Category Archives: Uncategorized

Few things surprise me when I read the paper, but this story in the Trib about a brouhaha over one local farmer charging for plastic bags, just stuck with me. I think I feel most sorry for the customer that sustainability expert farmer Henry Brockman outed in the press for strenuously complaining about his decisionContinue reading “Farmer Irritates Some With Plastic Bag Fee”

Finally! A Midwest grown and produced fruit wine that isn’t syrupy sweet! I can hardly believe how much I like the Apple Wine under the Illinois Cellars label in downstate Carrollton, Ill. It’s very Rieslingesq. A perfect pairing for cheese and crackers…or just on its own on a lazy summer weekend. Turns out it’s aContinue reading “Apples! Fermented & Fabulous”

Even in the pouring rain there was plenty of foot traffic at the Oak Park Farmers Market. There was NO line for the donuts. That was good for sopping wet me, but made me sad for the folks who were likely there to raise money for an event. And, of course, there was no bluegrass,Continue reading “Summer Bounty”

A new Chicago Locavore compatriot proposed a great idea for those of us who didn’t pay close enough attention to our grandmothers come harvest… Let’s have our own canning party! I so love that idea. Now I just need to find some sage canning expert to drop in and teach. If I could sucker PhotoContinue reading “A Hot Idea This Summer”

The iFarmer and I are trying to come up with some fresh designs and slogans for the Farmgirl Gear pages. I’m taking requests…so if you have a t-shirt idea, please share! I’m definitely going to have something for the farmkids this time around.

If, like me, you’ve had fears of canning and pickling, just read today’s Good Eating section in the Trib to get inspired. I love that the Trib quoted a state fair champ: Linda Amendt, author of several preserving books and a frequent state-fair prize winner, says: “The perception that home canning is old-fashioned and aContinue reading “Pickling Isn't Just for Cucumbers Anymore”

Another fun wine from the Grayslake, Ill.,-based Glunz Family Winery & Cellars. You and, especially my Christmas tree-trimming party guests, already know I’m a big fan of their winter Vin Glogg. But warm wine just doesn’t sound appealing in the heat of summer. So I was very excited to find the iFarmer brought home deContinue reading “Local Summer Wine, With Fruit to Boot”

I’ve been a bit under the weather this weekend, but I’m coming out of it, I hope. I’ve been sleeping more than 12 hours for the past couple of nights. That’s made a big difference. Now that I’m turning a health corner, I need to catch up a bit with some VFG posts. Last weekContinue reading “New Addictive Artisanal Cheese…and It's Local”

I have this great book “Char Siu Bao Boy” written by the talented Sandra Yamate. I’ve been reading it to my kids for ages, but only recently has it clicked that these delicious Chinese dumplings are real food. They’ve been practicing their chopstick skills with ramen noodles. But they haven’t ventured much further into ourContinue reading “Introducing New Foods…With Limited Success”

I’ve been looking for a good organic gift basket to either assemble on my own or order online. So I was pleased to find yet another lead on the Chicago Locavores site…this one steering me to Seedling Orchard, an organic farm near South Haven, Mich. Gotta love their credo: We sell only locally grown fruitContinue reading “New Gift Basket Source: Seedling Orchard”