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Articles by Roz Cummins

Roz Cummins is a food writer who has worked in every possible permutation of food co-op, natural foods store, and granola-type restaurant. She lives in the greater Boston area and feels it is her mission to put the "eco" back in home economy.

All Articles

  • A bleg re: trucks idling their engines

    Verizon trucks sometimes come and idle their engines all day long in front of my house (sometimes several trucks for several days), and I am told that because they use their engines to power their equipment, they are exempt from EPA guidelines for idling engines.

    Is there any energy source I could ask them to use instead of running their engines all day? Also, I have asked them to tell me when they are going to be coming so I can plan to work elsewhere that day, but they refuse to do so. Does anyone know if there are any precedents for requiring some kind of notice about work that is obviously scheduled maintenance and not emergency repair work?

  • Food stuff this year

    I busted my butt to get this in before too much of 2007 passed (I submitted it in the wee hours of 1/2/07), but it turns out I forgot to hit the all-important little button that says "post." Isn't there an expression about yesterday's news being today's fish wrapper? (That expression makes a lot more sense in England where people wrap fish'n'chips in newspaper ...) Here, belatedly, is my 2006 summary, ready to be recycled for your cyber-fishwrapping needs.

    My personal best and worst food-related stuff of 2006:

  • Make your leftover Xmas sweets into something yummy

    In my experience, even a calm and pleasant holiday results in a house strewn with bits of paper, empty boxes filled with styrofoam peanuts, a guilt-inducing list of thank-you notes to be written, and a fridge full of leftovers. Here are three recipes for "recycled" holiday desserts that turn less-than-enjoyable ingredients into actual treats:

  • A holiday meal inspired by New Orleans

    A menu for a holiday meal inspired by a New Orleans Réveillon:

    Sazerac cocktails
    Appetizer of lobster salad with a lemon balm and tomato dressing
    Adair Burlingham's chicken and ham gumbo, or a vegetarian gumbo z'erb
    Roast turkey or a Turducken
    Biscuits
    King cake or bread pudding with whiskey sauce
    Café Brulot or coffee with chicory

    I'll post the first few recipes this week and the others next week.

    A few months ago I started thinking about what would make for an environmentally sound holiday dinner. I wanted to create a menu that was festive and satisfying but not excessive or wasteful.