It's physical distancing, not social distancing
Lynley Jones
Physically, we should be keeping our distance. But socially, we should be coming together. As close as we’ve ever been. Or maybe closer.
This is not a time to stay socially distant. This is a time to stay physically distant, but socially close.
Fresh Air and Fresh Greens
My big batch of fresh Swiss chard from the Montclair Farmers Market.
I got these beauties at the Montclair Farmers Market, where I’m doing as much of my shopping as I can each week after we finish setting up our booth. There’s lots of room to physically distance from others, and the shoppers seem to share an understanding of the importance of doing so.
(The scientists continue to wrestle with the question of whether/how airborne the virus is. Apparently it’s a fairly complicated question, because although researchers have found viable virus can hang in the air for at least 3 hours in laboratory conditions, we still don’t know how long it remains airborne in real-world conditions, or even what concentration of virus is required for an infection. Given all the unknowns, my thinking is that if we have to shop somewhere, a fresh-air outdoor market has got to be a better option than any indoor shopping alternative, no matter how careful everyone is.)
My cooking strategy for these is to make as big a batch of greens as I can make, usually sauteed with lots of onions and garlic. I keep the seasonings pretty simple so that the leftovers will be versatile for lots of other dishes. When I’m plating things up, I can sprinkle on a little pepper or sumac or smoked paprika or what have you; then I can go a different direction when I use the rest of it for something else a few days later.
(PS - If you’re new around here, welcome! Adventure Kitchen is a local, small-batch maker of original spice blends and prepared foods, and I’m the founder and chief creator. Separately, I send a weekly email with recipes and cooking suggestions. If you’d like to follow along with that, you can sign up on this page. And if you’d like to support my small business, you can buy our spices online. We ship everywhere of course, and we deliver locally for free!)