May 1, 2010

Julia and producers, circa 1963
Today I’ve been making Julia Child’s boeuf bourguignon for a Julie and Julia party tonight. I’m not sure how I got volunteered for this esteemed role (after all, it’s the dish that Julie flops in the movie), but I’m giving it my all. (more…)
Aug 10, 2009

Troubling evidence of powdery mildew
A few days ago I noticed a white dust on my broad (otherwise beautiful) squash leaves.
It seems I had “powdery mildew.” What to do about it was unclear. (more…)
Aug 9, 2009

Female fruit and incipient blossom
Recently I got all excited that I might be able to pick my own squash blossoms, batter them, and fry them up. Maybe even stuff them. Who knows?
“Only pick the males!” my sister warned me.
Males? Females? I felt the anxiety of 10th-grade Biology and Colonel Dick’s disparaging gaze welling within me.
My simple little garden was suddenly a mysterious, frightening jungle. How would I ever be able to tell the difference between a yellow blossom and a yellow blossom? (more…)
Aug 2, 2009
OK, I love food. I like reading about it. I like looking at it. I like going to farms. I like photographing food and people who dig and harvest. Colorful produce set against the color of dirt, green stalks, and farmers is sexy. I’ve photographed farms across the United States and in Mexico. For many years, both for newspapers and national television, I was an agricultural reporter. (more…)
Jul 15, 2009


The current state license plate design, modified since its introduction in 1991. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The other day, on my way to D.C., I drove behind a car with Idaho plates. The Idaho license plate is quite beautiful really. A kind of red and white sky, and blue mountains and pine trees at the bottom. The slogan – “Famous Potatoes.”
Famous potatoes indeed. (more…)