Chelsea Green Blog
Food & Drink
Grain-Free Diets: When Crisis Compels Transformation
As the rate of chronic illness skyrockets, more and more parents are faced with the sobering reality of restrictive diets. And because everyone is busy, many families come to rely on store-bought “healthy” products to make life simpler, but many of these are loaded with sugar and hidden toxins. When faced with her own family…
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How to Approach the GAPS Diet
Most of us are not mindful of the importance of gut health, or just how far we in the modern world have been distanced from it. Many of us were not breastfed; we received countless simultaneous vaccinations as children and were overprescribed antibiotics and medications from the start. Any one of these phenomena could contribute…
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Breakfast: Keto-Style and Kid-Approved
If you’ve been following a ketogenic diet for a while now you probably have a few hacks of your own when it comes to cooking up delicious low-carb breakfast options. If you’re new to the program, you’re probably wondering how many different ways you can cook an egg because that’s the only thing allowed. (You’re…
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Bacteria: Our Ancestors and Coevolutionary Partners
Fermentation is the transformation of food by various bacteria, fungi, and the enzymes they produce. People harness this transformative power in order to produce alcohol, to preserve food, and to make it more digestible, less toxic, and/or more delicious. It’s played an instrumental role in human cultural evolution and has become a cultural phenomenon of…
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The Ketogenic Diet, Cancer, Nutrition, and the Mind-Body Link
For decades, the ketogenic diet—which shifts the body’s metabolism from burning glucose to burning fat, lowering blood sugar and insulin and resulting in a metabolic state known as ketosis—has been used to successfully manage pediatric epilepsy. And now, emerging research suggests that a ketogenic diet, in conjunction with conventional treatments, offers new hope for those…
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Be Good to Your Gut: Nourishing Food for Better Health
What do illnesses like autism, ADHD, asthma, celiac disease, allergies, and depression have in common? Simple: They can all be linked to the microorganisms present in the gut. That’s according to the pioneering British MD, Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride who has found that these afflictions, as well as a long list of others, are linked—a concept…
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Permaculture Advice For Beginners
Trying something for the first time can be intimidating, especially when it’s something as big as learning how to live off your land. But like with any new adventure you shouldn’t bite off too much at once. Instead, it’s better to take the time to properly plan and educate yourself on what it will take…
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The Grains Glossary and a Recipe for the Perfect Pancake
Grains are a ubiquitous part of the American diet and a staple in many of our favorite recipes. Bread? Yep, grains. Pasta? Grains there, too. Pancakes? Most definitely! With such a strong presence in our daily eating habits, shouldn’t we know more about what grains actually are and why they make our favorite foods taste…
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Hunger Moon-Inspired Recipe: Roasted Root Vegetables
If you love to cook with fresh produce but happen to live in a climate where it’s nearly impossible to access during the winter months, we feel ya! Here in the northeast, chilling winds and heaps of snow make it hard to leave the house, let alone grow fresh produce, but that doesn’t mean we…
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Chelsea Green Publishing: A Year In Review
It’s been quite the year here at Chelsea Green! We opened our first international office in London, England, launched a brand new website, published a ton of amazing books, welcomed new Grasshoppers to the team, and so much more! Grab a cuppa, settle in, and join us as we look back on what a great…
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Chelsea Green Authors in the News: Extra, Extra, Read All About It!
One of the most rewarding parts of our job is working with an amazing roster of authors who are not only leaders in their fields but also passionate about spreading their knowledge to the world. So, when those authors are featured in the news talking about their books, sharing wisdom and insight, and getting people…
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Thanksgiving Traditions, Memories, and Celebrations
The holiday season is a time for family, food, friends, celebrations, and reminiscing about beloved traditions. To get in the spirit, we’ve asked a few members of our CGP family to share some of their favorite holiday moments. Maybe they’ll spark nostalgia or perhaps give you new ideas to try, either way, we wish everyone…
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Fat is NOT the Enemy: What You Think Could Harm Your Health
For decades, we’ve been told that fat is the enemy, that it is harmful to our health and well-being. But the reality is, fat, or certain types of fat, when incorporated correctly into our diets, can actually have powerful health benefits. Take it from Domini Kemp, who for years avoided fat but loaded up on…
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Homage to Chef Kurt Michael Friese
Chef Kurt Michael Friese, a Chelsea Green author and friend to staff, contributors and readers, died at age 54 in his home in Iowa City, Iowa. It would be hard to find a more multi-talented and compassionate individual in America’s heartland. A tireless innovator and promoter of Iowa’s non-profits and for-profits, Kurt was a pivotal…
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Northeastern Kvass
When you’re on a fall hike, taking in the colorful leaves, sharp snaps of twigs beneath your feet, marveling at the beautifully knotted roots of the trees in front of you, you’re probably not thinking about how delicious they all taste together. But boy, you should be! Almost every ingredient in this nature-infused Northeastern Kvass…
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Recipe: Fall Harvest Garden Fries
Got a lot of root veggies in your fall harvest? Garden fries are an easy and delicious way to use them up! Enjoy them sans sauce, with ketchup, or if you’re looking to impress dinner guests pair them with a garlicky leek dipping sauce. Bon appetit! The following recipe is from Cooking Close to Home…
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Ancient Customs: Drinking to Good Health and More
It’s a little-known fact, but we here at Chelsea Green Publishing love a good piece of trivia. (Did you know beavers have a second set of lips behind their teeth?) When we found out that the saying “to the last drop” comes from ancient Danish drinking customs, you know we were thrilled. Who doesn’t love…
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Cooking with Mesquite: Ancient Nourishment
Mesquite has been a staple in desert dwellers’ diet for far longer than maize or even livestock. With its nutritional value (it’s filled with both complex carbs and protein!) and endless possibilities for preparation, it’s no wonder it was once an integral source of sustenance for such a large region. If you happen to get…
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Foraging 101: Where to find your bounty
We’ve given you descriptions. We’ve given you recipes. We’ve given you (hopefully) inspiration to explore. And now we’re giving you the information you need to begin foraging on your own: where to do it and how to be safe. So go forth, young foragers, and start gathering your bounty. The following excerpt is from Forage,…
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The Life of Patience Gray: Gathering Honey from a Weed
Iconoclastic food writer, forager, and force of nature Patience Gray always found the good in the simple. In Fasting and Feasting, Gray’s biographer Adam Federman discovers that her life was never simple. “Struck by Patience Gray’s mind, her vision and her prose, Federman went in search of her past. . . . He’s done the…
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Recipe: Summer Herb Flower Vinegar
Olivia’s mom, Lola, is famous for her potato salad that seems so simple, but has a certain je ne sais quoi—the secret ingredient: chive-flower-infused vinegar. She recalls, “As a child I was enchanted by the apothecary bottles lined up on our kitchen shelves, stuffed with purple pompoms—I just knew there was magic happening inside.” By…
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To Hop or Not to Hop?
For you IPA-loving readers, you may be asking yourself if there is any legitimacy to our query: The answer, of course, is TO HOP. But what if we told you there is another way? It’s okay, you can keep drinking your IPA while you read this but by the end, you may be rethinking everything…
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The Magic of Beer: Science Behind The Miracle Brew
Think back to science class… remember those lessons on photosynthesis? We sure don’t, which is unfortunate as we now know that it is crucial to the beer making process. Perhaps if we realized that simple biochemistry could turn barley into brews, we would have paid better attention. The following excerpt is from Miracle Brew by Pete Brown.…
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An Amaranth Love Affair
Our love affair with amaranth began long before the pseudo-grain became a trendy staple for gluten-free folk. The luscious leaves of this annual plant are not only packed with a plethora of health benefits – high levels of protein and calcium, aids in digestion and weight loss, and helps improve vision, to name a few!…
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Agroforestry Versus Permaculture: Which Approach to Use for a Community Food Forest
Ok, so we’ve gone over some basics of community food forests: Now it’s time to figure out how to plan one. There are two schools of thought on the best approach to building a community food forest: agroforestry or permaculture. The former offers a science-based approach while the latter incorporates elements of social design. Both…
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