It’s January, and in much of the country that means that the sight and smells of green growing things is buried under icy brown leaves and inches (feet?) of frozen white stuff.

Last weekend I was trying a new recipe that called for arugula. Not wanting to make another trip to the grocery store, I went out to the garden to see if any of the fairly hardy greens were surviving under the layers of leaves I had heaped on the garden last fall. I pushed aside the slightly frozen, damp leaves to find … mush! The merest hint of arugula leaves were languishing under the composting leaves, looking exactly like the sodden mass that they were. Ah – it was a noble effort.

However, the serendipity of the situation was discovering that the brown, seemingly lifeless stalks of Sweet Annie (artemesia annua, also known as Wormwood, a tall, aromatic plant with fernlike foliage) were still giving off their distinctive sweet aroma. I cut a few branches to hang in the kitchen. On the way back to the house, I checked out the sage green stalks of lavender by the back patio. Their leaves, also, were wonderfully aromatic, so I cut some sprigs to add to the bundle

Now, despite the melancholy, dark days of winter, my kitchen is graced by the smells of summer. It makes the wait for spring less arduous.

FOTOLIA/STEFAN KATZLINGER

WINTER! This week we received a four-inch snowfall that turned our earth-toned, monochromatic landscape into a bright sparkling tapestry.

I would say that winter is my favorite season, but the truth is that when the seasons change, at that moment that season is my favorite. I love the energizing effect the seasonal changes have on my psyche. You should know that I grew up in upstate New York on the shores of Lake Ontario where snowfalls of three to four feet were routine – and the winter blizzard of 1966 piled 108 inches of snow on Oswego County.

My winter memories are of incredible igloo-like snow forts made in the huge piles of snow next to the curb, staying outdoors until my whole body was tingling with cold, hot chocolate and jack wax. Our family had a little cabin seven miles east of town on the lakeshore. In the winter, we would walk in from the county road pulling lunch and my little brother on the toboggan. Dad would stoke up a fire in the woodstove and then we'd all go check out the nature-made ice sculptures on the rocky shore. After that it was lunch time – always the very same menu: Lipton’s chicken and rice soup, apple sauce, grilled cheese sandwiches and hot chocolate.

I loved walking in snow-covered fields looking for the little bumped up trails under the snow where a mouse had traveled or see the whispy designs made by dried grasses as they were buffeted by the north winds. And of course making snow angels was a favorite not just of mine but of all youngsters (and a few not so young).

So during this week's snowfall, I was here at my desk watching the show outside through a window 20 feet from my desk. But finally at 5, I was turned loose to go home and shovel the sidewalk and relish the cold, sparkling winter air. There were no mouse tunnels, but I could see the dainty tracks a wild kitty made along the edges of the garden. Many neighbors were out shoveling their sidewalks and driveways – a mini block party in the dark. The first snow is always the best – there are no dirty snow piles by the curb or ruts of slush in the streets – just a carpet of sparkling whiteness, illuminating the night. Before going in for the evening, I flopped down on a clear space and made the first snow angel of the year – ahhhhhh, winter!!

Wishing you all a winter of childish delight. 

A champion of vegetable cookery for more than 25 years, Andrea Chesman has written more than a dozen cookbooks that celebrate fresh food cuisine. When it comes to autumn's best root vegetables like parsnips, rutabagas, and sweet potatoes, Chesman thinks roasting is the best way to go.

"The dry heat of roasting coaxes out and concentrates flavors," Chesman says. "With parsnips, roasting brings out sweet, nutty flavors and aromas that otherwise would not exist." Roasted rutabaga melts in your mouth like butter, and a pan of Herb-Roasted Root Vegetables (recipe below) will transport easily and hold up well on a buffet table.

Chesman includes this recipe among 14 "Master Recipes" in Serving Up the Harvest: Celebrating the Goodness of Fresh Vegetables (Storey, 2007). As with the other master recipes in the book, you can vary the mix of vegetables, using what you have on hand. It's the method that counts, which in this case involves roasting in a hot oven until the vegetables are brown and tender.

If you don't have carrots or sweet potatoes, substitute cubes of winter squash for savory-sweet flavor and bright orange color. "It has similar cooking properties and works well with root vegetables," Chesman says. In addition to sharing the recipe for Herb-Roasted Root Vegetables below, Chesman offers these tips for roasting goodies from your garden:

* To prepare vegetables for roasting, cut into uniform-size pieces and slick with oil. Use a lightly oiled sheet pan or shallow roasting pan for good air circulation. Crowded vegetables will steam rather than roast.

* To ensure even browning, flip the vegetables with a spatula once or twice during roasting.

* Roasted root vegetables are beautiful; roasted green vegetables are equally delicious but somewhat less than beautiful.

* Make plenty, because vegetables shrink as they roast. Use leftovers in salads, omelets, quiches, and other quick-fix dishes. 

Herb-Roasted Root Vegetables

Serves 4 to 6

3 to 4 pounds (8 to 10 cups) mixed root vegetables or winter squash, such as beets, carrots, parsnips, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, turnips, and potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 large onion, peeled and cut into eighths, or 1 cup peeled pearl onions or shallots

6 cloves garlic, peeled

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp fresh herbs (rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano, alone or in any combination, chopped

Coarse sea salt or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease a large sheet pan with oil.

2. Combine the mixed vegetables, onions or shallots, and garlic in a large bowl. Add the oil, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss to coat. Transfer the vegetables to the pan and spread out in a single shallow layer.

3. Roast 40 minutes to 1 hour, or until the vegetables are slightly browned and tender, turning with a spatula twice for even cooking.

4. Transfer to a serving platter, taste, and add more salt and pepper if desired. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve.

Adapted from Serving Up the Harvest: Celebrating the Goodness of Fresh Vegetables (Storey, 2007), by Andrea Chesman. If you can't get enough roasted vegetables, check out Chesman's The Roasted Vegetable (Harvard Common Press, 2002).

Are some roasted veggie/herb combos so great everyone should try them? Share your best ideas for a veggie roast-a-rama in the comments section below!

Because it’s getting colder outside, it’s time to start finding ways to entertain yourself indoors. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still play with nature. If you like growing food, then a mushroom kit is right up your alley.

To make this project as carbon-free as possible, I started out by looking for mushroom kit companies closest to my Mother Earth News home base in Topeka, Kan. I also wanted the logs and mushrooms to be certified organic. Luckily, I found Lost Creek Mushroom Farms in Perkins, Okla. Not only are they close, but their mushroom logs and mushrooms are “grower certified” organic. Another bonus was that a portion of their sales go to their Mushrooms in Ghana project.

Last year the two owners, Doug and Sandra Williams, visited Ghana to teach farmers how to grow shiitake mushrooms. In Ghana, they were growing oyster mushrooms in sawdust bags, which were contaminated and not producing even a moderate level of mushrooms. In hopes to help the production in Ghana even more, they’re trying to raise money to bring one particular farmer, Bernard Bempah, to the United States. They will take him to various shiitake farms to learn more about mushroom farming, so he can return to Ghana and hopefully change mushroom production in the country.

This seemed like a good cause, so I called them up, and they helped me determine which kit would be best for my mushroom-eating needs. I decided to start simple and get a 10-inch log to grow shiitake mushrooms on. So we’ll see how it goes, and I’ll keep you updated on my experience. Please post a comment below if you have any mushroom-growing advice to share.

For further reading, check out Grow Your Own Mushrooms.