Joyce writes, “I took an apple pie making class on October 7 with my daughter, Cindy. I really enjoyed the class and learned a lot. I made the apple pie for the first time yesterday. I was very please that it turned out so well. Was very similar to Anne’s! Thanks so much for teaching [...]

Garlic is a bulb, which is planted in the fall, to be harvested next year on July 1. Garlic is a wonderful addition to your garden, because it is a low-maintenance plant that delivers delicious results. To plant garlic, separate the heads into individual cloves. There is no need to peel the cloves. Plant each [...]

Figs are fresh and in season during the month of September, so I try to eat as many figs as possible! I vividly remember my first taste of fresh figs: on a pizza in Rome in September 1987. I was smitten with their luscious taste. Since then, my favorite pizza is fresh figs with gorgonzola [...]

The summer crops are all gone; all of our exhausted tomato plants were dug up this weekend. This year was our best tomato year ever; we harvested about 450 pounds from 66 plants. In the empty garden, we planted today the fall greens: spinach, arugula, mache, and leaf lettuces, which should be ready in about [...]

During a participation cooking class last week, a student opened the refrigerator and stared at the condiment bottles in the door. “May I help you find something?” I asked. “Where’s the lemon juice?” she asked. I opened the vegetable drawer and pulled out a fresh lemon. “You have GOT to be kidding!” she answered. Some [...]

The tomatoes are fabulously delicious this year. We are growing red Jet Star and yellow Golden Girl, and pick of the crop is available for purchase at Kitchen Conservatory (to accompany our garlic and basil!). A truly vine-ripened tomato falls into your hands when you cup the bottom of the fruit; no tugging necessary to pick [...]

We plant and some years the yield is a cup. This year, the yield is truly a bumper crop. After 15 years of growing garlic, this year’s garlic crop is the best ever. I’ve canned jar-after-jar of currant jelly. And we are overrun by potatoes. We are eating potatoes every single day; luckily, there are [...]

Our field of garlic is ready to harvest, about a week early. Why am I digging garlic on the hottest day of the summer? Because the garlic said so. The leaves have yellowed and died. If the garlic stays in the ground, the heads will break apart in the dirt. Stop by Kitchen Conservatory to [...]

Our field of garlic (1,200 heads) is about two weeks away from harvest. The stalks look thick and healthy. We are so impatient for this year’s crop that we dug one plant just to see how it looks…what a voluptuous beauty! Our freshly dug homegrown garlic will be available at Kitchen Conservatory for purchase on July [...]

Yesterday, we dug and ate our first home-grown potatoes of the year (pictured). Last night, I taught a cooking class on how to make potato gnocchi. Several students took the class because of their previous gnocchi-making failures. We discussed how much flour to add to the potato and how to knead the dough. Then Heidi [...]