The first few years we were a part of his CSA, Leigh Hauter always had a few pigs running around part of his property. They were not only for meat but were intended as (yet another) deterrent to the deer; the theory was that the pigs would smell things up so bad up and down their enclosure that the deer would stay away. It sort of worked; the deer stayed out of the pigs enclosures and instead assaulted the fields by alternative vectors. Leigh’s pigs had from ¼ to ½ and acre of forest to root around in, they had plenty of space to remain active, and in addition to some supplemental grain, they ate roots and whatever vegetables were too far gone to go out in the shares.

They made for some really good eatin’, too. This was the first meat I had ever had where I not only knew the farmer but knew the animals. I thought that the fresh, rich taste was just because it was not coming from some mass-producing factory farm, but I discovered that there was something else to it.

What do you do with a whole pig? Make bacon, of course!

Leigh got tired of having to deal with pigs, so he stopped raising them and instead hooked us up with his friend Susannah who raises pigs and poultry on her farm in southern Fauquier County. She also grows corn organically and uses that as feed for her animals.  Now, do not get me wrong, Susannah raises some fine hogs, but there just seemed to be something missing from the meat we were used to having.

It did not really hit me until I was at Eastern Market one day and saw that Jose Canales had a sign up for Jamon Iberico. This is a very special and very rare type of cured ham from Spain. The hogs are sent up into the mountains to forage and gorge themselves on acorns before being slaughtered. Because of their diet and exercise the pig’s meat has a distinctly rich flavor which is further enhanced and concentrated by curing and aging. Mr. Canales sliced off about a quarter pound for me after giving me the short version of why Iberico is so special.

He did not have to try very hard; I told him about how I had noticed the difference in taste and texture between the hogs we had purchased and he nodded his head in agreement.

So when I saw what Bill had to offer, I knew I would have to make room in my freezer.

This is Kevin Bacon, the stud pig from Babes in the Woods. He is a cross of a Duroc boar with Tamworth sows. Handsome, isn't he....

It took two years for the timing to work out (we had to finish the pig we had, then we bought a quarter beef and we had to finish that) but we finally have one of his pigs.

Up Next: This Years’ Pig, Part II: Adventures in Curing

Did I mention I cure my own meats? Here’s a little photo to wet your appetite for part two of the story.

Let the curing begin.... this will be Guanciale - Jowl Bacon (More on this in Part Two)

Zingiber officinale

I had hoped to hit a different market this weekend, but with house guests and a whole mess of other things happening, I had to go with the familiar. (Really, I needed one that was open at 9:00 on Sunday and was close to me).

Among the vendors in the bank parking lot, I cannot for the life of me remember their name right now, was one selling fresh local ginger root. That’s right, Zingiber officinale itself grown right in our own backyard. I grabbed one of the roots and then decided that having two would be better. You see at home, The Wife was in the first few days of a cold, nursing a sore throat among other symptoms.

If you did not know, ginger has been shown to aid “…the motility of the gastrointestinal tract and have analgesic, sedative, antipyretic and antibacterial properties. “ (Wikipedia) In other words, it’s a good home remedy for relief of symptoms from a common cold.

Heading home I hit on an even better idea: ginger would be good for her cold, and what’s good for a sore throat? Ice cream, of course! Even better if it’s sweetened with honey from Maryland instead of sugar! I went up to Glut Food and picked up some Trickling Springs heavy cream and half & half and went home to cook up some medicine. This locally-made, locally-sourced ginger ice cream would be, of course, for medicinal purposes only.

It was not to be used as some dessert, it would be strictly medicinal!

Now We're Just Showing Off...

Menu: Cibola Farms Bison Hot Dogs wrapped in Torpedo onions and beet greens from Tree and Leaf Farm and topped with Fields of Grace Gouda and homemade Green Tomato Ketchup. Tomatoes on the side from Bull Run Mountain Farm (also the source of the green tomatoes) with Fields of Grace mozzarella. The buns are Homemade from Moutoux Orchard Whole Wheat Flour.

The hot dogs were excellent; the inch-plus wide links come fully cooked and had enough flavor that we did not feel like we were eating something meant for kids. I halved the torpedo onions and wrapped some of the larger shells around the dogs before putting them in the frying pan with a bit of water. They are good onions, but I undercooked them and had a hard time biting through the thick pieces.   The beet greens were intended to add a bit of astringency to the dish. The raw milk Gouda was perfect for this, I put it on at the end so it would melt just a touch. Fields of Grace’s Mozzarella is the pre-packaged low-moisture kind and I must confess a strong preference for the fresh variety. Still, F of G’s is far better than any store-bought version and I would love to try it on a pizza sometime.

For the buns I used a fairly straightforward recipe for an old issue of Cooking Light (I checked the site and can’t find it there, so no link) which i have used again and again with various flours in different proportions. This time I used 100% whole wheat flour from Moutoux. It was a little dense since it was all whole-wheat, but rose and baked well. It is a bit more coarse than, say, King Arthur’s w.w. flour. The only real quibble that I have with Moutoux is that the paper bags the flour comes in are a bit too thin! One more sharp turn on the way home and I might have floured the car. I will get their flour again, but will bring some appropriate plastic tub with me to put it in right away.

Now We're Just Showing Off...

The Menu:

• Hot Dogs:  Cibola Farms Bison Dogs
• Onions:  Tree and Leaf Farm torpedo Onions
• Cheese: Fields of Grace
• Buns: Homemade from Moutoux Whole Wheat Flour
• Tomatoes: Bull Run Mountain CSA
• Green Tomato Ketchup: Homemade from Bull Run CSA tomatoes

It’s Labor Day weekend.  The time we take off from work and cook meat over an open fire.  There’s no reason you can’t have an amazing locavore Labor Day!   I definitely think it would be overboard for most people to make their own hotdog buns from locally grown and milled flour, but it’s not a stretch to get locally, humanely raised hotdogs.  Labor Day weekend is the perfect time to share the joy of eating local.  People will be asking where you got the amazing burgers, and you can tell them with relish. (pun intended)

Almost all farmers markets have vendors that sell locally raised beef, chicken, lamb, and pork.  Cibola farms, who we used gives you the chance to try bison burgers – how awesome is that?  Needless to say you can also get just about any kind of cheese you’d like too. If your cookout is Sunday or Monday, there is plenty of time to head to the market!

What’s on your grill this weekend?

Beetza is the flavor sensation that is rockin' the nation

Too hot to use the oven, so I fired up the grill. Whole wheat crust made form Raphine Mill flour, beets from Bloomingdale farmers market, Goat cheese from Cherry Glen Farm, fennel from Bull Run Mountain farm. Wood from my shop and the neighbor’s oak tree

Aug 23 Market Buys

One of the comments we hear a lot is  … so, the gooseberries are great and all, but I can’t make real meals just by shopping at the farmers markets.   And, even if I could, it would cost a fortune!

Well, we’re here to dispel those myths and show you how it can be done.  This week, my CSA brought me corn, summer squash, tomatoes, lettuce, and peaches.  At the market (see above), I bought peaches, pluots, eggplant, sweet potatoes, bell peppers, pimientos (the little red peppers), basil, chives, dandelion greens, sweet potato ravioli, garlic lingini, bread, mozarella cheese, and blackberry ice cream (Dolcezza is totally worth the $6 splurge!).  Here’s my plan for the week:

Monday: Summer squash and corn soup with chives and pimientos (good for a couple of lunches, too) and bread

Tuesday: Sweet potato ravioli (purchased from Smith Meadows Farms) with bell pepper and tomato sauce and feta (purchased last week at the 14th St Market)

Wednesday: Tomato/Basil/Mozarella sandwiches on toasted bread with green salad w/ peaches

Thursday: Linguini w/ feta, summer squash, and herbs (good for a couple lunches, too)

Friday: Scrambled eggs w/ dandelion greens and sweet potato hash

Saturday: Corn on the cob, panzanella (tomato, mozarella, and bread) salad, and blackberry ice cream

So, for $80 ($20 CSA, $60 market), I will make 6 dinners and ~4 lunches for myself and my husband.   That works out to $4/meal/person for local, mostly organic, super-healthy meals.  And, for snacks, I have plenty of fruit, and will make baba ganoush from the eggplant.

As you can see, I am a vegetarian most of the time.  I’ll buy fish 2-3 times per month, and cook with meat (small pieces in a larger veggie meal) maybe once a month.   If you’re more of a carnivore, there are many meat sellers at the markets.  You could add ground meat to the pasta dishes, or add some sausage links to the eggs and hash dinner, raising the price to $5-6/meal.

Three Great Tastes, by Art D.

At this point in the Summer one of our most common CSA meals is what you see here. I’ll get home, chop a few potatoes into eight or so pieces, peel a head of garlic, then add rosemary. Toss it all with some olive oil, salt and pepper, then throw it on a baking sheet  covered with parchment. Roasted at 400 for 30 minutes. Quick, easy , and filling.

I don’t know why I finally figured it out this year, but Summer Solstice is when the sour cherries are ready for picking!  My husband introduced me to the joy of sour cherries 10+ years ago, and now we go picking every year.  They are next to impossible to buy in a store, so you really do need to head out to a pick-your-own farm to get them.  But, they are fun to pick — unlike some other fruits that will remain nameless.

We usually go to Rock Hill Orchard in Mount Airy, MD, but there are many other farms that have sour cherries.    You do need to plan ahead for sour cherry season, because it lasts maybe two weeks.  We picked only about 15-20lbs this year, which for us is a small haul.  We really aren’t planning on making the huge amounts of jam we (okay, my husband) usually makes.   I’m sure we’ll freeze or can a few for pies in the winter.

So far, I’ve made Sour Cherry Crumbcake, which is in the oven right now and Sour Cherry Pound Cake – recipe detailed below.  I think I’ll make sour cherry clafouti for breakfast over the weekend, too.

My poundcake recipe is based on one from The Best Quick Breads: 150 Recipes for Muffins, Scones, Shortcakes, Gingerbreads, Cornbreads, Coffeecakes, and More, but I’ve lighted it up over the years a bit.

Ketzirah’s Not-so-deadly Poundcake:
For the sour cherry version, add 2 tbs of cornstarch or tapioca starch and a 1/2 cup fresh sour cherries — very well drained.

Ingredients

• 1 stick butter
• 1/2 cup canola
• 5 eggs
• 3 cups unbleached flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 cup Fat Free Plain Greek Yogurt
• 2 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract (Almond w/Sour Cherries)

Butter and Flour bunt pan. Preheat oven to 325 for dark metal pan and 350 for light metal pan.

In mixer, cream butter, canola, and flour until light and fluffy (as it can be w/canola) — about 3 minutes.  Add the eggs, one at a time — beat well after each egg.

In a small bowl mix flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.  Add to wet ingredients in three batches, alternating with yogurt,  with mixer running at low speed.  Add vanilla or almond extract with last addition of yogurt.  Beat all together till light and fluffy.  Fold in cherries, if using.

Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake in center of oven for about 75 minutes.  Sometimes you need to put a piece of tin foil over the top at about 60 mintues to keep it from getting too crispy.  Let sit in pan for about 10 minutes before turning onto wire rack. (this is REALLY important — especially if you add the cherries)

I’ve made this recipe so many times and it’s always great.  It’s a great base poundcake on it’s own or for “tarting up” with freshly picked sour cherries.

Questions about Sour Cherry picking?  Ask away!  We’re here to help!