Eating From the Ground Up

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The Homemade Kitchen

Praise! Ordering information! Event schedule! Errata! It’s all here on this page. 


Front cover The Homemade Kitchen

One of  Epicurious’ Best Cookbooks of 2015!

Recommended by The Washington Post!

Get your copy from from

Amazon  |B&N  |Powell’s 

ERRATA:

Turn to page 140- Minestrone. There is a sentence that somehow disappeared between the advance copy and the final book. Between the 1st and 2nd instructions, there should be another sentence! So after “Start with the aromatics,” but before the next addition, write in this sentence:

Now add the liquid–about a quart of water, stock, or whey. Bring it to a low boil, then reduce to a simmer. If you have a Parmesan rind or prosciutto end, add it now.

And come see me! Here’s a list of events in the coming months:

October 9 Book Signing, Healthy Living Market, Saratoga Springs, NY, Free! But sign up here

October 10 Book Signing, Berkshire Botanical Gardens Harvest Festival, Stockbridge, MA 3:00

October 11 From Scratch Club Food Swap, Troy, NY: Food Writing Class, 1:00, sign up here, Food swap and book signing, sign up here

October 13 “What we talk about when we talk about food” panel with Katie Workman, Shauna Ahern, and Jenny Rosenstrach, 92nd St. Y, New York Tx are here

October 17 Berkshire Fermentation Festival, Great Barrington Fair Grounds, Signing 2:00

October 18, 3:30 Book Launch Party, Six Depot Cafe, West Stockbridge, MA

October 22 Preserved Lemon Demo and Book Signing, Hazel and Dewey, Denver, CO

October 25 Talk and Book Signing, Barbara Jo’s Books to Cooks, Vancouver, BC. Canada

October 27 Cooking Class and Lunch, Hot Stove Society, Seattle, WA 11:30. Tx are here.

October 27 In conversation with Tara Austen Weaver and book signing, Book Larder, Seattle, WA

October 29 7:00 Cheesemaking Demo and Booksigning, Rakestraw Books, Danville, CA

October 30 12:30, A Conversation with Mollie Katzen, Book Passage, Ferry Building, San Francisco, CA

October 30 6:30 Cooking Class and Fall Dinner at Draegers, San Mateo, CA tx are here

October 31, Potluck brunch with Cheryl Sternman Rule, San Jose (free but ticketed, sign up here)

October 31 3:00, talk and signing at Omnivore Books, San Francisco, CA

November 1, talk and signing at Powell’s Books, Portland, OR

November 3, Class and signing at Cooks of Crocus Hill, St. Paul, MN

November 8, Lean In Event, Shaker Dam Coffee House, West Stockbridge, MA 3:00

November 14, 3:00 Pie Demo, signing, and party at Home Chef, Hillsdale, NY tx are here
November 18, 12:00 Xhibition Kitchen, Northeastern University, Boston, MA

November 18, 7:00 Talk and Signing, Mass Horticulture, Wellesley, MA tx are here (POSTPONED)

November 21, 3:00-5:00 Signing and holiday coping session (with treats!), Dory and Ginger, Pittsfield, MA

December 12, Signing, One Mercantile, Great Barrington, MA

December 19, Signing and Spoon Butter Demo, 10:00 Eat Boutique Holiday Market, Boston, MA

December 19, Signing and sampling, 2:00 Farm and Fable, Boston, MA

January 16, Class and Signing 11:30, Stonewall Kitchen, York, ME (signup required)

January 20, Talk, Potluck Dinner and signing, Monterey Church, Monterey, MA

January 30, Lemon Curd Demonstration and Signing, Berkshire Atheneum, Pittsfield, MA

March 19, Seedy Saturday, Keynote Speaker, Copake, NY

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Praise for The Homemade Kitchen:

From Publishers Weekly:
Paging through Chernila’s comforting and satisfying book feels like having a cup of tea with a good friend. Equal parts narrative and recipes, her offering is as much a philosophy of life as it is a collection of dishes. She puts the reader at ease from the beginning with her brand of doable domesticity: “Homemade food is the opposite of perfection. It holds the stamp of its maker.” Chapters are organized according to a collection of phrases she has taped to her fridge. “Be a Beginner” encourages readers to try anything once, even jam-making, with a versatile master recipe that adapts to any seasonal fruit. A chapter called “Use Your Scraps” proves the endless virtue of stale bread with recipes for stuffed tomatoes, panzanella, and broccoli rabe and sausage bread pudding. “Slow Down” emphasizes the importance of finding a pocket of time each day for yourself, with recipes for cold-brew concentrate and a rhubarb snacking cake. Although Chernila strives to eat local, sustainably sourced food when she can, in a chapter entitled “Do Your Best, and Then Let Go,” she acknowledges how her family really eats: “Organicish. Locenough. Homemade when I can. Fresh. Good. Mine.” This honest and beautifully told account of one family’s way of life will inspire readers to forge an equally delicious path.

From Library Journal ★ 08/01/2015:
Massachusetts-based writer Chernila (The Homemade Pantry) approaches home cooking with a can-do attitude, and under her tutelage, tasks such as baking bread, making tofu, culturing kefir, and rolling sushi become approachable and entertaining. Her latest includes a balance of recipes for seasonal pantry staples and meals, which readers can use to prepare minimally processed foods every day of the week. Even though they’re simple, these dishes are special. Queen garlic with chèvre and tomatoes, spicy pumpkin hot chocolate, platter salads, and easy coq au vin with buttermilk spaetzle are just a few of many recipes you’ll reach for when you want to impress. VERDICT Never preachy or prescriptive, Chernila’s most recent offering is sure to please anyone who loves unfussy, from-scratch cooking.

 “Alana Chernila has crafted a truly contemporary guidebook to the food she loves, written from the refreshingly authentic perspective of a voracious learner. If any book will make you want to rearrange your schedule to get cooking from scratch again, the Homemade Kitchen is the one.”

Hugh Acheson, author of The Broad Fork and A New Turn in the South

“Nobody does a better job at merging the romance and the realities of everyday cooking than Alana Chernila. To leaf through the gorgeous recipes in her book is to be reminded that preparing good, simple food for the people you love is what it’s all about.”

 Jenny Rosenstrach, blogger and author of Dinner a Love Story

There is a tender-hearted quality to everything about Alana, extending to her beautiful sense of what a cookbook should be.  She nails it with this one – it is so compelling! As soon as you look at these pages, you’ll want to dive into the recipes, and everything culinary will feel fresh and new. You’ll also feel you have a wise and passionate new friend to guide you through.

Mollie Katzen, author of Moosewood Cookbook and The Heart of the Plate

 Alana’s way with everything makes the kitchen seem more welcoming, and the world a more hopeful place. This is more than a cookbook — it’s a treasure.

Cheryl Sternman Rule, blogger and author of Yogurt Culture and Ripe

 


Welcome!

I’m Alana, and I write about food, family and the wonderful chaos that ensues when the two combine. If you’re new to the site, here are a few good places to start, or learn more about me on my about page.

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The Homemade Pantry, The Homemade Kitchen, Eating From The Ground Up 🍳

Instagram post 2337331591407595410_13442450 Sending off my taxes today with intention and prayer that they will be used to support programs for the most vulnerable, and that my little contribution will join with others to help move us towards the country I know we can be. #taxmagic ✨
Instagram post 2335726864949371764_13442450 Goodies en route to @north_plain_farm today for pickup! Word about town is that LOTS of moolah was raised for BRIDGE in this little #bakersagainstracism bake sale. Thanks to North Plain Farm and @raisinporpoise for the organizing, to everyone who bought and bid, and most of all to BRIDGE for the essential work they do. (Want to learn more about BRIDGE? Head to the link in my profile.)
Instagram post 2332756427273440195_13442450 So technically you’re not supposed to send food when trying to find an agent, but I did it it. 10 years ago, my granola helped seal that deal, and he insisted I send it to publishers when we were selling The Homemade Pantry (another general publishing no no) That Landed-a woman-with-no-platform-a-book deal Granola is up for grabs in this amazing bake sale, as well as goodies by some of my very favorite bakers (@madeinghent , @raisinporpoise , and @thedooryard to name a few). Oh and maybe my favorite item in there are the magical @susanspungen ginger chocolate cookies I mentioned a few weeks back, made by Sadie herself. All of this is to support the work of @multiculturalbridge , and the order form is up in my bio. Get to it! #bakersagainstracism
Instagram post 2330317921708403058_13442450 My friend @afgoldfarb has been part of a team of people working on this vital project. The link to learn more and help out is in my profile.
Instagram post 2330131706816229761_13442450 I’ll be baking up a storm for this! Local bakers- there’s still room for more! Let @north_plain_farm know that you want IN.
Instagram post 2324845496300301430_13442450 To those who ask here? In Great Barrington? YES. In Great Barrington.
Instagram post 2324091364266290851_13442450 I know there are so many resources out there right now, but I want to share one that’s been really helpful for me in the last several months. There are many seasons of this podcast, but I recommend Season 2 on Whiteness as well is Season 4 on Democracy. #sceneonradio
Instagram post 2322615811734696638_13442450 Black lives matter.
Instagram post 2319329508599466327_13442450 I did not bake these cookies, as I am no longer the cookie baker in this house. But this is the second time that  Sadie has made @susanspungen ‘s Triple-Ginger Chocolate Chunk Cookies (and also the second time I’ve talked about a recipe Sadie has made from the #openkitchencookbook), and I think these might actually be the best cookies I have ever had. I’m often looking for the perfect ginger cookie and this is it, and I’d also choose it over a chocolate chip cookie (or let’s be honest-any other kind of cookie) any day.
Instagram post 2316311882260313364_13442450 No matter how many rulers and pizza cutters and other magical tools I use, it seems that the straight line will always elude me.
Instagram post 2314127252740427104_13442450 Living it up. 💥
Instagram post 2312088043104000827_13442450 Every day my neighbor’s yard gets prettier.
Instagram post 2311325683330503572_13442450 @paulaperlis sent us @susanspungen ‘s new book and of course the first recipe Sadie picked is marked with the *project* heading. She’s been cooking all afternoon and the house smells like ✨✨✨ (With gorgeous images by @gentlandhyers ❤️)
Instagram post 2311141543964321092_13442450 When I took on a day job a few years ago, I found that the first thing to go was all the homemade stuff I’d been making and writing about over the years. I’m still going out to work most days, but I’m finding now with a full and captive house and more downtime in general that those things I love to make are back. For me, it’s granola, yogurt, bread. Hello, old friends!
Instagram post 2308503311808232748_13442450 All the things in the house pasta: roasted cauliflower, a few sad leaves of kale, one jar of fancy tuna saved for a special occasion (how about Wednesday?), Rosemary, homemade breadcrumbs from the freezer fried in butter, crispy sage leaves, pasta water, salt, so much pepper. Success!
Instagram post 2307412630968777107_13442450 @artbywoodgy made this beautiful thing for me for Mother’s Day. All the veggies are on Velcro so I can plan to my hearts delight.
Instagram post 2306345003953662730_13442450 Happy Mother’s Day to my brave and beautiful mom, who birthed two different humans in such different times in her life. With me she was so young, and she figured it all out just as she was learning how to be an adult. This picture was taken nineteen years later, when she was pregnant again and I was almost an adult myself. Thanks for keeping at it, Mom, and for always showing up with love. ❤️
Instagram post 2304888771283579843_13442450 What we do for cake.
Instagram post 2302665269449083186_13442450 It’s a magnolia year for sure.
Instagram post 2295808104927071821_13442450 A long time ago, Joey talked about his crush on this particular alien-like flower with a good friend of ours. Months later, little bulbs arrived in the mail. We put them in the ground last fall, and now they are everywhere. If that isn’t some kind of magic, I don’t know what is. ✨ (🙏🏻 to @wildflowers1 for the cool vase, too.)
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My latest book!

Learn more about my latest book, Eating from the Ground Up. It's perfect for all you vegetable lovers out there.

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