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Diana Prichard

What’s In-Season Now; March Edition

March 3, 2010
What's In-Season Now; March Edition

Whether your farmer’s market is officially open for the season now or just holding a few special winter edition sale dates until warmer weather really ushers in most are now operating in one way or another. If they’re not they likely will be very, very soon.
But what can we — and maybe more importantly, [...]

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Discover: Bolani

February 24, 2010
Discover: Bolani

If there is anything that stands between me and a wholly local food existence it is undoubtedly my love of dining out — especially in small, authentic, ethnic atmospheres. That and guacamole. Unfortunately, Michigan weather is not terribly conducive to the growing of avocados.
There is something about walking into a family-run food establishment and [...]

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The How

February 17, 2010
The How

“Oh, Mom! What are those?”
I love it when my children get excited about things that can be grown so when my five year-old’s eyes lit up and the chatter started last week as I pulled a packet of Luffa Gourd seeds from the envelope Seven Acre Woods had lovingly tucked them in I couldn’t [...]

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Edible Love

February 9, 2010
Edible Love

I admit, I love Valentine’s Day. I know, I know. It’s a hallmark holiday; it’s a manufactured day to entice buyers back into stores after they’ve already maxed their limits over the holiday season in November and December; one shouldn’t need a day on which to show love to the people they hold dear. [...]

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On Beans

February 5, 2010
On Beans

My oldest daughter refuses to eat beans. As a matter of fact, she can pick through a bowl of chili eating everything but the beans with incredible accuracy and persistence. Ask her to clean her room and it “takes too long, Mom”, but she will sit for hours picking the beans from any dish without [...]

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On Failure

January 26, 2010
On Failure

Last year both our garden and home-grown meat endeavors were far from what anyone would call successful. Between the late blight, the wonky weather, and a four-day trip to a blogging conference during which the very loose grip I had on weeding was lost entirely, spinach and peppers were the only produce we managed to [...]

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On Sustenance That Warms

January 20, 2010
On Sustenance That Warms

I was born and raised in the north. Michigan, to be exact. I’m still there, but remain convinced that the whole thing has been an epic cosmic mistake — or a higher power’s sick joke. I don’t take cold well and while Michigan is by far warmer than some places it’s also colder than far [...]

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Discover: Foodzie

January 13, 2010
Discover: Foodzie

I owe my discovery of the online artisan food marketplace, Foodzie, to Try Handmade founder, Erika Jurney. It has been a few months since I received her email with the link and I must confess I haven’t cleaned my house since. I wholeheartedly believe that, by extension, Erika is solely responsible for the state of [...]

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On Being Meaningful

January 5, 2010
On Being Meaningful

I read something recently at zenhabits that has stuck with me. I’m more than a bit ashamed to admit, lately, much of my online reading has come to an abrupt halt. I suppose this is why coming across a gem like this — so simple and yet so true — meant all the more to [...]

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I Take it Black

December 22, 2009
I Take it Black

For reasons I have yet to uncover, much of my childhood was not retained — at least not by me. I do not remember the games I played, the friends I had. I do not remember my favorite food, my first crush. I remember insignificant moments of notable events, but very few everyday nuances.
I [...]

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On Pleasures Made a Little Less Guilty

December 17, 2009
On Pleasures Made a Little Less Guilty

I’ve never met a person who was without a vice — or ten.
We like to believe we are good people. We like to think our choices — many so deliberately made — are righteous; that they serve a good greater than our own. I like to think even in seeking pleasure we can refrain [...]

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Bear Gifts

November 17, 2009
Bear Gifts

We’ve talked about The Turkey, the potentially non-traditional side dishes, the desserts — those that I advocate eating first.
Next week and in the many weeks that follow leading up to and into 2010 we will, if we’re lucky, find ourselves on the doorsteps of family; of friends. Surrounded by the warmth of their laughter [...]

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On Disregard of Tradition

November 11, 2009
On Disregard of Tradition

I may be rebellious. I may despise conformity. But I am also, in some things, a creature of habit. During the holidays, for instance, I adore tradition. Until just last year I eschewed the idea of any deviation from what I considered a traditional holiday feast. Especially when the feast was to be had on [...]

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On Turkey, Turkey

November 5, 2009
On Turkey, Turkey

He is the belle of the ball; the guest of honor. The main course of today’s American Thanksgiving feast however, is far from anything early Americans would have readily eaten. As consumption rises so must production; with production so must efficiency. Unfortunately efficient is not always humane; efficient is not always pretty.
I often focus [...]

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Eat Dessert First

October 28, 2009
Eat Dessert First

I have always adored misshapen pumpkins most.
I have always preferred imperfection.
That’s why, when last weekend, as I watched my own two girls pick out their yearly jack-o-lantern prospects I was proud to see flattened stems and dented backsides making the cut.

Diana Prichard is a homegrown and artisan food junkie, freelance writer and [...]

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On a Silver Platter

October 22, 2009
On a Silver Platter

It’s no secret that I have an obscene love of food. What most people don’t know however, is how much that love extends to the utensils and dishes with which food is prepared, served and enjoyed. I would wager, in fact, even my own family is in the dark as to how deep my fondness [...]

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On Starting Small

October 15, 2009
On Starting Small

I am incredibly goal-oriented and deadline-driven. Give me a deadline and while I may be a procrastinator, I will also be wholly motivated to meet it — even if at the last minute. Give me a challenge that needs conquering and I will become obsessed with accomplishing it.
It’s probably these inward tendencies that make [...]

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On Sacrifice. And a Challenge.

October 8, 2009
On Sacrifice. And a Challenge.

As if the sometimes overwhelming commitment weren’t enough, confusion in recent years over whether or not a locavore diet is “worth it” — not just for ourselves, but for the environment — has added a new dimension of frustration for budding farmer’s market foodies.
A recent article from Newsweek, ‘Swallowing Eco Hype‘, highlights an interview [...]

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One a Day

October 1, 2009
One a Day

I’ve never been one to do the tourist thing. As much as I love to travel, to get out, to meet new people, to try new foods; I much prefer to do all of the above as if I were a local. I find it even more difficult to swallow when the tourist thing surrounds [...]

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On Year-Round Appreciation

September 24, 2009
On Year-Round Appreciation

There is something about fall that is truly endearing on every level. The combination of warm, soft sweaters; the sound of leaves blowing across the ground; the smell of chill in the air; and the inherent comfort in the foods that call the season home don’t hurt. Of that I am sure. But for small [...]

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On Soup

September 17, 2009
On Soup

If I were willing to buy them my husband would eat Campbell’s condensed soups every day for lunch during the fall and winter months. And probably a few times a week for dinner. The man loves condensed soup. If I plan to buy canned soup for any reason, he actually requests it.
“Don’t get the extra [...]

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On Small Fruits and High Prices

September 10, 2009
On Small Fruits and High Prices

Those sad, tiny excuses for carrots came from my garden. On my knees, fingernails full of dirt I dug them up one-by-one this past weekend. I’d let them go for more than a month longer than their “maturity” date hoping that when I did harvest I’d find something bigger around than my pinky finger. As [...]

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