the Friday Feeding; VOL. 109

There is a lot been said lately about what Local truly is. Measured in years, measured by distance, measured through family ties. In any way it is calculated, local seems to be what we all long for. Because Local has weight and has meaning, as though by shopping it or eating it or living it we become community and are escaping the larger part of the artificial world.

But Thoreau said it best “We belong to the community. It is not the tailor alone who is the ninth part of a man*; it is as much the preacher, and the merchant, and the farmer”. We all belong, with warts and all, and this has been the mission of our country store here in Canterbury.

As we wind down our final month here we hope you can come in to really see and study all the goods we have carried to appreciate the hard work of our very local providers. Ask us about them while you are in; they all have good stories.

*The “ninth part of man” refers to a tailor, stemming from the old saying, “It takes nine tailors to make a man,” which originally was a way to belittle tailors, implying that they were so inadequate that nine were needed to create one person.

Flavor.

Why does it matter?

If you are a home food grower you might be looking at vegetable seeds right now and making decisions about which plants produce the most or perhaps what is the best value per seed dollar. But have you ever looked at the offerings by what might have the best flavor? I know Kevin of Canterbury Plantation does. And Andy at Turning Mill farm did. And Kathy’s greens were.

Just because a particular plant produces lots, holds up perfect in our climate and goes well to market doesn’t always mean that it is the best plant. I remember our young friend (whose fancy degree made him think he wanted to be a farmer) joined his friend down south to grow cucumbers to take to market. He was astonished at how tasteless the variety was that his friend chose. I said, well, yes it would be. Hybridized flat not delicately flavored, sturdy not tender, leathery not squeaky, (Did you know a good cucumber or zucchini should squeak when you rub it? If it doesn’t, it is not fresh or it is over-hybridized or it has a coating of wax on it).

I am convinced that most of us who pack on the pounds eat in excess to try to get flavor sated. And here in the North East where great fresh produce in the winter is nil, we have learned to skip that tasteless stuff in the supermarket so their buyers have established the perceived lack of need then don’t stock it. It’s a circle. And our health suffers.

This time of year when perhaps we are all cutting back on calories to make up for the feasting season just behind us, I encourage us to consider Flavor as our new diet. And if you can’t spend your dollars at specialty stores where great produce is year ‘round (for the most part), consider upping your added flavor.

Here are a couple tips:

Salads: skip the bottled dressings whose chemically induced flavor components are designed to make you keep wanting more through their salty/sweet/fat go around. Instead grab greens that actually have flavor like arugula, baby kale, radicchio and dress them with some fresh citrus juice squeezed out of a tangerine or orange then splash them with some good peppery-fresh Extra Virgin olive oil and some salt. Your taste buds will dance!

Grill your greens: instead of steaming or boiling (where the flavor can leach out) try grilling heads of greens to give you deeper flavor and the adventurous hot/cold crunch sensation on your palette. Let your pan or outdoor grill get very hot then press the cut head firmly on it until grill marks appear. Serve immediately with a drizzle of your choice. See recipe below.

Add some extra flavor to your roasted or grilled meats and veggies. Toast a combination of seeds then grind them in a blender or Bullet. Add salt or additional spices to the mix then spoon over your finished food. Mix any combination of seeds in a skillet and heat on medium/high until they start to pop or blister and brown about 3 minutes. Add smaller seeds like sesame in only for the last minute.

Caesar Salad Dressing

Add the following to a blender and whirl until smooth. This will separate so shake before using. Because of the cheese and garlic, this requires refrigeration. It will thicken when completely chilled so let it sit out a bit before using.

• 1 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 10 grinds of black pepper
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• a 1” squirt of anchovy paste; optional

Come to our final art reception tonight Friday January 9, 5-6ishPM

FEATURING THE ARTWORK OF LAUREN PROSPERE ALONG WITH JAYNE HASTINGS AND TYLER MOSER

Dave’s pizza, fancy finger foods, celebratory beverages & good byes.

Till next time,

Jane and Dave

This BLOG will continue for the near future and stay tuned for where it will go from here.