FOOD OF THE WEEK

GRAPEFRUIT
Grapefruit, like navel oranges and, on the California's Central Coast, at least, lemons, a winter citrus, bring that bit of brightness to otherwise largely fruitless months. There's a tendency to pair grapefruit and breakfast, either halved on a saucer or as juice: I remember being met with gasps of incredulity when I pulled a...

OREGANO
Oregano is the spicy member of the Mint family. The commonly known Oregano is a somewhat piquant herb with mint overtones that speaks 'Italian' to most noses and palates.

OLIVE OIL
With all the talk of oil driving the economy, much of the news, and possibly foreign policy, it may take a bit of a stretch to realize that the first oil economy was based on olive oil. Before history began, olive oil was the main ...

TANGERINES
Tangerines are clearly distinct from Oranges: out of the first ten or so Google returns on tangerine'tangerine', one has to do with the fruit, the rest seem to be related to popular music, while 'Orange'  ...

FRESH FRUIT
One of the features of local markets is that they're subject to both dearth and surplus. This has little effect on products with a long shelf life, such as nuts or olives, but things like peas, melons and corn ...

GARLIC
I suspect there's a tendency in the U.S. to associate garlic with Mediterranean cooking, specifically with Italian and perhaps with Greek or Spanish, if it's familiar, and with the cuisine of Provence, and also with certain styles of Asian cooking, ...

A BIT BITTER
Of the five basic flavors (sweet, sour, salt, bitter, mame {'gravy'}) bitter seems to get the least respect, amounting to neglect; but today we'll talk bitter, the distinctive flavor attribute of the endives or chicories. Don't picture Belgian endive, though. You're not so likely to find its blanched tight heads in ...

CABBAGE
Although cabbage is available year-round, it is now in the peak of its season. This week we celebrate its mildly sweet flavor and many health-promoting benefits. Cabbage provides a "good," "very good" or "excellent" source of 14 health-protective nutrients including protein, dietary fiber, ...


OVEREATING
When I was maybe eleven or twelve it came to me as something of a revelation that one could get through 'the holidays' (that is, the November and December ones, which at that time, at least in my culture, were the only ones celebrated with food) by eating only the usual amount at meals: the ...


FIRE N ICE
Fire is neat stuff. Nowadays, we tend to worry a lot about its destructive abilities, but that's largely because we've got things we like and need - houses, for example - that fire could take away. Otherwise, it is a nearly unalloyed good, one responsible for things as apparently diverse as space heating and ...


PUMPKIN SEEDS
Pumpkin Seeds Pumpkin Seeds are among the World's Healthiest Foods.

This week we celebrate the subtly sweet and nutty flavor of pumpkin seeds. With a malleable, chewy texture, pumpkin seeds are one of the most flavorful and nutritious seeds you can add to your ...


CELERY
Celery is something we tend to associate with crudités, those platters of dismembered raw vegetables laid out around a bowl, or several bowls, of stuff with a consistency designed to adhere to the vegetable and a flavor generally designed to mask it, all with the intent of making you forget you're not actually ...


WALNUTS
Enjoy a handful of walnuts as a great snack or add them to your favorite salad or entrée for extra flavor and nutrition. Celebrate this holiday season by including walnuts as a regular part of your Healthiest Way of Eating...


SUGAR-SNAP PEAS
Sugar Snap peas are doubly paradoxical: fresh peas - a taste of late Summer - and no shelling required. The pods are fleshy, sweet and tender, so leave the peas in and 'eat the lot'...