Grist For the Mill: Winter 2024
Dear Reader,
I’m so excited to bring you our winter issue, which is filled with articles about dynamic creatives in our local food community, all of whom happen to be women. Call it serendipity but I know you’ll be inspired by this collection of stories about the mothers and daughters who help make Li’l Rhody a food-driven destination and a delicious place to live, including the mother whose bread adorns our cover this season. From “foodpreneurs” to bakers to chefs and community composters, each woman in this issue has a unique story to tell of life in the business of food or, in the case of Tetee Kromah, someone in the business of building soil so that food can grow.
The moving story of Kromah’s journey is one of remarkable resilience in the face of adversity—from war-torn Liberia to urban Providence, where Kromah now actively makes the capital city a healthier place to live and breathe. Her story is about a lot more than food scraps and offers insight into climate-change impacts and community building and how the work of one woman can make a difference to our community and our planet.
When it comes to other female badassery in the world of food, you’ll also want to meet the chefs and co-owners behind Amaryllis, a “globally influenced farm-to-table” BYOB destination in Providence which is small in size and big on flavor. Restaurateurs Tracy DeFusco and Deanna Marandola design their menus around what’s available each week at the several local farms that provide their ingredients. They’ve shared three delicious winter-inspired recipes that are perfect pairings for a menu that will warm both body and soul. You can make their recipes at home or try them with the chefs as they share their kitchen wisdom and cooking prowess at our wintertime cooking class at Gil’s Appliances in Bristol. We will open class sign-ups soon – stay tuned as classes typically sell out. It will be a fun-filled evening of good wine, food and community—a great way to brighten winter’s dark days.
Earlier this year I was approached by a woman about her graduate school thesis project at RISD, an illustrated book titled Guilty Pleasure. She asked if I would be interested in seeing it. Irene Chung, in her words, “set out to interview 15 local businesswomen in the wine and food industries, which tend to supply products that women experience as both pleasurable and guilt-inducing. Each speaker offered her unique perspective on guilty pleasures—what they are, what the concept means, and why anyone would ever feel guilty about them.” I knew upon seeing Chung’s book that it belonged in the pages of Edible Rhody. Chung provided us with three shortened excerpts (along with fetching original illustrations) in which women from our local food community open up about their feelings around food, health, body image and more. The full illustrated hardcover book can be purchased on Chung’s website and features well-known women from Rhode Island’s food scene plus several voices from the Boston area. The words of the women interviewed will surely give you food for thought.
As we say goodbye to 2024 and begin a fresh new year, be on the lookout in January for our website redesign. We’re changing up our look, but you’ll still find our helpful seasonal guides, stories and, of course, all our delicious recipes so you can get the most out of locally driven seasonal eating in the Ocean State.
And, as we head into this holiday season and beyond, please be sure to visit and support our amazing advertising partners; without them, this magazine you’ve come to count on and enjoy simply wouldn’t exist. Thank you, and we wish you the best for what we all hope will be a peaceful holiday and winter season.
Dig in!
Genie McPherson Trevor
