Quotation

"There seem to be but three ways for a nation to acquire wealth. The first is by war, as the Romans did, in plundering their neighbors. This is robbery. The second by commerce, which is generally cheating. The third by agriculture, the only honest way, wherein man receives a real increase of the seed thrown into the ground, in a kind of continual miracle, wrought by the hand of God in his favor, as a reward for his innocent life and his virtuous industry." -Benjamin Franklin

Sweet Corn

Last summer we grew sweet corn for the first time on our place. It was a huge learning experience, not to mention a lot of work come harvest time. I believe Ellie,Ben and I will never look at an ear of corn on the cob quite the same way again! We picked several hundred dozen ears, freezing a lot and selling a lot at the local produce auction in Penn Yan, New York. Growing the corn and reading the Omnivore's Dilemma at the same time has really brought the subjects of genetically modified seeds and corn subsidies to life. No doubt this is part of the inspiration to grow all Heritage/Non GMO plants this year for me.

Tonight I made a corn souffle using our corn and eggs and local milk,and butter. What a great dish, fluffy and with a nice crust on top. We ate this with local cabbage, potatoes and one of the meat hens I raised over the summer. Let it snow.....

Another Great Web Site

If you have not been to the Slow Food USA site you should take a minute and check it out. It is loaded with great information and truly inspiring. There are links to follow them on Face Book and Twitter as well. What is Slow Food? "Slow Food is an idea, a way of living and a way of eating. It is a global, grassroots movement with thousands of members around the world that links the pleasure of food with a commitment to community and the environment." You have to love it! Biggest surprise on the site for me; we grow one of the 200 foods in danger of extinction, the Shagbark Hickory Nut. Guess who will be harvesting as many as she can this season!
http://www.slowfoodusa.org/

Vinegar

Finding local vinegar has really been a challenge. After searching on-line I did find a great blueberry vinegar from Cherry Knoll Farm. I ordered it through the mail and it arrived two days later! Very speedy service! I have been using if for salad with a local first cold pressed grape seed oil. It is very good and with the local feta outstanding! Ben and John found the bottle and it is now almost empty. They are true vinegar aficionados and I have even seen John drink it straight out of the bottle! :) You can find this vinegar at http://www.cherryknollfarm.com/ Listed on-line are several local stores that carry it as well!

Smoked Trout

What a treat! John smoked local trout with hickory and oak yesterday. We have a friend who generously gives us frozen trout! The fish is froze in a large bag filled with water. This is a perfect method as after they thaw out they look beautiful! We served these with a homemade Horseradish sauce on the side. Really great room temperature or cold!

Local Feta Cheese

Today while shopping at Wegmans I found local feta cheese. I am a huge fan of feta and immediately I thought of salad. I have not had much luck replacing my old standby, olive oil and white balsamic vinegar. Tonight though I mixed the feta cheese with two more local products, first cold pressed grape seed oil and blueberry vinegar. This was pretty good and on top of the Finger Lakes Fresh Boston Bibb and local pears it was actually quite nice! I will be buying it often! Visit Lively Run Goat Dairy on the web at http://www.livelyrun.com/ They also have Cayuga Blue and Chevre cheeses and you can order directly off their site, but you might want to check Wegmans first!

Trees,Cows and Chickens

Who knew, maple syrup, milk, heavy cream and 4 egg yolks could taste so good! I made homemade maple ice cream today, inspired by the homemade ice cream I had over the holidays at John's sister Amy's house. The recipe was very easy and I was pretty surprised at how quickly it was done. It has been 5 weeks since I have had any dessert and completely worth the wait!!! I am dreaming of Strawberry season! :)

I highly recommend the Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt and Ice Cream Maker. It is not as high priced as other models and beginner friendly.

Chicken Soup

John loves making Chicken Soup. Today I wasn't feeling well, so he offered to take over when he smelled the hen I had started to simmer. Great soup! Our stewing hen, carrots, corn, and onions, along with local potatoes, and cabbage. Can you smell it!

Maple Sugar

In keeping local I have not had any foods containing refined flour or sugar. I would like to try to make dessert and need another sugar substitute instead of honey. With the help of a neighbor I found a local gentlemen that makes Maple Syrup and Maple Sugar. He was selling last years products and will actually be starting to tap trees soon for this year's harvest. I was lucky and got a gallon of syrup and two pounds of sugar. John and I tried the syrup the first night and really it is indescribable. If you haven't had it in a while, go buy some! Maple Syrup/Sugar is known to contain high concentrations of minerals. One taste and you will not eat fake syrup again!

Quotation

"There is, then, a politics of food that, like any politics, involves our freedom. We still (sometimes) remember that we cannot be free if our minds and voices are controlled by someone else. But we have neglected to understand that we cannot be free if our food and its sources are controlled by someone else. The condition of the passive consumer of food is not a democratic condition. One reason to eat responsibly is to live free." (The Pleasures of Eating Wendell Berry)

Cherry Tomatoes

A fast and easy way to use tomatoes all winter is to freeze cherry tomatoes whole. As you cook all winter you can add them right from the freezer into your dish. Last night we had lamb shanks with John's onions and shallots. I added the cherry tomatoes and braised. The tomato/lamb broth went great on the potatoes and also was fantastic on top of the chard!

NOFA-NY

For anyone who is a Facebooker...check out and become a fan of the NOFA-NY site. They have great articles and tons of information. Some of the latest are; Growing Your Food is Fashionable Again, Grass Fed-Beef, Genetically Engineered Food and much more! To find an organization in your area go to http://www.organicconsumers.org/organicgroups.cfm -Listed are Organic Farming Associations and Networks by State.

Heirloom Seeds

I recently received my first Heirloom Seed catalog. 'Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds' catalog contains only open-pollinated seeds: natural & non-GMO. http://rareseeds.com/
My goal this year for the garden is to plant only Heirloom seeds, starting many of the seeds indoors. This month should be fun reading and researching which seeds to buy. March and April I will start several inside and the end of May plant. I have never started my own plants before, so I am pretty anxious to say the least! :)

If you are interested in learning more about Genetically Modified seeds watch the movie, 'The Future of Food'. It is really an eye opener. I also recommend the documentary 'King Corn'.

Pears

I was really happy yesterday to find pears in the local apple shop. Wager's Cider Mill has a huge assortment of local apples, cider and happy to say there are still pears! The cider is great with no preservatives added. Beware though the entire store smells like the donuts they make and sell!! :)

Wager's Cider Mill, 256 East Main St., Penn Yan, NY

Sauerkraut

John has started a yearly tradition on Thanksgiving Day, making sauerkraut. We both love it and he was inspired to make more after our large purchase of six heads of cabbage earlier this month! Last night he finally declared it ready and we had some with pork, mashed potatoes and carrots. The sauerkraut was fantastic! This time he used a small amount of onion, a little less salt and added caraway seeds. It had a really nice flavor and I am thrilled there is so much more of it in the freezer!

There are many added benefits to eating sauerkraut, one of the largest being lactic acid which promotes healthy flora throughout the intestine. Check out the article in the 'Edible Finger Lakes' magazine. A beautiful head of cabbage is on the cover! http://www.ediblecommunities.com/fingerlakes/

January 26, 2010

When I first started local eating for 60 days I had been inspired after reading how messed up processed foods had become, even organic processed foods. I wanted to get away from them completely. The huge surprise I have experienced is how much better I feel. It is really clear to me that the 'fake' food I was eating before affected me daily. With each meal I consume I feel more committed to eating real. I cannot believe it took me this long to figure it out!!! Now if I could only call my Grandmother Jensen, boy would we have a lot to talk about! :)

Fruit

I have never been a big fresh fruit eater. I know I should work harder at this, and I do buy fruit. There are always bananas, apples, tangerines, grapefruit and other fruit when in season in our house. I just don't eat it, unless it is in a pie!! Yesterday I noticed the local NY apples were starting to get a little soft, so decided to make applesauce. I just cut the apples up after peeling and coring, added 2 tablespoons of honey and some cinnamon. Simmered for a while until pretty soft and then used my hand held mixer to smash them up. Very easy and I really like applesauce. Ate a bowl yesterday and today!

Beer

I definitely have missed having a beer these first three weeks of local eating. While in Wegman's (Canandaigua) last week I searched in their large beer section, (they actually have a New York section) for local beer. I found Custom Brewcrafters 'Canandaigua Lake Ale', produced and bottled in Honeoye Falls NY. I had no idea what to expect and finally popped one open last night. I was pleasantly surprised how highly drinkable it was!! The ale was a light amber color and had a really good flavor. It is priced about $1.50 higher than a six pack of Corona, so affordable as long as you are not a beer guzzler :) I am really interested in going to visit their business and trying some of their other beers. The six pack has a great photo of their microbrewery, directions and hours of business, and another great touch on the box is the date the beer was bottled. Mine read, JAN 06 2010. So apparently there are other beer drinkers buying this product at Wegman's as well! Check them out at www.custombrewcrafters.com

Butternut Squash Seed Oil

I found this local oil recently at the New York Wine and Culinary Center's gift shop. It is a 100% cold-pressed oil from Geneva NY. No chemical alterations like many vegetable oils on the market. The flavor is outstanding! I used it to coat potatoes before roasting in the oven. They recommend it on salads and as a dipping oil for bread. It is rather costly, but worth the investment if using once or twice a week. Stony Brook offers it online at ... http://www.wholeheartedfoods.com/

Dinner Last Night

Cooking meals using all local food has been very rewarding. I am planning meals much better now as I can no longer just throw something together. In the past if I was running late I would rely on pasta and work around that. Last night we ate Lamb (given to us from John's Dad, marinated with local mustard, garlic and honey), Broccoli (from the garden frozen, topped with NY cheddar), and Potatoes Gratin (made with creme fraiche and John's demi glace). I am really thankful we have such an assortment of meats in our freezer. We raise beef and chickens here and John's Dad has given us his pork and lamb. Friends have given us lake trout and venison also! A really fantastic site to find grass feed meat is www.eatwild.com The site has a state by state directory to help you find local farmers near you.