First Things First and Say Goodbye to the Snake Room!
Raising a fair portion of my food and supporting local agriculture has been something I've wanted to do for some time. Even before eating local became the new organic I was attracted to these ideals. Perhaps this goes back to my Baltimore childhood where both my grandfathers offered examples of food self-sufficiency. Pop Pop was an Italian immigrant who converted every available space of his back yard into a highly productive garden. He was composting when composting wasn't cool and turned yard waste into fruits and vegetables for his table. I remember his pickled green tomatoes being the best thing I ever tasted. Sadly his recipe for these has been lost. My maternal Grandfather operated a snow ball and produce stand in the MD countryside, which supplied local residents with summer refreshments and fresh produce. Sweet corn and garden fresh tomatoes were always in excess and these, along with steamed local blue crabs from the Chesapeake Bay, brought family together helping forg...