|
Right Food for the Season -
Early Spring
|
|
Written by Jane Ward
|
 Some people will acknowledge spring’s arrival with the sighting of their first robin. Others by the synchronized unfurling of hard, tight buds on their trees. Me? I’m more of a bud watcher than a bird watcher, and the bud I watch for is the forsythia, its overnight explosion of lemony yellow flowers on previously spindly, bare branches. Once that happens, the air smells fresher to me, sweeter; spring is almost a sure thing. But only almost. After a long and cold winter, I need a little more convincing. I need to see some rhubarb – shooting up from the ground, fanning out in clusters, its stalks ranging from palest celadon to vibrant raspberry pink, the crowning touch the ruffled elephant ear-like leaves. Rhubarb, rhubarb, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love you, soft and caramelized, on the upside down part of an upside down cake. I love you preserved as a jam. Or bottled into a chutney with walnuts and raisins and brown sugar and a splash of cider vinegar. I love you sweetened just the slightest bit and stewed or blended into a fruit sauce still tart enough to make my mouth pucker. And of course I love you on your own in a pie, your juices thickened and rosy pink, but you’re equally loveable thrown into a pie that’s been made sweeter and ruby colored with the addition of strawberries. |
|
Read more...
|
|
Right Food for the Season -
Early Spring
|
|
Written by Lizzy Butler
|
 First, there’s the growling stomach. It starts at a whisper and gains volume with every minute it’s ignored. Then, the lethargy hits. Time’s slower, you’re slower, sitting is a chore. Finally, the world turns against you. Somehow, someway, everyone and everything has acquired the same ultimate goal: to annoy you mercilessly. The symptoms are classic. Hunger strikes again, and it will stop for nothing until its satisfied. Low blood-sugar episodes are no fun, and it is one of my main priorities to avoid them at all costs. This is why in almost every purse, backpack, and even jacket pocket of mine, you’ll find some sort of snack tucked away. I call it my emergency stash. Some people carry around epipens, I carry granola. I guess we all have our issues… |
|
Read more...
|
|
Right Food for the Season -
Early Spring
|
|
Written by Jane Ward
|
 Here along the coast of Massachusetts, we live close to such delicious seafood. I know I am biased, but I believe our cold Atlantic waters make a home to some of the world’s best fish and shellfish. Not much tops a Maine lobster. Or the Ipswich clam in the bucket of steamers I like to serve with it.
I grew up fishing with my father in area streams and at the Cape Cod shoreline, and we caught only what we could eat and ate what we caught. With that, my father introduced me to both a taste for fresh fish and a deep respect for catching it as well. Fishing is hard, patience-testing, and sometimes thankless work. If the fish aren’t biting, you go home without supper. Respect is due to any creature that can get the better of you.
But more than that, respect is due to those activities and animals that feed us. My father’s unspoken lesson is a good one: fish only for what you can eat, and make sure to eat what you take from the sea. |
|
Read more...
|
|
