Local food, national news

My blog only wakes up to scratch itself once in awhile over the winter time, generally on meat share days from Chestnut Farms. But now it's spring: people are digging, bees are buzzing, and I'm blogging again.

I joined the Facebook group Support Local Farmers, and they occasionally send information. Today they sent a link to farmfed, which is a site dedicated to educating people about where their food comes from and how to encourage healthy, sustainable farming methods. They have some nice photos of the White House garden ground-breaking.

Last year I cut off my hair for a good cause, but before that I used to walk around Moody Street in Waltham and was often stopped, "Can you tell me where the macrobiotic restaurant is?" Ah, long hippie hair. I didn't know where it was, but since people kept asking me, I figured I'd check it out. Yesterday my boyfriend and I went to Masao's Kitchen, a tiny little place that serves a beautiful buffet of simple macrobiotic vegan fare. You can order dishes of noodles or soup, but we decided to try the by-the-pound buffet ($8/pound). What's funny is that when you click on their menu, all you see are pictures of vegetables. Not bad!

There was a gorgeous dish of butternut squash and onion, which was steamed and brought out the wonderful flavor of the squash. I remember faintly that I was sick of squash by the end of the winter, but that memory is now overtaken by the sweetness of this dish. I had a lentil-chickpea dish with aromatics that was a lot like the dish my college roommate taught me to make. Comfort food. I rounded out my meal with some quinoa and steamed broccoli and kale. I did take little sides of a cabbage lotus flower mix, and a shiatake mix. My boyfriend also had the tofu, which he enjoyed, and brown rice. He ordered a side of the miso soup, which he really enjoyed but felt there was too much! (So I ate the rest...hearty and not at all silty like some.)

We kept discovering new food, but I'd already taken a pound and a half! So I left it at that, and ate it all. The restaurant was packed, and there were many families with little girls...perhaps a dancing school is nearby? It looks like they also do a healthy takeout service. The staff is extremely friendly and seems to love introducing people to the food. Most people there appeared to be regulars.

At the end of the meal I felt like I'd only eaten good things. It's rare to go to a restaurant and feel wonderful at the end, but here's your chance.