4
September
2008
Making dill pickles is an annual August/September tradition based on my grandmother’s recipe. We are duty-bound after all these years, family and friends now expect their quart at Christmas. Plus, it’s another way to remember a grandmother who left such a legacy for us, her love of gardening, food-making and the outdoors. 
The time for pickling is right now while the small cukes are in season. Gather up the supplies needed and have at it - get organized in advance and the process is relatively easy. As with preserving any food, cleanliness is essential so this is the time to be fastidious in the kitchen.
My grandmother made pickles from the cucumbers grown in her own garden. We have a veggie garden full of produce, but no cukes so I buy freshly picked cucumbers at the Farmer’s Market - last year it was Stoney Plains, this year Alm Hill farms; along with three or four large bunches of fresh dill. You’ll need several heads of garlic - we had some from the garden which survived the wet spring.
Dill Pickles: 
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Posted: Local Living, On the Local Table, Pantry, Produce
22
August
2008
Surely among the top ten slow foods, tomato sauce. The reward for preserving them in late summer will be the essence of luscious vine-ripened garden tomatoes mid-winter in a soup or marinara sauce, with an onion and sausage frittata or mushroom polenta. 
I’m a fool for tomatoes and should make myself a tomato cape, something to wear everywhere to signify my devotion. It can get ridiculous and I just pushed the bar a little far the other day. Home-cookin’ tomato-preservin’ smarty-pants.
Since our own backyard tomatoes are behind schedule I thought it would be a good idea to buy ’seconds’ from Billy and make a batch of sauce now and then again later this month when ours will finally, I hope, come on like gangbusters. (Actually, there’s a big ‘if’ in that hope.) Bob tracked down Billy at the Sunday Market and purchased a big box of seconds, 22# @ $2.25 per pound. Total $49.50. When I heard that I knew this handmade sauce would also cost an arm and a leg. A pot full of tomatoes may look like a huge amount, but if you’re making sauce they reduce in quantity. A lot.
We ended up with barely four quarts. Yeah, you’re way ahead of me I know, that’s about $12.50 per quart. That’s a highfalutin’ tomato sauce. It took all afternoon – the Slow Food thing, no problem. I’m a happy camper when something’s brewing in the kitchen.
Lesson learned. From now on I use my own from the backyard, or pull off a midnight tomato caper somewhere. I’m chagrined about the cost, but the good news is that the sauce is amazing. Rich and tomatoey, it will be delectable mid-winter. If you can somehow find tomatoes for a song, or don’t mind the pricey version, you might want to make and preserve sauce of your own.
Here’s one way to do it: 
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Posted: Eat Local, Farmers Markets, In The Garden, On the Local Table, Pantry, Produce
17
July
2008
I was recently reminded of small batch jam making, which simply means that you make a few jars at a time and repeat the process whenever you have an hour and a few cups of fruit to spare.
Making jam is a delectable experience, and afterward jars of luminous preserved strawberries appear in the pantry. Overbearing to-do lists, if I’m not careful, can seem more important than a basic endeavor like preserving food. Used to be our survival depended on it. Anyway. . . this small batch approach was an efficient and satisfying alternative to rolling up my sleeves and spending hours canning a couple of dozen jars.
I used the simplest whole foods, just strawberries and honey, a bit of lemon juice. The jars of crimson deliciousness are something to behold, a beautiful sight in the cupboard and even better in the mouth - the essence of strawberry on a piece of toast. 
I had about 4 cups of strawberries that needed to be eaten immediately so I decided to make a small batch and not fuss about it. A Saturday morning, I said to myself ‘just do it’, and start to finish it took about an hour, truly.
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Posted: Eat Local, On the Local Table, Pantry, Produce, Small Actions
6
July
2008
. . . the California variety.
(On Mondays we’re revisiting posts from the past. This is a curtain call for The Other Olive Oil.)
The domestic and imported versions look almost the same, are almost the same. However, one was transported five to six thousand miles to arrive in our grocery stores, the other more like seven hundred miles. One is steeped in romance and ancient history, the other not so much, though California has a little olive oil history of its own. Olive trees were originally planted at Spanish missions there in the 18th century, thrived for a while and then languished during most of the twentieth century. Clearly there’s a revival happening now. Italian, Greek and Spanish oils are not easily abandoned and I don’t suggest that, but we do have a domestic alternative that deserves consideration.
California olive oil can be found in most grocery stores if you’re willing to look. I admit, you have to check labels a little compulsively, and when I visited five different grocery stores in the Seattle area I found just a few options. That will change, but right now you have to be willing to look, and there’s a hitch. Several, but not all, of the domestic brands were actually a mix of California and imported oils. This includes organic Napa Valley Olive Oils (the Napa Valley Naturals brand). It can be found at grocery stores, in bulk at PCC and is a mixture of California and Argentine oils. There are definitely California olive oils available in PNW stores, you just have to be tenacious about discovering your own best source. (More options to explore online and links below are a source of additional information.)
I’ve heard rumors that there may be a gutsy B.C. farmer willing to try growing olive trees. It sounds crazy, but there’s more and more evidence about the variety of foods we’ve given up trying to grow that we might grow successfully again. PNW olive groves may or may not be one of them. So, what’s the point? If you enjoy the taste and health benefits of olive oil, and wish to find ways to diminish your carbon footprint and the affects of global warming, then domestic olive oil is something to consider.
While you’re thinking about it all, try this herbaceous mix with a delicious loaf of bread. 
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Posted: Eat Local, Pantry, Small Actions
9
April
2008
Taking on the challenge of eating locally has lead me to try things I haven’t done for years–like making a piecrust. I bought some stoneground farro flour from Lentz Spelt Farms and gave it a try. Luckily, Lily was here to give me a hand. She seemed to know just what to do so. It turned out surprisingly well, more like a graham cracker crust in texture and not as rustic as wholewheat.
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Posted: Eat Local, On the Local Table, Pantry
6
April
2008
Creme Fraiche is a beautiful, versatile ingredient you can make easily and use in any recipe that is begging for a tangy, creamy flavor. I started with 11/2 cups of heavy cream from Sea Breeze Farm. I was planning to buy their creme fraiche at the University Farmers Market but they didn’t have any and were nice enough to tell me how to make it. Add 2-3 tablespoons of buttermilk (the closest I found to “local” is from Oregon at the Pike Place Market Creamery) to the cream, heat in a saucepan until it feels warm to the touch, pour into a bowl, cover with a tea towel and let it sit on the counter for 24 hours or so, depending on the temperature in your kitchen. It will continue to thicken as it ages. Try not to disturb it until you feel it is thick enough to test. When it’s ready, you can store it in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
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Posted: On the Local Table, Pantry
27
February
2008
If you can melt butter, you can make ghee, aka ‘clarified butter.’ Clarified butter is the locavore’s answer to a local cooking oil that is healthy and delicious. It can withstand high temperatures better than most other natural, unrefined oils. The whole process takes about 15 minutes.To make ghee, I went to the Pike Place Market Creamery and bought a container of pure butter from Golden Glen Creamery in Bow, WA. The recipe called for 1lb. of unsalted butter. This was ‘lightly salted’ and slightly less than a lb. but it looked so good, I wanted to try it.Heat the butter in a small pan over medium-low heat. 
Once it has completely melted, skim off all the foam that has come to the surface with a spoon and discard. The solids will drop to the bottom of the pan. The lovely, golden layer between the foam and the solids is what you want. Cover your container with cheese cloth and pour carefully.
This solidifies and will keep for a month or two in the refrigerator. Some just keep it on the counter instead. Whenever you want to saute and have a light buttery flavor, just take out a spoonful or two and use like you would olive oil. The combination of the two is also delicious, just not completely local.In India, Ayurvedic medicine commonly uses ghee as a medicinal agent that aids digestion, absorption and is very nourishing.This recipe was inspired by Heidi Swanson in her wonderful book, Super Natural Cooking.
Posted: Eat Local, On the Local Table, Pantry
