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Pondering "Local:" The Challenge Begins in Northfield, MN
Katie B. August 19, 2010

Yesterday marked the triumphant beginning of the Eat Local Challenge at the Just Food Co-op and Northfield, Minnesota area, and I began with failure. Or maybe not....

Like so many mornings, I crawled out of bed and had a teapot on the stove before my first morning yawn. I woke up with its whistle and brewed a cup of Earl Grey tea. With the last sip, it hit me: Hmm. It's August 18th. Tea is not grown in the five-state area (MN, WI, IA, SD, ND) which our Eat Local Challenge celebrates. I had failed before I even started with my eat local adventures!

But then my pondering began.

The tea I sipped was not just any Earl Grey, but a carefully-rationed bit of Creamy Earl Grey from Light of Day Organics of Traverse City, Michigan. While the tea itself is a fair trade varie...

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Flintstone Corn?!
Allison August 19, 2010

Had to share my photo of this week's sweet corn from the CSA box. Its not perfect-looking, but who said it should be?! So long as the flavor is there, I have zero complaints. I got a kick out of what the CSA box newsletter had to say about it:

Finally, the sweet corn has come, and it is good. The hail damage has resulted in a fair amount of a unique condition I call “Flintstone Corn.” If you have an ear on Flintstone Corn you will recognize it by its un-uniform layout of kernels. This is a result of poor germination on the corn cob. Normally the kernels arrange themselves in uniform rows; with the spare room that results from not-full germination, the existing kernels grow larger and remind me of the Flintstones for some reason. This corn is just as good as regular corn, although a little less satisfying due to the lower amount of corn on the cob. We cannot see if an ear is afflicted ...

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Community Garden Plots: Dreaming of Kale, Mustard, and Chard--Oh My!
Jenn Bronson August 19, 2010

The deep-south heat of late July and August has taken its toll on my meals and my psyche. I am tired of eggplant, peppers, and tomatoes. I have tried so many different recipes, delicious recipes, but I am ready for a change. Luckily, this past week, we harvested our first Seminole Pumpkin. It was the first one we have ever had and it was beyond scrumptious. The pear-shaped, tan outside cleverly hides what's inside--bright, creamy orange flesh that is so sweet you almost think you are eating a melon! A dear friend sent us a recipe to try using our pumpkin and it turned out to be a new favorite. The recipe is called  Sicilian Spicy Pumpkin and marries the flavors of sugar, cinnamon, vinegar, and mint with a kick from the old cayenne. Makes my mouth water remembering it. Instead of baking, you slice the pumpkin like you would an actual melon and saute the pieces in a little oil before drenchin in the spices and let it sit and marinate for 15-20mins. before serving. We paired ours with...

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A Locavore Adventure with The Minnesota Table
Robin August 19, 2010

I am guessing that if you are reading this, you probably have some
commitment to local foods. Whether you trek to a Farmers market or shop
your Coop or grocers looking for the local label, you seek out food with
fewer food miles between you and the grower.

But have you ever taken a tour of the state, seeking out growers,
producers and wine-makers? I recently talked to someone who did just
that, and the end result is now a book. BJ Carpenter, local chef and
locavore, teamed up with Shelley Holl to seek out the Minnesota food
gems that are tucked away in small towns and byways across the state. BJ
developed the recipes for  The Minnesota Table, Recipes for Savoring Local Food Throughout the Year (Voyageur Press, $25.00) Her friend Shelly wrote the profiles of food makers and farmers throughout the book.

"It was fun," said Carpenter, "the things we discovered when we got
out there, like the...

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Garden Roulette
SJ August 19, 2010

Sometimes everything comes together like a beautiful piece of music
or a good night at the tables in Vegas, with all the elements of Nature
merging to generate a seamless whole.

Moisture, temperature, and the other vagaries of season and climate
orient in their mysterious cycles, striking an ideal balance until — tah-dah!
— you’ve got vegetables. Other times, other years, no matter how you
turn the soil, weed, mulch, compost, supplement and talk to your plants,
you may still suffer the indignities of marauding pests, depressing
blossom-end rot, leaf drop, rain splits, and a less-than-spectacular
harvest.

For our garden (somewhat lopsided in terms of sweat equity since my
partner in life ‘n’ crime, Mr. Greenthumbs, does the heavy lifting),
this year looks to be somewhere in the middle. That’s the way it goes.

garden in mid-july...</p></div> </div> <div class= 0

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