From the Pantry: Guajillo Chiles (Harissa Sauce)

Andrea Meyers - Harissa Sauce

Have you ever seen the bags of dried chiles in the grocery, the ones in the Mexican foods aisle, and wondered what to do with them? There are so many different varieties to choose from, and each has its own flavor profile and heat level which can make experimenting fun and/or painful. We keep several [...]

The Farm Project: Wegmeyer Farms (Raspberry Sauce)

Andrea Meyers - Wegmeyer Farms, raspberries

I didn’t grow up on a farm, but my family has a long history in agriculture and I grew up in Missouri and Illinois, where farms were abundant. In the summer you couldn’t drive anywhere in central Illinois without seeing corn and soybean fields, and detasseling was a common summer job for teens. In the [...]

Salsa Fresca (The Kids Cook Monday)

Andrea Meyers - Salsa Fresca

Every year we plant a few new (to us) tomato varieties to see how they grow in our garden, and one of our new favorites for this year is the Amish Paste, a meaty plum tomato that doesn’t have too much juice, so it’s perfect for sauces and salsas. Our plant has grown huge, over [...]

Sauteed Zucchini with Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Peppers, and Basil (The Kids Cook Monday)

Andrea Meyers - Sauteed Zucchini with Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Peppers, and Basil

Update August 15, 2011: Thanks to Dash Recipes for featuring this recipe! Update September 12, 2011: Thanks to The New York Times for featuring this recipe! It’s summertime and our garden is bursting with tomatoes, peppers, and basil, so we decided to sauté our homegrown vegetables with some yellow zucchini, mushrooms, onions, and garlic as [...]

Smothered Okra (The Kids Cook Monday)

Andrea Meyers - Smothered Okra

Now that Builder Guy is almost 9, we decided he was ready to learn some kitchen knife skills, something a little more advanced than spreading butter and jam. So I thought of some fruits and vegetables that he could learn on, things that weren’t too difficult and would allow him to easily handle it while [...]

Spiced Peach Butter

Andrea Meyers - Spiced Peach Butter

When you get a big basket of peaches as beautiful as this, it’s time to cook. We got these in South Carolina a few weeks ago while visiting family, and they were so fresh and sweet that the smell made me want to bury my face in the basket. They still needed a couple days [...]

Sweet Cherry Butter

Andrea Meyers - Sweet Cherry Butter

“Cherries!” That’s the shout I hear when the boys find cherries on the counter and eagerly pop them in their mouths and pull off the stems. They can’t resist the deep red fruits, and neither can I. Seeing their happy smiles with cherry juice all over their hands and faces is one of my favorite [...]

Blueberry Butter

Andrea Meyers - Blueberry Butter

When the blueberries start to ripen on our bushes, the boys get excited and eagerly eat the fresh berries as we bring them inside. Occasionally I’m able to set some aside for cooking projects, but most of the time I have competition for their juicy goodness. This time I was able to whip up some [...]

From the Pantry: Instant Pectin (Strawberry Freezer Jam with Moscato)

Andrea Meyers - Strawberry Freezer Jam with Moscato

When summer rolls around and it’s time to start making jams and jellies again, I stock up on pectin. Many of the recipes I make call for regular pectin, which requires cooking the jam or jelly, but I also like instant pectin for no-cook jams. Skipping the cooking process keeps the wonderful fresh flavor of [...]

From the Pantry: Tamari Soy Sauce (Tamari Almonds)

Andrea Meyers - Tamari Almonds

My first experience in an Asian grocery store was on the island of Saipan back in 1989. I was still new to the small island and its mix of cultures, and Asian ingredients were not part of my vocabulary, so browsing through a bewildering array of soy sauces left my head spinning and I couldn’t [...]