On Mayonnaise & Sidekicks

By AnnMarie MacKinnon

I have a friend whose affection for mayonnaise borders on the obsessive. For her, there is almost no food (with the notable exception of granola) that cannot be, as she puts it, “rich-i-fied” by the addition of a sizeable dollop. It goes on absolutely everything—potatoes, meat, fish, pasta, eggs. I have, at varying times, found it curious, quirky, peculiar, disgusting, and downright repellent.

By Debbra Mikaelsen

If you dislike tomatoes and never eat them, don’t bother reading any further. But if you do eat tomatoes, I strongly encourage you to plant some this year. Even just one plant, in a large pot, if that’s all you have space for.

By Michelle Gourley • Photos by Jordan Maynard

“This place was a jungle.” Jordan Maynard is standing in the middle of a rediscovered orchard, his muddied boots carefully angled away from one of the countless emerging clusters of King Alfred daffodils. “We came in here with a scythe and machetes and started hacking our way into the property,” he says with a soft laugh.

By Debbra Mikaelsen

Gewürztraminer. Yes, it’s a lot to get your tongue around, but I’m not trying to torture you. The phonetic spelling of it looks even worse than the word itself: [ɡəˈvʏɐtstʁaˈmiːnɐ].

It’s pronounced Geh-vurtz-tra-mean-er. But if you’re in a hurry, or dying of thirst, just say Gevurtz. It’ll do the job.

Plant a Forest Food garden

By Erin Innes

Early spring has often been known as the “hungry time” among gardeners, the gap between fall and spring production, when some of us start to think that if we eat kale one more time we’re going to scream. Even the most intrepid local foodies among us start giving in to the temptation of fresh spring veggies from far away… Argentinian asparagus, anyone?