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About

Associate Producer, Here & Now Most recently, Jessica worked as an associate producer at WBUR's daily local program, Radio Boston. Jessica moved to Boston in 2008 and has lived many places since leaving her native Texas. After graduating from college, Jessica worked as a federal employee, documentary film festival producer, oral historian, university teaching assistant, traveling saleswoman and klezmer musician. Her work and projects have appeared in The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, Bust, Barnard Magazine, National Public Radio, Public Radio International (PRI), and the BBC. Jessica's freelance radio work has received various awards including accolades from the Religion Newswriters Association and the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma. As a Fulbright Scholar in El Salvador, Jessica collected and studied oral histories from the Jewish Community based in San Salvador. Jessica received her B.A. in political science from Columbia University’s Barnard College and her M.A. in history from Indiana University. She learned how to make radio from the phenomenal folks at the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies. Jessica lives in Somerville with her husband, twin son and daughter, and two cats. To learn more about Jessica’s projects, both current and past, please visit www.jessicaalpert.com.

Food Therapy from Gluten Free Diva

Photo: aMichiganMom/Flickr

Is anyone else petrified of the pressure cooker? My husband brought a vintage version back from Florida and I’ve been pretty intimidated. All of that undefined whistling, that guess-o-logy of when and how. I’m getting over it–but it’s been slow. Ellen Allard of Gluten Free Diva is one of those food bloggers that’s helping with my process.

In her latest post, she proselytizes about pressure cooking. And I’m listening.

Check out her recipe for pressure cooker quick & easy chicken soup.

Food Therapy: Pop Chip Falafel From Good Cook Doris

Photo: Good Cook Doris

These aren’t the chips you ate in middle school.  They’re yummy and the bag says they’re “popped,” not fried.  I don’t really know if they’re that healthy but wow, they taste REALLY good.

I may admit to liking these chips but when I heard “Good Cook Doris” was taking on a challenge to COOK with them, I had to take a closer look.  You should, too.

Food Therapy from Delicious Dishings

Courtesy of Delicious Dishings

The second-grader in me would never believe it: I LOVE BRUSSELS SPROUTS!

These green bundles of goodness are always a deliciously crunchy addition to any meal and I truly believe their flavor is malleable in fantastical ways.  Megan of Delicious Dishings, makes her home in Inman Square and is well-known around here for her fearless cooking personality (including her amazing ability to take on those saliva-inducing Bon Appetit cover creations).  Megan’s latest adventure is an adaptation of a Closet Cooking recipe for our trusty veggie:  Maple Dijon Brussels Sprouts with Noodles.

Any other brussels sprout secrets?

It’s Hamantaschen Time!

Photo: Flickr/Plutor

The Jewish holiday of Purim happens this weekend and that means it’s time to break out our favorite “hat food.”  I’m not joking.  The traditional holiday cookie “Hamantaschen”  actually means the hat of Haman, Purim’s notorious villain.

Mini (and I mean mini) history lesson:

Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction.  The plot was devised by Haman, royal vizier to King Ahasuerus.   Haman’s plot was foiled by Mordechai (a Jew) and Queen Esther (also a Jew) and let’s just say, he didn’t survive the experience.  The story is recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther (Megillat Esther).

Now back to the cookie.

It’s a yummy one and can be filled with a variety of delights including poppy seeds, prunes, apricot jam,  even chocolate.   But one cookbook author Jayne Cohen of “Beyond Brisket,” a cooking blog based at Jewish Woman Magazine, isn’t totally satisfied with those average fillings.  She’s challenging adventure-loving cooks to come up with their own ideas.

Nutella, much?

Jayne asks you to send in your recipe (as well as the reason for your ingenious filling) by April 1st. Get into the game HERE and grab her great recipe for hamantaschen dough while you’re there. While you’re at it, make sure you let us know your fantastic ideas.  Comment below!

More:

PRK On The Air: Brisket and Bread

Boston Brisket Company. Photo: Jesse Costa

It’s almost St. Patty’s Day and it’s a yummy day for your ears.  Sue told us about Here & Now’s Irish Soda Bread competition and if you miss the broadcast at noon, NEVER fear: get the whole story (and recipes) here.

Jack Epstein. Photo: Jesse Costa

At 3pm EST, Radio Boston will tell you the story of Jack Epstein and his Boston Brisket Company.

We took a tour of the Newmarket Square plant and let me tell you, these people make a lot of grey corned beef.  Epstein says his employees have been working six days a week for the past seven weeks and that they’ll pull in about a million bucks just with their grey corned beef sales.  Co-host Anthony Brooks also went down to Doyles in Jamaica Plain (they buy their brisket exclusively from BBC) to taste the final product.

Don’t miss the amazing audio slideshow!

Food Therapy from La Tartine Goumande

Courtesy of La Tartine Gourmande

Happy Monday.

With the heavy news and images coming from Japan, I couldn’t help but seek simple comforts today.   I’m getting it from my morning coffee and from a beautiful post from Bea at La Tartine Gourmande. Her photos and recipes are always divine but a recent post about a family trip to Crane Beach seemed most fitting today. Plus the madeleine recipe makes any Monday morning that much brighter.

Read the post and get the recipe HERE.

Bea informs readers that her long-awaited cookbook will be published in 2012.

PRK On The Air: Farm To Fork

Photo: Flickr/John-Morgan

Ever wondered exactly how to cook that parsnip you picked last weekend at the farmer’s market?   Today, Radio Boston introduces “Farm to Fork,” a new series featuring Tremont 647’s Chef/Owner Andy Husbands.  Join Andy and host Meghna Chakrabarti at Somerville’s Winter Market as they check out (and cook!) some seriously sweet carrots.

Get the recipe and audio HERE.

Forget May, One Chef Celebrates His Mother Early

Will Gilson, chef at Cambridge’s Garden at the Cellar is good to his mama.

The man (along with business partner Aaron Cohen) behind all those great pop-up restaurants is putting together a “Mother’s Day In March” pop-up with an all-star roster. All of this cooking and drinking and wining and dining is an effort to help his mom, Jodie, whose greenhouses at J. Gilson Farms were totally destroyed when they collapsed under the mountains of snow that fell earlier this year.

Hear about it from Gilson himself. Catch the event at the Boston Center for Adult Education this Saturday, March 5th at 7pm.