This year as we started seeds for the garden, Dorene Pasekoff of Hill Creek Farm introduced me to Truelove Seeds, Owen Taylor's seed keeping labor of love in Philly, where "The story is in the seed."
seed love is true love
beekeeping inspiration: pure spring blossom honey
This is my second year keeping bees. Every day shows me that there is a lot more to learn. The bees are good teachers, but sometimes it's hard to interpret the lessons! For that you need a couple of experts who can tell you what to expect and answer your questions.
fig recipe for fall
These green and black figs will never ripen, but don't give up--with this recipe for candied figs, you can still enjoy them during the long winter months
Pennsylvania passion fruit
Did you know passion fruit vines can grow outside in Pennsylvania? I didn't! My friend Chuck could have told me about his hardy passion fruit vines--but he didn't know they were passionfruit!
pumpkin soufflé in a springform pan
Since the autumn, I've had three big pumpkins decorating the bench in my foyer. I grew them in my garden last summer from seeds that Jo LaRocca collected on one of her food and gardening adventure trips to Mexico. Today I decided to cut one open to make pumpkin soufflé. I was inspired partly by these …
saffron harvest
I was pretty excited to come home and see one of my saffron crocuses blooming last week! These flowers were a gift from a friend, Mary Dyer, who then lived in Charlottesville. She gave these flower bulbs to me--a Spaniard living in Pittsburgh--and then she moved from Charlottesville to Madrid! The world is full of strange …
home and garden
These photos capture my garden in summer, a busy season of new discoveries, new questions, and new rewards.
coffee tree trim
Counterintuitively, harsh pruning of coffee trees keeps them strong and blooming. Gardening is not for sissies. 😉
notes from the windowsill: rutabaga micro greens
Is this sprouting rutabaga just compost, or could it be a viable source of micro greens? Chef Daniel investigates!
Mary’s cousin’s squash
Could this mystery squash/gourd/melon turn out to be the source of the preserves in my favorite childhood pastry?
Dinner with Daniel 