Grandma’s Watermelon Rind Pickles
From family farm gatherings to centuries of culinary tradition, watermelon rind pickles tell a story of resourcefulness, resilience, and sweet-sour summertime flavor.
Latest Articles
The Forgotten Apple Pie of New England
Before apple pie became the patriotic symbol we know today, early American cooks baked something far more old-world and unexpected: Marlborough Pie. This forgotten New England favorite was made, remarkably, with apples on the verge of spoiling.
The Lost World of Gooseberries
Gooseberries live in that curious category of half-memory, passed down through family stories of a past I never knew. And though gooseberries have all but vanished from most American kitchens, the memory of them lingers.
Once a Dairy Darling, Cottage Cheese Makes a Comeback
From farmhouse kitchens to 1970s diet plates, this humble, curdy concoction has long been a quiet staple of American food culture. Though it fell out of favor during the yogurt craze, its story is one of surprising resilience, and its comeback is nothing short of remarkable.
Pork ’n Beans: the more you eat, the more you….
In America, baked bean dishes, including pork and beans, are thought to have began with the indigenous Penobscot, Narragansett, and Iroquois tribes, who slow-cooked beans in clay pots buried in holes filled with hot stones.
Pokeweed, America’s forgotten vegetable
American pokeweed is a flowering herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the Phytolaccaceae family. And while the leaves and stalks of this species are a nutritional powerhouse, high in vitamin A, C, iron, and calcium, its high toxicity will make humans extremely ill (perhaps even fatal) if not properly cooked.
Egg Cream: New York City’s Iconic Beverage
For the uninitiated, egg creams, despite their name, contain neither eggs nor cream.
My Momma’s Christmas Pie
Of all the pies my momma baked during the holiday season, there was one very special pie she made just for herself . . . her Christmas mincemeat pie.
Tomato Ketchup: The American invention that became worldwide condiment
It was 1812 America when Philadelphia scientist and horticulturist James Mease created the first tomato ketchup, but it was H. L. Heinz that turned it into a global condiment.
Desperation Pies
The Great Depression brought with it a number of major changes in the American food scene — how to acquire food, how to make it last, and how to turn the available limited ingredients into tasty, nutritious meals.
