The Great Locavore Meal - Part 2

Well, the meal was an enormous success. Despite the fact that the root veggies came out a little crispy, the whole wheat bread was not completely cooked through, the pork also did not quite completely cook, and I never got around to dipping the strawberries in chocolate, all of the diners were extremely satisfied and happy with the quality and flavor of the meal. I was very pleased by the moist chicken, probably the best I've ever tasted. One diner proclaimed the pumpkin pie to be the best she'd ever had. While it was a huge amount of work, I'd happily do it again.

Here's what I posted to my community about the meal. Note: for those of you who don't know me, I live in a cohousing community with a large common kitchen and pantry stocked with staples like baking powder and spices. We hold common meals three times/week, and I was cooking this as a common meal. Thanks to the cleanup crew for dealing with the messy aftermath! For more on cohousing, see http://www.cohousing.org. Now, on with the post:

Here’s a little more information about the local foods in Sunday’s meal, along with recipes for the bread and pie. Really, I can’t take credit for the fabulous taste of the food. Most of that came from the outstanding ingredients we obtained, so if you want to reproduce that flavor, BUY LOCAL!!!

The pork and chicken came in our meatshare from Chestnut Farm: http://www.chestnutfarms.org/. They were rubbed with canola oil from the coho pantry and seasoned with Maine sea salt and herbs from our garden. I stuffed the chicken with organic onion from Trader Joe’s and apple from the Boston Organics Dogma Box: http://www.bostonorganics.com/fresh/thisweekbox.html to keep it moist.

The vast majority of the root vegetables came from the Dogma Box. The remainder were more organic onions from Trader Joe’s (likely grown in California), locally grown but not organic new red potatoes bought at Pemberton Farms, and locally grown organic parsnips bought at Lionette’s Market (http://www.lionettesmarket.com/). These were tossed with thoroughly nonlocal olive oil, melted garlic butter from Mendon Creamery (not organic but local in Mendon, MA) bought at the Dairy Bar in Davis Square (http://www.kickasscupcakes.com/Dairy_Bar.php), Maine sea salt bought at Lionette’s, maple syrup from Ewen’s (http://www.farmfresh.org/food/farm.php?farm=2252) bought at the Dairy Bar, and fresh thyme, sage, and chives from our garden. I sliced the vegetables fairly thin and roasted them a bit too long (almost 90 minutes) at 375 degrees F.

The organic greens came primarily from Pete’s Greens (http://www.petesgreens.com/) bought at Lionette’s with a small contribution of greens and broccoli sprouts from the Dogma Box – all organic. We added the stems from the mushrooms. The dressing was homemade by Alex using locally produced blue cheese bought at the Dairy Bar, a raspberry-infused vinegar we got as a free sample in our Boston Organics box over a year ago, more Maine sea salt, and canola oil from the coho pantry.

The mushrooms were all grown in Pennsylvania. The white mushrooms came in the Dogma Box, and I bought the crimini (not organic) at Pemberton Farms. We stuffed them with sauteed kale and onions that had overwintered in our veggie garden and topped them with more of the local blue cheese.

I made the bread from scratch (see recipes below) using mostly flour from Littleton Grist Mill in Littleton, NH (http://www.littletongristmill.com/), which I ordered through Boston Organics but supplemented with some King Arthur’s Whole Wheat flour from the coho pantry. The eggs were from Pete & Jen’s Backyard Birds of Concord, MA (http://peteandjensbackyardbirds.com/default.aspx) bought at Lionette’s. The butter was Kate’s Homemade Butter (http://www.kateshomemadebutter.com/) bought at Shaw’s. The cream was from Shaw Farm in Dracut, MA (http://www.shawfarm.com/) by way of the Dairy Bar. I also used Maine sea salt and maple syrup for sweetener. All other ingredients came from the coho pantry.

The pumpkin pie was made from pumpkin I had either received in farmshare or bought at the farmers’ market last October, all organic, which I roasted and froze. I simmered it to cook out much of the moisture before blending it up for the pies. Oddly enough, the freezing process leeched most of the orange color out of the pumpkin. I’d never seen that before, but it tasted just fine. Eggs were Pete&Jens, cream and milk from Shaw Farm, sweetened with honey from the Boston Honey Company (http://www.bostonhoneycompany.com/) and just a little Ewen’s maple syrup. I used spices from the coho kitchen. I made the crust using Littleton Grist Mill flour, a Pete & Jen’s egg, Maine sea salt, and ordinary Crisco shortening because I was running out of butter.

The strawberries came from North Carolina by way of Heaven’s Harvest Farm (http://www.heavensharvestfarm.com/). I had planned to dip them in Taza chocolate (www.tazachocolate.com), but the meal had gotten a bit pricey by then, and we were also flagging a bit by the end.

Many people commented that it must have been a lot of work to put this together. Actually, it was pretty easy. With the exception of our outing to Lionette’s Market, which we’d been wanting to do anyway, we got most of the food quite easily. We get our meatshare once/month, Boston Organics delivers to our door, and we make regular stops at the Dairy Bar for eggs, milk, cream, and butter. This is a lifestyle we’ve consciously chosen, to eat locally. For more on why a locavore diet is a good idea, see:

http://www.locavores.com/how/why.php

http://www.lifebeginsat30.com/elc/2006/04/10_reasons_to_e.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Local_food

And here’s how to become a locavore:

http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/344/locavore.html

http://www.lifebeginsat30.com/elc/2006/04/a_few_tips_for_.html

Recipes:

Honey-Maple Pumpkin Pie

1 medium sugar pumpkin, roasted, or 2 cups cooked pumpkin

Pie crust (below)

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon salt

4 eggs lightly beaten

¾ c honey, slightly warmed

¼ c maple syrup, slightly warmed

½ c milk

½ c heavy cream

Make pie crust and place in a 9-inch pie pan. In a food processor or blender, combine all other ingredients and blend well. Pour into pie crust. Bake at 400 degrees F for 50-55 minutes or until a knife inserted one inch from edge comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Pie Crust

This recipe is actually intended for quiche and makes enough crust for two pumpkin pie shells or the top and bottom of a fruit pie.

3 c flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 Tablespoon vinegar (cider vinegar is recommended)

1.5 c shortening or butter

~7 Tablespoons ice water

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Blend in shortening with a pastry blender or fork. Combine egg and vinegar separately. Add to mixture. Add ice water as needed. Avoid touching the mixture with your fingers! Roll to thickness desired.

Quick Irish Soda Bread (adapted from the Joy of Cooking)

Preheat oven to 375.

Sift together in a large bowl:

2 c sifted all-purpose flour

1.5 teaspoons double-acting baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

Cut into the flour with a pastry blender, until the mixture has the consistency of coarse cornmeal:

¼ cup chilled butter

Stir in ½ to 1 cup raisins

Mix together:

1 beaten egg

2/3 c heavy cream

1 Tablespoon maple syrup

Add to dry ingredients and stir well. Knead briefly and place on a greased sheet or in a greased 8-inch round pan. If the latter, press down so the dough fills the pan. Cut a bold cross over the top and sides so the bread will not crack in baking. Brush the top with milk.

Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow.

Quick Sweet Whole Wheat Bread (adapted from the Joy of Cooking)

Preheat oven to 375.

Mix:

2.5 c whole wheat flour

¼ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons double acting baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

Combine:

1 beaten egg

½ c maple syrup

¼ c brown sugar

¼ c vegetable oil

Optional: 1 teaspoon grated lemon or orange peel

Add the flour mixture alternately with 2/3 c. heavy cream, buttermilk, or yogurt. Note: you may need to add flour if the mixture is too sticky (I added about ½ c more). Pour into a greased pan and bake about 50 minutes.