Sooty shearwaters feeding in the surf (everything eats)
Each summer flocks of sooty shearwaters fly low over the Monterey Bay, diving and squawking as they feed on masses of bait fish – anchovies, sardines, squid, and krill – that school just below the water’s glistening surface. You see them coming in the distance, an impressive mass a mile or more in length; thousands of birds flying low over the water forming a cacophony of feathered missiles plunging headfirst for food.
First fish
A quick stop at Day’s Market for a bag of ice was the daily de rigueur in the sailboat days of our early marriage. No refrigerator on the Ericson 30 we called home, just a deep insulated box under the speck of formica counter that needed constant replenishment...
Green beef or well-traveled cows?
Unless you have the room to pasture a cow in your backyard, the meat you consume has to travel. Taking carbon footprint, environmental, and health concerns into account, how can we make thoughtful choices on the meat we purchase? Here are a few considerations.
Old school backyard foodie: Oysters Rockefeller
The oysters smelled like the air on still, foggy mornings when the tide is low and kelp is heaped on the sand and the only footprints are from marauding nighttime snails – an ancient smell of brine and salty tears.
A wasp’s dinner (everything eats)
A wasp eats a caterpillar – for real. Guts and all.
Food for the soul
Seen on my lunchtime walk at the beach: a yellow school bus parked next to a red fire truck, bus driver and firefighters all perched on the low storm wall, alternately sipping coffee, crunching apples, rummaging through coolers, watching the water, waiting for us to...
Who figured out a beaver’s behind tastes like raspberry?
This is not urban myth: castoreum, the product of the anal glands of the beaver, is used in some food products with the FDA’s blessing. Here’s the lowdown.
Greens gone wild
Winter’s untended and forgotten greens, gone wild in the overgrown vegetable bed.
Is making dinner getting boring? How about glowing sushi?
I know a few things about zebrafish, much of it from writing Animalfish Alphabet. I know that they are small, non-aggressive, inexpensive aquarium fish. They are native to Southeast Asian rivers and streams. They easy to breed and produce transparent embryos, so...
Algae burger on rye, anyone?
You will probably never deliberately order an algae burger on rye, a bean-and-algae burrito, or an algae caesar salad. But a day will eventually come when you will be inadvertently making algae a part of your diet: How can this be, you wonder? Start by enjoying this...
Dolphin feeding frenzy in the Sea of Cortez (everything eats)
Hundreds of bottle nose dolphins dive for Sunday brunch in the Sea of Cortez. Check out a few photos:
Welcome to my skillet!
I'm Maggie, a food-loving, curiosity-seeking, nature-loving mom. I'm here serving up bite-sized recipes, raves, and reviews about food and family, food and culture, food and the environment, and food and travel. Thanks for stopping by!