Locavore Nation

Washington not only keeps up with the times, Washington sets the tempo!

Locavore Nation, a project of NPR's Splendid Table program, is following the lives of a variety of people as they try to buy food that originates closer to home, and is organic. Hm-m ~ sounds familiar, doesn't it?

You can read about their cooking and shopping (mis)adventures here.

Red Pepper Jelly

Huge red peppers @ 3 for a dollar!

How can you pass up a batch of red pepper jelly?

RED PEPPER JELLY

9 big red peppers, chopped finely in a blender or food grinder

Allow the ground peppers to drain through a cloth for about 3 hours.

In a non-reactive pan, bring to a boil ~
3 c. white vinegar
4 1/2 c. sugar

Boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the ground peppers and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring from time to time. The mixture will thicken and reduce.

Pack into jelly jars and process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Makes about 6 - 8 half pint jars.

Serve on a sesame cracker with cream cheese and dollop of jelly. It's one of our family's traditional Christmas treats.

sustainable books

Hi all,
Two books I've heard a lot about lately are Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and The Omnivore's Dilemma.
Both books look like interesting accounts of how we -- er, most Americans, get our food. Anybody read either?

Also, our garden, but more impressively, our neighbor's garden is producing: cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, apples, blueberries, raspberries, & rhubarb. That must be where everyone's at (in the garden)!
Bon appetite!
-Anne

Zucchini Relish

Once you taste this relish on your lowly cheese sandwich,
you will require it every time!

6 large zucchini (not Iowa farm grandeés - just 1 1/2" - 2" diameter ones)
3 - 4 green peppers
4 large onions

Grind the veggies in a food grinder. Dump into a colander and allow to drain for about half an hour.

In a large, non-reactive pan, combine ~

3 c. sugar
2 1/2 c. white vinegar
2 tsp. tumeric
2 tsp. celery seed

Boil for three minutes, then dump in the zucchini. When it returns to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and allow to cook, stirring occassionally, for 15 minutes.

Fill hot jars with relish following proper water bath canning procedures. Process for 10 minutes. Flavor improves, as with all pickles, after a week or two.
Makes about 6 - 10 pints, depending on size of the zucchini.

July 5 Already!

So you thought people were excited about the asparagus?

No, the strawberries were really the most exciting?

Hey -- sweet corn's here!!
Last week an honest-to-goodness little-old-lady with a walker managed to nudge the Capt'n aside and grab - yes, I said 'grab' - sweet corn from right in front of him. He's doing better now, but it took a few days to recover.

We nabbed some strawberry jam today, along with sweet corn (the bi-color type), lettuce, broccoli, snap peas, onion, garlic, and bread. I think that's all we got, but it's hard to say. The fridge is full of green things.

On a zucchini note: I didn't pick or look for two days, and now it seems to be Zucchini Relish time.

Sorry, no pictures

I could have shown the big bag of green beans we bought, but we ate them for dinner on Thursday night.

I might have shown the corn on the cob, but somehow, it disappeared too quickly.

I had a beautiful caramel pecan coffee cake, but, well … same story.

The kohlrabi? They were good, too.

Onions? We still have some of them, but they're just onions, and you've seen them before. They are getting bigger every week, though.

New potatoes? Yummmm.

From our garden, we are getting a zuke each day. We also got our first green pepper this week, and a record-setting first tomato! It was full size, really truly red, and D-lish! At this point, global warming is OK with me if it means tomatoes in June.

June 21 Market - The Day It Rained (SUDDENLY!)

I shopped, I snapped, and I went indoors.

At home, we have zucchini from the garden, and a cabbage the size of a bowling ball which was a gift from a friend. Today we bought new potatoes, snap peas, and lovely blueberry muffins, bread, and buns from the market.

Plans?

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
This recipe works best if one person takes care of bun prep while the other one grills the veggies.

On the charcoal grill (and it helps to have a fine mesh grill screen over the regular grill top) ~

• zucchini strips - remove tops and bottoms, slice lengthwise about 1/4 inch thick, brush with olive oil & grill
• onion - cut into slices & grill; yes, they fall apart as slices, but no matter

Toast the burger buns lightly. Crumble cheese(s) on the bottom half of the warm bun, then spread the top half with horseradish mustard or your other favorite spread. I like to use a strongly flavored cheese like Maytag blue.

Assemble the sandwich by placing layers of grilled veggies on top of the cheese layer, topping with garden greens, and then the top of the bun. If you're quick, the heat from the veggies will finish melting the cheese.

When green peppers are available, they make a great addition to this sandwich; use cheddar cheese with peppers.

We made it!

Gosh, this FML is hard! We find time to exercise every day, get 8 hours of sleep, cook with non-processed foods, and even work on the house occasionally, but cannot figure out the method for adding in that weekly trip to the Farmer's Market or alternative food providers.

Yesterday was our second attempt in as many months. We went to the People's Co-op in Ladds Addition (the 'hood where we looked at that house, mom), where the weekly neighborhood farmer's market and an annual Solstice Celebration was happenin'. There was strawberry tasting, raw food demos, great music, and lots of hippies (so this is where they hang out - on Wed. nights). We didn't get anything from the vendors outside, mostly because they were out of everything but the obscure stuff - lemongrass, pea sprouts (mmm!), wheat grass -- a probiotic wet dream. But we did go into the Co-op and find a couple things.
Anyway, here's our take:

• Dave's Killer Bread - love the grains in it; can't even ID all of them!
  

• Yumm Sauce - a U Oregon favorite. We've been told that we must try this sauce. It's from the Eugene students' favorite affordable restaurant, so a nostalgia trip-in-a-jar. We forgot to ask our friends what it's for.

I know, pathetic take-home. Next time we'll make a list.
-A

Gettin' Closer

Behold the Local Food Sandwich (almost); from top to bottom ~

bread - FMkt
kohlrabi/radish slaw - FMkt
cheese - Shullsburg WI
bread again
greens - FMkt or my garden, I forget which
smoked turkey lunch meat - oops! -- Is there a source for local sandwich meat?
spread on the bread (hard to see it) - cilantro base from La Cruz
bread again

You can live on it.

June 14 Market

We got more asparagus, which was a pleasant surprise, and another loaf of bread, two bunches of onions (from two different vendors), and a lovely bunch of broccoli (the Capt'n's favorite). We also tried the BBQ pork burgers and had some raspberry tea.

We still have half a bok choi left from last week, along with a handful of turnips. "Someone" bought two bunches of them! We make a delicious baked side dish of new potatoes, turnips, and onions, but forgot to take a photo until it was too late. Yum!
The bok choi went into a stir fry recipe once, into a salad once, and joined the carrots in a beef stew which turned out to be quite tasty. For the stew, we used only the stalks, though, sliced into bite size chunks.

I gave many of the vendors the URL of this site. It seems only fair, since we're trying to promote their products, that they are able to see what's happening, too.

While I'm Thinking About It …

… has anyone shared this project and this blog with any of the vendors?

I think not, but could be wrong about that. Mr. Market Master, have you told them?

Another after-thought ~

if you have not tried one of the cucumbers, DO IT! They are kind of large, and I was worried about them being post-mature --- you know, wit huge seeds and that dry old alum taste/feel in the mouth, but the one we got last week was wonderful! I wish I had had two of them. It was young, juicy, tender, and very cucumberful.

Onions Onions Bok Choi Bok Choi

No market photos this week - forgot the camera on market day, but it was raining so I probably wouldn't have taken any pictures.

A small communication glitch resulted in double produce at our house. We each shopped separately but ended up with some of the same things. Twice as many onions is no problem, but two heads of bok choi is a challenge. We also purchased a loaf of raisin bread (heavenly cinnamon scent!), endive, and another kohlrabi. I also bought a small rhubarb pie, but it was gone before I even thought about pictures.

Two weeks ago, while gazing at a huge dishpan full of radishes sitting next to a box of fat, celedon green kohlrabi, I blurted out 'Kohlrabi/Radish Slaw'. The shopper on my right just raised one eyebrow and said nothing.

After a week of dithering about whether it would be too sharp or too spicy hot or if it would need a third ingredient (and is it sold locally?) ~ Voilá!



Looks like enough to serve 6 - made from 2 kohlrabi and maybe about 10 or 12 small red radishes. If you haven't tried kohlrabi yet, I can tell you that these are tender, sweet, mellow, and only mildly cabbage-y. They are perfect for your first taste of the vegetable.

May 31 Market

Our purchases this week include, from left to right, honey oatmeal bread, two turnips, basil plants, bok choi, one (the last!) kohlrabi, onions, one cucumber, and two bunches of asparagus.

Once I got home -- Ta-Da! -- Inspiration struck in the form of a turnip souflé.



Turnip (or other root vegetable) Souflé

Peel, dice, and boil two turnips, along with three spring onions and tops. Takes about 20 minutes. Drain.

In the blender, buzz up

3 eggs (be aware that the hot veggies can cook the eggs on contact, so add the other stuff first)
1 Tbsp. butter, or whatever you call it
1 c. milk
cooked turnips and onions
small handful of fresh dill leaves
dried up, worthless old heel of bread

Pour into a buttered 2 quart casserole dish. Stir in about a cup of grated or crumbled cheese - any kind. The dish pictured here has some cheddar and a little leftover feta cheese.

Bake uncovered at 400º. I'm guessing it was in the oven for about 40 - 50 minutes, but I forgot to pay attention.

The salad was made from garden lettuce and cilantro, half a can of black beans, and is dressed with roasted garlic pineapple salsa that we purchased while on vacation in Missouri, but which was locally made near the place we were visiting. Does that count? I don't care - it's very good!

On our scorecard; the butter is not local - well, who really knows? (It's not really butter either.) The feta cheese is far from local, but it was in the freezer so I used it. The eggs were probably laid in Iowa, but I don't know where. Likewise the milk. The heel of bread was the end of loaf I made two months ago, but which was made from ingredients purchased at the big guys.

Asparagus Pizza with Mondo Bizzaro Sauce

dough made from ingredients on hand - whole wheat/unbleached flour blend; yeast; water; salt; oil

Pizza dressed with green onions (FMkt), asparagus spears (FMkt), sauce made from garden & on hand ingredients, mozarella from the big store.
Split the stems of the asparagus lengthwise up to near the tips and they will be evenly cooked.

Mondo Bizzaro Sauce
(from the Moosewood Cookbook, 1977 edition)

Puree in blender:
4 cloves garlic
10 fresh basil leaves
2 c. tomato puree
1⁄2 lb. fresh, chopped spinach leaves
1⁄2 c. chopped parsley
3/4 c. olive oil

Stir in:
3/4 c. freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Heat gently and toss with hot pasta (note: it would also be OK to have the pesto at room temp. and toss with hot pasta, for a cooler kitchen)

Mondo Bizzaro also works well as a sandwich dressing or pizza sauce.

Third Market - May 24

It was rainy this afternoon, and cooler than the last two Thursdays, but the market was still quite busy. This shopper selected a gloom-fighting, cheery red shirt to complement the vegetables!



Our Market Master was fashionably attired in cool, yet casual denim shorts, and sported a blue paisley shirt, rain gear, and his signature Farmers' Market cap. Although he appears to be quietly intent as he listens, those who know him well understand that this is really a manifestation of his intently quiet style which is often punctuated with rich laughter.



No doubt the Market Master has a few extra copies of this seasons' Edible Iowa River Valley. Read the article To Market Two Markets that starts on page 24. If you need to find a copy of the magazine, check out Dodici's, or just ask Bob.




and BTW, Bob, THANK YOU!!

Our Rules

Ahem. Mm. Okay. It appears that our bar is set a little lower compared to all 'yall's (people actually say that). Our participatory intentions are more of an investigative adventure toward incorporating more local/homegrown foods into our tummies, and less of a full-on lifestyle makeover. We're learning that strictly following the FM lifestyle in these here parts is challenging. I'll support those findings in just a minute (can you tell I'm writing my grad. thesis this term?).

But first, Your Local A&P's rules:

1. Explore local & alt. food suppliers/producers - pick one.
2. Get to the F.Mkt. 2x/month
3. Stick more comestibles in the garden
4. Meal plan utilizing those three resources

So short and sweet, we did get to the Farmer's Market downtown last Saturday. It was packed with people, good food smells, asparagus, Peony stems, lots of greens & herbs, cheap perennials, asparagus, filberts, dogs everywhere, fern tips for roasting & eating, and the first batch of Hood River Strawberries (which sold out by 9:00). We got as many ingredients as we could for our Sat. night Spring Rolls - did pretty good, $$-wise. I don't think we'd go back very often, simply because it took us about 45 minutes to get there (driving + city bus). Our next goal: pick a FM closer to home!

-A&P

How 'bout This?

Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Curry (second helping, if you've noticed the debris on the edge of the plate)

red lentils - Stone Mill
sweet potato - FMkt
onion - already on hand (but only one left!)
spices - on hand, and from far, far away

Instead of pita, I made chapitis

flour - on hand
salt - on hand
yeast - on hand
water - local vendor

It was less spicy than I expected, and good enough for seconds. The leftover chapitis made a wonderful hand-held breakfast today, once they were warmed up.

Salad was spinach (from the garden) and walnuts

The 100 Mile Diet (book)

Are WFMers cool or what? We really know what's hip.

On Weekend Edition this morning I heard this story about a couple who set some Capital R RULES for themselves, and then published a book about it.

As for the question we're circling -- Is it food miles or organic-ness or supporting local merchants that drives this project? I am starting to think that it might be impossible to do all three at once except occasionally, but in the search to meet any two of these criteria, the third one (whatever it is) is likely to be met, too. What do you think?

75 Asparagus Recipes

~ just in case you run out of inspiration before you run out of asparagus

Victoria Island Farms Asparagus Recipes

Testing Our Little R rules

So let's see how tonight's supper scored.



from left to right: rhubarb sauce - rhubarb from the garden, sugar from Hawaii (minus 5?); spinach/asparagus quiche - spinach from my garden, asparagus from the FMkt., eggs & milk from somewhere in Iowa, cheese from Wisconsin, onion & nutmeg from the big store, and crust from the big store (Yes, I can cook, but not pie crust); radishes from the garden; bedtime snack - chips from La Cruz with salsa from Wellman.

and it was good, too!