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Today, March 12, in the snow and rain, my friend and I uncovered the last of the carrots that I’d left in the garden last fall. At that time, another friend had helped me cover the row with a thick layer of leaves (which matted down to about 6″ at most) and then covered the leaf pile with a tarp, weighted down to keep it from blowing around. At this point it was a bit of a job to haul the tarp off the leaves (ice build-up, tarp frozen to the weights, etc.) But, the ground underneath was soft (and muddy) and we dug away and found lots of sweet carrots, some of them rather gigantic.

Some Observations:

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3 cups corn kernels
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
1 cup grated Gouda type cheese (or substitute)
2 tbs. parsley (dried)
1 tbs. marjoram (dried)
Salt to taste

Combine ingredients and pour into greased baking dish. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until top is puffy and golden.

2 lbs. winter squash, peeled and sliced into ½ inch rounds
2 tbs. butter
2 cups apple cider
1 tsp. salt
Rosemary and pepper to taste

Melt butter in skillet with rosemary, after a few minutes add the squash, salt and cider. You may need to add some additional cider (or water), enough to cover the squash. Bring to a boil and braise for 20 minutes or until tender. At this point the juice should be reduced to a glaze. If not, raise heat for a few minutes until excess liquid evaporates. Add a splash of vinegar if you like.

Thanks to Deborah Madison, Local Flavors.

3-4 leeks
Ghee
Thyme
Sea Salt
Vegetable or chicken Stock
Cream (Optional)

Remove root and cut leeks in half length-wise. Trim withered green leaves and wash thoroughly. Keep green part as this recipe tenderizes the whole leek.
Place your leeks in an oiled pan with a secure lid and dress in ghee. Sprinkle sea salt and fill to half the height of the leeks with broth. Sprinkle with thyme.
Bring the uncovered pan to a boil on the stovetop. Reduce to very low heat, cover tightly, and simmer for 30-40 minutes, or until tender.
Taste and season. For a richer dish add fresh cream to the reduced juices. Braised leeks can also be blended and strained for a creamy leek soup

Recipe courtesy of Beth Maxey.

4 cups large storage potatoes, coarsely diced and boiled until firmly tender
3 hard boiled eggs, peeled and coarsely chopped
¾ cup last summer’s dill pickles, finely chopped
2 tbsp dill
salt to taste
Sour Cream – a few tbsp

Combine potatoes, eggs, and pickles, being careful not to mash anything. Add dill and salt to mixture and combine thoroughly. Add just enough sour cream to hold the salad together.

6 to 8 large pie apples; peeled, cored and sliced thin
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 Cup Honey
One batch of basic pie crust (recipe below)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Role out the bottom of the pie crust and place it in the pie pan. Fill as full as you can with apple slices. Drizzle with honey and dot with butter. Roll out a pie crust top with the other ball of dough. Place on top of the pie, crimp the edges, poke a fork in the top a few times for vent holes and bake for one hour.

Tip: After the top of the pie looks cooked (20 minutes or so) slip a piece of tin foil loosely over it to prevent the top and edges from burning.

Pie Crust
Makes one covered pie or two open pies

2 cups Whole-wheat flour (pinch of salt mixed in)
1 stick cold unsalted butter (frozen works good if using a food processor)
Cold water

Slice the butter into 1/4 inch chunks and cut it into the flour. If using a small processor blend the butter into half the flour till butter is the size of a split pea. Then add this to the rest of the flour.
Add enough cold water till the mixture will hold together in a ball.  Form two balls and chill 15 minutes.

(makes 2 dozen cookies)

1/2 c unsalted butter
1/4 c finely chopped fresh peppermint (or other mint) leaves
1/3 c honey, 1 egg, lightly beaten, pinch salt
3/4 c flour
350 degree oven
Cream butter with fresh mint, let stand at room temperature for 1 hour to suffuse the butter with mint flavor.
Cream honey into butter and mint.
Add beaten egg and mix until well blended.
Add salt & flour and mix just until batter is smooth.
Drop teaspoonfuls of batter onto a lightly oiled cookie sheet, 2 inches apart.  The batter will spread and flatten as it bakes.
Bake 10-15 min in center of oven until wafers are light brown at edges.
From: The Moosewood Restaurant Kitchen Garden.

I’ve been reflecting on the local food issue and, specifically” the “Local Challenge” recently begun here in March. You may think its harder to have a late winter challenge than it is in summer, and you’re right! However, as a part of eating local foods we must address “Food Security” as an early planning initiative: namely what will we do to insure the security of our foods as well as the securing of our foods!

Here’s what’s happened at the Hoad’s house on Emma’s Family Farm. We decided, a number of years ago, that home canning was our best option. By canning during the summer we could easily accomplish three things:
1. Have good foods on hand during the most difficult situations (storms, power outages, fuel shortages, etc.
2. Keep our local food ready at all times to be eaten.
and
3. Not worry about the food quality or, in fact, even the amount we might need for a specific meal. We could accommodate guests easily by digging into the stockpile.

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