Bonny Wolf
NPR commentator Bonny Wolf grew up in Minnesota and has worked as a reporter and editor at newspapers in New Jersey and Texas. She taught journalism at Texas A&M University where she encouraged her student, Lyle Lovett, to give up music and get a real job. Wolf gives better advice about cooking and eating, and contributes her monthly food essay to NPR's award-winning Weekend Edition Sunday. She is also a contributing editor to "Kitchen Window," NPR's Web-only, weekly food column.
Wolf 's commentaries are not just about what people eat, but why: for comfort, nurturance, and companionship; to mark the seasons and to celebrate important events; to connect with family and friends and with ancestors they never knew; and, of course, for love. In a Valentine's Day essay, for example, Wolf writes that nearly every food from artichoke to zucchini has been considered an aphrodisiac.
Wolf, whose Web site is www.bonnywolf.com, has been a newspaper food editor and writer, restaurant critic, and food newsletter publisher, and served as chief speechwriter to Secretaries of Agriculture Mike Espy and Dan Glickman.
Bonny Wolf's book of food essays, Talking with My Mouth Full, will be published in November by St. Martin's Press. She lives, writes, eats and cooks in Washington, D.C.
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Nowruz, the Persian New Year, begins at the exact moment of the vernal equinox, when the sun crosses the equator and winter ends. The 13-day festival features fresh foods with herbs, family gatherings, and plenty of myth and symbolism.
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In New Mexico — the largest producer of chiles in the United States — the spicy peppers are more than just a crop: They're a culture, a way of life. And this time of year, the aroma of roasting chiles permeates the air throughout the state.
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Americans are undergoing an awakening when it comes to fava beans, with their buttery texture and slightly bitter, lovely nutty flavor. And after a long, dark winter, what could be more spring-like than their fresh green color?
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Most people are familiar with latkes, the potato pancakes that are the Hanukkah staple among American Jews. Bonny Wolf explores a wide world of other Jewish dishes that celebrate a tiny vial of oil that burned for eight days.
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Planked salmon has long been a regular menu item in the Pacific Northwest, and its popularity has now spread to the lower states. There's no easier way to impress guests than to grill fish on a wooden plank, which yields a delightful, smoky sweetness.
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This summer, take time to stop and eat the roses. And not just the roses: Try some pansies, tulips or begonias. Suggestions for how to brighten up any meal with colorful and flavorful edible flowers.
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Ever since "seasonal" became "trendy," dandelions, ramps, fiddlehead ferns and sweet pea shoots have cropped up in produce aisles, farmers markets and on restaurant menus. Bonny Wolf shares ways to enjoy these fleeting weeds-turned-delicacies.
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Rhubarb is more than a pie. It is showing up in soups, stews and other savory dishes where its natural sourness makes a nice counterbalance to the richness or sweetness of other ingredients. Bonny Wolf shares two recipes for new ways to use grandma's old standby.
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Going to a baseball game isn't what it used to be. For one thing, the food has gone upscale. Essayist Bonny Wolf buys into Humphrey Bogart's old line: "A hot dog at the ballpark is better than a steak at the Ritz." But she also takes note of trendier cuisine.