A lunch combo of a leftover 1/2 hamburger from my husband's grandpa's beef cattle, a handful of cherry tomatoes...this was a humble mid-day entry to the Eat Local Challenge. It was redeemed, though, by what will surely be my local dessert of the month: Jenny Lind Bakery's super chocolate brownie. Hang on to your hats....If you're one (like me) who drinks coffee with any cake-like dessert, you'll want to make it decaf to accompany this delicious little morsel, born in Red Wing, MN in the sweet bakery paired with the Smokey Row Cafe. Go there this month!
Dinner was super A++ I had forgotten about the simple BLT, a sandwich done wrong by so many diners and burger joints. Hail to the locally-born BLT, a classic to be sure. It is going down on record as my favorite end to a summer day. EVER. Accompanied by a can of cold beer, and mmm-mm-mmm.
Try it:
* Earth-Be-Glad bacon, cooked to your liking. It is smoky and a bit sweet. Get it at the co-op or the Farmer's Market.
* Tomatoes (from your garden if you're ambitious, from your neighbors' garden if you're lucky). I only have two tomato plants. The big boy I picked tonight was warm from the sun and made me smile.
* Country-Style bread from A-Z Bakery in Stockholm, WI. Ted and Robbi grow their own wheat!!! It is awesome bread, very moist and hearty enough to support the strong bacon and tomato flavors.
* Press it all together with a little lettuce, maybe some basil, maybe a piece of cheese if you're on the east side of the Mighty Miss, and WHAM. That is a good sandwich.
(Don't forget to save the bacon fat. You can use it this month as a good source of locally-produced fat to go with potatoes or eggs or anything, because WHAT DOESN'T TASTE BETTER WITH BACON?)
- Liz
Friday, August 15, 2008
Day One
Woke up just *Starving* this morning - my stomach must have been waiting for the food challenge to begin! Breakfast this morning was definitely a maneuver away from the unusual: I'm used to a banana smoothie with some powdered greens thrown in for good measure, and almond milk. But alas, NO! Today, hot cereal from Great River Organic Milling in Cochrane, WI, topped with a bit of maple syrup made by my folks (ok, so its not in AREA 151, but it IS homemade in Iowa, so its gotta count for something, right?), and then Organic Valley milk (La Farge, WI). I love that cereal. And now that its pretty obvi that Fall is on the way, hot cereal fits the bill.
For lunch? TBD.
-- Liz
For lunch? TBD.
-- Liz
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Diving In
Well, kids, the time is nigh! I'm ready to jump in to our Eat Local America Challenge - are you? Here's a few local foods I've been ranting about lately:
Oven-roasted potatoes, the small ones, rolled in butter and salt before I put them in a hot oven. Then when they're ready to burst, take them out of the oven, smash them on your plate with more butter, and sprinkle with some fresh herbs (ANYTHING from your garden, or the neighbor's: basil, parsley, chives, cilantro...)
OK, another one:
A roasted pork shoulder from Hidden Stream Farm near Elgin, MN. Slow roasted (oven cooler than with the potatoes), baking in the awesome pineapple ginger salsa from Salsa Lisa in Minneapolis. By slow-roasting the pork, it gets really tender and melty and works great in quesadillas, pulled pork sandwiches (Hey - stop using that corn-syrup filled barbeque sauce! You didn't like it being so sticky, anyways, did you? Experiment with a homemade ketchup based sauce from The Joy of Cooking or The Man of Bam's website). Man-o-man, pork sandwiches are good.
So, in the hours leading up to this Eat Local America Challenge, when you're looking in your fridge and wondering *what the heck am I gonna eat?* - remember this:
Eat Good Food.
Eat it with Friends.
Buy it Locally.
easy-peasy. Oh, just one more thing: ICE CREAM!!! Super yummy ice cream at your fave local food co-op: Castle Rock and Sibby's - both Wisconsin-made (where else?) and absolutely delicious.
Need a movie? Rent King Corn. You'll never want to eat corn syrup again. watch it. I'm serious.
Oven-roasted potatoes, the small ones, rolled in butter and salt before I put them in a hot oven. Then when they're ready to burst, take them out of the oven, smash them on your plate with more butter, and sprinkle with some fresh herbs (ANYTHING from your garden, or the neighbor's: basil, parsley, chives, cilantro...)
OK, another one:
A roasted pork shoulder from Hidden Stream Farm near Elgin, MN. Slow roasted (oven cooler than with the potatoes), baking in the awesome pineapple ginger salsa from Salsa Lisa in Minneapolis. By slow-roasting the pork, it gets really tender and melty and works great in quesadillas, pulled pork sandwiches (Hey - stop using that corn-syrup filled barbeque sauce! You didn't like it being so sticky, anyways, did you? Experiment with a homemade ketchup based sauce from The Joy of Cooking or The Man of Bam's website). Man-o-man, pork sandwiches are good.
So, in the hours leading up to this Eat Local America Challenge, when you're looking in your fridge and wondering *what the heck am I gonna eat?* - remember this:
Eat Good Food.
Eat it with Friends.
Buy it Locally.
easy-peasy. Oh, just one more thing: ICE CREAM!!! Super yummy ice cream at your fave local food co-op: Castle Rock and Sibby's - both Wisconsin-made (where else?) and absolutely delicious.
Need a movie? Rent King Corn. You'll never want to eat corn syrup again. watch it. I'm serious.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
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