And again, Ruth Reichl

The esteemed food writer and longtime Gourmet magazine editor sums up the prevailing 'eat local' message in a beautiful quote published last Saturday in the Wall Street Journal.

The meal that changed my life was in Crete, when I was about 20, on my honeymoon with my then-husband. We walked up this mountain and at the top there was a hut and an old woman. She sat us on chairs outside and brought us olive oil that she had pressed, a plate of onions she had grown, some olives and some wine that her neighbor had made. Then she went down the hill to go fishing. She came back up and built a fire, and sprinkled the fish she'd caught with herbs from the hillside. We sat there eating this grilled fish and bread and the olive oil, ending with yogurt from her own goats. I had never had food that simple or so much of its place. This was 1970, when you couldn't get good olive oil in America. I thought, This is how I want to eat for the rest of my life.

Ms Reichl's books may be found in our cookbook section on the second floor.

Please share your own food story with us. We look forward to hearing from you!

-DB

No Impact Man is a winner

The documentary of Colin Beavan's year-long experiment to lessen his carbon footprint on the planet was a 2009 selection at the Sundance Film Festival. Beavan, along with his wife, young daughter and dog, committed to 12 months of New York City hi-rise living minus elevators, motorized transportation, electricity, toilet paper, and take-out. Family relationships and dynamics were changed in a way Beavan never anticipated. The experience was life-changing for all involved. Even Michelle, Colin's fashionista wife, joined the side of sustainability. Enjoy the companion book of the same name No Impact Man : The advantures of a guilty liberal who attempts to save the planet and the discoveries he makes about himself and our way of life in the process by Colin Beavan.