Author Archives: rachelocal

Pepper-licious Grilled Chicken Thighs

September 20, 2012 by rachelocal

Last week after I played Peppermeister Roulette, I was left with a runny nose, a burning sensation in the back of my throat, and a rainbow of pretty peppers. Since these peppers were grown with love and care by the great Peppermeister, I wanted to find just the right recipe to do them justice. I found what I wanted over at Skinny Girls and Mayonnaise in a post called Phoenix from the Flames, a fitting title for Peppermeister’s prized peppers […]

Categories: Gardening, Recipes, Summer Recipes • Tags: barbecue, BBQ, corn, food, hot peppers, life, local, summer

An Open Apology to New Jersey

September 17, 2012 by rachelocal

Dear New Jersey, You are known for a lot of things. Mostly bad things like pollution and high property taxes. And even worse things like Jersey Shore, The Situation and Snooki. So you can imagine my very low expectations when I visited the Jersey shore this weekend. Not THAT Jersey Shore–Wildwood Crest. While I was packing for your beaches a montage of spray tans, fist pumping, and purple running board lights crashed through my head. I wondered if I should […]

Categories: Farmer's Markets, Local Farms • Tags: food, humor, Jersey Shore, local, MTV, New Jersey, travel

Let’s Play Peppermeister Roulette

September 13, 2012 by rachelocal

When playing Truth or Dare as a precocious middle schooler, I would ALWAYS take the dare. With gusto. Things haven’t changed… (Disclaimer: yes, my husband videographer filmed this vertically instead of horizontally. I’m taking applications for a new husband, any iPhone user, videographer until 8 pm (EST). A steady hand and ability to edit all content down to a more acceptable two minutes are a must.) Next week, I’ll knock your ‘stache glasses off with recipes using Peppermeister’s homegrown peppers. Peppermeister, can you […]

Categories: Random, Video • Tags: food, HOT, humor, local, music, peppers, video, vlog

Celebration and Confession Thanks to the Bad Influence of a New Friend

September 11, 2012 by rachelocal

I am in a celebratory mood. And why not? Fall is in the air; I ate a honeycrisp apple today; and yesterday I made a new blogging friend. In person. And it was glorious. Here’s our bloggy friendship story in a nutshell: Searching WordPress’ recommended blogs, I discovered a gem called Go Jules Go. I visited said blog regularly, chuckling at Jules’ antics and admiring her positive spirit and excellent speaking voice (thanks to her video blogs). Next, I read […]

Categories: Random, Restaurant • Tags: blog, blogging, cheesecake factory, food, friendship, humor, i heart jules, life

Tomato Sunshine

September 7, 2012 by rachelocal

On our way back from a few days at the beach over the long weekend, the husband and I decided to do some shopping. Due to limited time, I had a choice to make: clothes shopping at the beach outlets (Coach, Michael Kors, and J. Crew to name a few) or food shopping at produce stands. What do you think this locavore chose? Produce stands obviously! Heading toward Route 1, we stopped at Tomato Sunshine, a Garden Center and Farmers […]

Categories: Fall Recipes, Farmer's Markets, Local Stores, Recipes, Summer Recipes • Tags: food, Labor Day, life, local, Rehoboth Beach, shopping, summer, sun dried tomatoes, vegetarian

Everyone’s a Regular at 1861

August 29, 2012 by rachelocal

Walking down the steps and into the dark wood doors of 1861 Restaurant is like stepping into another time and place. The walls are brick and decorated finely with wood and stone accents, classic light fixtures, and posh bar seating. I half expected to see Ernest Hemingway, bottle of gin in hand, sitting in a cozy circular booth and flirting with a dressed-to-kill Ava Gardner. It’s hard to believe 1861 is located in Middletown, DE, only a few miles from […]

Categories: Delaware Farms, Local Farms, Restaurant • Tags: 1861 Restaurant, Ernest Hemingway, farmer's market, food, life, local, restaurant review

Is It Fall Yet?

August 26, 2012 by rachelocal

A strange thing happened this morning: I woke up and my nose was cold. Rather than casting off too-warm blankets in the night, I felt cozy in my nest of covers. This is a welcome change, because with still about a month left until the official end of summer, I’m longing for fall. I’m longing for fall so much that I spent the day pretending it’s already here. I stayed inside wearing flannel pajama pants and making a huge pot of […]

Categories: Local Farms, Local Stores • Tags: apples, autumn, fall, food, football, life, local, Tom Brady

A Deep, Dark Secret

August 21, 2012 by rachelocal

Anne has a secret. I’ve known Anne for a long time. We go to the same church, but we never really KNEW each other. It wasn’t until I started this blog that we began having longer and longer conversations. Anne has always supported the blog. Whenever a post hits Facebook, she’s one of the first to “like” it or leave a comment. At church, she’s always giving me magazine clippings related to food or coupons to a restaurant I mentioned […]

Categories: Documentaries, Local Stores • Tags: change, Christianity, food, health, inspiration, life, vegan, vegetarian

More Grocery Store Redemption

August 18, 2012 by rachelocal

While having a cup of coffee and reading the paper this morning (I’m officially my parents) I noticed an ad in the Shop Rite circular. “Grown Fresh. Grown Locally. Grown for Shop Rite.” Another area grocery store has redeemed itself! Local produce and a great price! Thank you, Shop Rite! Now I think I need to head down to my neighborhood Safeway and find out why they don’t offer (or at least advertise) more local options.

Categories: Local Farms, Local Stores • Tags: food, grocery store, life, local, produce

Guilt-Free Tomato, Basil, and Red Onion Summer Salad

August 17, 2012 by rachelocal

I feel guilty about something. I’m not even sure why I feel guilty about this particular thing. I didn’t commit a crime, like a hit and run or insurance fraud. In fact, I hurt nothing and no one. I should NOT feel guilty at all. But such is my nature: riddled with guilt and regret. It all started when I picked up my CSA farm share this afternoon. I already felt guilty about that because I was SUPPOSED to pick […]

Categories: Delaware Farms, Local Farms, Recipes, Summer Recipes • Tags: farmer's market, food, gardening, life, local, salad, summer, vegetarian

Grocery Store Redemption

August 16, 2012 by rachelocal

This morning I ran to the bank, which happens to be in a grocery store called Acme. After I did my banking, I headed over to the produce department to see if I could find something local. I did! After all my complaining the other day about no local produce at MY grocery store, I felt like this one redeemed all supermarkets for me. At least for today. If you are a Delawarean living off Route 40 in Bear, head over […]

Categories: Local Farms, Local Stores • Tags: food, grocery store, local, shopping, slow food, summer

Rachel’s Table Meets Talula’s Table

August 14, 2012 by rachelocal

If you’ve never been to downtown Kennett Square, PA, you should go. Not just for the quaint shops and great bookstores, but for the food. One eatery is called Talula’s Table, a gourmet market and all purpose breakfast, lunch, and dinner spot. They offer everything from local cheeses (like Doe Run Dairy’s Hummingbird cheese, which you can find at the Newark Co-Op Farmers Market on Sundays) to pre-made salads and sandwiches to house baked tarts made with local berries. Not […]

Categories: Local Stores, Restaurant • Tags: food, Kennett Square, local, organic, PA, slow food, talula's table, travel

What Will We Do With It?

August 11, 2012 by rachelocal

I planned to write a post dedicated to a fabulous lunch I had while attending a conference for work. I hunkered down in my conference seat to upload photos of said lunch, preparing to post from my phone (nothing could be more important than the blog, of course). But then… The video screen up front showed a girl with dark hair and darker eyes. She’s from South America, living in a rural, wooded area between the tree canopies and earth. […]

Categories: Random • Tags: aids orphans in africa, charity, Christianity, compassion international, global leadership summit, love

I’m-Disgusted-with-the-Grocery-Store Sweet Corn and Bacon Pasta

August 8, 2012 by rachelocal

I wrote a guest post debuting today on Childhood Relived. I waxed nostalgic about the snack foods of my youth, most of them processed and full of high fructose corn syrup. (Make sure to check it out for nostalgic stories and embarrassing photos.) Reminiscing about these foods made me thankful for a mom that cooked healthy meals, so at least I was forced to make good food choices at home. The 1987 to 1994 versions of myself would choose a […]

Categories: Recipes, Summer Recipes • Tags: bacon, corn, food, life, local, slow food, summer

Corn on the Cone

August 5, 2012 by rachelocal

We’ve had some hot days in Delaware lately. Hot as in 101 degrees with humidity. When it’s that hot, there’s nothing more I want to do than sit inside my air-conditioned house. Unless, of course, I’m invited out for ice cream. Last week it was a family affair when my mom, my dad, my nephew Ethan, the husband and I headed to UDairy Creamery on University of Delaware’s campus. The College of Agriculture and Natural Resources dairy farm provides the milk […]

Categories: Local Farms, Local Stores, Restaurant • Tags: dairy farm, food, ice cream, life, local, summer, University of Delaware