Current Cookbook Craze: October edition

I borrowed two cookbooks from the library that I love so much, I'm considering buying them:

Fresh Food Fast by Peter Berely: Pretty pictures (just look at the cover!) and complete seasonal menus line up with great food very nicely. So far, I've made a Wild Mushroom Fricassee over Farro (spelt), and a Thai-style Tofu* and Veggies in Coconut broth, both of which were big hits. Am trying a few more this week.

A Beautiful Bowl of Soup by Paulette Mitchell: Once again, I'm swayed by lovely photography. The recipes tend to be very simple and often something you could've come up with if you thought about it long enough, but since they're here and nicely put together, pick up the book. There's a section of cold and dessert soups, neither of which I care for, but the others are lovely. Many are vegan or easily converted, and helpfully noted too.

*I think there's an overreliance on soy foods and soy-based meat replacements in vegetarian cooking, so I rarely cook with them. And, let's face it, even if there wasn't some principle I could fall back on I wouldn't use tofu much anyway, because honestly, I hate tofu. I really do. I've tried it prepared in dozens of ways and the best I can usually say for a tofu recipe is that it didn't make me gag. This dish I actually liked, so that should tell you something about how good this book is.

I just bought...

Twenty-five pounds of apples in the last three days.

Looks like it's pie time!

Hoofin' a mile

Mea Kaemmerlen had a nice piece in yesterday's paper about farm animals- both the good, homey image we have from childhood and petting zoos, and the abbhoration of the factory farm system. Give it a read.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle The Whole Earth Center Way

Princeton's Whole Earth Center organic grocery store is undergoing a huge expansion. In keeping with their main philosophy, they set a goal for themselves to divert 75% of the project's waste from landfills. So, now that they're almost done, did they make that goal?

They've beat it, and by far. As of now, they've recycled or reused more than 93% of the constrution waste and byproduct.

It's a great little (soon to be bigger) store. I first found out about it as a way to buy local grass-fed beef from Simply Grazin' farms, and now I can't walk out of the store with fewer than three grocery bags full. They have signs over some of their organic produce telling where it's from and miles to market. They have a bakery and a big bulk foods section- bring your own containers and bags, please!

Princeton Business Journal did a big article on them and the expansion this week. Check it out, then check them out: 360 Nassau St. (near the corner of Harrison St.) Princeton.

(Cross-posted at CoNJL)

Links

I added a category of links over there on the right, to Central Jersey farms. Some are organic, some not, some pick-your-own.

If you know of one I should add, please let me know!

How to peel & pit peaches

jayananda asked about this on an older post, so here it is:

Submerge peaches, no more than 3 at a time, in boiling water. Boil for 30 sec- 1min. and remove; let cool. The skin should easily slip right off. Then, to pit: slice around the middle of the peach lengthwise, along that neat little line provided by nature. Twist the peach halves gently; if it's a freestone peach, the halves should easily separate. One half should now be pitless, and the pit can be easily pried off the other half*. If it's a clingstone, you'll have to slice the peachy goodness off of the pit, losing some juice on the way.

This time of year, around here anyway, we mostly get freestone.

(*Note: sometimes, the peach pit decides to split in half, too. Annoying. Just pry it away.)

Michael Jackson has died

No, not that Michael Jackson, the other one:

Mr. Jackson especially loved Belgian brews, which his books “The Great Beers of Belgium” and “The World Guide to Beer” introduced to many export markets, including the United States.
By identifying beers by their flavors and styles, and by pairing them with particular foods and dishes, he also gave impetus to the North American microbrewery movement.
His television documentary series, “The Beer Hunter,” a title that popularized his nickname, was filmed around the world and shown in 15 countries.
Mr. Jackson was a beer critic for more than 30 years, writing in newspapers and gastronomic magazines, holding seminars, giving speeches and appearing on talk shows. His many books about beer and whiskeys were published in 18 languages.

We have his book Complete Guide to Single Malt Scotch, and it has always been a useful reference for us. His work in promoting and writing about good beer and whiskies was a strong voice for quality. He will be missed.

(cross-posted at CoNJL)