Eat Athens

Farm in the City (A Local Choice)

Mon, 20 May 2013 01:58:00 +0200

Swainway Urban Farm

You say tomato, I say tomahto... The simple pronunciation of a word is just one example of how your individual background depicts your distinct way of doing something. At Swainway Urban Farm in Central Ohio, their way is just as unique as our varied everyday jargon. Here, they are growing not-so-common-to-Columbus certified organic crops from a modest plot of land smack dab in the heart of the city center.

In 2006, Joseph Swain purchased his current property; covered in tall grasses and weeds it barley resembled the lush green space it is today. He started a small personal garden and was shocked at the quantity of food being grown on such an unassuming space. As things expanded and his production rapidly increased, Joseph realized there was enough food being produced to turn his hobby into a full time business and jumped at the opportunity to become an urban farmer, providing the community with the fruits of his labor. The Swainway brand was born of a combination of Joseph’s surname and his penchant for doing things his own “way,” and to get the ball rolling he tilled the entire backyard and in the spring of 2010 constructed his season extending hoop house. Another early decision facing Joseph and the future of Swainway was deciding what to grow on this urban farm and, in turn, offer to his eager patrons. Due to their notable absence at local farmers markets and their pure square foot value, Joseph committed to providing year round nutrient-dense mushrooms and microgreens. Coupled with his production of unique produce is Joseph’s passion for the soil, as he vowed to take care of the land and became a certified organic urban farm. It is important to Joseph to use organic seeds and organic soil for everything he grows, thus breaking from the standards of conventional agriculture. As we were discussing that the added paperwork required to be a certified organic farm was worth the effort, Joseph reiterated his dedication by stating, “healthy soil, healthy food, healthy us”.

Currently, the majority of Swainway’s crops are being grown in several temperature controlled rooms of Joseph’s home on the property. In fact, while visiting the farm, I peaked through the back window to see the endless shelves of bright green micro radish, kale, and pea shoots. To keep his beautifully delicate oyster mushrooms at the market all year long he uses straw columns to make production more streamline and not as intermittent. Using every square inch of his property is imperative and Joseph was proud to announce that he was expanding his operation. Swainway Urban Farm recently partnered with Northridge Organic Farm, and the pairing will enable them to provide a greater offering to their customers. Don’t worry, Swainway promises to keep supplying unique crops like micros and mushrooms, but with the added acreage they will be able to dedicate a portion of their space to experimenting with new crop varieties unique to the Central Ohio market. So where can you find Swainway Urban Farm produce? Getting your hands on the Swainway harvest is as simple and easy as visiting the Clintonville, Worthington, or Westerville farmers markets.

Swainway Urban Farm isn’t just growing micros and mushrooms on their micro-sized farm. Joseph is happy to share his knowledge during his farm tours and encourages you to plant your own garden. For the past four years, he has been offering a vast variety of potted certified organic seedlings including numerous heirloom tomatoes (slicing, paste, salad, cherry), various sweet and hot peppers, and herbs. This year, to make things easier on myself, I opted to purchase Swainway Urban Farm’s pop-in-the-ground ready starters and let them do most of the work for me. Potato, potahto, tomato, tomahto; one thing is for certain – once you visit Swainway Urban Farm you’re sure to leave equipped with delicious food and plants to grow your way, and you won’t be calling anything off!

Oyster Mushroom

The Swainway Urban Farm oyster mushrooms (pictured left) traveled 0 miles to Columbus, while the dried oyster mushrooms (pictured right) are distributed by a domestic company in Los Alamitos, CA 2,250 miles away and are a Product of China thousands of miles from Columbus!

Not only are oyster mushrooms a flavorful addition to many dishes, but they are packed full of cancer fighting properties, antioxidants, protein and will help lower your cholesterol.

References

5 Health Benefits of Mushrooms
How Mushrooms Keep You Healthy

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Click on the recipe cards to print your copy:

5 Color Meal (Consider the Thought)

Thu, 16 May 2013 21:01:00 +0200

I love the ease of the five color approach to a Japanese meal. There are no food pyramids or percentages. Get the colors in any which way, but get the color, and you get an easy approach to a healthy meal. The five colors? White, black, red, green, and yellow/orange. Here's some eye candy.

5 colors to healthy diet-- white, black, red, green, & yellow/orange

Taco Rice Salad (Consider the Thought)

Fri, 03 May 2013 04:10:00 +0200

I admit it. I lived in Japan too long-- I want rice in my taco salad! My friend Kendo Mama, introduced me to it, and it's a keeper.

Taco Rice Salad

It's not on any local restaurant menus, although, Casa did accommodate my request with their vegetarian chili taco salad. However, the original is served without beans and tofu. The difference in taste has meant that I kept thinking about it.

The taco seasoning was the rate limiting step; I couldn't bring myself to buy a package of processed taco seasoning from El Paso even if it did taste good in my friend's salad. Finally, I did a Google search and found this recipe for homemade taco seasoning. I, ah, made alot.

I wanted to send some to Kendo Mama to try, plus a few Kodomo no ni Children's Day packages have arrived from Japan. I have some thank-yous to send out, and a little homemade taco seasoning is just the thing to spice it up.

The best part about the homemade taco seasoning? Taste is great and there are no preservatives nor any other unnecessary gunk in it. I had to ride my bike twice to the Farmacy to get enough chili powder which just means that this batch is half organic, one of the quirks of living in the hills of Ohio.

This is the recipe for the Taco Rice Salad I ate at my friend's house in Japan. Vegetarians could try the seasoning with tempeh or tofu. I did use salsa instead of tomatoes-- it's not quite tomato season here yet. I had forgotten how pleasant it is to have the warm rice and ground beef with the cool crunchy lettuce.

I served each layer separately so that the kiddos could make dinner their way. It was a win all the way around the table. My husband was absent, but he'll eat my worst mistakes and say, "I'm just happy there's food on the table." I love cooking for him, it's the two kids who wrack my brains. Try this at your table. Use the link to make the seasoning-- I can vouch for the recipe.

Idatakimasu I humbly receive,
Kim

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Ground Beef cooked with taco seasoning and water

Taco Rice Salad

Adapted from Aya Tambata

Ingredients

Hot Cooked Japanese Rice or whatever kind you like

Cooked Ground Beef + Taco seasoning + Water-- cook until water evaporates

Mexican Mix or Monterrey Jack Cheese, grated

Lettuce, shredded

Salsa or Diced Tomato

Avocado, sliced

Corn Chips, crushed

Fresh Cilantro, 1 to 2 springs, for garnish

Hot Sauce, for garnish

What to do

Cook the rice.
Saute the ground beef until browned. Add taco seasoning and water. Cook until the water is evaporated, stir often. Set aside.
Prep vegetables: lettuce, tomato if using, avocado, and cilantro.
Layer lettuce, rice, beef, cheese, avocado slices, corn chips, tomato or salsa, and garnish with a spring of cilantro and hot sauce to taste.

Another Springtime Bake-O-Rama! (Pizza Goon)

Thu, 02 May 2013 03:20:54 +0200

Last Saturday, we baked a helluva lot of flatbreads and pizzas and I schlepped them in three trips to the Athens Farmers Market, one of the best in the country. I have to admit, my world-be-damned wardrobe was fit for the bread geek I am but at least no one called me a “Hipster”, (I [...]

We had some massive Flinstone wheel loaves and some fougasse like the “Leek-a-choke”, (above center).

The delicious curry, raisin and cherry ladder bread came also as well as the ramp pizza al metro, (left) and the pizza Siciliana, (right).

I gotta say, I am infatuated with my Sicilian pizza and the crumb that forms from a dough that is cold-fermented for at least three days. If you taste a slice of this pizza, you’ll just die…of sheer pleasure.

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So, there it was along with some other baked goods. We are looking forward to another great weekend this week with some fabulous local stuff, so if your feeling crusty come on down to Athens, Ohio and enjoy some great gluten bark!

All You Mead is Honey (A Local Choice)

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 21:30:00 +0200

Brother’s Drake Meadery & Bar

If you are not familiar with the alcoholic beverage classified as mead don’t worry, you’re not alone. Many are unaware of this ancient liquid made with fermented honey and water and are surprised to discover it is the oldest form of alcohol, dating back tens of thousands of years. Although this tasty drink has somewhat been left in the prehistoric dust, mead is making a triumphant comeback in Central Ohio thanks to local gem Brother’s Drake Meadery & Bar, where they are taking local far beyond honey.

To understand how Brother’s Drake Meadery established themselves as the local hangout in the Short North we need to turn back the clock several years. As the story goes, a little over a decade ago the Drake brothers, Woody and Eric, met Oron Benary at Schiller Park in historic German Village. The entrepreneurial brothers were home brewers who dabbled in experimenting with various fermented beverages. They knew they had stumbled upon something unique when they brewed a honey based concoction reminiscent of the current Apple Pie mead being sold at Brothers Drake today. As their friendship with Oron grew, the brothers were able to persuade him into investing in their new mead business based on the attention they were getting from the apple-pie-in-a-glass drink they had created. They moved into a modest space in Worthington and several years passed as they tried to figure out how to make this relatively unknown drink more popular in Columbus. The brothers, familiar with Oron’s successful corporate background, again approached him for help in marketing their mead. Although his feelings of becoming heavily involved with the company were someone ambivalent, Oron took over the business and became the main owner of Brothers Drake, while Woody and Eric remained silent partners.

Today Brothers Drake Meadery & Bar is run by Oron and his wife Sarah Jones. Sarah is responsible for discovering the bars current location where they have been serving up local honey filled spirits for the last two years. After moving into the new space, they brought on Eric Allen as General Manager and decided they wanted to offer more than just mead to the local community. I met up with Eric and he explained to me that part of the process of making mead is waiting the 8-12 months for it to age before it can be bottled. The current bar, that carries other local Ohio spirits, came into existence mainly because it keeps things rolling while the mead is aging. Eric offered to walk me through the process of making the Apple Pie mead that got it all started. Apple Pie is made once a year, when apples are at the peak of season in Rushville, Ohio. At the local orchard, Eric works with the farmer to press fresh fruit into sweet cider. The cider is then transported back to the meadery where it is mixed with honey, water, and yeast and finished with the spices cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove before aging at least a year to develop its flavor profile. In fact, after you pick up a few bottles of your own, Brothers Drake suggests that you hold on to one or two for a few years to allow the favors to mellow. When it is ready to be imbibed the mead has between a 13-14% ABV (Alcohol By Volume), is sans sulfites, and is naturally gluten free! The basic recipe of honey, water and yeast is the foundation of their mead, however their unique combinations of added fruit and spices is what makes Brothers Drake mead different than all the rest. It is important to them to use local Ohio honey (25,000 pounds last year alone!) and source local Ohio fruit from destinations such as The Blueberry Patch, Integration Acres,and Jorgensen Farms.

It is important to Brothers Drake to buy, make, and sell only local Ohio products. Eric echoed, “Everything we do here is from Ohio, period”. If you reside outside of Columbus, the only way of getting your hands on this spirit is by stopping in and picking it up in person or finding it at a local retailer in town. Out of principle they won’t ship their products outside of Central Ohio, and they know that by keeping their resources close the end result is a better quality product. If you are unfamiliar with mead or Brothers Drake, this is a journey worth taking. I suggest stopping in for Sunday brunch, belling up to the bar, and sampling one of their amazing cocktails like The Courtland - a combination of Apple Pie Mead and OYO Whiskey. Follow it up with a 3pm tour (given on Saturdays and Sundays) and stay to listen to one of the ever rotating selection of soon-to-be-famous local musicians wail into the night. Brothers Drake is open to letting the community use their space, and through their help with local organizations and musicians more and more patrons are becoming aware of this local hot spot.

Mead

The Brother’s Drake mead (pictured left) traveled 0 miles to Columbus, while the mead (pictured right) is distributed by a domestic company in Redding, CT 600 miles away and made in Billund, Denmark thousands of miles from Columbus!

References

Mead Made Complicated

Mead Soaked Strawberry Sponge Cake

I used Brothers Drake Wild Ohio Mead, but feel free to experiment with other flavors.

Click on the recipe cards to print your copy:

Sesame Batard filled with Baek, (white) Kimchi (Pizza Goon)

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:47:14 +0200

Springtime to me is all in the crunch, the crunch of a fiddlehead fern and the spring ramp, the crunch of the asparagus and don’t forget the crunch of a great crust on a springtime bread. Last weekend I baked alot of stuff to sell at the Athens Farmers Market and was unable to [...]

Springtime to me is all in the crunch, the crunch of a fiddlehead fern and the spring ramp, the crunch of the asparagus and don’t forget the crunch of a great crust on a springtime bread.

Last weekend I baked alot of stuff to sell at the Athens Farmers Market and was unable to take many photo’s because my tent kept blowing away. I was able to carry out a concept based on a wierd idea to introduce crunchy kimchi into some bread that was slit open like a gutted lizard. The problem with this concept is moisture. Any kimchi is bound to soak the hardened gluten strands of any fired-up bread. Enter some fabulous local chevre from the great cheese makers at Integration Acres, like the dollops of chevre on the pizza al metro, (above) with ramps, tomato and provolone.

So along with the “Sunny-side-up” croissants that Jake the baker made with an almond pudding and apricot, (left) and the traditional Pizza Margherita, (right) I crashed forward into the hinterlands of bread sanity, until I found it.

A great insane loaf of Asian deliciousness! Now, first the kimchi.

I first cooked an amazing amount of napa cabbage and kohlrabi with salt. After they became acceptably limp, I rinsed with cold water and rung them out like the laundry. I then introduced some garlic, rice vinegar, pickled Jeruselem artichoke and turnip and the rest of my pears and apples that have been “red kimchi’d” for at least three months- sweet, spicy and naughty- funky to say the least. After one day, this white kimchi didn’t really “have it goin on”, so I added alot of lime and lemon juice, cumin seed and the best thing ever- pickled cayenne peppers from Cowdery Farms! To this I made a dough of black and white sesame, Korean pepper powder and cilantro.

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Above is the video of our crazy baking and pizza frenzy at 3 a.m. in Athens, Ohio. I do have to endure bumping into delivery drivers and pizza makers at this busy time on a Friday night at Ohio Univerisity. Here I am rolling up these Asian batards before proofing. (Don’t worry, I took my hat and beard net off for this video, whatta ya think, we’re some hill-jacks from…Athens, Ohio?)

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After these great batards were proofed, baked and cool, I slit them and filled them with the Integration Acres chevre, (fresh goat cheese), that I mixed with fresh chopped ramps, mushroom stock and Chinese five spice. This enabled me to stuff the white kimchi in the loaf without turning it to mush.

I sold out of all forty batards within an hour then thought that I wanted to take one home…dang.

Hug a Root (Pizza Goon)

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:10:58 +0200

With the warm weather officially here, I’ve decided to do a great springtime favorite of mine. This pizza is filled with all the alpha dogs of the vegetable world; I started by using some great purple kohlrabi, crunchy parsnips and salsify combined with the wonderful oniony springtime ramps topped with some great wild watercress picked near a [...]

With the warm weather officially here, I’ve decided to do a great springtime favorite of mine.

This pizza is filled with all the alpha dogs of the vegetable world; I started by using some great purple kohlrabi, crunchy parsnips and salsify combined with the wonderful oniony springtime ramps topped with some great wild watercress picked near a spring at Shews Orchard along with some Integration acres chevre that I both used straight-up and in a sauce made with ramps, lemon and reduced chicken stock. All this is atop a pizza crust made with Shagbark Milling Company spelt crust.

Lets get started! This is all you’ll need.

2 medium parsnips

2 medium salsify roots

Juice of one half lemon

1 1/4 cup chicken stock

1 medium kohlrabi

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 and a half cups fresh chevre goat cheese

One handfull fresh spring ramps

Half handfull of fresh spring watercress

Preheat oven to 485 with an upturned heavty cookie sheet or pizza stone on the middle deck. Using the easy dough recipe for dough (and use spelt flour instead of bakers flour,) cut one, nine ounce dough ball and reserve for forming later.

Peel both the parsnips and salsify on a cutting board. You will have to place the salsify in water with the juice of one-half lemon to stop browning of the salsify flesh. (This lemon water will be used later). Cut the roots into coins.

Place the roots in a pan filled with heated one and a quarter cups chicken stock and cook for 8 to 12 minutes until just al dente. Strain the roots of the broth and reserve the broth.

Cut the kohlrabi at both ends. Remember that the “woody” side of a purple kohlrabi is on the bottom, (side where the stems are shooting away from), so cut this end thick. Turn the kohlrabi and cut through the skin with a knife with a downward mothion following the natural curve of the vegetable. (Like carving the skin off an orange.) Cut the kohlrabi into thin discs.

Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a pan under medium heat and place the kohlrabi in the pan with a pinch of salt and saute for 7 minutes or unitl browned on both sides. Place on a paper towel for topping.

Clean the ramps by cutting the root ends off and pulling down the purple collar near the bottom. Slice the ramp from the white end up into small pieces. The large leaf ends will go on top of the pizza and the small root ends in the sauce.

Pour the chicken broth into a pan and reduce until the broth is almost gone, (3 tablespoons or less). Reduce the heat and place half of the chevre and one tablespoon of the lemon-water in the pan and stir with a whisk. Add the chopped ramps and turn the heat off. The sauce will thicken. That’s okay.

Form the pizza into a disc and place on parchment. Top with the kohlrabi, then the parsnips and salsify followed by the rest of the non-sauced chevre.

Place the ramps on the pizza and into the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, always keeping an eye on the bottom crust. With spelt, you cannot tell sometimes from the cornicione, (crust). When out of the oven, place the watercress on top of the pizza, then dollop the sauce atop the pizza and enjoy the fruits of spring!

Take one seven-ounce dough ball from the Easy Dough Recipe on this blog.

Birds of a Feather (A Local Choice)

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 23:04:00 +0100

Bird's Haven Farms

The arrival of spring to Central Ohio has been like a laggard snail creeping out of a distant forest. Just as I was beginning to lose hope of seeing shades of green appearing any time soon, I was fortunate to meet Bryn, the youngest member of the Bird family of Bird’s Haven Farms, amidst one of their greenhouses bursting with life. Off a gravel paved road northeast of Columbus, Bryn was kind enough to share with me their story and how her father created a haven for her family to flock to.

Although Tom Bird was originally from Westerville, he met his wife Ann over a thousand miles from Columbus during his collegiate days at Colorado State. After graduating, the couple decided to reside in the “Centennial State,” married, had two children, and then eighteen years later added son Lee followed by daughter Bryn to their brood. When Lee was only nine years old he purchased a tractor. This might be typical for the son of Midwest farmer, but it was highly unusual for the son of a veterinarian living in urban Colorado. Bryn explained how from birth, farming was deep in her brother’s soul and whether he realized it or not at the time, something was drawing him to explore his father’s ancestral roots. After Tom celebrated his 50th birthday, he sold his veterinary practice, purchased 110 acres and moved his family to the middle of rural Ohio. The family jokes that Tom and Ann obtained the land for Lee, given his innate love for farming, but I was soon to find out that this farm is a complete family affair.

As Bryn relayed to me the statistics of Bird’s Haven Farms, I was impressed with the vastness of their property and the much-more-than-a-monoculture farm they have become. She laughed as she told me that while growing up in Granville she and Lee would lie about how much land they owned because compared to their neighbors, 110 acres was a minute amount. She went on to describe that in the beginning they did what typical Ohio farmers do and grew corn and soybeans. Things on the farm changed after her brother graduated from The Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute and took over running the farm. Lee dreamed of expanding beyond the traditional commodity crops and nearly eight years ago they completely switched over to growing a vast variety of vegetables, focusing on early season tomatoes. One thing that hasn’t changed on the farm is the offering of farm fresh eggs. Currently, Ann cares for 150+ Rhode Island Red hens and hand washes each and every egg they lay. Because she is a city girl at heart, she lets her hens go into retirement (something not typically done with laying hens). The “old ladies” as the Bird’s affectionately dubbed them, are allowed to roam the high tunnels to eat the weeds and fertilize just as the younger hens do. Over the years, Ann has even picked up a nickname of her own; the Granville Egg Lady delivers her product door-to-door for a select local group of lucky customers. Bryn told me how her Mom and Dad are still very much involved on the farm. Besides the eggs, Ann helps with the business side of things and Tom has the pleasure of selecting the menagerie of seeds they will grow (this year is over 65 different crops). Bryn continued on, telling me how a cousin comes in March to assist with all the seeding and an Aunt helps out by making the hanging flower baskets. Bryn, who just recently moved back to Ohio, has a day job as an advocate for farm worker right issues through federal policy reform, but still manages to lend a hand by working the farmers markets and growing the marketing side of their business.

This year marks the 17th season that Bird’s Haven Farms will participate in the Granville farmer’s market. They will also take part in the New Albany, Westerville, and new to this year’s line up the Clintonville market. Besides the markets, they also offer 215 CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) spots with only a few remaining for the 2013 season. If you are avid gardener or just ready to experiment growing your own food, Bird’s Haven is happy to set you up with some of their starter plants. Tom Bird started Bird’s Haven Farms as a place of refuge for his family. Bryn echoed the fact that there is a sense of comfort knowing that if anything would happen, she could “always go back to the farm and the family business”.

Eggs

The Bird’s Haven Farms eggs (pictured left) traveled 37 miles to Columbus, while the eggs (pictured right) traveled roughly 454 miles to Columbus.

References

Egg-splained: Free Range, Cage Free and Organic
The Cost of Fracking
Strawberries at Bird’s Haven Farms {Farm Tour}

Italian Easter Bread

If dying your eggs, please use a food safe natural egg dye.

Click on the recipe cards to print your copy:

Time Sucks & Cooking (Consider the Thought)

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 10:38:00 +0100

Time sucks? Here I mean the black holes that absorb hours of the day, where time goes somewhere else. I've got two. They are not pointless meetings, or folks who interrupt and talk off point too long, nor are they administrative tasks that accomplish nothing but cover tails, that used to be parts of my day at work.

Mine? Children and food, both of which require an inordinate amount of time-- not that I'm not willing to abandon either. However, I am open to better methods, approaches, or ideas for both. There are some things that take time and that all of us could benefit from, here I mean the food time suck.

An American friend in Japan impressed me with the number of creative adventures and activities she managed to combine with two children. She was involved in Girl Scouts, a theatrical production, she knitted prolifically, and she was writing a mystery novel. I was blown away with her productivity. While I struggled to knit yet another stockinette stitch scarf, she was turning out crazy critters full of color and whimsy with her yarn and needles. Thinking I was doing it wrong since she clearly managed to get so much more done, I asked her the question I most often want to ask everyone, "What do you cook for dinner?" Her answer? "Oh, I don't cook. We order out or eat frozen pizza." Her answer revealed two things for me. How she had time to participate in activities in the early evening and that though the option existed, I could not embrace not cooking as an answer to my own conundrum of creating more time.

I once lived on the cookings of others and relied on processed foods, but having been exposed to culinary delights in Europe, the Middle East, and Japan, I arrived at a fork in the road. I either needed a chef or had to become the cook. I opted for cooking, and though I got into the game later in life, I'm a full-fledged junkie now. I cook, for better or worse, breakfast, lunch, and dinner at my house. Turning back is not an option.

Food that stirs my passions, gets me into the kitchen. I cook what interests me. Still there are shortcuts I could learn or recipes I might try, but food sits at the center of my day. I didn't inherit a repertoire of tricks and tips. My grandmothers both cooked for their families, but in their later years accepted the labor saving offerings at the grocery stores to some degree. They made their own pie dough, but sometimes used fillings from a can. They tried boxed mashed potatoes often enough that as a kid, I tried to avoid having to eat them. Salad dressing, pudding, and cereal were all national brands served at the table.

As a teenager in Spain, I was blown away by the taste of olive oil and vinegar. Why did we ever drift from homemade? I know! It's the time factor we save, but we fork over our tastebuds, health, and our connection to the food on our plate. There is no zest in a bottle of Italian dressing that compares to homemade, but some how we talk ourselves into it to loosen the grip of the kitchen on our lives.

Here is why you need the food time suck: taste, health, and environment. We save ourselves time and replace it with what? Meanwhile factories make our frozen pizzas, produce a bottle of dressing, and trucks deliver it, generating wastes or efficiencies? I think my grandmas and us were slipped a Mickey. We were duped out of the kitchen and its inherit labors for food that isn't good for us or the planet.

Cooking three meals a day is easier when you eat, say, rice or tortillas at every meal. I make my own pain by trying to mix it up. I want to try everything. I do rely on staples for simplicity. I don't regularly make my own pasta. I stash homemade gnocchi in the freezer from time to time. Sometimes we go out for lunch or order pizza. My kids don't always like what I cook. This week's avoiders included sushi cake, broccoli breadcrumb casserole, and about every soup I made besides miso. I could be meaner, strictor, or I could pack it in my husband's lunch or make smaller portions, which I do. I can't live on butter pasta and yogurt to the extent they are willing. The compromise? There is a pot of salted water boiling when I sit down to eat.

I'm always in search of recipes that interest me. Maybe some day I will exclusively eat my own soup stock, pasta, and granola like I do bread, but not yet. I aim to try to get there anyway, and maybe drag a few of you with me. Being the cook is a worthwhile pursuit for all of us and each of us-- better food on the table, healthier, fresher, food to eat, a cleaner planet, more local shopping, more local gardening, and perhaps even a barter economy of trading beer for jam or tofu for bread. Get to work, be the cook!

In the meantime, here's a recipe for a vinagrette to stash in the fridge for at will salad dining.

Vinagrette

Serves 4

It’s always a good idea to make more salad dressing than you need! I prefer to double this recipe. Change the herbs or leave them out as you like.

Ingredients

First Press Olive Oil, ½ cup

Organic Lemon, 1 (zest & juice), 3 Tbsp (use wine vinegar if you need more)

Garlic, 1 clove grated

Oregano, ½ tsp (fresh) or 1 tsp (dried)

Salt, 1 tsp

Pepper, 5-6 cranks

What to do

Whisk altogether and adjust to taste.
Place into bottle and serve over greens.
Store in the fridge, but bring to room temperature before serving.

Local Farmers, Local Heroes (Pizza Goon)

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 03:18:18 +0100

The other day, I was starving and drove though a corporate fried fish place. “What kind of fish is in the sticks”, I asked. “Fish.” The voice on the crackly transciever responded as a statement. “No”, I spoke up louder and slowed my voice, “What kind of fish is in your fish-sticks?” There was [...]

The other day, I was starving and drove though a corporate fried fish place. “What kind of fish is in the sticks”, I asked.

“Fish.” The voice on the crackly transciever responded as a statement.

“No”, I spoke up louder and slowed my voice, “What kind of fish is in your fish-sticks?”

There was a long pause, then “Man, like fish…that swim in the sea?”

“What species of fish?” followed by another long pause for a response, “Like, is it cod, haddock or anchovy?”

“aaa…cod, yea, it’s cod. Do you wanna order the sticks?” he lied and pressed ahead. I left the line of cars and headed for home for a salad thinking the whole time that our world is full of people who are consuming products whose provenance, location, species and growing conditions are not communicated. I don’t even think a Cro-magnon came cavehome, plopped a side of flesh down into the fire without being pressed about what, when, how and why he came into posession of that flesh. Man, how far we’ve come!

I then thought about all the great farmers, ranchers and local purveyors we have right here in Athens County Ohio that I am lucky enough to buy from.

Here are some pictures of just a few of these people and thier products as well as some wild stuff we get to forage.

We truly are blessed to have these people!