Wednesday, December 10, 2025

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

Farm and Table

Haven Café and Bakery in Lenox never disappoints, a restaurant review

Haven is one of my favorite places to eat breakfast in the Berkshires.

BOB LUHMANN: In praise of mussels

Bob's pasta with mussels, cannellini beans, and cherry tomatoes is tasty, healthy, and nutrient rich, and only takes 30 minutes from start to finish.

NATURE’S TURN: Climbers and runners

As summer turns to autumn, gardeners reach up high to grasp and pluck trellised climbers.

BOB LUHMANN: Mom’s cooking, evolved

Using what's in season right now (corn, peaches, and basil), our chef updates one of his mother's comfort dishes.

Cockles and mussels, oh my!

Bob Luhmann returns from County Donegal with tales of Molly Malone, craic, Killybegs, fresh fish, and the lack thereof.

NATURE’S TURN: Destructive, invasive jumping worms

"Jumping worms consume and degrade soil, which threatens the future of gardens, forests, and lawns." Here's how to identify and get rid of them.

On the path to cheesy Irish wheaten bread

"Was I strolling? Strolling is a little too refined for a Clydesdale like me as I clump along the path. I think of strolling as what people do who don’t sweat."

NATURE’S TURN: Inspiration and whimsy at Berkshire Botanical Garden

"Saunter with me from one artfully conceived and carefully maintained landscape feature to another on the rambling campus of this Stockbridge site."

RECIPE: As un-American as apple pie

"For the 4th of July, I needed a recipe that screamed A-M-E-R-I-C-A. I was feverishly searching for the edible version of Uncle Sam, for crying out loud!

NATURE’S TURN: Yard, garden, and table

Gardeners and those who would be gardeners are keenly attuned to the tension between inviting wild plants and animals into the garden and fencing them out.

Berkshire Grown: Buy your dairy in the Berkshires

The dairy industry was once the backbone of agriculture in New England, but falling milk prices, changing consumer preferences, and real estate development pressure have changed the outlook.

Skip the tie; dad wants a rib-eye

There’s a certain kind of bravado that goes along with a 2.5-lb. bone-in steak. I am going to guide you through the process of making dad a meal he won’t soon forget.

NATURE’S TURN: The spontaneous garden

Many biennial and perennial plants in my gardens are returning with exceptional vigor this spring. Most beautiful of all, a wild wetland landscape has spontaneously evolved along the edges.

Annals of BBQ: Of swank and swagger

A winning recipe from the days when I used to barbecue for a living. It was the slaw that made the difference.

Flower farms: “Buy local” for flowers, too

Flower farming can help preserve farmland, protect biodiversity, and provide meaningful work in the same way food farming can.

Bob Luhmann’s ramp butter recipe

In his latest column, the Chef talks ramps — where to find them and how to sustainably harvest them — and shares an easy ramp butter recipe that can be used with many dishes.

Hummingbirds return to the Berkshires … after long journey from Tasmania

Being a popular day for all manner of spring arrivals, the first of May brought new bird visitors to the Berkshire Hills, exactly on schedule ... but not from Tasmania.