While most people think of nocino as a traditional Italian digestif, the recipe actually originated in Britain. The Picts (a Celtic tribe from Scotland) were known to become euphoric after drinking it, and I get that. They harvested green walnuts at the summer solstice, and at the same time celebrated the new green walnut harvest by drinking the previous year’s brew….
Read More
My husband builds model rockets. It’s a perfect hobby for him, one that combines art and science and also lets him get outdoors. I’ve been wanting to go to one of the monthly launches, so last weekend we got in the car at the ungodly hour of 6 am (ungodly because it was Saturday) and headed out to the launch…
Read More
Although I’ve used sassafras twigs and roots for years, I’ve only recently started using the dried, ground leaves of sassafras, better known as filé. Yup, the filé in filé gumbo is dried, ground sassafras leaves. You can buy it in good spice stores, but if you’ve got access to sassafras trees, there’s no reason not to make your own foraged…
Read More
I am not a tea drinker. I have nothing against it, but coffee is my go-to, hot beverage. But yesterday afternoon my thoughts turned to chai, maybe because it’s been cold and we got a late snow, maybe because I was in need of something warm and comforting, or maybe just because it was tea time. Once I realized that…
Read More
About the Hosta Plant Hostas are one of the world’s most popular shade plants, but most American gardeners don’t realize the young hosta shoots are a tasty spring green. Hosta enthusiasts have been know to fill entire gardens with different species and cultivars: blue leaves, chartreuse leaves, green margins with a white center, white margins with a green center, plants…
Read More
