Author Archives: Virtual Farmgirl

Patel Bros. shopping haul. At some point, I think we’ll probably get a little sick of Indian food.  We haven’t reached that point yet. Not even close. Good thing too because I have at least two more dishes planned this weekend alone. This week, I made a Chickpea Flour Curry with Vegetables and served itContinue reading “Indian Food Cooking Spree”

It was easy to drop in quickly to the winter farmers market at Unity Temple partly because there were just a handful of die-hard vendors to browse. The market was in part to benefit the Harvest of Hope Farm Crisis Fund.  Not surprisingly — considering it’s mid-winter — there was no produce. But it wasContinue reading “Today's Farmers Market Haul”

Thanks to the Local Beet and Becca at Live Here Oak Park for cluing me in that there’s a winter farmers market tomorrow at the beautiful Unity Temple. I just passed by there tonight and admired Frank Lloyd Wright’s handiwork. It’ll be a treat to see the interior. I’m not sure I’ve ever been inside,Continue reading “Feed Your Appetite & Your Soul at Saturday's Winter Farmer's Market”

If you’ve been contemplating getting backyard chickens, but found yourself fretting about what your neighbors might think or worrying that your property values will tank, check out this blog post de-mythifying backyard flocks in urban areas. The McMurray Hatchery blog is exploring and, presumably debunking, the “7 Myths About Urban Chickens.” In the first post,Continue reading “Blog Takes On Backyard Chicken Myths”

Yesterday’s senseless killings of six people – including a 9-year-old girl and a respected federal judge – shattered an otherwise normal weekend for me. I learned about the shootings while I was stocking up on groceries. Nothing could be more routine. And I kept imagining the horrifying scenario in Tuscon unfolding right in front ofContinue reading “Angry and Sad”

National Geographic’s Daily News is bringing some much-needed context to the bird deaths in Arkansas. After I started following reports of the mass New Year’s Eve red-winged blackbird deaths near Beebe, I started seeing that there are reports of bird deaths – albeit not always 4,000-5,000 dramatically falling to their deaths in a populated areaContinue reading “Bird Deaths Explained”

Empty Mailbox I’m starting to get a little worried now that it’s been more than a week since we’ve received our mail. We’d stopped it briefly for the holidays, went into the office to pick up the held mail and to restart regular deliveries. That was Dec. 30. We’ve received mail exactly once since then…lateContinue reading “I Realized How Much We Still Rely on the Postal Service, After It Decided to Quit Delivering Our Mail”

These eggnog muffins are simple to make and, to my surprise, aren’t overpowered by the nutmeg and eggnog flavors. I’d been worried that these might taste heavy — like a thick mug of eggnog. Not to worry, the cup of eggnog and teaspoon of nutmeg is subtle and pleasing in the final muffin. I can’tContinue reading “Eggnog Muffins: A Tasty Morning Treat”

There are few operations I respect more than Growing Power, which pioneered impressive not-for-profit urban gardens in Milwaukee and Chicago. So it’s alarming to see Erika Allen, one of Growing Power’s principals quoted in the Tribune saying that if Chicago’s proposed urban farming ordinance goes into effect, it’ll stunt the growth of her organization andContinue reading “New Urban Farming Ordinance Creating Controversy Among Active Farmers”

No doubt it’s unusual to have thousands of birds fall dead from the sky. But what about 80,000 to 100,000 fish suddenly washing ashore? That’s what Arkansas residents and wildlife officials are dealing with – two mass deaths of two separate species within a week. So far, the sudden deaths (they literally fell dead fromContinue reading “Mass Die-Offs of Fish & Fowl: What's Next Arkansas?”