Spring 2013
AVOCADO HOMELANDS
BY JILLIAN STEINBERGER Crisantos Lopez works at East Bay Wilds, a native plant nursery in Oakland’s Fruitvale district, and he lives nearby with his wife and two sons, and a daughter. His family owns a rancho in the town of Ario de Rosales in the state of Michoacán, Mexico. There they have six horses, 20…
Read MoreAVOCADO GROWING GUIDE
BASIC INFORMATION YOU SHOULD KNOW BY JILLIAN STEINBERGER There are three landraces of avocados. The Guatemalan types have the highest oil content and thick, pebbly skin. Their fruit may sit on the tree for up to a year and a half before maturation. The Mexican types are the most cold tolerant. They have thin skin,…
Read MoreSYNERGY, SHARING AND RESCUES
By Jillian Steinberger SYNERGY, AVOCADOS AND THREE LADY LANDSCAPERS When Heather Brady DeQuincy moved to San Leandro, she discovered two huge fruitful avocado trees growing around the corner at different houses. She took the writer of this article to see the trees. When they knocked at one of the doors to ask about the trees,…
Read MoreWHAT’S IN SEASON
BY BARBARA KOBSAR ILLUSTRATION BY MARGO RIVERA-WEISS When you’re at the farmers’ market, it’s all about what’s in season. Choosing from items harvested at their peak is your sure bet for fabulous flavor and freshness. FEBRUARY/MARCH Spinach and Swiss chard continue to enjoy the cooler weather. When bunches of small garnet-red round beets arrive with…
Read MoreCHRISTOPHER SHEIN ON AGRICULTURE
PERMANENT AGRICULTURE – PERMANENT CULTURE REVIEW BY HELEN KRAYENHOFF With the publication of The Vegetable Gardener’s Guide to Permaculture: Creating an Edible Ecosystem, the rest of the world will now have access to the gifts of one of our local gardening heroes, Christopher Shein. With the help of Julie Thompson, he has written an accessible…
Read MoreCOOKED
COOK. REAL FOOD. FROM SCRATCH. REVIEW BY KRISTINA SEPETYS Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation By Michael Pollan The Penguin Press, April 2013 Michael Pollan’s work has profoundly changed the way we think about our industrial food system, the behemoth that produces the foods found in conventional grocery stores and restaurants. But Pollan is not…
Read MoreA CROWD SOURCED FOOD ATLAS
MAPPING MANNA A quest of its own making BY CHERYL ANGELINA KOEHLER Darin Jensen, a cartographer and professor of geography at UC Berkeley, understands the common perception that GIS (geographical information systems) have rendered his profession irrelevant. But all signs are proving to him that it could not be further from the…
Read MoreINSPIRING GARDEN DESIGN
ABUNDANT AND BEAUTIFUL REVIEW BY CHERYL ANGELINA KOEHLER You took the “eat local” idea completely to heart, starting a food production garden in your own yard. But it didn’t quite work out as you envisioned. Instead of a lush bed of perky salad greens and grapes tumbling from a trellis, you’re now looking out on…
Read MoreA DIFFERENT WAY OF FARMING
BY MIKE MADISON ILLUSTRATIONS BY J. PANTER The Sacramento Valley is an important source of food for the East Bay, and if you travel through the valley, most of what you will see is conventional, industrial farming. Huge fields are planted to a single crop, which is managed with high inputs of fertilizers, pesticides, and…
Read MoreCOMAL + WATER2TABLE
Chef has a line on the best local, sustainable seafood BY KRISTINA SEPETYS Do you ever wonder where that fish in your fish taco came from and whether it was sustainably harvested? You won’t have to guess at Comal, the stylish restaurant on Shattuck Avenue in downtown Berkeley serving fresh, modern Mexican food and cocktails…
Read MoreSEVEN STARS OF SPRING
BY JESSICA PRENTICE Jessica Prentice, Maggie Gosselin, and Sarah Klein created the Local Foods Wheel to help us all enjoy the freshest, tastiest, and most ecologically sound food choices month by month. Here are seven of Jessica’s seasonal favorites. You can learn more about the Local Foods Wheel and the group’s other ventures at localfoodswheel.com.…
Read MoreMADE FROM SCRATCH
Commercial kitchens with a community focus BY SARAH HENRY PHOTOS BY NICKI ROSARIO Who doesn’t know someone who has hung his or her shingle out as a jammer, pickler, or baker? This local boom in small-batch food producers means demand for commercial cooking space is at a premium in the East Bay. But the people…
Read MoreLAST BITE
BAKING THE NEW OLD WAY BY RICHARD FRIEDLANDER ILLUSTRATIONS BY KENDRA CANFIELD In medieval times, there was something called a “needle’s eye”—a door within a larger wooden door, just large enough to allow a human to squeeze through after hours or in times of defense. It made a lot of sense, but it has nothing…
Read MoreEDITOR’S MIXING BOWL
In the Bay Area, spring is when Nature wears her richest green clothing, and it’s when farmers’ market shoppers know to look for curious treasures, such as green garlic, fava beans, and rhubarb. This issue feels similarly gifted by the season of fresh, new, and unique, especially so with the artwork we received for these…
Read MoreCONTENTS Spring 2013
SPRING 2013 EDITOR’S MIXING BOWL WHAT’S IN SEASON EAST BAY BOOKSHELF Michael Pollan on cooking Inspiring garden design Christopher Shein on permaculture A crowd-sourced food atlas COMAL + WATER2TABLE Chef has a line on the best local, sustainable seafood A DIFFERENT WAY OF FARMING By farmer Mike Madison SEVEN STARS OF SPRING And a pork…
Read MoreTHE EAST BAY AVOCADO
Invisible no longer STORY AND PHOTOS BY JILLIAN STEINBERGER ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARY BROWN The East Bay produces a cornucopia of tree fruits that we love to eat, such as apples, figs, and plums. But what about our beloved avocado (Persea americana)? Hearing reports of avocado trees growing quietly among us, I followed clues in search of…
Read MoreAvocado Cacao Custard
From the East Bay Avocado This avocado-based cacao-carob custard is by Chef Lisa Books-Williams, who has been sharing the joys of plant-based eating since 2005. Serves 3–4 1⅓ cups unsweetened hemp, almond, or rice milk ⅔ cup agave or coconut nectar ½ cup cacao powder ½ cup carob powder 2 teaspoons vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon cinnamon…
Read MoreCeviche with Avocado and Preserved Lemon
From the East Bay Avocado Back in 2013 when she gave us this inventive ceviche recipe, Caterina Rindi was busy turning excess backyard lemons from neighbors’ yards into preserved items, which she traded and sold at popup markets. Caterina is one of the founders of Shareable.net, an online magazine that covers the people and projects bringing…
Read MoreGuacamole with Preserved Lemon
From the East Bay Avocado Back in 2013 when she gave us this recipe, Caterina Rindi was busy turning excess produce from neighbors’ yards into preserved items, which she traded and sold at popup markets. Caterina is one of the founders of Shareable.net, an online magazine that covers the people and projects bringing a shareable world to life. …
Read MoreAvocado “Crème Fraîche”
From The East Bay Avocado by Jillian Steinberger This clever topping comes from Heather Haxo Phillips, an Iyengar yoga instructor and former owner of Raw Bay Area, through which she inspired and educated people about the power of raw food. Use this “crème fraîche” as a topping for tacos or enchiladas. She also suggests…
Read MoreHeather’s Cream of Zucchini and Avocado Soup
From the East Bay Avocado This creamy soup comes from Heather Haxo Phillips, an Iyengar yoga instructor and former owner of Raw Bay Area, through which she inspired and educated people about the power of raw food. This soup is delicious served chilled or at room temperature, but for a cold day, you can heat…
Read MoreAvocado Ranch Dressing
From the East Bay Avocado For many years, Chef Lacey Sher’s Encuentro Cafe and Wine Bar was a favorite hangout for those seeking elevated plant-based cuisine in Oakland. She used avocados to give this thick creamy stand-in for ranch dressing its body. She recommends it as a dipping sauce for asparagus or steamed artichoke leaves.…
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