David La Spina for The New York TimesLast night, I was working my way through Sunday’s New York Times Magazine when I came across this piece—a food feature that is part essay, part reporting, and all kinds of lovely. The story starts with Larry Brown, the beloved Oxford, MS, writer. He died in 2004, and

Earlier this month we told you about Grid cover girl Sarah Van Aken's upcoming fashion show in Love Park. This past Saturday the event was a go, complete with a Grid magazine table chock full of past and present issues. Despite the humid temperature (it was a balmy 83 degrees even at 5 p.m.) the

A Greensaw kitchen in GlensideBrendan Jones of Greensaw Design and Build recently penned a response to this New York Times op-ed on the limitations of LEED certification. As usual, Jones makes a convincing case for reused and reclaimed materials: As it stands now, LEED awards one point – as much as you would get for

Tim Mountz's homebred Black Ruffle betrays its future awesomenessTo avoid overusing—and therefore devaluing—the word "obsessed," I'll just say that I am endlessly fascinated by the the baby tomatoes maturing steadily in my plot at Bouvier Community Garden.
Whenever I go to water, trim or nab some herbs I inevitably spend many minutes just staring at them,

Just this year, the University of Pennsylvania established the Penn Garden, an on-campus community garden. The first workday at the garden was June 15, and now that we’re entering July, herbs and veggies are popping up. According to the garden’s website, arugula, basil, mustard greens, radishes, peppers, tomatoes and eggplants are all growing in the

A perfect popover partnerIn my life, I have had a few food obsessions. Sometimes they are things I was exposed to early in life that imprinted themselves on my subconscious (my dad's cinnamon roasted chicken, Donnelly's tuna salad (RIP), peanut butter swirl ice cream, merguez sausage), and some have come in recent years, as my

It's Friday afternoon and we know what you need: Baby turtles! Lots of em!
I spent yesterday morning at The Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor, watching juvenile diamondback terrapins be released into the coastal marshes near 7 Mile Island.
When nesting female turtles get crushed on the road, good samaritans bring them in, and the Institute harvests the eggs, incubates

Last week we blogged about a Neighborhood Bike Works (NBW) bike sale. If you missed it, no worries. Yesterday, NBW posted on their blog that they will be having a bike sale every week during the months of June and July. Bikes start at $30. Bike sales will be held every Friday during June and

Cheese from Birchrun HillsNext weekend, the White Dog Cafe and Fair Food are coming together for a can’t miss afternoon dubbed “Dining al Fresco at the Farm.” Lucky locavores will learn what it takes to raise quality honeybee colonies at Trey Flemming’s Two Gander Farm and Apiary. They will then enjoy a unique dining experience

The Department of Homeland Security has identified 5,333 “high risk” chemical plants in the U.S. and 247 of them are in Pennsylvania. Each plant puts 10,000 to 100,000 people at risk of deadly chemical accidents and terrorist attacks. Tomorrow, Greenpeace volunteers will be stationed outside of Market East train station, encouraging the public to call