Photo: Joff Lee/Getty Images

My former colleague Nichol Nelson departed Gourmet some years ago, skipping town for a new life in Los Angeles. These days, you’ll find her going like gangbusters at TakePart.com, a remarkably energizing website devoted to helping you find a way to make this world a better place.

I’d forgotten how Nichol can sweet-talk anybody into anything. I let my guard down. And so even though I’ll still be blogging away right in this very spot, I’ll also be mouthing off on culinary matters every week at TakePart. They hired me as a food advice columnist, but you never know—I could surprise you and branch out. Remember those pithy letters from Ann Landers? I have a real fondness for that sort of thing. I mentioned all this to Molly O’Neill, and she said, “ANN LANDERS COOKS KALE! It sounds like an indie band!”

I want T-shirts. In the meantime, though, find my first TakePart column, on why I prefer cast-iron to nonstick, above the fold right here.