To better meet your needs, we've created a community of kitchens, situated in and around Lancaster. Essen Kinder Kids Cooking Camp will be hosted by the Lancaster JCC as well as Landisville Middle School, through Hempfield Rec. Evening classes have officially begun at Essen and will be conducted in the beautiful kitchen at Kegel's Produce Playground. You can also cook with Essen on the weekends. By popular demand, we'll be back at Briala Bodyworks in downtown Lancaster the second Sunday in June.
We hope that the new, expanded schedule better meets your needs. Please don't hesitate to share your thoughts on what we can do better. We'd love to hear from you.
Everyday solutions for everyday life - reserve a seat today .
Friday, May 30, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Recipe for Happiness
Sometimes things just work out. You've got all the ingredients - in the correct amounts. Nothing is spoiled or past its prime. And the timing is right.
That's how things are feeling here at Essen. As many of you know, I waited a long, long, long time to pursue my dream. I've built something from scratch, a combination of market driven research, experience and that pinch of instinct, "it just feels right."
And now, many, many months later (ok, years), the word seems to be getting out. This month, Essen is featured in the "FoodFile" section of Susquehanna Style magazine. I cannot thank Donovan Roberts Witmer and Keely Childers, Editor and Assistant Editor, respectively, enough. Not only are they incredibly bright, talented, and dynamic individuals who truly want the greater Susquehanna Valley to be portrayed for all of its strengths, they're also incredibly hard-working, committed and so nice. And I mean "nice" in the best sense of the word. These are good people trying to make a huge difference in the place they live, work, eat and sleep. So, click here to check out the complete article. And when you see the slick yellow and white cover at a local retailer, pick up the entire May/June issue for yourself. Do it as a thank you to them for me. Without Donovan and Keely, and without //you,// Essen would still be a dream. //Okay, can somebody pinch me now?//
That's how things are feeling here at Essen. As many of you know, I waited a long, long, long time to pursue my dream. I've built something from scratch, a combination of market driven research, experience and that pinch of instinct, "it just feels right."
And now, many, many months later (ok, years), the word seems to be getting out. This month, Essen is featured in the "FoodFile" section of Susquehanna Style magazine. I cannot thank Donovan Roberts Witmer and Keely Childers, Editor and Assistant Editor, respectively, enough. Not only are they incredibly bright, talented, and dynamic individuals who truly want the greater Susquehanna Valley to be portrayed for all of its strengths, they're also incredibly hard-working, committed and so nice. And I mean "nice" in the best sense of the word. These are good people trying to make a huge difference in the place they live, work, eat and sleep. So, click here to check out the complete article. And when you see the slick yellow and white cover at a local retailer, pick up the entire May/June issue for yourself. Do it as a thank you to them for me. Without Donovan and Keely, and without //you,// Essen would still be a dream. //Okay, can somebody pinch me now?//
Monday, April 21, 2008
They're Here!
I could feel it in the air as I entered Market. Last Tuesday, the day we've been anxiously awaiting arrived ... ASPARAGUS!
I was late and beggars can't be choosers. Ten spears remained, exactly what I needed for a Create Your Own Essen experience to celebrate a 50th birthday. Even if sold out, just knowing there'd be more on Friday would bring sufficient satisfaction to get me through the week.
And what did Friday bring? The story only gets better. To complement the asparagus, I snagged the season's first rhubarb, more of the yummy spinach, North Carolina strawberries, loads of celery, horseradish, potatoes and eggs.
So, now you're thinking, what would one do with all of this stuff? Hmmm, reserve a seat today to find out!
I was late and beggars can't be choosers. Ten spears remained, exactly what I needed for a Create Your Own Essen experience to celebrate a 50th birthday. Even if sold out, just knowing there'd be more on Friday would bring sufficient satisfaction to get me through the week.
And what did Friday bring? The story only gets better. To complement the asparagus, I snagged the season's first rhubarb, more of the yummy spinach, North Carolina strawberries, loads of celery, horseradish, potatoes and eggs.
So, now you're thinking, what would one do with all of this stuff? Hmmm, reserve a seat today to find out!
Monday, April 7, 2008
Buy Local
If ever there was a time to consider purchasing locally grown and sourced products, this is it. Prices on most goods and services have skyrocketed, driven in large part by soaring fuel prices and uncertainty about where the country's headed. As an example, the price of wheat has soared 100% in the past six months!
Significantly more money recirculates in Lancaster when we buy from locally owned, rather than nationally owned, businesses. More money stays in the community because locally owned businesses purchase from other local businesses, service providers, and farms. Purchasing locally helps grow other Lancaster businesses as well as Lancaster's tax base.
Food is a great place to start, especially here in Lancaster where it's fairly easy to buy locally sourced items. With our county's agricultural bounty, we have many opportunities to buy locally grown and produced grains, dairy, meats, fruits and vegetables. By doing so, we'll be helping preserve the environment, we'll increase the nutritional value of what we eat (food loses "the good stuff" the longer it's out of the ground) and we'll be strengthening Lancaster by investing our food dollar close to home. Only twenty cents of every dollar, when buying at a large supermarket, go to the grower. Eighty cents go to various middlemen. Cut them out of the picture, buy your food directly from your local farmer or farmer's market and keep 100% of your hard earned money in Lancaster.
Sounds like an easy way to make a big difference!
Significantly more money recirculates in Lancaster when we buy from locally owned, rather than nationally owned, businesses. More money stays in the community because locally owned businesses purchase from other local businesses, service providers, and farms. Purchasing locally helps grow other Lancaster businesses as well as Lancaster's tax base.
Food is a great place to start, especially here in Lancaster where it's fairly easy to buy locally sourced items. With our county's agricultural bounty, we have many opportunities to buy locally grown and produced grains, dairy, meats, fruits and vegetables. By doing so, we'll be helping preserve the environment, we'll increase the nutritional value of what we eat (food loses "the good stuff" the longer it's out of the ground) and we'll be strengthening Lancaster by investing our food dollar close to home. Only twenty cents of every dollar, when buying at a large supermarket, go to the grower. Eighty cents go to various middlemen. Cut them out of the picture, buy your food directly from your local farmer or farmer's market and keep 100% of your hard earned money in Lancaster.
Sounds like an easy way to make a big difference!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Asparagus On My Mind
Welcome, Spring!
Looking out my window, watching the barely there snow flurry, actually makes me think of spring - in my native Chicago, not Lancaster. Living on the east coast for 15 years, I have come to appreciate what spring is really about. In the midwest, spring exists only on the calendar. In actuality, we went from a blistery winter directly into a blazing hot summer. Here in Pennsylvania, it is truly amazing to see how color comes back into our lives - the flowers peeking out of the ground, the buds on the trees, the grass is really green again, and vegetables and fruits are once again fresh and LOCAL.
All this leads to my "thing" for asparagus. Sure, it's available at the supermarket practically year round. And, to those of us who buy it, it actually tastes okay. But let's be honest ... why put up with okay when you can have locally grown, in season spectacular? Add to the equation that spectacular asparagus is only available for a few short weeks, somewhere between late April/early May to "when it's done." It's one of the first official markers that tells us spring is not only here, it's here to stay. It's for real.
Now you understand why Essen's Asparagus Festival pushes the limit on spring's arrival. If I waited for its actual entry into Lancaster, you might miss the chance to try out new ways to eat it until you're sick of it. Which is one problem I look forward to every spring. Welcome home!
Looking out my window, watching the barely there snow flurry, actually makes me think of spring - in my native Chicago, not Lancaster. Living on the east coast for 15 years, I have come to appreciate what spring is really about. In the midwest, spring exists only on the calendar. In actuality, we went from a blistery winter directly into a blazing hot summer. Here in Pennsylvania, it is truly amazing to see how color comes back into our lives - the flowers peeking out of the ground, the buds on the trees, the grass is really green again, and vegetables and fruits are once again fresh and LOCAL.
All this leads to my "thing" for asparagus. Sure, it's available at the supermarket practically year round. And, to those of us who buy it, it actually tastes okay. But let's be honest ... why put up with okay when you can have locally grown, in season spectacular? Add to the equation that spectacular asparagus is only available for a few short weeks, somewhere between late April/early May to "when it's done." It's one of the first official markers that tells us spring is not only here, it's here to stay. It's for real.
Now you understand why Essen's Asparagus Festival pushes the limit on spring's arrival. If I waited for its actual entry into Lancaster, you might miss the chance to try out new ways to eat it until you're sick of it. Which is one problem I look forward to every spring. Welcome home!
Monday, February 11, 2008
Kidding Around
Many clients have asked why I don't have more kids cooking classes, especially during the school year. The answer lies in one of the fundamental values of Essen: I have young, school-aged children and want to be around while they grow up. To bring Essen to other kids would require me to be working primarily when my kids were home - after school, evenings and weekends.
However, so much of what we learn from each other through Essen has do with what we're passing along to future generations. The balance that I've decided on for now is to connect with kids for a couple of weeks in the summer with Essen Kinder Kids Cooking Camp. Also, look for Essen Kinder Classes during the '08-'09 school year on select school holidays. Lastly, Essen's community service, year round, is devoted to educating kids in a hands-on format how to make good food choices and ways they can bring that experience and learning home.
Over the next couple of months, I'll be "cooking for energy" with the upper grades at The New School of Lancaster as a kickoff to their "Go For The Greens" week, hosting a mini cooking class at the Lancaster Jewish Community Center in conjunction with their Purim Carnival (think of a combination Halloween/Mardi Gras celebration) and working with the Junior League at the Boys & Girls Club. While the location, the client age and the audience may vary, the message is the same - good food simply prepared keeps people together. Try some today.
However, so much of what we learn from each other through Essen has do with what we're passing along to future generations. The balance that I've decided on for now is to connect with kids for a couple of weeks in the summer with Essen Kinder Kids Cooking Camp. Also, look for Essen Kinder Classes during the '08-'09 school year on select school holidays. Lastly, Essen's community service, year round, is devoted to educating kids in a hands-on format how to make good food choices and ways they can bring that experience and learning home.
Over the next couple of months, I'll be "cooking for energy" with the upper grades at The New School of Lancaster as a kickoff to their "Go For The Greens" week, hosting a mini cooking class at the Lancaster Jewish Community Center in conjunction with their Purim Carnival (think of a combination Halloween/Mardi Gras celebration) and working with the Junior League at the Boys & Girls Club. While the location, the client age and the audience may vary, the message is the same - good food simply prepared keeps people together. Try some today.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Dinner Day?!
I love January. I've had just long enough of a break from routine, which I abhor, that I'm actually craving it. The absence of daily doing combined with family vacation time enable the idea part of my brain just long enough to actually gel and begin to formulate fresh thoughts, or at least put old concepts together in new ways. My social calendar is empty. I'm fresh, I'm ready to go and I'm ready to catch up.
It seems I'm not alone. Did you know that in 2002 the legislature of Pennsylvania designated the second Saturday of January a national holiday, "Invite Your Neighbor to Dinner Day" or "Dinner Day" for short? The website states, "invite your neighbor to dinner as a celebration of the values that make America a terrific place to live. Ask a neighbor you've never met or one you've only waved at, but never taken the time to get to know. Take a moment to break some bread together in one of your homes or out on the town. Either way, be sure to build a bridge to your neighbors and take down any fences that have kept you apart."
It feels sad to think that we've become so isolated as a society that someone felt the need to create a state holiday just so he could have the "excuse" to invite people over to dinner. While one part of me thinks "What is our problem?" another voice knows where this guy in Bucks county is coming from. Long before I created Essen, I just loved to cook - because it was creative, because it was relaxing, because it tasted good and because it brought people I liked together. But over time, I would entertain less often. It seemed to be uncool to put time into preparing for people you care about. People almost felt uncomfortable or put out that you would do something nice for them. And over time we'd all see each other less often. A conversation in a noisy restaurant will never compare to a relaxing chat across my kitchen counter.
Now, I didn't wait for the Smiths of Bucks county to give me permission to have friends over for dinner. I got sick and tired of overpriced and unhealthy restaurant fare. And I missed really talking to my friends. Today, I often find January is one of our busier entertaining months. I can call friends with last minute invitations and they're usually free. And, boy, are they ready for simple food and honest conversation. No stress, no fuss - with or without permission from the Commonwealth.
It seems I'm not alone. Did you know that in 2002 the legislature of Pennsylvania designated the second Saturday of January a national holiday, "Invite Your Neighbor to Dinner Day" or "Dinner Day" for short? The website states, "invite your neighbor to dinner as a celebration of the values that make America a terrific place to live. Ask a neighbor you've never met or one you've only waved at, but never taken the time to get to know. Take a moment to break some bread together in one of your homes or out on the town. Either way, be sure to build a bridge to your neighbors and take down any fences that have kept you apart."
It feels sad to think that we've become so isolated as a society that someone felt the need to create a state holiday just so he could have the "excuse" to invite people over to dinner. While one part of me thinks "What is our problem?" another voice knows where this guy in Bucks county is coming from. Long before I created Essen, I just loved to cook - because it was creative, because it was relaxing, because it tasted good and because it brought people I liked together. But over time, I would entertain less often. It seemed to be uncool to put time into preparing for people you care about. People almost felt uncomfortable or put out that you would do something nice for them. And over time we'd all see each other less often. A conversation in a noisy restaurant will never compare to a relaxing chat across my kitchen counter.
Now, I didn't wait for the Smiths of Bucks county to give me permission to have friends over for dinner. I got sick and tired of overpriced and unhealthy restaurant fare. And I missed really talking to my friends. Today, I often find January is one of our busier entertaining months. I can call friends with last minute invitations and they're usually free. And, boy, are they ready for simple food and honest conversation. No stress, no fuss - with or without permission from the Commonwealth.
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