Some go for the rides, we go for the food. Here are the old-school classics and new faves to sample this year.
Debbie Matthews
Posted inFood & Drink
A Late-Summer Farmers Market Haul Includes Gems Such as Heirloom Italian Wax Beans and Maypops
Over the last several months, I’ve visited a different Triangle afternoon farmers market in an effort to both satisfy my yen for seasonal produce and avoid the early morning hours of traditional Saturday markets. During my April visit to the Durham Farmer’s Market, I discovered Hakurei turnips, and last month at the Raleigh State Farmers […]
Posted inFood & Drink
From the State Farmers Market, Lion’s Mane Mushrooms and Patty Pan Squash Make for Satisfying Summer Dishes
In my ongoing attempt to both buy fresh, local produce and avoid the crack of dawn, I’m visiting a second farmers market that operates in the afternoon. Last time it was the Durham Farmers Market, where I discovered Hakurei turnips; this time, I checked out the Raleigh State Farmers Market. First up, Carolina Mushroom Farm […]
Posted inFood & Drink
UNC’s Good Bowls Program Peddles Cheap, Nutritious Meals in Convenience Stores, Co-ops, and Food Deserts
Call it trickle-down misery. When funding is tight, the people further down the economic ladder are the hardest hit. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, North Carolina has the fifth-highest number of people living with food insecurity. In the Triangle, the statistics are sobering. The Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina says […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Where to Savor Our Favorites from the Got to Be NC Festival Year-Round
For one weekend each May, the N.C. State Fairgrounds becomes the happiest place on earth for fans of local food. From May 18-20, the fairgrounds were home to the annual Got to Be NC Festival, which celebrates the agricultural bounty that’s grown, caught, raised, and made in North Carolina and the imaginative, hard-working farmers, artisans, […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Hakurei Turnips Will Convert Even the Staunchest Turnip Hater
The Saturday Durham Farmers Market is a well-known local institution; it’s been held every Saturday at Durham Central Park since 1998 and boasts more than seventy vendors (each of whom must come from no further than seventy miles away) selling produce, meats, and hand-crafted products, including jams and jellies, baked goods, and hand-milled soaps. But […]
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East Durham Bake Shop’s Ali Rudel Finds Pie Waiting at Every Fork in the Road of Her Life
EAST DURHAM BAKE SHOP 406 South Driver Street, Durham 919-957-1090 www.eastdurhambakeshop.com When we got to Durham, it was like we were supposed to be here,” says Ali Rudel. She’s talking not only about her East Durham Bake Shop, which opened last month, but also about her family finding its home in the Bull City. When […]
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Not Just for Club Kids: Red Bull’s New Sodas Make for Surprisingly Good Cocktail Mixers
Partygoers, Red Bull fans, and media gathered at Whitaker & Atlantic last night to celebrate the launch of ORGANICS by Red Bull, a new line of organic sodas that made its stateside debut in the Triangle, Wilmington, and Winston-Salem, as well as San Diego. The caffeine-free sodas, all made with organic sugar and clocking in […]
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In a Classic PB&J or Glaze for a Ham, Fogwood Farm’s Balsamic Grape Hull Jam Is Compulsively Edible
As an avowed jelly junky, I know there are as many jewel-toned jars of sweetness as there are tweens at a Justin Bieber concert. There are plenty of imaginative spreads for the carb of your choosing and even more that nobody in their right mind should ever spread on anything. It can be both confusing […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Trump Wants to Roll Back Healthy Dietary Standards for School Lunches, but Some Local Schools Are Sticking With Obama’s Plan
Policy makers, the medical community, and education officials may have the best intentions and the most up-to-date nutritional information for feeding school kids, but those kids must actually want to put said food into their mouths or it’s all just a giant bureaucratic waste of money and effort. Last November, I visited Northside Elementary School […]