About This Blog

Several years ago I moved back to Philadelphia for a job with an architecture firm focusing on green design. Given my passion for cooking and eating fresh, local foods, so readily available in Berkeley, I was anxious that I would not have the same food access in Philadelphia. To my pleasant surprise, I need not have worried. While the emphasis on and access to local foods isn’t as pervasive as the bay area, there is definitely a burgeoning focus. Recent national media has raised awareness, including shows such as Top Chef and books like “The Omnivore’s Dilemma”, while the existence of small farm communities always been integral to this region. Lancaster County’s Amish Country may be the best known, but certainly not the only agricultural supplier. The farms in south Jersey make you understand why New Jersey is called “The Garden State”.

I may not have a natural grocery (or any grocery for that matter) within walking distance of my home, but I have been happily discovering my alternatives – local buying clubs, community gardens and friends’ edible gardens. I am also enjoying eating seasonally differently from California. Never have I ingested so many tubers!

For me, architecture and cooking are intertwined. They both involve a creative process and output relying on strong problem solving skills along the way. I love that they involve bringing people together. It is natural that my involvement with sustainable architecture parallels my interest in sustainable edible practices. Of course, having lived in Italy for a year and half in my twenties was the fertilizer needed to sprout the seed of my food passion. I came back from Italy liking fresh tomatoes and understanding that it is the quality of your ingredients that can make eating simply so delightful.

My hope for this blog sharing with you all my food related activities is that you too are encouraged to try new foods, especially at home with others. To my foodie friends in CA, there is great, fresh local food to be found everywhere. I am discovering that eating regionally is a wonderful part of what makes each place unique. To my local friends, I hope we share and inspire each other’s food habits.