One Local Summer – Week 3

Ah, my apologies for being late! Due to unforeseen but lovely circumstances, we went out to dinner with friends the last couple of days, so I had to postpone our One Local Summer dinner until today. It was worth the wait, though (for us at least).

• Simply salad

Very simple:

1. lettuce purchased at Drumlin Farm (where I will soon be working as an agricultural volunteer!), in Lincoln, Mass (17.9 miles as my car drives)
2. tomatoes bought at Brookline Farmer’s Market (a 5-minute walk) from Dick’s Market Garden in Lunenburg, Mass (50.9 miles as their truck drives)
3. garlic and herb goat cheese bought at Brookline Farmer’s Market from Capri from Westfield Farm in Hubbardston, Mass (64 miles as their truck drives)

• Sirloin steak

The steak this time was again excellent and excellently cooked too, by DH. We get small pieces, this one was a little under a quarter of a pound, for the two of us. It’s all we need, really, or rather: a luxury even in such a “small” portion (“small” by American standards). We appreciate it all the more because it doesn’t seem to go on endlessly, like it does in many restaurants. It’s also darn expensive.

1. NY sirloin bought at the Farmer’s Market from River Rock Farm in Brimfield, MA (63 miles)
2. salt, pepper: not local
3. butter was bought at Whole Foods but still local – though not in-state: it was Kate’s Butter from Old Orchard Beach in Maine (still only 100 miles away!)

• Side dish: squash and bell pepper

This was simple again but lovely and very refreshing on this hoy and humid summer’s day.

1. bell peppers from Drumlin Farm (where I will soon be working as an agricultural volunteer!), in Lincoln, Mass (17.9 miles as my car drives)
2. summer squash from the same place
3. garlic bought at Farmer’s Market and were trucked there from the fields of the Enterprise Farm, in Whately, Mass (111 miles, as the truck drives – less than 100 miles as the crow flies)
4. red onions bought at Brookline Farmer’s Market from Dick’s Market Garden in Lunenburg, Mass (50.9 miles as their truck drives)
5. salt, pepper not local
6. butter: Kate’s (100 miles)

• Side dish: Swiss chard with tomatoes

Another simple and quickly prepared dish. 

1. tomatoes from Farmer’s Market from Dick’s Market Garden in Lunenburg, Mass (50.9 miles as their truck drives)
2. red onions bought at Farmer’s Market from Dick’s Market Garden in Lunenburg, Mass (50.9 miles as their truck drives)
3. garlic at Farmer’s Market from Enterprise Farm, in Whately, Mass (111 miles, as the truck drives)
4. salt, pepper not local
5. butter: Kate’s (100 miles)

• Dessert

I guess you can see a pattern now, with the desserts: they are always just one or two ingredients. The fruits in summer are just so fresh and sweet, I don’t think they need any elaboration with sugars or flours.  Also, as you may have guessed, I am not much of a baker. I’m going to do something about that soon. But for now:

1. Blueberries bought at our Farmer’s Market from Enterprise Farm, in Whately, Mass (111 miles, as the truck drives)

• How is it going?

Good, great! We’re not starving, quite the contrary. But I can’t wait for the potato harvest! I try to stick to the local eating more of the week, and potatoes – my staple, my favorite, the only thing I can cook in so many different and all of them delicious ways – is one of the crops I’ve avoided buying non-locally. I guess because they are so heavy and take up so much space on the trucks/trains/planes that would have to cart them over to my local store.

I popped by the Blue Heron Organic Farm in Lincoln (right around the corner from Drumlin) and they promised potatoes next week! At all the farmstands at the Farmer’s Market, however, the farmers laughed at my impatience and said I’ll have to wait another month, if not longer. That’s interesting. I’ll be sure to go by Blue Heron and check out their harvest!