Spring 2017 Issue

By Nancy Painter | Last Updated March 01, 2017
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edible jersey spring 2017 cover

LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER

AT THE TABLE: KITCHEN CONVERSATIONS

I’ve always been fascinated by kitchens. Throughout my career, from one job to another, I have often found myself meeting, interviewing and photographing people in their home kitchens. From renowned designers to government officials to corporate presidents to new moms to celebrity chefs, each one has seemed, somehow, more themselves—more at home—in the kitchen.

Visiting with friends or family, I usually find myself in that same room, comfortably perched on a high stool or at a worn table. My fondest childhood memories are usually set against the backdrop of a kitchen; I can still so easily see my son—who turns 21 years old this month— sitting in his high chair or playing on the kitchen floor during his toddler years. The few times I ever “designed” a house, I most enjoyed planning the kitchen.

After all, who can resist a room filled with enticing aromas, the meditative focus of meal prep or a hot cup of coffee and The New York Times on a Sunday morning? Others can take the living room or electronics-filled den.

I’m perfectly fine with my kitchen, thank you very much. In preparing this issue, we’ve had some fun talking kitchens. Our Edible Jersey team shares their favorite kitchen and cooking items on page 14, and we launch a new “In the Kitchen” feature on page 22. As writer Jenn Hall sits down with entrepreneur Neilly Robinson of Heirloom Kitchen in her home kitchen to talk food and inspiration, she spots a favorite painting of a Campbell Soup can hanging on the wall. Neilly’s art inspired me to share my own favorite kitchen art on this page. A framed print cut from a long ago magazine, it’s a copy of a 1925 Maxfield Parrish “Knave of Hearts” illustration showing two intent-looking cooks with giant spoons. I’m not sure why, but I love it. It has hung in that spot for years and I never tire of seeing it. If there was ever a major fire in my kitchen, it’s the one thing I would grab (along with my husband) before dashing out the door.

Our spring issue bursts with the promise of the season as well as kitchen talk. We offer up tips to help your garden grow (page 44), share some favorite CSAs (page 42) and culinary schools (page 28) and talk to Dennis Foy about his love of art and passion for food (page 38). We meet the tastemaker who influences the color on our walls and the flavors on our plates (page 50). Most importantly, we celebrate our local food heroes (page 31). With this issue, as always, I believe that every story, every word, binds us to that room where—through cooking, sharing and simply being together—we fortify ourselves in more ways than we can imagine. Enjoy spring, and your kitchen, this season.

-Nancy Brannigan Painter, Publisher

P.S. I’d love to see a photo of your favorite kitchen item. Please email photos to us at info@ediblejersey.com so we can continue the kitchen conversation.

Global Grace Café Offers Variety of Cuisine

The Global Banquet Cookbook
Befitting a congregation of 44 nationalities and counting, the Reformed Church of Highland Park is home to the Global Grace Café. Spanning foodways during weekday lunch—Syrian or Indian dishes...

Tea by the Sea at The Harrison Inn

The Harrison
The Harrison Inn, a B&B located in Cape May, boasts 16 bedrooms and serves a rotating hot breakfast menu, as well as afternoon tea. The newest venture will include an afternoon British tea that will...

Chia Star Offers Chia-Based Drinks

chia star
With the rise of Chia Star, wellness entrepreneur Sara Erb intends to popularize her line of chia-based drinks that merge fruit flavors like blackberry lime or peach green tea with chia-based...

Staff Favorite Kitchen Tools

staff favorite tools
Here at Edible Jersey, the staff all has recipes up their sleeves, and they certainly know a thing or two about cooking tools. Here are four of their favorite kitchen essentials and why they love them...

Kefir Offers More than Just a Healthy Dose of Probiotics

kefir
Kefir is a fermented dairy drink. Hailed for its digestive benefits, it is typically made from cow’s milk but can also be made from goat’s milk, and there are non-dairy versions.

One Woman's Reasons for Using, Not Storing, Heirloom Dishes

heriloom dishes
One woman explains why she chooses to use "the good china," rather than let it collect with dust, with reasons from honoring her grandmother to liking the way the saucer clinks against the cup.

Story of a Dish: Duck Leg & Spätzle

duck confit
As executive chef and owner of Common Lot in Millburn, Chef Ehren Ryan focuses instead on “good food that we enjoy cooking and eating," especially on his dish of confit duck leg and spätzle.

A Gardening Activity Sheet for Kids

Gardening
Here's a gardening activity sheet for kids!

The Sweetest Pea

The Sweetest Pea
Here is an illustrated guide on fun facts about peas!

In The Kitchen with Neilly Robinson

Neilly Robinson
In Neilly Robinson’s sunlit Asbury Park kitchen, the sourdough starter is ever hungry.

2017 Local Heroes

local heros 2017
Every year, Edible Communities magazines around the country ask you, our readers, to name Local Heroes in six categories. Here in New Jersey, there is no shortage of worthy candidates for the title.

Dennis Foy's Enduring Roots

Dennis Foy
Chef Dennis Foy's point of union as a chef and an artist comes in an enduring drive to create, to explore the range of the senses.

How Does a Garden Grow at Princeton Day School?

Princeton Day School Garden
You might say 2014 was a big year for the gardening program at Princeton Day School (PDS), and especially for Pam Flory, the garden coordinator. The school’s expansive garden, where Flory teaches...

Mikel Cirkus, the New Jersey Taste Maker

Mikel Cirkus
As global director of conceptual design in the flavors division at Firmenich, a global flavor and fragrance company headquartered in Plainsboro, Mikel Cirkus also traffics in prophecy.

15 Years of Edible Communities

Carole Topalian and Tracey Ryder
As Edible Communities celebrates its 15 anniversary, Marion Nestle looks back on the organization’s impact on the local food movement – and where we need to go from here.

DIY Chia Drink

chia drinks
With the rise of Chia Star, wellness entrepreneur Sara Erb intends to popularize her line of chia-based drinks that merge fruit flavors like blackberry lime or peach green tea with chia...

Najla's Fatoosh

The Global Banquet Cookbook
Fattosh, which is a Middle-Eastern salad, can easily be made at home with just a few ingredients.

Confit Duck Leg, Spätzle, Hazelnuts and Cured Egg Yolk

duck confit
This duck confit can be served in appetizer or entree portions and is best served alongside spätzle and cured eggs.

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