The Local Cook

The I Hate to Cook Book: Review & Giveaway

When we think about the 60s, it’s easy to fantasize about the retro aprons and think about how people cooked back then. After all, a common mantra among real foodies is “if your grandma wouldn’t recognize it as food, don’t eat it.” The I Hate to Cook Book by Peg Bracken blows that notion right… [Continue Reading]

Skid Road Stroganoff

This is a recipe from The I Hate to Cook Book, which was written in the 60s and is actually quite funny. It was recently re-released. I tried not to adapt the recipe too much.

Cream Soup Substitute

From time to time, I’ve taken liberties with this Simply in Season experiment. Like when I had guest posters make the cranberry recipes because I’m allergic to cranberries; or decided to forgo the persimmon recipes because I couldn’t find them locally. When I first saw the Cream Soup recipe, I thought to myself, “Cream soup? I only… [Continue Reading]

Okra Curry

“It smells like a fungus. And not a good fungus, either.”

The famous quote from DH when he saw me slicing the okra. See, we do have a lot of fungus/fermentation going on in our house, between his beer and my cheese. But it was still funny.

Grilled Bread

This is similar to the naan I made the other day. Super easy, with a great flavor! FOR PRINTABLE VERSION CLICK HERE: Grilled Bread 1 1/4 cups warm water 1 tsp active dry yeast 1 1/2 cups bread flour 1 1/2 cups whole wheat bread flour 2 Tbs olive oil 1 tsp salt 1 Tbs… [Continue Reading]

Deep Thoughts: What Is Community, Anyway?

I work for an organization that does community development internationally, and am on the board of an organization that does it in the United States. And yet I have trouble defining what exactly “community’ is. The women in the photo above are learning about nutritious foods. I met them when I was visiting Bangladesh in… [Continue Reading]

Green Bean Sides

Simply in Season offers 5 simple green bean sides. Who says they’re only good drowned in butter?

What Do I Do with Too Much Zucchini?

Zucchini, just like tomatoes, are easy to grow. Therefore people plant a lot of it, greatly overestimating how much they need. Everyone is trying to give it away towards the end of the summer; beware of strangers carrying paper bags. If you find yourself with too much zucchini, try these 10 ideas: Grate it and… [Continue Reading]

Garden & CSA Update 7/26

Sometimes, we must sacrifice. My lettuce had bolted and turned into a vine. My fennel was dried up. So I took out my scissors and cut them out. I left the few remaining pea vines that are dying out. You can see that Grigio still likes to nibble on them. See, I have come to… [Continue Reading]