One Local Summer-week 2: Western Region

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

The second week of the challenge has come and gone and I’m running a bit behind on the recap. My apologies to my region. It was a busy week for me as I was in the middle of the Cedar Rapids flooding, witnessing first hand the destruction of the Cedar River. Each of us that is focused on eating whole, fresh, seasonal foods will be thankful in the coming months that most of our diet is not reliant on corn or soybeans.

The featured dinner at our house was a simple steak and potatoes affair. The only exciting parts of it were the salad that came completely from our new garden and the Naked wine. But the other participants in the West? Well, they certainly rocked it this week!

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Oregon, Washington, Colorado

Melinda made me so hungry last night when her post popped up in my RSS feed. These gorgeous low fat yoghurt pancakes are not only local, they’re good for you. She even posted the recipe for us, but be warned, the pictures are going to make you hungry!

Discovering that perhaps beans really are the “magical fruit”, Donna made a rich dinner of rice and beans. Sounds so good I may just have to try it if I can get my hands on some beans. Even her picky son thought it was delicious.

Joan is ready for summer, even if summer has been slow to arrive in the PNW. Her new freezer is awaiting spring berries and she thinks she might have seen the sun. Dinner this week was troll caught Black Cod with salad from the garden, potatoes with wilted greens and “Peace Bomb” bread. Yum.

Joining the group of bloggers that make me feel guilty for not learning to make pasta, JM made her own gnocchi and Bechamel sauce this week. It might not be photogenic, but it sure sounds good…

Denise channeled Michael Ruhlman this week, making the Paté de Campagne from Charcuterie. It not only made for an easy, no-cook weeknight dinner, it was rich and satisfying when combined with baguettes, onion marmalade and a big salad. Much better than the steaks that also made an appearance…

With the farmer’s markets still limited to greens of various sorts, Monica decided to make Spinach Manicotti last week. She followed it up with Father’s Day breakfast at a new local restaurant specializing in local and homemade foods.

Kimberly found inspiration this week in English peas and gnocchi (I sense a theme). Sauteed in brown butter with a bit of sage, it looks as good as it sounds. And she sourced the butter and peas from a couple of my favorite farms.

In the midst of a difficult week, Ellen still found time to make a dinner featuring local black beans and corn wrapped in homemade corn tortillas. And she continued to leverage her stash of frozen local soups. Feel better soon Ellen!

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California

Green Bean went supremely simple for her meal this week. With a child graduating from preschool she was in charge of providing the tea sandwiches for the celebration. Peanut butter and jam, cucumber and cheddar and egg salad on local bread were the name of the game.

Proving that even in a BUSY week you can make time for healthy local eating, Tracey focused this week on a salad made from last week’s remnants. And on the heels of this beautiful dish, she found a source of chicken and beef.

Taryn found locally made pasta this week and promptly put it to use in a meal of lemon-chive fettucini with chicken, olive oil, vinegar, garlic and chives. They washed it all down with homemade ginger ale.

Declaring summer a week early, Anita is looking forward to feasting on all of the bounty that it will bring. This week’s meal included roast chicken with herb butter, Tuscan-style artichokes and a simple orzo-and-garbanzo side with chevre. While the chicken roasted, they indulged in bruschetta with ricotta and salami. Check out her post for beautiful photos and recipes.

Amongst a lot of other happenings, Shawna still found time to make a local breakfast. It featured a simple omelette with eggs from their chickens and greens from the garden and homegrown strawberries on the side.

Lauren did justice to elk steaks hiding in the freezer this week. She pan seared them and served them with braised collard greens, saute of carrots, summer squash and sage, smashed Peruvian blue potatoes and red wine. I love elk steaks - sounds so delicious!

Avoiding eggs by the skin of her teeth, Allison instead made a dinner of pork sausage, steamed corn on the cob (!), broccoli and zucchini. Hard to believe that there’s corn on the cob in California and I’m sitting here with my wool slippers on in June.

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As always, if I missed you, please leave your update in the comments. Thanks again for a great week!