Organics 101
Peace of mind has certainly played a part in the growth of organics. Concern about the long-term health effects of the pesticides, chemicals, growth hormones and antibiotics used in conventional farming convinced many people to seek out ... [... more]
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Baking Fruit Pies
There's a fruit pie for every season: strawberry-rhubarb for spring, cherry in summer, pear in the fall, and apple in winter. Baking fruit pies is a rather straightforward technique, but a few tips can help to make your pies come out looking and ... [... more]
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Canning and Preserving
When selecting fruit or vegetables for canning, choose the freshest available, preferably picked that day. Going to U-pick farms, farmers' markets or using fruits and vegetables from your own garden is a great way to ensure freshness. Avoid ... [... more]
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Grow a Kitchen Garden
If you're a first time gardener, make a modest plan and leave room for expansion once you gain more experience. Most vegetables need a full 6 hours of sunlight a day. Morning light is preferable, because it dries off the dew, reducing the risk of ... [... more]
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Asparagus Aspirations
Despite a reputation for being finicky, asparagus isn't as tricky to grow as you may think. Asparagus is one of the healthiest and tastiest veggies: A 5-ounce serving provides 60 percent of your daily needs for folic acid, a B vitamin linked to ... [... more]
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Asparagus Tips
Asparagus is one of our favorite harbingers of spring. These delectable stalks with their vivid color and delicate flavor are good hot or cold, dressed up or down. Asparagus comes in several sizes, ranging in diameter from thinner than a drinking ... [... more]
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Bring Spring Indoors
Cut branches of spring-flowering shrubs and trees and bring them inside to bloom. Likely candidates include cherry, crabapple, flowering dogwood, flowering quince, forsythia, honeysuckle, lilac, magnolia, pear, pussy willow, and redbud. Branches ... [... more]
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Kitchen Herb Gardening
Selecting which herbs to grow may be the most difficult aspect of beginning an herb garden. One way to decide which herbs to grow is to consider which dishes you like to eat best and choose herbs that are integral or complementary to those ... [... more]
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Broccoli Tips
The best broccoli will have dark green tops with lighter green stems. Buds should be tightly closed, with no mushy spots or signs of yellowing. The stalks should feel firm and crisp, never limp or wobbly. At most stores, you can also buy packages ... [... more]
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Corn in the U.S.A.
We think of corn as a vegetable. But the corn plant (zea mays) is actually a grass; the kernels on the cob, a grain. In fact, corn gets its name from an English word for grain--for any grain, actually, even salt grains (which explains "corned ... [... more]
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Fantastic Fennel
One of the few plants where the roots, stalk, seeds, fronds and pollen are all used, fennel adds a new flavor twist to meals. That unusual flavor in your meal could be fennel. Originating in the Mediterranean, then carried north from Italy by ... [... more]
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A New Leaf
Commemorate Earth Day this spring by cooking up some seasonal favorites, or start planning your own kitchen garden. Learn about "green" cleaning options for your spring cleaning chores. Surround yourself with signs of the season. Make a bouquet [... more]
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