Through my work as a dietitian, I’ve seen first-hand how food is woven into the fabric of peoples’ everyday lives. Food is never just about what is going into your mouth at a single moment. It has a story. We are affected by the circumstances of the family that grew it, by the land it … More Berry Connected
Claus Spreckels was the industrialist who chose Watsonville to start his domestic sugar empire. If you look at the Watsonville city seal, you don’t see berries or apples, but a sheaf of wheat and a sugar beet! During the 1880’s, sugar crops were making their debut on the national agricultural scene due to trade pressures to … More Claus Spreckels – The Sugar King
Food can be one of life’s great joys. Growing it, cooking it, sharing it, and eating it are necessities steeped in so much tradition and pleasure that we can easily forget they are necessities at all. Unfortunately, food doesn’t always bring joy, sometimes it can bring tragedy, as it did 90 years ago this week on April 27th … More A 90 Year Old Tragedy
Our region is known for its agricultural abundance. Santa Cruz County grew 6,831 acres of berries and 7,161 of vegetables (including lettuces, brussels sprouts, artichokes, beets, beans, etc) in 2013. Grains do not even make the crop list—the production of grains in Santa Cruz County is simply too small to report. In contrast, worldwide, wheat is … More Waves of Santa Cruz County Grains
Spring is here and all around the central coast gardeners and farmers are enjoying the early signs of what summer will bring. This is also the time of year that the hops vines start poking out of the ground. Come August many of them will be 10-15 feet long, bursting with fragrant cones, ready to … More Spring (or Hop) Forward!
As a music historian of American performers very broadly defined, I think of the “Godfather of Soul” when I hear the name “James Brown.” This founding father of funk produced huge international hit singles, including “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag.” As part of the Santa Cruz Heritage Food Project research team, I have learned … More Who is James Brown?
The gorgeous, warm days we’ve been having in Santa Cruz has us all thinking of Spring. I might be biased by my recent research for the Heritage Food Project, but for me Springtime means one thing – the start of berry season! Although strawberries and raspberries are already showing up on grocery store shelves, you’ll … More Berry Season is Around the Corner
While much of the rest of the country is under a blanket of snow, tonight our group planned a fireside chat evening on the mild-weathered Central Coast. We met at the base of Deleveaga Park and watched the sun set with local beers in hand and grins on our faces. We were happy not only … More A Fireside Chat
We met with the esteemed Nikki Silva of The Kitchen Sisters radio show and Hidden Kitchens cookbook fame on Saturday to ask questions about interviewing and publishing. Her excitement for our project infused us with energy. She felt that every generation must explore history and re-frame it for themselves, and so we shall! She encouraged … More Every Generation Must Do This
On Saturday we got to present our project for the first time as a cohesive package to a generous audience – Researches Anonymous at the MAH. At first we weren’t sure if we could fill the hour and a half, but it turns out we had lots of stories to tell! We shared our research process and … More Telling Our Story
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