Friends of mine are making the transition to cooking seasonally from local ingredients. Though rewarding, making changes in eating habits can be challenging and dealing with unfamiliar ingredients daunting. They wondered how I approached eating locally, and suggested that posting a weekly menu might be helpful. Thus this new column, very much a work-in-progress.
My kitchen is small, nothing fancy. We cook on a standard 4-burner electric range, with a toaster oven large enough to warm things in. There’s never enough counter space, and everything serves double-duty. The kitchen fridge is small and, for stocking up, we keep a second fridge and a small chest freezer in the basement. Canned goods are also stored there, and there’s a space to store roots. I’m still experimenting with finding places with the right conditions for storing different winter vegetables. It isn’t a perfect set-up but we try to practice adapting in place.
Note: Items in bold shows food that was either grown or produced locally; canned goods refer to home-preserved food. The photo shows homemade orecchiette pasta drying on a board balanced on top of the toaster oven.
Menu for week ending November 14, 2010
Monday:
- Dried cavatelli pasta with tomato sauce (canned), bacon and onions
- Side of fresh carrots and radishes, and green salad
Tuesday:
- Dried Dragon’s Tongue beans with sautéed chard
- Roasted delicata squash, and green salad
Wednesday:
- Turkey and rice soup, with cutting celery and sage, over garlic-rubbed toast
Thursday:
- Hot Italian sausage sauteed with peppers and onions
- Roasted potatoes, and green salad
Friday: - Leftover soup and toasted cheese sandwiches
Saturday:
- Fish tacos with shredded carrots and cabbage
- Tomatillo salsa
- Pumpkin pie
Sunday:
- Homemade orecchiette pasta with sautéed beet greens and garlic
- Fresh carrots and radishes
- Apple tart
For help in finding local ingredients: the Seacoast Eat Local Winter Farmers’ Market website includes a list of vendors by product; Seacoast Harvest is also searchable by both farm and product; questions can also be posted in the blog comments section or at our Facebook page, or visit the SEL information table at our Winter Farmers’ Markets.