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One Local Summer 2012 – Week 24

Posted on 2 November 2012
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On my own this week (and a little behind, still/again, on posting), but here’s glorious week 24.  Simple, as is my style, we have sweet potatoes, mild burgundy Italian pork sausage, and the fancy bit is the saffron polenta stars, pan fried to be crispy.  Saffron polenta, you say? Saffron isn’t local!  OH YES IT IS.  If you can grow crocuses in your area, you can grow saffron.  Three little red filaments poke out of every little purple saffron crocus flower that blooms in the fall.  Pull out the red filaments, dry, and you too can have your own saffron.  This was made with the saffron harvested last fall (I usually get about a teaspoon of saffron from my six bulbs).  It’s not a lot, and requires checking for new flowers every morning for about a month, but pays off!  For the price of six bulbs (which cost about $15 for the six), I’ve got free saffron for as long as the bulbs last (typically a lifetime or more).  It’s pretty neat and is the big star of this meal (HURRR GET IT?!).

Pork Sausage with Sweet Potatoes and Saffron Polenta:
Sweet Potatoes – Jack’s Farm
Mild Italian Burgundy Pork Sausage – Countrytime Farm
Cornmeal – Mill at Anselma
Saffron – My Garden
Non local – Salt, pepper, olive oil

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One Local Summer 2012 – Week 17

Posted on 9 September 2012
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I was on my own this week, so I did a recipe from last year since it was one of my all time favorites.  The husband does NOT like fennel, so I get to go wild and cook with it when he’s gone which is fine with me.  MORE FENNEL FOR ME!  It’s pretty basic – Sweet potatoes, roasted with fennel at 350F in the oven for about 45 minutes (or until the potatoes are just about tender), and then the sausage is laid on top for the another 30 minutes.  The way the flavors all melt together is just perfect, and it reheats well later too.  The wee green things in front are more Mexican Sour Gherkins.  I have ONE plant in the garden and it’s been going wild on me.  I haven’t found another use for them other than nomming them down fresh, but I’m thinking a big jar of refrigerator pickles may be in order soon.

Sweet Potatoes with Fennel and Sausage:
Sweet Potatoes – Jack’s Farm
Fennel – North Star Orchard
Turkey Sausage – Mt View Organics
Mexican Sour Gherkins – My Garden
Non Local – Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper

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One Local Summer 2011 – Week 20

Posted on 21 October 2011
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This one I REALLY knocked out of the park. I mean, REALLY REALLY. Fennel isn’t a popular vegetable in our home mostly due to the husband’s hatred of all things anise/licorice. Since he was away, I figured I had a chance to give it a try.  I stumbled across a recipe for roasted fennel and potatoes, but I only had sweet potatoes from the farmer’s market, so I figured hey, starch is starch, right?  Well it was amazing.  The sweet potatoes roasted with the fennel covered for 30 minutes at 400F in the oven, covered in some olive oil, salt, garlic, and pepper.  Then the browned sausage was laid on top and left uncovered for another 30 minutes.  The amazing way these flavors worked together has made it a staple, and what really surprised me was that the anisey flavor of the fennel really disappeared in the baking process.  Needless to say, the leftovers didn’t last for very long, and I’m making this combination a staple for future recipes!

Sweet Potato, Fennel, and Sausage Bake:
Sweet Potatoes – Jack’s Farm
Fennel – Jack’s Farm
Garlic Turkey Sausage – Mountain View Organics
Garlic – Jack’s Farm
Non Local – Salt, pepper, Olive Oil

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One Local Summer – Week 20

Posted on 21 September 2010
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Pumpkin, again. Yeah when I get on a kick, I get on a kick, but at least here there are plenty of other ingredients involved. The recipe took a lot of searching – I wanted to use both bison and this little Long Island Cheese Pumpkin I brought home last week. Finally, I came across a recipe for Potato Topped Beef and Pumpkin Casserole which ended up being the perfect recipe to use for my new little casserole dish. Naturally, there were a few modifications. I didn’t have any carrots, so I used turnips instead. Left out the beef stock cube, and used three types of potatoes. The pumpkin makes for a great base, but the sweet pumpkiny flavor is mostly lost in the recipe – I suppose this works out okay, since the flavors all run together well, but I was expecting more smack-you-in-the-face pumpkin. Still, it’s delicious, and VERY much edible.

Oh and if you’re curious, the dish comes from Karin Lorenc on etsy.

Potato Topped Beef and Pumpkin Casserole:
Bison – Backyard Bison. Sirloin
Flour – Mill at Anselma. Bread Flour
Onion – North Star Orchard
Turnip – Maysie’s Farm
Long Island Cheese Pumpkin – Smith’s Produce
Red Wine – Paradocx. Barn Red
Sweet Potatoes – Brogue Hydroponics
Purple Potatoes – Unknown Vendor at Anselma
White Potatoes – Brogue Hydroponics
Non-local – Olive Oil, spices

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One Local Summer – Week 16

Posted on 6 September 2010
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I got a little backed up with putting in posts, so here’s the catch-up! This week was a Summer Garden Galette. I pretty much threw in any vegetable I could find that would fit in the crust and wow was it good. There’s a decent amount of prep work involved since everything has to be cooked before it goes in the shell, but all that can be done while waiting for the crust to chill in the fridge. I guess it sounds easier than it is, but if you’ve made a pie crust before, it’s really the same process. The bottom layer is sweet potatoes covered by tomatoes and squash, mushrooms and onions, and then topped off with a heavy dose of goat cheese. YUM!
Summer Garden Galette:
Onion – North Star Orchard
Summer Squash – Smith’s Produce
Zucchini – Smith’s Produce
Sharp I Chevre – Shellbark Hollow Farm
Chocolate Cherry Tomatoes – My Garden
Sage – My Garden
Sweet Potatoes – Brogue Hydroponics
Mushrooms – Oley Valley Mushrooms. Crimini.
Whole Wheat Pastry Flour – Mill at Anselma
Non-local – Butter

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