Welcome, summer.

In the wake of a weekend filled with blue skies, fireworks and BBQs, please allow me to introduce our old friend, summer... Albeit a few days late. Yes folks, as you may have noticed our Fresh summer surprise has arrived in the form of the strawberry-themed artwork* you see here. Like the food we seek, Fresh content is also seasonal, and it seems only fitting that our look change with the weather.

That said, this quarterly change-up seemed like a much better idea in theory than when I cracked open blogger last week and set to work updating the design. In fact, if Fresh carried a sound, you would hear one long sigh of relief coming from this author, followed by the snap of a Yuengling being opened. Sad, I know, but HMTL tends to make me a little skittish. But between blogger's user-friendly format and a few tips from the pros and a blog-saavy friend, Fresh made it through the change-over unscathed. It's a fourth of July miracle.


With that in mind, I plan on spending the next week or two seeking out and enjoying the sweet end of the strawberry harvest. I'll want to enjoy the strawberries' flavor before it's gone, so my thought is to keep it simple with a shortcake like this one, or possibly crank up the ice cream maker for a cool treat. And you?

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*An enormous thank you again to my friend Lauren for volunteering her design services and delivering such lovely artwork... And then doing the same thing three more times. Thank you, thank you my friend.

Birthday brownies.

There are so many things to talk about. So many, in fact, that I’m not even sure where to start. In mulling this over today, I decided to do what I usually do when I’m over-thinking… I bake something. A brick of bittersweet chocolate in the pantry had been whispering my name all afternoon, and I responded with brownies. A mini-celebration and the best kind of introduction; welcome to Fresh.

{ While I am well-versed in the making and consuming of brownies, a food photographer I am not... Photo courtesy of Sunday Nite Dinner at Flickr.com }

Fresh is a place to seek news and start conversations; in most cases on issues of sustainability in our food systems, as well as our related communities and culture. Sometimes, the discussion will relate to local happenings from where I wake up most mornings, just outside of Philadelphia, PA. There is a lot to talk about in this area as we struggle to reconcile our claim to the highest cheese-wiz consumption in the States, and our abundant resources for sustainably raised local food. Many people here are working hard to connect these resources to a market and to our communities, and we’ll talk more about that.

Other times Fresh will share what people in different cities and communities are doing to create a sustainable local food economy. We’ll explore what’s working and what isn’t in an effort to find common ground and make progress.

We’ll also look at the bigger picture by collecting and linking to Fresh information about the people and policies that shape our food system on a local, national and international level.

And we’ll explore the reasons that we all do what we do. Is eating local organic food really better for our health? For our environment? Is it economically viable, accessible and affordable for everyone? I want to talk about these things. I want to share what I’m learning, and hear what you know.

When we’re all tired of thinking big, we can talk about what we’ve been reading and what tunes we’ve been listening to while making dinner. I’ll bring a few of my friends over to share their favorite recipes. I happen to know quite a few people who can really cook, and sometimes they share with me in exchange for some sort of decadent chocolate dessert, the thing I can always be counted on for. That, and shrimp quesadillas… But we’ll talk more about those later.

So, welcome. I hope you’ll stop by often as Fresh gets off the ground. For the record, I recommend bringing something to munch on or a cup of coffee when you come back, maybe even a brownie… We have a lot to talk about.

{ Photo courtesy of Karina's Kitchen }

Because we are what we eat.

Fresh seeks to be mindful of the world around us. We do this by looking for signs of life in our food systems and sharing information about the places, people and policies that shape what we eat. Think of it as an open kitchen with a big table… A place for conversation while preparing and sharing a meal with friends.

If you are interested in contributing to Fresh, please email me at CBKing711 {at} gmail {dot} com.

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A word about the artwork. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my friend Lauren Mummé, who not only reminded me that I should start a blog, but then offered to design the art for it. I accepted her offer and then, not wanting her to be without anything to do in her third trimester of pregnancy, I asked her to do three more variations so that the Fresh look could change with the seasons. Her designs went totally above my expectations as usual, and I'm very excited to share them with you all. 

And on the subject of thanks, I would also like to send a big "gracias" out to the lovely Brooke Forry, who continues to advise me in the world of Blogger. And to Ellie Moore of Rainy Day Templates, for her patience and expertise in building the template you see here.