CSA Chickens

There is SO much I love about my hometown, Eugene, Oregon, but one of the things I love most is the quality of the food. We get two deliveries of CSA vegetables per week (Turnip the Beet and Wintergreen Farm — my parents have been members of both farms for over 20 years!!!) as well as fresh chickens and eggs from Havurah Farms every other week. You literally don’t have to go to the grocery store except for pantry and freezer items. And the chickens?!?!?! MAN they are good. Who knew chickens could taste THAT good. They come from Havurah Farms and are pasture raised and non-gmo fed. Also, kosher, organic and killed young. You can literally taste the difference.

 

Every other Monday, my parents go to someone’s house for pickup. You get your chickens and eggs, check off your name, and then you are on your way. Old school, honor code. The chickens are killed the morning you pick them up.

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OurHarvest – Organic Grocery

Every September when I move back from the West Coast, I make a list of Fall goals. Every year, I say that I am going to go to the Farmers Market to get fresh, local produce, fruit, and any other random goodies. And yet, every year, I fail miserably and never make it to one.

 

Way back when, Good Eggs, existed. But that was short lived in NYC and didn’t last long (and it didn’t deliver to the Upper East side of Manhattan). So I was thrilled when I randomly came about (via instragram stories, nonetheless) OurHarvest. It is an online New York farmer’s market and gourmet grocery with local, farm-fresh, organic ingredients in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Long Island. It has existed in NYC since 2014, and even though I am late to the game, I am  so thrilled to have found it NOW! IT IS AMAZING bold italic exclamation point. It is coined Manhattan’s Farmers Market, and I get it. It is a farmers market that delivers throughout Manhattan. GENIUS.

 

The prices are good, the selection incredible, and the products themselves are the best. And the online platform is super easy, beautifully laid out, and great to work with (unlike instacart which I hate with all my might). There is so much to choose from and everything is fresh and local. You can get meat, fish, dairy, produce, fruit, pantry items, baked goods. Anything and everything.

 

I can’t get to a store without getting a fake sweet. Meaning, I love dessert, but want to curb my sweets so anytime there is a date sweetened goodie, I am a sucker for it.

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Seaweed Sesame Seed Seasoning

Seaweed Sesame Seed Seasoning (Sally sold seashells at the seashore?) is my favorite touch to any dish. My freshman year in college, I was randomly placed in an all Asian hall (maybe the reason I ended up marrying Ken?) and therefore quickly learned many Asian customs and preferences (rice cookers, chopsticks, bowls for food, etc…). One of the best take-aways from that experience (definitely not my crazy roommate) was a Seaweed topping for rice. It simply is a small canister with seaweed and spices. Currently, my favorite variety of this seasoning is Seaweed Gomasio. And man oh man, is it good!

 

All of Eden Organic products are healthy, original, and delicious. ESPECIALLY, this seasoning!

All of Eden Organic products are healthy, original, and delicious. ESPECIALLY, this seasoning!

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Gazpacho

In July this summer (tear as summer is officially over. SOB!), my mom and I both tore out this recipe for gazpacho from the NYTimes. It looked simple yet delicious. It wasn’t until we recently had an abundance of tomatoes from the CSA that we decided to make it. And not to #humblebrag but HOLY CRAP THIS IS AMAZING AND I AM A STAR CHEF. This would win every and any food competition ever. I am now a phenomenal chef — this rocked my socks off. (I actually know it’s all about the recipe and the fresh CSA vegetables… but I can dream I’m a great cook, can’t I?)

 

July 2015 New York Times.

A July New York Times.

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Blue Hill at Stone Barns

Readers of the blog know that foodwise, I am a huge supporter of everything wholesome, organic, farm-to-table, etc.  You are what you eat! While this belief mostly affects the food we buy for our home, it also affects our restaurant choices.

 

For our anniversary in June, we went to Roberta’s Blanca, an amazing 27 course tasting menu experience that we will never forget.  This past weekend, we ventured up to Blue Hill at Stone Barns.

 

 

Located 30 miles north of New York City, the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture opened in the Spring of 2004, and from it derived a four season working farm and educational center.  Blue Hill at Stone Barns features farm-to-table food directly from the Stone Barns farm, and other local farms around the Hudson Valley. The restaurant won the New Best Restaurant award from the James Beard Foundation.

 

Below are the highlights.  Enjoy the pics! (We didn’t want to be “those people”, so we didn’t use flash.  Apologies if anything came out dark!)

 

The dining room. The restaurant was more formal than I would have guessed. Men are strongly encouraged to wear jackets (and ties). The decor made it feel like a mix of formal and rustic.

 

There is no menu, per se.  You choose between three options.  A 5 course tasting menu, an 8 course tasting menu, and a 10 course tasting menu.  And you have the option of adding cheese as an additional course to the 5 or 8 course menus (it is included in the 10 course menus). Due to time/nanny constraints (not to mention cost), we went with the 5 course menu.

 

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