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BECKY FIFIELD
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“Omelettes – Plain or with Rum”
What? Where in culinary history did I miss the inclusion of rum in an omelet? New York Public Library announced recently the availability...

Becky Fifield
Jan 8, 20161 min read
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Apple of My Eye: Lead Pesticide Use in 1920s Orchards
Orchard workers at Mt. Pleasant Orchard, near Havre de Grace, Maryland, c. 1915. Over the Christmas holiday, I unearthed a small journal...

Becky Fifield
Jan 5, 20162 min read
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Maryland Preparations for the Sick, 1881
‘Tis the season for illness. Cooking tomes of the past often included a chapter of recipes to be made for the ill and infirm. Certainly,...

Becky Fifield
Jan 6, 20151 min read
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Maryland Material Culture: Bushel Basket
Quiz: What does a Marylander most often associate with a bushel basket? Sure, you can put fruit or vegetables in it (pick-ur-own or...

Becky Fifield
Jun 13, 20141 min read
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Christmas Dinner on the Rails
Christmas generally takes us to Maryland. While the Amtrak train I take travels over the Pennsylvania Railroad into Baltimore’s Penn...

Becky Fifield
Dec 24, 20131 min read
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Wanderlust Wednesday: Some Food in France
More often than not, even the cheapest little roadside offering in France blows the socks off of much of what you can get in the United...

Becky Fifield
Nov 13, 20131 min read
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Oyster Shuckers
I used to hate oysters. Typically, tidewater Marylanders pat oysters in cracker meal, fry them, and if you need a condiment, slather on...

Becky Fifield
Sep 5, 20132 min read
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Wanderlust Wednesday – The Charcoal Pit
One benefit of being at Winterthur this month is my proximity to The Charcoal Pit on Route 202. This commercial stretch is somewhat at...

Becky Fifield
Jul 31, 20131 min read
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Gardening and Memory
The garden as family member, visible toward the right back. Photos marking family events and visits always took place in the yard. My...

Becky Fifield
Jun 6, 20132 min read
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A Maryland Breakfast: Fried Red Tomatoes in Cream Gravy
I recently visited my great uncle, Uncle B, in Arizona. Having left our ancestral seat for a life of western adventure in 1947, we don’t...

Becky Fifield
Apr 5, 20131 min read
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The Gardening Itch
At this point during the winter, I start to get the itch for digging in the dirt. Alas, it’s a rather pointless itch as I must confine my...

Becky Fifield
Feb 15, 20131 min read
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Transit Tuesday: Grand By Design Exhibition at Grand Central
After a boozy brunch with Dr. V’s cousins, we wandered up the sunny side of the street to Grand Central Terminal, celebrating its 100th...

Becky Fifield
Feb 12, 20131 min read
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On the Subject of Duck…
Picture postcard of duck hunting in a sink box at Havre de Grace, Maryland. Duck is tasty. It was popular fare in New York’s...

Becky Fifield
Jan 18, 20132 min read
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Vernacular: Puddle Ducks
I love the word vernacular. You can stuff all that’s particular to a specific region into the term. Can’t explain it any other way? It...

Becky Fifield
Jan 17, 20132 min read
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Turnips Anyone? How about Turnip Wine?
My first thought when intercepting this recipe from The British Housewife by Martha Bradley (1756) was “who would think to ferment...

Becky Fifield
Jan 3, 20131 min read
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Should We Feel Sorry for Twinkies?
Mourning miniature, 1788. Brooklyn Museum. 21.474. Twinkies. I’ve had a few. I’ve had more pink Snowballs and Suzy-Q’s than Twinkies. I...

Becky Fifield
Dec 1, 20122 min read
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Caraway.
Caraway and Salt Flatbreads from Agata & Valentina, NYC. RL Fifield 2012. Caraway. It’s lyrical. It’s herbal, savory, and astringent. My...

Becky Fifield
Nov 23, 20122 min read
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Cleveland’s West Side Market
My brother Mr. F is Cleveland’s Man about Town. During my May visit, he toured me around a number of sites and neighborhoods, including...

Becky Fifield
Nov 17, 20122 min read
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Java Up: The Coffee House: A Cultural History
Grab your mug, get some joe, and crack open The Coffee House: A Cultural History by Markman Ellis (Wenfield and Nicolson, 2004). I was...

Becky Fifield
Nov 16, 20122 min read
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A Dinner in Winter, 1756
As Winter settles around our shoulders, I like to consider what was considered seasonal fare in the eighteenth century. I’m a big fan of...

Becky Fifield
Nov 15, 20121 min read
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