Eating Locally in Winter

This is a great excerpt from a book I am reading, Outstanding in the field; a farm to table cookbook by Jim Denevan:

"The goal is to build a tasty, satisfying meal primarily with what is local and seasonal, supplementing with ingredients from farther afield. The reality is that it's tricky to eat strictly locally and seasonally all the time, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to find a good deal of our foods from close to home when possible. There are an increasing number of ways to do this: Purchase local chickens at a farmers' market instead of industrial ones shipped cross-country and enjoy domestic berries from late spring to early fall instead of buying imported berries in January."

It's extra challenging here in the Black Hills but I am convinced it can be done.

So here's what was on my plate for Sunday. Sorry, no photo.

A potato dish that included Yukon Gold potatoes (stored from Gage's Gardens). It was so good, I have to share the recipe:

About 5 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 onions, cut in wedges (mine came from Safeway)
1/2 tbl dried rosemary (from my summer garden -- still fragrant)
3 tbl olive oil (this was from World Market (their own label) in Sioux Falls -- EVO and it's really good)
Salt and pepper

Throw everything in a baking dish and mix together so the potatoes and onions are coated. Put in a 375 pre-heated oven for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are done and a little crunchy. Every 15 minutes, mix it up. Yum!

We also had stuffed hamburgers. The burger came from a local cow (RIP) that we purchased from the Butcher Shop in Spearfish.

Here's that one:

For four burgers / one pound of ground beef.

Stuffing mix: Finely chopped onions, peppers (from my garden last year), a piece of pastrami (from the Butcher Shop) and a piece of Swiss cheese (I think from Sam's Club), dried oregano (from my summer garden), salt and pepper.

Mix together the chopped onions and peppers, set aside.

Divide beef in 8 sections. Take one of the sections and flatten it out so it's very thin (I put it on a cutting board) but still thick enough that it won't fall apart when you pick it up with a spatula. Put a small piece of the pastrami on top of the burger and make sure to leave about an inch from the edge. Then scoop on the onion / pepper mix, salt and pepper and top with a small piece of Swiss. Roll out another section of burger so it's flattish and put it on top of your burger with pile of stuff on it. Seal the edges like you've made a little pie. Try to really seal it or stuff inside (like the cheese) will really ooze out and it won't be as cute.

I use a little spray oil and cook the burgers in a big frying pan with a lid over medium high heat. Be careful when you turn them over so they don't come apart. These are really good and a nice surprise when you bite into them . No bun needed.

Oh, and we had some broccoli too. From Sam's I think.

Holiday Eating

As I am reviewing the Eat on $25 Challenge I did right before Thanksgiving dinners I made, I am thinking that what I was eating (although not very flavorful) was very healthy. In fact, the whole experience really gave me a great kick start trying not to gorge myself over the holidays. The problem I am having is that we keep getting goodies from everyone! Fantastic cookies, candies, fudge, little bags of chocolate and marshmallows -- things I can normally pass by at work but struggle when I see them in my own refrigerator. I'd rather just throw it away but that is such a waste! Especially from what I learned from my challenge. And well, it's not very thoughtful for those who made it for us.

So at least for the next four days before Christmas, I am going to focus on eating whole foods and not like a whole pie or whole plate of cookies. Whole foods meaning that they are in their most natural form. Local foods in the Black Hills are scare at this point. At least local produce that is. Now I did freeze some things from the summer and still have squashes in the basement. Okay, I have the making of a few meals here. I'll try and have at least one local food in each dinner for the next four days.

Join me -- it will be fun!