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2 leeks, green and white parts, finely diced

1 teaspoon dried lime powder, or 1 preserved whole lime

1 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 cup minced fresh cilantro

⅓ cup minced fresh dill

1 cup shelled, toasted pistachios

Put the rice in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Toss the rice with your hands a few times to remove the starch, and drain. Repeat this process five times. Set aside.

Pour 3½ cups water into a small pot with a dash of salt and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, put the saffron in a small bowl with 2 tablespoons of water. Stir and set aside.

Heat a large pot over medium-high heat and add the oil. Add the leeks and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the rice, saffron water, and lime powder or whole preserved lime and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Pour the boiling water over the rice, bring the rice to a boil, then decrease the heat and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the rice stand, covered, for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. If the whole lime was used, discard.

Transfer the rice to a large bowl and fold in the parsley, cilantro, dill, and most of the pistachios. Season with salt. To serve, pile the rice on a platter and scatter a few pistachios over the top.

Smoky Eggplant Dip with Yogurt

Start this recipe the night before you serve it if you are straining the yogurt. To convert one cup of regular yogurt to ½ cup of thick Greek-style yogurt, set a strainer over a bowl and line it with a clean, lint-free dish towel or a coffee filter and pour in one cup of yogurt. Put the bowl in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, discard the liquid and scrape the thickened yogurt into a bowl. Serve this dip with bread or raw vegetables, or as part of a Middle Eastern spread with Cucumber Yogurt, Cucumber and Pomegranate Salad, and Chickpea Cakes.

Makes approximately 2 cups

1 medium-size globe eggplant

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ cup Greek-style yogurt, or 1 cup regular yogurt, drained overnight

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Dash of paprika

Turn a gas burner on high and use tongs to place the eggplant directly on the burner. Char the eggplant, turning it once every minute or so, until it is evenly charred, black, and tender, about 6 minutes. Remove from the flame and let cool in a strainer or colander set over a bowl. If you don’t have a gas stove, poke holes in the eggplant with a fork and cook on a greased baking sheet in a 400°F oven until soft, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool.

Pull off the charred eggplant skin and slice off the stem and discard. If you baked the eggplant, scoop the flesh out with a spoon. Coarsely chop the eggplant flesh.

Combine the eggplant, garlic, lemon juice, and yogurt in the bowl of a food processor and purée until smooth. With the machine running, slowly pour in the olive oil. Add the parsley and pulse a few times. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Make this dish at least an hour before serving so the flavors can develop. Taste and season again just before serving. Place the dip in a serving bowl and sprinkle the paprika over the top. The dip lasts for 5 days refrigerated, but will need to be reseasoned with salt after sitting in the refrigerator.

Resources

BEEKEEPING

The American Beekeeping Federation: www.abfnet.org

The Pollinator Partnership, for information on how to support pollinators and pollinating plants by discovering your “eco-region” and which plants to grow in your area: www.pollinator.org

Texas A&M University’s honeybee information site: http://honeybee.tamu.edu

COMPOSTING

Worms Eat My Garbage: How to Set Up & Maintain a Worm Composting System, by Mary Appelhof (Kalamazoo, MI: Flower Press, 1997).

FAIR TRADE

Fair Trade, for information about fair trade certification and products: www.fairtrade.org

GARDENING

State extension schools, a nationwide educational network linked to the land-grant university in every state that has practical information and classes on gardening, health,