A Desperate Need for Nature
September 30, 2009
I hope that many of you have been able to catch the new Ken Burns documentary on the U.S. National Parks (PBS, Sundays at 8:00, or check your local listings). Aside from offering incredible visuals, all in high definition, it tells the story of the birth of our country as we know it today. It’s so hard to believe that less than 150 years ago… more
Comments (3)The End of GDP: A New Economic Model Closer to Nature
September 28, 2009
I hate it when I have an idea, and then Nobel Prize-winning economists get all the credit for thinking of it first. That’s what happened last week when I read in the New York Times about Joseph E. Stiglitz and Amartya Sen (my all-time favorite economist) recommending that we do away with Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as the ultimate measure of the health of a country and its economy.
The truth is, recessions are fairly predictable. Since the founding of America, we’ve had one at… more
Comments (4)Recipe: Buttery Biscuits in a Snap!
September 25, 2009
Did you ever make something good to eat—like a nice pot of soup—and realize that you were out of bread, or even worse, out of good bread? I adapted this superbuttery drop biscuit recipe from The Joy of Cooking, and it never fails to please. The best thing about these biscuits is they are… more
Comments (6)Recipe: Ham, String Bean, and Potato Soup—a Real Dutch Treat
September 23, 2009
When I was a kid and I would go to my grandmother’s house (on my mother’s side), we only ever ate two things. If I was there for lunch by myself, she would make grilled cheese sandwiches with a dill pickle on the side, and she’d serve tea in a gold teacup. It always made me feel special.
But if we came for dinner—which we only ever did a few times—she only made one thing: Pennsylvania Dutch ham, string bean and potato soup. I’ve never seen it on a menu anywhere (even in… more
Comments (20)In Memory of My Dad, Bob Rodale
September 21, 2009
Sunday, September 20 was the 19th anniversary of my father’s death. He was killed when he was only 60 years old, in a car accident in Russia. In retrospect, almost 20 years later, the situation seems ridiculous. Russia was still the communist Soviet Union, and the people there were going hungry from the inefficient and, frankly, stupid methods being used to grow food. So my father decided to start a Russian version of Organic Gardening magazine to help people relearn how to grow… more
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