Letter from Hen Waller

People I bought something from at the last farmers’ market of the season, 2009

Patrick — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:03:39 +0000

Better late than never: On December 19, 2009, I made a photograph of everyone at the PSU farmers’ market from whom I bought something. Here are some of my favorites. Click on any of them to see the entire set.

Jeff from Persephone Farm. 50 lbs of storage onions, 5 lbs of white garlic, and [...]

What we talk about when we talk about green chile

Patrick — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:51:53 +0000

Fresh chiles at the Westwind Gardens stand

Growing up in the Southwest, I took green chile for granted. I didn’t even really know what it was, other than a ubiquitous, delicious, spicy stew that was served in a bowl with tortillas on the side, over eggs, over a burrito, or countless other ways. The dish [...]

Yes, we can

Patrick — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:58:40 +0000

A couple Sundays ago (Sunday, September 13, to be precise), Holly and Anastasia and I got together with some of our friends and shared the work of processing and canning 130 pounds of gorgeous tomatoes.

Last year we started the tradition of an annual Tomato ExtravaCanza so that we could all put up enough tomatoes [...]

Harvest season musings and a chile pickle

Patrick — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:47:09 +0000

Chiles pickling in the late summer sun

A lot has changed in our lives since we started this blog in 2004. For one thing, the term “urban homesteader” has become a lot more common. For another, we’re not really doing much in the way of urban homesteading, lately. At least not in the sense that we [...]

Nettle soup: The taste of spring

Patrick — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 03:10:10 +0000

I’ve recently decided that spring is my favorite season for food. There’s something so exciting and delicious about all of the greens and sprouts and shoots that arrive with the last of the rains. Everything has an earthy flavor along with a mild vegetal sweetness; a lovely balance to take us out of the deeper [...]

A Changing of the Guard

Patrick — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 05:54:04 +0000

When our egg co-op got its start in 2007, we were able to jump-start egg production by buying a flock of 10-month-old hens. They were fully in to their peak laying period, and their delicious eggs, available to the first shift of volunteers the morning after we got them, certainly made for a sense of [...]

Yummy Lentil Soup

Patrick — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 05:11:00 +0000

I’ve made this a couple of times and it totally hits the spot when you want a comforting hearty pot of lentil soup. Last night we hosted our weekly community supper at our house, so we made a big pot of this soup, a fabulous colorful crunchy salad, and spaghetti squash with sage butter and [...]

Winter Cycling: Rain Capes and Contact Lenses

Patrick — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:38:29 +0000

The challenges to winter cycling in the Northwest are primarily copious amounts of a) rain and b) darkness.

For the past fifteen years, my solution to the rain has been the usual one: a bicycle-specific “breathable/waterproof” rain jacket, and, when necessary, rain pants. In recent years, I have amassed a wardrobe consisting almost entirely of [...]

Eastside Egg is ready to roll . . . finally!

Patrick — Tue, 13 May 2008 17:23:33 +0000

It was almost a year ago that our chicken co-op, the Eastside Egg Co-operative at Zenger Farm, began its volunteer operations. A lot has happened since then, and the general consensus is that co-operatively tended chickens are a heck of a great idea. But there’s one thing that hasn’t happened, or it hadn’t until this [...]

Cascading food crisis

Holly — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 03:40:00 +0000

Organic, local, free range eggs are selling for $6 a dozen at the PDX Farmerâ€™s Market this season. One farmer had a sign up to explain the increase, noting a 40% increase in feed prices. This is a small example in a pretty privileged corner of what is promising to be just the beginning of [...]