by Meredith Chilson I love to hear stories from the elders in my family. I’ve gathered many through the years, along with several notebooks full of handwritten family recipes. It’s important to me to know where my food comes from … and what ingredients are in the food that I serve my family. And I […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author. For as long as I can remember, there has been an ongoing battle over the meal Chicken and Dumplings in our household. There is my mom and my brother who like the biscuit-shaped ones that are plopped over the top of an oven-baked meal and which soak up the […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author. This is a delicious Sunday dinner that fills the home with the mouthwatering smells of garlic, rosemary and onion. A hearty chicken dish with rustic root vegetables that caramelize and meld, to flavor each other and the roasted chicken. Any of the vegetables can be eliminated or changed. I […]

by Don Schrider, American Livestock Breeds Conservancy — Illustration by Georges Louis LeClerc Buffon On Feb. 25, 2008, about 70 people congregated at Ayrshire Farm in Upperville, Va., to take part in a blind taste test comparing one variety of industrial turkey and eight varieties of heritage turkey. All the food professionals, chefs, food connoisseurs […]

Guest post by Pam Baker If you’ve been keeping up with this blog, some of our writers haven’t gotten eggs from their hens. Let me just say, that kind of anticipation is painful. It’s like waiting for Christmas, but you don’t know which day it is. At our place, we have been fortunate and I […]

My Rooster Stew by Meredith Chilson In the spring, I always seem to have some little chicks around. Some of those little chicks turn into “my girls”—the hens that I nurture and keep for eggs. The others—well, I keep them for a while, too. Those are the ones that grow the magnificent tail feathers and […]