese I put in everyday foods - in a sandwich for lunch, mixed into a salad, on top of weeknight pasta – and it does its job just fine. It lends some salty unctuousness to the dish, and that's about as far as it stretches for the palate.
But then…there's the latter. The Good Cheese. |
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