The Local Food Blog

Eating (Extremely) Local

What could be more “local” than your own backyard? Short of growing your own garden inside your house — which, of course, is not without the realm of possibility, given the huge selection of food plants now available that are suitable for container growing — the backyard garden is the extreme version of the locavore’s domain.

Whether you’re looking to save some money on groceries, take control over what goes into and onto your produce, or just want to green up your thumbs a bit, vegetable gardening makes a lot of sense for those of us who are trying to incorporate more local, seasonal foods into our diet.

If you’re an experienced gardener, you’re probably well on your way, with early-season crops like lettuces and peas already snug in their beds. But it’s not too late to break ground and plant a successful vegetable and herb garden, even if the only green thing you’ve ever grown before is mold on the unidentifiable leftovers in the back of your fridge.

There are plenty of books out there that offer excellent, practical advice on how to get started. Take a trip to the library or bookstore and start browsing. But better yet, find an experienced gardener who’s willing to take you under his or her wing. Nothing beats a helping hand with a green thumb!

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Blueberries in Bloom

Spring has finally arrived in the Northeast! How do I know? Well, there are a number of unmistakable signs: $4.00 cauliflower in the local market, fliers for community gardens are popping up everywhere, and the fruit trees in my yard have burst into riotous bloom.

Talking a walk around my backyard the other evening, I was amazed at how quickly the apple trees had sprung their buds. Seems like just yesterday, literally, they were dormant and gray. The branches are now loaded with leaves and blossoms, and bumblebees were braving the twilight to investigate. Humans aren’t the only creatures that welcome the heralds of spring!

The blueberry bushes, on the other hand, are not as prolifically florid as the apple trees, I’m sorry to say. We had a great crop last summer, but this summer may prove to be an off year. I was happy to see that the most productive bushes were nicely budded, though. Five different varieties of blueberries growing in a row, and the most productive are bushes producing big, juicy berries that are ideal for fruit salads and pancakes — and birds. Before we know it, there will be nascent berries where the flower buds are now. I’m already dreaming of pancakes.

If you have a small patch of sunny soil in your yard, and live in a climate that experiences temperature in the thirties for at least a month and a half out of the year, I highly recommend putting in a few blueberry bushes. You don’t get much more local than your own backyard, and you can be in complete control of what goes into the soil and onto the plants.

Considering the harvest they yield, blueberry bushes are fantantastically low maintenance, and blueberries, at only 80 calories a cup, are considered an antioxidant Superfood and a Superfood for the brain. Blueberries are loaded with antioxidants and vitamins, and they may even help slow age-related mental decline and stave off urinary-tract infections.   

In the Northeast, you can expect to harvest your blueberries in early July, but that may change due to weather conditions. Generally speaking, though, the Fourth of July is a great time to plan for blueberry desserts.

Happy spring!

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Win a Reusable Shopping Bag from Earthbound Farm

If you want to get a head start on greening your grocery bags, stop by Earthbound Farm’s Web site and take their Conservation Quiz. Score at least a 9 out of 10, and get a free reusable shopping bag!

Go ahead and check it out — follow the highlighted links on each question to read the relevant articles that will give you enough info to find the answer. You may find you’ll pick up a lot more than just a free tote. You’ll learn about viable conservation initiatives and get definitions for buzzwords like “carbon footprint” and “sustainability,” and you’ll find good suggestions for easy choices every one of us can make to help ourselves and the environment stay healthy.

While you’re there, mouse around the Web site. You’ll find info on Earthbound’s products, organics in general, and even projects for kids.

Have fun! But hurry — the bags are available only while supplies last, and the contest is over April 30, 2008.

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Curry-Roasted Cauliflower with Red Onions

As much as I’ve been looking forward to the vegetables of spring (hello, asparagus!), there are a few hearty winter staples I am reluctant to say my farewells to. Especially this particular preparation, Curry-Roasted Cauliflower, which I discovered only a few weeks ago, and which became an immediate favorite in our household. I’ve had roasted cauliflower and curried cauliflower, but the combination of the two is simply wonderful, and the vinegar adds the definitive touch.

Feel free to increase or decrease the spices according to your own preference, but do use a good-quality curry powder, either store-bought or homemade. Also, only fresh — not frozen — cauliflower will do.

This is excellent hot or at room temperature, and leftovers reheat well the next day.

Enjoy now, during the last few days of cauliflower season!

Curry-Roasted Cauliflower with Red Onions

• 1 head fresh cauliflower, broken into bite-sized florets and cleaned
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 11/2 teaspoons coarse salt (kosher or sea salt work well)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place cauliflower florets and onion slices in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, combine cumin, curry powder, paprika, pepper, oil, and vinegar. Whisk until all ingredients are well blended. Reserve 2 tablespoons of this mixture and pour the rest over the vegetables. Toss to coat.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray or brush with oil. Pour vegetables out onto sheet and arrange in a single layer. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Roast vegetables until fork-tender, about 25 to 30 minutes, turning with a spatula about halfway through.

Remove vegetables from oven and let stand for five minutes on baking sheet. Place in serving bowl and drizzle with reserved dressing. Toss again and serve hot or at room temperature.

Serves 6 as a side dish.

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What’s in Season Where You Are?

 It’s early April here on the East Coast, and I’ve been gradually “eating down the freezer,” getting rid of the last vestiges of the summer and fall foods we froze for winter eating. Aside from a few containers of soup and some pink grapefruit sorbet I made last week from a bag of beautiful, sweet grapefruit I bought for less than two dollars because of an amazing overstock at my local grocery, we’re nearly ready for the fruits and veggies of spring.

So what’s coming into season where you are? If you don’t know yet, check out this fantastic resource provided by the Natural Resources Defense Council. Simply use the pull-down menus to select a state and a season. You’ll see what’s in season in your area, from the field, the hothouse, or from storage. You’ll also see what’s available from neighboring states. In addition, you’ll find a recipe of the month, a link to find the farmer’s markets nearest you, links to neighboring state resources, and much more.

Happy spring, and season’s eatings!

(Image courtesy of Agricultural Research Service/USDA; photo by Keith Weller.)

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Bye-Bye Blueberries!

Seems like spring is not only a time for saying hello — to crocuses and other bulb plants emerging from winter-chilled soil, and soon, to asparagus, culinary herbs, snap peas, and spinach, among the first of the later spring crops — but also a time for saying good-bye.

Specifically, last night I said good-bye to the final half cup of blueberries in my freezer, all that remained of last summer’s abundant crop. Along with a couple of handfuls of frozen raspberries, those lovely purple-blue berries went into a casserole I made for last night’s supper. I thought of a winter’s worth of muffins, pancakes, and sour cream coffeecakes, all polka-dotted with succulent berries whose trip from bush to baking pan could be measured in mere feet rather than mileage. July, blueberry season here in the Northeast, suddenly seemed a long way off.

But today, as we were braving early-April bluster to take down a hoary old apple tree nearly thirty years old and hollow in more than one limb, I saw something that gave me good reason to smile. There, on the reddish green striplings of the blueberry bushes, were tiny buds, waiting patiently to greet the sun.

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Lemon-Dill Deviled Eggs

Wondering what to do with the surfeit of multicolored hardboiled eggs in the fridge left over from Easter festivities? Try this elegant spin on traditional deviled eggs. This recipe makes a party-sized batch. Although it can be halved, leftovers are wonderful mashed and used as a sandwich filling. Enjoy, and Happy Spring!

Lemon-Dill Deviled Eggs

• 1 dozen hard-boiled eggs, shelled and halved lengthwise
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup sour cream (can use light)
• 11/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• Dill sprigs or grated lemon zest and black pepper for garnish

Remove egg yolks from egg halves and place in a small mixing bowl. Arrange the hollowed-out whites on a serving platter. Using a fork or the back of a spoon, mash the yolks.

To the mashed yolks, add mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Stir to combine. Fold in chopped dill and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Using a piping bag or a small spoon, fill the egg whites with the yolk mixture. Garnish with sprigs of fresh dill or sprinkle lightly with lemon zest and black pepper.

Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. These can be made a few hours in advance. For best results, though, don’t garnish until just before serving.

Makes 24.

(Recipe adapted from epicurious.com/Bon Appétit April 2006.)

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Colcannon: Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a Local Food Side Dish

An Irish tradition at Halloween, colcannon (cál ceannan) is a perfect way to use up some of those lingering winter veggies. Feel free to use any variety of green or white cabbage or even to replace the cabbage with kale. If you like, you can sauté a few slices of bacon, crumble it, and set it aside to mix in right before serving. Use the rendered bacon drippings to sauté the cabbage and onion.

Colcannon

• 2 pounds potatoes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 large shallot, minced
• 1/2 head cabbage, thinly sliced
• Milk, chicken broth, or vegetable stock, as needed
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• Grated white cheddar cheese, if desired

Peel, dice, and boil the potatoes in lightly salted water until tender. While the potatoes are cooking, combine olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When butter is melted, add onion and shallot. Sauté until onion begins to sweat, and add cabbage. Sauté cabbage mixture until all vegetables are very tender. If necessary, add a little water or stock to moisten.

When potatoes are done, drain and return to pan. Add milk or broth as necessary and mash with a potato masher. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Stir cabbage mixture into mashed potatoes and transfer to serving bowl. Make a depression in the center and pour the melted butter into it. Sprinkle with grated white cheddar cheese if desired, and serve.

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Cranberry Orange Muffins with Walnuts

When I think “American fruit,” the first thing that jumps to mind is an image of a fat, red-cheeked apple, juicy-sweet and ready for its transformation into that most classic of American desserts, the apple pie. So, I was a bit suprised to learn recently that not only is that pie not really an American original, but neither is that iconic apple. 

In fact, there are only three fruits that are native to North America: the blueberry, the Concord grape, and the cranberry.

Cranberries are grown mainly in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin, British Columbia, and Quebec, with additional producers in Delaware, Maine, New York, Michigan, and elsewhere. Currently, well over a quarter of the cranberries produced hail from the New England state of Massachusetts.

Native Americans have been eating cranberries and using them for dye and medicine since at least the sixteenth century. Although others caught on to the culinary benefits fairly early on - Colonial settlers were enjoying cranberry juice by the 1680s - the health benefits of this tart little berry are just starting to be appreciated and acknowledged on a more widespread level.

High in antioxidants and a good source of fiber and vitamin C, cranberries contribute a lot of flavor for a small caloric price-only about 50 calories a cup. And current research shows that compounds in cranberries, called proanthocyanidins, may actually help prevent urinary tract infections by keeping bacteria from adhering to the walls of the bladder and urethra - and this applies to cranberries in juice, sauce, and fresh or dried berry form. Emerging research supports possible benefits in the areas of dental and cardiac health, cancer and peptic ulcer prevention, and blood cholesterol regulation.

To celebrate the start of the cranberry growing season, which begins in April, here is a wonderfully fragrant, simple recipe for Cranberry Orange Muffins with Walnuts. If you have a bag of whole cranberries in your freezer, purchased 2-for-1 post-Thanksgiving and forgotten till now, go ahead and use those. No thawing or chopping required. If you want to substitute dried, sweetened cranberries, just soak 1/2 cup of dried cranberries in orange juice for about 30 minutes, and don’t add the extra 2 tablespoons of sugar.

Cranberry Orange Nut Muffins

• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 2 large organic eggs
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 6-cup jumbo muffin pan or 12-cup standard muffin pan.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine flours, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt.

Roughly chop fresh cranberries and place in a small mixing bowl along with walnuts. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar and orange zest, stir to combine, and set aside.

In a small mixing bowl, lightly beat the two eggs. Add orange juice and oil and stir. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients and pour in wet ingredients. Stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Fold in cranberry mixture. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes for jumbo muffins or 15 to 20 minutes for standard muffins. Let cool for 5 minutes in pan and then remove to rack.

Makes 6 jumbo or 12 standard-size muffins

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Good-bye Butternut: Cutting Winter Squash

Ah, March. A little bit closer to spring here in the Northeast. That’s spring as in asparagus season! But for now, we’ve still got quite a bit of snow cover and it’s at least 10 degrees below the freezing mark as I write this. So while those little asparagus shoots are still snug in their well-mulched beds, what shall we eat?

Well, on my kitchen counter rests a good-sized butternut squash. This squash has been sitting in my kitchen since sometime this fall, a passive observer to the changing of the seasons. It has witnessed scores of school lunches packed, been wiped clean of Christmas cookie batter flung from emerging beaters, and overseen the Valentine’s Day production of pot after pot of honey-lemon tea for bronchitis-suffering members of the household.

And now, it’s practically begging to be eaten, spared the indignity of counter sitting still at the cusp of spring, this beautiful winter squash. Why hasn’t it been eaten before now? Sentimental reasons. It makes me think of summer. How clearly I remember when this 5-pound squash was just a blossom, then a hard little bud, then a baby-fist-sized squash. I can still recall picking stink bugs off its tender vines. All those fond warm-weather memories encapsulated in this tough, tough shell.

And there’s that. I do kind of dread breaching the shell. (I can’t help but wonder how many squash-related casualties end up in the emergency room each autumn.) But actually, I’ve devised a pretty reliable method for butchering winter squash, so I’m thinking that today’s the day we clear some counter space and say good-bye to Butternut.

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