Posts Tagged “whole foods”
Dried spices are an important part of my winter pantry. Spices have a warming effect on the body, so wintertime is a great time to incorporate them into your diet.
Herbs vs. Spices
I thought I would quickly go over this topic because I think there is some confusion regarding what is a spice and what is an herb. We tend to lump them together, but they are a little different.
t snowed yesterday and is quite cold today, so it seems fitting to discuss a warming pot of legumes. As promised, I have my basic braised bean recipe down below. I also offer some considerations for cooking better beans from scratch.
Altitude Notes
As you all might know, I live in Santa Fe where the elevation is 7500 feet. Water boils at a lower temperature and so things take longer to cook.
At first glance to the title of this post you might wonder, “Are legumes harvested in the wintertime?” Beans are harvested in the fall, and are best enjoyed in the fall and winter. There are very few plant-based foods that truly are seasonal to the cold winter months. The centuries old tradition of storing hardy fall vegetables and dry items, our ancestors to keep food until the green of spring emerged each year. The practice of keeping root cellar or larder is something I like to recreate in my refrigerator and pantry.
I have always had a fondness for legumes of all types. In salads, soups, casseroles or purees, legumes can make a dish into a meal.
Unless you live in the tropics, winter can be a dull time of year from a culinary standpoint. Particularly after the New Year, when the holiday lights are put away and spring is still a long ways off, I find it important to have my pantry stocked. I believe taking a creative approach to the best available items is the solution.
Most Americans have long forgotten the practice of keeping of a root cellar, but that’s no reason to abandon its spirit.
Megan’s Seasonal Kitchen: Celebrating Seasonal Plant-Based Cuisine!
My goal in writing this blog is to provide information about seasonal, whole food, plant based cuisine on the Internet. I feel there is a need for a site that’s dedicated to these topics. I have looked through hundreds of food blogs over the past few years, however, not one of them quite fills this niche.
