By Tonia Moxley
The Roanoke (Va.) Times
October 25, 2006
Kabocha, cushaw and carnival — there’s more to winter squash than the run-of-the-mill pumpkin.
Although Blacksburg Farmers Market organizers are calling Saturday’s winter squash celebration “Pumpkinfest,” all kinds of exotic fruits will be on sale there from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Buy lots because one of the virtues that [...]

By Tonia Moxley
The Roanoke (Va.) Times
June 15, 2008
BLACKSBURG — Goldenseal. Jewelweed. Motherwort. Dandelion.
The names of healing plants call across continents and through the millenniums, up and down the spine of the Appalachian mountains, echoing even today along the paths of a terraced hillside off Jennelle Road in Blacksburg where herbalist Lauren Cooper helps keep the [...]

This past weekend, Roanoke, Virginia celebrated its diversity of food and culture at the annual Local Colors festival. It was my first time at the party, but I tasted some incredible dishes and met some wonderful cooks.

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This just in from the The (Va.) Daily Press in Tidewater:
In the beginning, there was ham.
The very first English settlers in Virginia — the original Jamestown colonists — brought pigs with them when they crossed the Atlantic. The first wave in 1607 brought three, historians tell us.
In short order, that trio of oinkers increased to [...]

Nutty, light, succulent and slightly sour, these buckwheat cakes are based on the America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook’s whole wheat pancake recipe. Read about the great pancake debate.
Yield: About 16 4-inch pancakes, or 8 adult servings
Ingredients: 1 cup plain buckwheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large [...]