Food | The Ben Franklin Follies

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Making Minestrone

November 19, 2011

Anyone who knows me well knows that I love to make healthy soups and casseroles that I can “brown bag” to work during the week. This week I made a big batch of hearty, bean-and-veggie-laden minestrone in the slow-cooker. It’s Saturday, and I’m still having minestrone for lunch each day. Here’s my take on slow-cooker […]

Baked, Stuffed Acorn Squash

October 10, 2011

Here’s an extremely healthy and seasonal dish I made on Sunday: Baked Acorn Squash Ingredients & cost: One acorn squash: $3.08 (organic, purchased at Whole Foods, cost at farmers market is approximately 1/2 of this price based on price check last week, but this week I didn’t make it to the farmers market) One […]

Mosaic: St. Louis Tapas-style Fusion

September 3, 2011

On my third night in St. Louis I opted for Mosaic, a local favorite that markets itself as a tapas and fusion restaurant. The original downtown location is across the street from the conference rooms of the Millennium St. Louis hotel, site of the AEJMC annual meeting, so the location was definitely a plus after […]

Grapevine Grill at Chaumette Vineyards

September 1, 2011

While wandering around the Soulard Market on August 13, during my last hour in St. Louis, I stopped by the Baetje Farms stall to sample (and purchase) a bit of their divinely-inspired, award-winning goat cheese. I bought the last package of their Bavarian Lemon Creme. As we chatted, I mentioned that I was driving south […]

Monarch: Dining in Maplewood

August 29, 2011

Monarch is one of the key “local” restaurants I identified before I set off for my drive to St. Louis to attend the annual meeting of AEJMC. Chef Josh Galliano, a native of Louisiana, is a two-time James Beard nominee. Although not a pure farm-to-table restaurant, Chef Galliano does emphasize local ingredients and seasonal availability […]

Finer Grind Coffee Roasters

August 27, 2011

When it comes to specialty coffees, Birmingham, Alabama has one of the finest micro-roasters in the nation: Woody Wiginton’s Finer Grind. Yesterday, I ran across this review of seven top independent coffee roasters on Cool Hunting. Actually, @cutigerash tweeted the link, so I took a look. And I remembered that I’d planned to do a […]

Epiphany: Tuscaloosa Farm-to-Table

August 19, 2011

I don't recall precisely when Chef Tres Jackson launched Epiphany but it instantly became my favorite after my first meal there. From the outset, Epiphany and Chef Tres Jackson focused on local foods and suppliers that used sustainable-production methods.

East Lake Farmers Market

August 5, 2011

I’d only been in the East Lake community of Birmingham once before this summer. That was in the Fall of 2009 when I attended a couple of session of a sustainable foods conference held at East Lake United Methodist Church. Last year, I moved to the east side of town. The East Lake community is […]

Making Basil Pesto

July 30, 2011

Pesto is a delicious, healthy way to use lots of basil at once. About every two weeks I pluck a large quantity of the leaves and new growth and make a batch in my mini food processor. I typically enjoy pesto on sliced baguette—I don't usually bother to toast or grill the bread for crostini but that's even better.

Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits

July 28, 2011

Now that the nest is usually empty, Mom doesn't make a fresh batch of biscuits every morning. She makes them once a week and freezes the extras for her own breakfasts and to share with me. Last Saturday, she made a batch and I was there to capture her technique for The Ben Franklin Follies.