Eating Locally is Eating Seasonally

When one begins to make the commitment to buy food locally, many elements of  eating begin to shift.  Meals tend to  be planned after a trip to the market instead of before.  Creativity increases when one is given seven zucchini in a weekly CSA and must figure a way to use them before they spoil.  The first peas of spring, the last ripe tomato of summer, and the first beets of fall are all savored.

These changes happen because eating locally is eating seasonally.  Local small farms can only grow what uses the light and temperature conditions of the season.  CSAs, farmers markets, and gardens feature the ripe produce of that very day, not the same selection of produce picked weeks earlier you will find in the grocery.

There are ingredients not available locally during certain seasons, so one comes to appreciate what is available.  Corn and peaches, for instance, are only fresh and local here in Ohio during a few short weeks of the summer.  Lettuce is hard to find or bitter during the same time.  Carrots, raspberries, potatoes, beans; everything has its peak time for optimum flavor.

Even eggs, milk, and meat are seasonal when raised with traditional methods.  Summer eggs are large and deep yellow yolked versus paler winter eggs.  Milk tastes like fresh grass in the spring and turns more earthy in the fall.  Geese and turkeys naturally mature from spring eggs just in time for winter holidays.

There is a very real connection between traditional foods prepared during each season and local food production.  New lettuce arrives in the markets and in our backyard garden after the long winter just in time for spring holidays celebrating rebirth.  Sweet corn and tomato salad belong to the summer, just as roasted root vegetables, cooked greens, and squash give us their best taste in the autumn.  Even the way we cook changes: summer vegetables call out to be grilled while fall fruits begged to be baked.

Each season's produce can be preserved.  This is the best way to enjoy flavors year round, in my opinion.  Fruits can be frozen, jammed, or sauced, herbs dried or made into pesto, tomatoes dried or sauced.  Home canned treats taste like slices of spring and summer in the dead of winter.

Learning and enjoying what's in season  is a meaningful connection with nature and your food.  Try eating locally and you will find new appreciation for the cycles of winter, spring, summer, and fall.

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Don't forget that it  is Local Matters Local Foods week.  There are lots of events coming up to educate and inspire you to eat locally in Columbus!

Also, Thursday marks the start of my Kids Cook series of classes.  Bring your favorite 3 - 5 year old to Sprout Soup from 11:15 - 12 this Thursday for a fun class about herbs!

Seasons Turning Weekend

This weekend was a blur of summer fading to fall.  I put three garden beds to rest, including harvesting peppers and green tomatoes, pulling out honeysuckle and ivy creeping around the fence, and adding to our massive compost heap.

In discussion last night we decided to take advantage of low mortgage interest rates at our favorite credit union.  We hope to sell our Honda Fit and buy a mid 90s Civic or similar, using the car payment difference to refinance the house into a 15 year mortgage. That's not really pertinent, is it?

This morning Alex was planning to start on making molds for the kitchen concrete counter tops.  In reading about how to do so and the necessary steps after, he came across an article about using furniture grade plywood for counter tops.  We have had wood counter tops before and loved them.  In a fit of inspiration ten months in the making, we changed direction and are now going to install cherry veneer counters, and soon!

In the middle of thinking about the counter tops, I received a text from Trish at Local Matters.  She invited us to the lovely community garden at the ECLC school.  Really an integrated playground and garden, we loved walking the spiral paths and raised mound, playing with the climbing toys and monkey sculptures (above), and drinking the apple cider.  This event was a truly good time and a harbinger of offerings to come for Local Matters Local Foods Week.

While at the garden tour, we met a Farmer Paul and his chicken.  We have considered raising backyard chickens for eggs for quite some time.  When he mentioned he was selling several four month old hens, our ears perked.  Maybe now is finally the time for us to get into raising urban livestock.  We're researching coops and will certainly update progress here.

When we returned home, we planted three varieties of garlic.  Getting my hands in the soil after a weekend of big decisions always makes me feel grounded again.

We ended the weekend with a hearty dinner with family: roast pork and potatoes, risotto cakes with tomato sauce, portabella with goat cheese, green salad, bread, butter, and gourmet salts.  Autumn is beginning to settle in around here.

What is Local?

Part of the purpose of Hounds in the Kitchen is to advocate for local foods and local eating.  'Local' is subjective and prone to green-washing as are so many other terms.  With the advent of Local Foods Week coming soon (see below), now is a good time to talk about what is local.

Some define local in terms of miles: In 2005, authors Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon spent a year eating only what was available growing in a hundred mile area surrounding their home.  They chronicled their journey in the bestselling book Plenty: Eating Locally on the 100-Mile Diet, a highly recommended read.  They maintain an informative website, 100milediet.org.

The challenge of a 100 mile diet is that many foodstuffs a kitchen relies on are not available year round within 100 miles of every location.  Smith and MacKinnon made many a winter meal of the same few ingredients.  While they did have access to a wide variety of foods in the US northwest, there are many locations where a 100 mile diet might be so limited as to not give enough variety to maintain optimum health.

Some define local in terms of their city, state, or country.  Wanting to challenge ourselves to drink locally, we started the year 2008 with a resolution to only drink spirits, wine, and beer produced in the United States.  We chronicled our progress at All American Alcohol (an old blog, posts now transferred here) but abandoned the cause in the spring when we drilled down into the local foods issue.  We realized that California wine travels more miles to get to us in Ohio than French wine.  Same with the one brand of American made agave spirit produced in California vs. Mexican tequila.  We still often choose drinks that do not travel far, but we are no longer limited by geographical boundaries.

Here's our current version of local:  Eat foods that come from as close as possible.  Make purchases directly from the grower as often as you can to ensure the freshest quality and direct economic impact.

On many days this summer we were able to eat dishes where we grew nearly every ingredient organically in our own backyard.  That's local!

We visited pick your own farms to pick large quantities of local in season favorites and preserved them for the winter.  PickYourOwn.org is a fantastic resource of places to pick and methods of preservation.

But as autumn comes (first frost warning tonight!), our yard will provide less bounty.  We will use our summer preserves and continue to put up fall favorites for enjoyment far into the winter.  We will shop the farmers markets to buy direct from Ohio growers as much as is possible.  We will continue to purchase eggs and milk directly from a farmer friend.  We choose organic produce in the supermarket when Ohio produce is unavailable. LocalHarvest.org is a good source of farmers growing unique commodities across the US and I plan to buy some non-Ohio produce in bulk (like cranberries) from Local Harvest growers this year.

There are several ingredients that we knowingly consume from thousands of miles away.  Coffee and bananas, for instance, come from oceans away and are sometimes farmed with environmentally and ethically degrading means.  We choose fairly traded, organic versions of these long traveling ingredients and savor them.

When making the decision about what to buy from where, we choose local + organic first, local but not organic next, and organic fair trade but not local third, and if not other choice exists, not local or organic.  As much as possible, we apply the same standards to processed food.

During the summer, we eat about 70% local (by ingredients used).  That percent declines in the winter or when we are busy.

It took years of changing eating and shopping habits to acheive our current level of local food eating.  I plan to write several posts in the future about small steps you can take to change your habits if you are so inclined to eat more locally.  I hope you do because local food is often more delicious, healthy, and supportive of the local economy.

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A few Columbus local food advocates met last week to talk about Local Foods Week.   'What is local' was one of our points of discussion.  Lisa the Restaurant Widow has already written a post with the same title.  Others may also write their interpretations of local soon and I will link them up here.

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Local Matters, a central Ohio organization advocating for urban agriculture, local foods in schools, and access to local farm foods, is celebrating local foods with a week of activities for Local Matters Local Foods Week coming up October 3 - 9.

They have an impressive lineup of events, starting with the Market to Market bike ride Saturday the 3rd and concluding with a Finale at the Dublin Whole Foods Market on the 9th.  In between you will find benefit dinners, kitchen tours, a school garden tour, and a wine tasting.

Part of the motivation for Local Foods week is to build Local Matter's donation program.  They are selling $1 paper Local Matter's sprouts at a variety of locations.  If you join their 1000 Friends of Local Matters ($10/month or $120/year) during Local Foods Week, you can receive a special punch card for free Jeni's Ice Cream.

No matter where you are in your journey to eat more locally, education and support is key.  Participate in some of the events during Local Matters Local Foods week and you will enjoy the company of other local food lovers.  Subsrcibe to the Hounds in the Kitchen feed for year round encouragement to eat locally.

I am fascinated...

...with these over ripe exploding Italian plums.

Most fruits mold or shrink or bruise or brown.  The plums from our Wayward Seed Fruit CSA just burble juice from their tops like slow grenades.

...and this delicate squash tendril.

When I trained the squash away from the lettuce the other day, this coil of tendril clung to the bird netting.

How curiously beautiful life is when we take a moment to look closely.

Expanding the Urban Orchard

On Sunday we went shopping at our local nursery Oakland Park for garlic starts (they did not have any hardneck varieties) and blueberries (which they did not have either).  They did have a dwarf european plum tree at 33% off.  We were sold.

For awhile I have been hating on two overgrown shrubs in a small bed near our garage.  They are not pretty and produce nothing worthwhile.  The spot gets a fair amount of sun; at least enough for a small tree.  So, the shrubs had to come out before the plum could go in.

While Alex was removing shrubs, I went to Lowes.  I generally try to avoid Big Box stores, but Alex had seen blueberry plants there earlier in the week and we really wanted to expand our blueberry bed.  (By personal and non-profit accounts, Lowes is one of the more employee and human rights friendly Big Boxes.)

When I came home, the shrubs were out and the tree hole was dug.  Alex was a patient co-gardener and  re dug the hole when we realized the tree would be more centered a few feet over.

Lillian "helped" the whole time.  Sometimes her assistance was more trouble than help, but she does love to break up dirt clods.  Given some layers of clay in our holes, there were plenty of dirt clods.  She is also a helpful model of how deep a tree hole needs to be.

Lil was great at lossening the roots.  Then she sprinkled some alpaca green beans in the tree hole.  These alpaca feces are full of nutrients!  My neighbor Mary graciously provides them to me for free right now, but may eventually sell them as part of her burgeoning farm, Alpaca Green.

The plum tree was planted in the new hole.  I made Alex take a picture of me filling in around the tree, lest anyone think I always leave the heavy lifting to him.

Under one of the overgrown shrubs was a hearty and pretty azalea.  We thought it would do better out front, so I replanted it.

I worked on planting the blueberries when Alex got the idea that we could fit a new raspberry patch in our side yard if we just removed an overgrown rose of sharon.  He worked on it for a long time and finally sunlight shed on the side yard.

Off he went back to Lowes where I had seen the raspberries.  He chose three Fall Gold plants, which are supposed to be ever-bearing.  The spot we planting is not truly full sun but hearty raspberries will likely still produce.

We do not expect fruit from any of these plantings for at least two years.  We will pinch off blossoms from the plum and blueberries to allow the plants to establish strong roots before putting energy into fruiting.  In a few years, we should have quite the urban orchard!

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Summary of our Fruiting Plants

plant (variety) - quantity - location -years in ground

peach (dwarf) - 2 - front yard between sidewalk and street - 1

cherry (dwarf) - 2 - backyard - 1/2

raspberry (red early) - 1 - backyard by alley - 1

raspberry (red everbearing) - 1 - backyard by alley - 2

raspberry (fall gold ever-bearing) - 3 - sideyard - 0

strawberry (early) - 10 - sideyard - 2

strawberry (late) - 10 - sideyard - 2

plum (dwarf self pollinating) - 1 - backyard - 0

blueberry (multiple) - 4 - front yard - 1, 2, 0

Squash: the wonder plant

One of the most satisfying plants to grow, in my opinion, is squash.  Zucchini, summer, acorn, butternut, pumpkin, and the like are all tremendously easy, delicious, and big. Sometimes size does matter.

Squash seeds send out large leaves just a few days after direct seeding.  The leaves grow big and wide quickly.  Kids love squash plants because they literally grow overnight.

Wide leaves shade out weeds and reduce the need for watering.  They also hide the squash fruits, making harvesting something of an adventure.

In gardening, especially urban gardening, size does matter.  Squash takes up a lot of space, but yields plenty in return.  A friend of Lil's planted pumpkin seeds with his preschool class.  He took the seedling home and recently measured the plant.  It is 51 inches in length!  Several squash varieties including zucchini can be effectively trellised to reduce some of the horizontal space needs.

Squash happens to be one of my favorite fall vegetable flavors.  Zucchini is remarkably versatile fresh and can be shredded and frozen to enjoy throughout the winter.  Winter squash (acorn, butternut, pumpkin) can be roasted, pureed, sauteed, or grilled.  All varieties contain lots of fiber and vitamins.  Winter squash can be stored whole in a cool dry place for months at a time.

Before you cook your non-hybridized* squash, consider saving some seeds.  Just remove the flesh from a dozen or so seeds and set in a warm dry place until thoroughly dry.  We lay ours on top of the refridgerator on a cookie cooling rack.  Store in a labeled envelope and you can plant again next year. *Some hybrid plants will not grow from collected seeds.  Organic seeds and seedlings are, by their organic certification, non-hybrid. It's too late to plant squash and expect a fall harvest in Ohio, but warmer zones still have a chance to enjoy this wonder plant this season.  The rest of us will wait until the spring.

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Can someone help me remember to plant pumpkin seeds at the appropriate time to grow our own jack-o-lanterns?  That would be fun.

It's Garlic Planting Time!

We cook with garlic almost every day.  Did you know that garlic is simple to grow and so delicious when picked right from your yard?  It is!

The hardest part of growing garlic is that you must plan ahead.  Garlic needs to be planted in the fall, overwintered in the ground, and then harvested in mid summer.

To grow garlic, first you need a space in the garden.  Garlic only needs to be spaced about two inches apart, so you can have a good harvest in a small area if you don't have an expanse of beds.  Garlic does best with full sun in well turned soil.

Next, you need seed garlic.  The simplest, cheapest way to get these is to buy organic garlic from the grocery store and plant the individual cloves.  The risk in planting grocery store garlic is that you have less control over the variety and if the garlic has not been stored properly it might not grow.

Local nurseries sometimes carry seed garlic.  Be sure to call ahead, as the dates when garlic arrives vary by location.

This year we are ordering from thegarlicstore.com because we want to try some of the unique varieties they offer.  In Ohio, hardneck varieties grow best and store best, so that is what we recommend.

Plant your cloves in early fall.  For Ohio, you can plant anytime in the fall through early winter.  Our biggest lesson learned last year is that spacing can be tight.  Just leave enough space for a head to grow between each clove.

The cloves will overwinter with no visible growth.  They need the cold temperatures to signal side buds to grow.

As spring warms the ground, those side buds will develop into cloves.  The garlic will send out tall shoots over the soil.

In late spring or early summer, a garlic scape will develop.  This strangely shaped growth will develop into a flower, but is it best picked off to allow the garlic to develop into cloves.  The scape has a rough texture but tastes like mild garlic or strong chives and is delicious in stir fry or salad.

When the shoots finally start to turn brown and droop, it is time to harvest your garlic.  Pick one plant to make sure it is well developed.  When you like the size of the bulbs, pick all the plants.   Allow to dry in open air.  After a few days, remove the shoots from the top leaving at least a few inches of the hardneck. Scuff off the roots and outer sheath.

Store your harvest in a cool (around 50 deg F), dry, well ventilated place. Garlic  is deliciously milky and soft when it is young and will turn more pungent as time passes.

Mmmm....garlic!

Ideas for the Tomato Tonnage

After you have made tomato sandwiches, salads, stews, and more, it is tempting to just toss the rest of you CSA or home garden tomato harvest in the compost heap.  Preserving tomatos is not that hard and you will thank yourself in the fall for putting up farm fresh goodness.  Here are a few ideas for easy preserving: Make pseudo sun-dried tomatos: Halve and dry in a dehydrator or low temp (as low as you can get it, ideally 145 deg F.) oven for 12 - 24 hours.  They will be ready to store at room temperature when you can break one in half and see no beads of moisture.

Make easy sauce: Most tomato sauce recipes call for blanching the tomatoes, which is the most time consuming (and burn inducing) part of the work.  It is easier to just skip the blanching and puree the whole tomato.  Freeze your sauce for less work than canning.

Make ketchup: Ketchup (catsup?) requires a tremendous amount of tomatos.  Just yesterday I made a batch with about 15 pounds of tomatos and ended up with a meager three half pints of ketchup.  Homemade ketchup is fabulously delicious, making it worth the effort.  These are basic directions, which I modified by substituting molasses and honey for sugar and juniper berries for aromatics.  If you aren't obsessed with canning like me, just freeze in small containers.

Freeze: As a last resort, throw your maters in the freezer.  Whole is fine.  Put them in a container to reduce freezer burn.  When you thaw frozen whole tomatoes, the texture will be completely broken, but they are still useful to add to stews and sauces.

Even if you do compost rotten tomatos, all is not lost.  Our compost heap volunteers have turned out to be fabulous producers!