Analiese Paik
Founder and Editor Fairfield Green Food Guide
Analiese is not only the original Green Food Gal and a tres chic woman, but also someone I admire and have the pleasure to collaborate with often.
She is the authority on local sustainable food and the founder and editor of the Fairfield Green Food Guide fairfieldgreenfoodguide.com,
an award-winning digital news publication that promotes and supports a lifestyle that embraces eating locally and sustainably grown food.
She is continuously inspiring, and empowering consumers and yours truly to make more responsible food choices that positively impact our health and the health of the environment –
both through her website and live events – and being part of our local food movement.
Take some time to get know her and her award-winning site at: www.fairfieldgreenfoodguide.com or follow her on twitter at @GreenFoodGal
Learn what makes Analiese not only a Green Guru but also a talent in the kitchen:
A Meal She Loves:
I make homemade pizza every Friday night instead of eating out with my family. I prepare it with the singular goal of creating fabulous flavors using proper technique (get that oven and pizza stone really, really hot) and fresh, quality ingredients. In late summer, I eagerly anticipate the arrival of heirloom tomatoes that just burst with flavor on top of fresh mozzarella, then top them with fresh basil from the garden and a drizzle extra virgin olive oil to create one of the most delicious foods of summer. When dandelion greens show up in my CSA, I blanch them before sauteing with garlic and pine nuts for a grilled pizza topping that tastes of spring. Skip the sauce and make a white pizza topped with sautéed mushroom (oh that umami!), onions, and garlic finished with a bit of sherry and thyme. I make one pound of half whole wheat dough using this recipe and let it rise on the counter before refrigerating it.
Analiese’s Cooking Tip:
I recommend finding a few dozen meals you love to cook from scratch and making them over and over again until you own them. You’ll learn to modify the recipes based on the availability of seasonal ingredients and what’s in your refrigerator or pantry. Your “keeper” recipes will become the foundation of your repertoire and will make preparing evening meals, or meals for guests, more enjoyable and rewarding and less stressful and time consuming as your expertise grows. My to go to recipe is: Analiese’s Foolproof Pot of Beans
Analiese Favorite Spot To Eat: Anything Bill Taibe.
I became an instant fan of chef/restaurateur Bill Taibe when I took the first bite of my dinner entree at leFarm shortly after it opened in 2010. You could count the number of restaurants sourcing from local farms on one hand back then, making him a true pioneer. He’s brilliant, creative, and restless so it’s no surprise that leFarm’s success was followed by the launch of two more wildly successful restaurants – The Whelk and Kawa Ni. . http://lefarmwestport.com/, http://thewhelkwestport.com/, http://kawaniwestport.com/
A Cooking Utensil She Cannot Live Without
An Immersion Blender.
I hate blenders. There I said it. Mine is gone.
I’m much too impatient a cook to let a soup cool before ladling it in batches into the blender. And why do batches when I can put an immersion blender right into the pot and blend until the desired consistency is reached? It’s one of the most useful and oft-used pieces of cooking equipment in my kitchen and is so easy to store and clean. I find it indispensable for making smoothies, wet pastes for marinades, soups, and sauces. I have a Braun (German), but they stopped distributing appliances in the US in 2008. The next generation of immersion blenders are cordless, a brilliant product upgrade that gives you and your children new freedoms in the kitchen.
I totally agree with Analiese and I use:
2 Speed Immersion Blender Cuisinart Stick
Analiese’s Number One Place to Shop for Food: The Westport Farmers Market
The Westport Farmers’ Market is one of my favorite places to shop for local food because it offers great quality and selection. Artisan breads and pasta, organically raised beef and pork, farmstead cow and goat’s milk cheeses, and organic vegetables are always on my list. I’m on the lookout for seasonal specialties that sell out fast like asparagus and organic strawberries in the spring and summer and field grown spinach in the winter. http://westportfarmersmarket.com/
I make homemade pizza every Friday night instead of eating out with my family. I prepare it with the singular goal of creating fabulous flavors using proper technique (get that oven and pizza stone really, really hot) and fresh, quality ingredients. In late summer, I eagerly anticipate the arrival of heirloom tomatoes that just burst with flavor on top of fresh mozzarella, then top them with fresh basil from the garden and a drizzle extra virgin olive oil to create one of the most delicious foods of summer. When dandelion greens show up in my CSA, I blanch them before sauteing with garlic and pine nuts for a grilled pizza topping that tastes of spring. Skip the sauce and make a white pizza topped with sautéed mushroom (oh that umami!), onions, and garlic finished with a bit of sherry and thyme. I make one pound of half whole wheat dough using this recipe and let it rise on the counter before refrigerating it.
I recommend finding a few dozen meals you love to cook from scratch and making them over and over again until you own them. You’ll learn to modify the recipes based on the availability of seasonal ingredients and what’s in your refrigerator or pantry. Your “keeper” recipes will become the foundation of your repertoire and will make preparing evening meals, or meals for guests, more enjoyable and rewarding and less stressful and time consuming as your expertise grows. My to go to recipe is: Analiese’s Foolproof Pot of Beans
Analiese Favorite Spot To Eat: Anything Bill Taibe.
I became an instant fan of chef/restaurateur Bill Taibe when I took the first bite of my dinner entree at leFarm shortly after it opened in 2010. You could count the number of restaurants sourcing from local farms on one hand back then, making him a true pioneer. He’s brilliant, creative, and restless so it’s no surprise that leFarm’s success was followed by the launch of two more wildly successful restaurants – The Whelk and Kawa Ni. . http://lefarmwestport.com/, http://thewhelkwestport.com/, http://kawaniwestport.com/
A Cooking Utensil She Cannot Live Without
An Immersion Blender.
I hate blenders. There I said it. Mine is gone.
I’m much too impatient a cook to let a soup cool before ladling it in batches into the blender. And why do batches when I can put an immersion blender right into the pot and blend until the desired consistency is reached? It’s one of the most useful and oft-used pieces of cooking equipment in my kitchen and is so easy to store and clean. I find it indispensable for making smoothies, wet pastes for marinades, soups, and sauces. I have a Braun (German), but they stopped distributing appliances in the US in 2008. The next generation of immersion blenders are cordless, a brilliant product upgrade that gives you and your children new freedoms in the kitchen.
I totally agree with Analiese and I use:
2 Speed Immersion Blender Cuisinart Stick
Analiese’s Number One Place to Shop for Food: The Westport Farmers Market
The Westport Farmers’ Market is one of my favorite places to shop for local food because it offers great quality and selection. Artisan breads and pasta, organically raised beef and pork, farmstead cow and goat’s milk cheeses, and organic vegetables are always on my list. I’m on the lookout for seasonal specialties that sell out fast like asparagus and organic strawberries in the spring and summer and field grown spinach in the winter. http://westportfarmersmarket.com/
I became an instant fan of chef/restaurateur Bill Taibe when I took the first bite of my dinner entree at leFarm shortly after it opened in 2010. You could count the number of restaurants sourcing from local farms on one hand back then, making him a true pioneer. He’s brilliant, creative, and restless so it’s no surprise that leFarm’s success was followed by the launch of two more wildly successful restaurants – The Whelk and Kawa Ni. . http://lefarmwestport.com/, http://thewhelkwestport.com/, http://kawaniwestport.com/
An Immersion Blender.
I hate blenders. There I said it. Mine is gone.
I’m much too impatient a cook to let a soup cool before ladling it in batches into the blender. And why do batches when I can put an immersion blender right into the pot and blend until the desired consistency is reached? It’s one of the most useful and oft-used pieces of cooking equipment in my kitchen and is so easy to store and clean. I find it indispensable for making smoothies, wet pastes for marinades, soups, and sauces. I have a Braun (German), but they stopped distributing appliances in the US in 2008. The next generation of immersion blenders are cordless, a brilliant product upgrade that gives you and your children new freedoms in the kitchen.
I totally agree with Analiese and I use:
2 Speed Immersion Blender Cuisinart Stick
Analiese’s Number One Place to Shop for Food: The Westport Farmers Market
The Westport Farmers’ Market is one of my favorite places to shop for local food because it offers great quality and selection. Artisan breads and pasta, organically raised beef and pork, farmstead cow and goat’s milk cheeses, and organic vegetables are always on my list. I’m on the lookout for seasonal specialties that sell out fast like asparagus and organic strawberries in the spring and summer and field grown spinach in the winter. http://westportfarmersmarket.com/
The Westport Farmers’ Market is one of my favorite places to shop for local food because it offers great quality and selection. Artisan breads and pasta, organically raised beef and pork, farmstead cow and goat’s milk cheeses, and organic vegetables are always on my list. I’m on the lookout for seasonal specialties that sell out fast like asparagus and organic strawberries in the spring and summer and field grown spinach in the winter. http://westportfarmersmarket.com/
