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I am reaching out to anyone who is reading my blog these days. A restaurant in LA called Forage started a program a while back to have urban farmers give their harvest to the restaurant in exchange for a meal. The program was shutdown and now they are starting a group called The Homegrowers Circle. With the help of a grant, they are subsidizing the nominal certification fee so that those involved can grow and legally sell their product to this restaurant and others in LA. Along with this opportunity they are asking the circle to blog about their experiences growing and getting certified.

But before we can join this great group we need your help. I wrote a small blurb about us and now need your vote to be chosen. Click here and scroll down to vote for Malika + Donny.

Thanks!

Enjoying last year's harvest...

Here's a reminder to use your canned foods. I had tomato soup in my cabinets from last summer that I'd nearly forgotten about. It's especially helpful when you are famished and don't want to run out to the store, but also don't want to slave away in the kitchen for hours.

I made a quick & delicious late lunch of tomato soup topped with fresh homegrown oregano along with a yummy arugula salad.

Pop open your canned soups and after just a few minutes on the stove you will have a perfect piping hot meal that will taste just as flavorful as the day you made it. The salad is just a mix of local arugula, a splash of olive oil & lemon juice and s&p. Add some parsley if you want a little kick. Then toss lightly.

We're in Pasadena now, so get excited for new restaurant and vendor reviews!

Local Autumn Dinner: Roasted Lemon-Herb Chicken with Sweet Potato Fries

We have a few staple meals in our household and one of them is definitely chicken. Donny's favorite. I found this great roast chicken recipe here from WFM. Use local chicken breast or leg & thighs. Instead of buying lots of herbs at the store I picked a few handfuls of herbs from my garden, i.e. basil & parsley. The recipe is very easy, but it does call for overnight preparation.

Homemade sweet potato fries are a delicious side to any meal, especially roast chicken. The recipe is simple, but make sure you have enough oil and a frying pan deep enough. (See below for saving oil.) Candy thermometer is also a good idea. Shout out to Junio for this recipe!

1-2 large sweet potatoes is enough for 2 people. First peel the sweet potatoes and cut into thin strips. The thinner they are the quicker they will cook.

In a small prep bowl combine 1 tsp. of each: minced fresh garlic or garlic flakes, pepper & salt, chili powder. Also add in 1 tsp. each of a couple dried herbs. Any combination of parsley, basil, oregano or your favorite is tasty. Mix thoroughly and set aside.

Fill your pan half-full with oil (safflower, corn, or canola will all do the trick). Boil oil until it reaches 350 degrees. Gently toss sweet potato strips into pan. Make sure all strips are full covered with oil. Feel free to have your partner test one of the fries. Should cook fully in about 3-5 minutes. Prepare a bowl with a paper towel lining. With tongs or slotted spoon, carefully remove fries from oil and place into lined bowl. Scatter seasoning over fries and toss to your liking.

If you are having a lot of people or only have a small pan, repeat the frying/seasoning process with multiple batches.

Enjoy fries with some homemade ketchup.

**Oil can be reused. Wait until you are finished with dinner to allow the oil to cool. Carefully pour oil into a glass jar with secure lid. Make sure most food bits stay in pan. Keep in refrigerator for multiple uses.**

Got Recycling?

Today I was reminded of the little efforts we do to recycle. The milk bottle our household just emptied was made in 2007 and the new one I bought today is from 2008.

Our favorite (featured) is Broguiere's from Montebello, CA. Plus, our market offers several brands & types of local CA bottled milks and whipping cream. A quick $1.50 refund at customer service for recycling each bottle makes it any easy choice.

This may take you back about 50 years ago when milk was delivered to your doorstep. Even if you are not trying to be nostalgic, bottled milk is a simple and cost-saving way to recycle.

Homemade Ketchup

Homemade ketchup is a tasty way to savour your tomatoes all year round. This recipe yields about 3 pints of ketchup. Feel free to multiply it for larger quantities. Other recipes use a food mill or food processor, but this blender ketchup recipe seems more accessible for the basic kitchen setup.

Step 1: Grow tomatoes.

Ingredients:

8 lbs. of ripe tomatoes

(1 pound is 3-5 medium sized tomatoes)

1 yellow onion

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

3 cups cider vinegar

3 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 tbl. sea salt

cheese cloth spice bag:

1 tsp. dry mustard

2 tsp. cayenne pepper

2 tsp. whole allspice

2 tsp. whole cloves

2 tsp. ground or 1 whole cinnamon stick

2 tsp. whole peppercorn

Step 2: Wash tomatoes and dip in boiling water for 30 seconds or until skins split.

Drop in ice water, slips skins, core, quarter and remove seeds. Remove seeds from peppers and slice into strips. Peel and quarter onions. (Reminder - all skins & seeds can go in your compost pile.) Blend tomatoes, peppers and onions at high speed until liquified. Pour puree into a large pot. Boil gently for 1 hr, stirring frequently. You may need to do multiple trips with the blender.

Step 3: Add vinegar, sugar, salt and spice bag into pot. Continue boiling and stirring until volume is reduced one-half with no separation of liquid and solids. This took me about 2-3 hours. If it does not quite resemble ketchup after a few hours you can put the mixture back in the blender and liquify more. This should bring you the consistency we're used to. Taste it - if too sweet, add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.

Step 4: Remove spice bag and fill jars, leaving 1/8-inch headspace. Process jars for water bath or pressure canner. Process pint jars for 15 minutes at an elevation of sea level to 1,000 ft., 20 minutes from 1,000 to 6,000 feet and 25 minutes above 6,000 feet. So I've read it is recommended to use home canned products within one year.

Make Your Own Sundried Tomatoes

No matter what size your home garden - from a few herbs to a dozen tomato plants - food preservation & storage is key to making use of your harvest. Donny and I have spent the last few weeks learning about canning, drying and freezing our delicious food. I look forward to sharing several recipes and ideas we've used.

First on the list is an easy and delicious one - homegrown homemade sundried tomatoes. The great thing about this treat is that you can use just about any size tomatoes. I chose to use our little cherry grande and sprites...I had found that we were not using/eating them fast enough. They also ripen quite quickly, so its best to use them while you've got 'em. This is a great recipe for a sick or rainy day since you will need to check on them for at least 4 hours and possibly 10 -20 hours, depending on the size of tomato you choose to use. The smaller the tomato the quicker it goes. However you should know that the final product will be about 1/4-1/2 the size of the fresh tomato.

The easiest way to make sundried tomatoes without a deyhydrator is in your oven. Preheat your oven to 150 degrees or its lowest setting.

My lowest oven temp was warm, just below 200 degrees. Cut all tomatoes lengthwise in half. If using larger tomatoes you can quarter them. I seasoned the tomatoes with a dash of sea salt & about half of them with homegrown dried basil (stay tuned for that recipe). On a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil, lay out the tomatoes seed side up so that they are not touching. They will start to shrink quickly, so its ok to squeeze them in. My suggestion is if you have the tomatoes - use them. I ended up doing 2 batches back-to-back that I could have done simultaneously had I just used 2 cookie sheets. Over the next few hours, check the tomatoes constantly. You will need to turn them on to the skin side and also move the sheets to other racks so they get an even heat. With the little tomatoes I found it easiest to turn them with my fingers. I enjoyed checking them every half hour - hour. You will know they are done once they feel like a raisin, but not brittle. They should have a leathery feel, but you should not feel water under the skin. For the remaining pieces you can speed up the process by cranking the heat to no more than 200 degrees, but be sure to check on them more frequently.

As they are done, take them out of the oven and leave to cool for about 20-30 min. After you complete the batch, store them in an airtight container or plastic bag. A small pallet of mason jars (varying sizes) is a good investment so that you will be prepared to start preserving your harvest. You can pick them up at your local grocer or drugstore.

Be sure to check on the batch of tomatoes for the first few weeks to make sure no moisture has formed. If there is any moisture, throw them back in the oven to dry them out more or use them immediately.

Enjoy them as tomato candies or in a pasta or salad.

Local Pan-Fried Onion Dip Recipe

This Barefoot Contessa onion dip recipe has been a favorite of mine for a while now. I love to serve at parties and it will be a great snack for the 4th of July weekend. I am very excited to make this dish with our homegrown onions. For the next harvest we will probably store the onions or use for tomato sauce and salsa.

Ingredients

• 2 large yellow onions
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise

Directions

Cut the onions in half and then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds. (You will have about 3 cups of onions.) Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned and caramelized. Allow the onions to cool.

Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the onions and mix well. Taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature. Makes about 2 cups.

Taking stock of our Local Urban Garden

Last weekend Donny and I spent a good chunk of Saturday & Sunday planting more and cleaning up our garden.  We are preparing for a light spring harvest and a plentiful summer feast!  See down below for a taste of whats to come AND here is what we have growing:  

FRONT GARDEN

BLUE BERRY BUSH Ω

DILL *

LEMON TREE Ω²

MINT ^

(9) WHITE ONIONS °

(2) PARSLEY PLANTS

(2) ROYESTA TOMATO PLANTS **

(2) SAN FRANCISCO TOMATO PLANTS ** 

(tomatoes & onions in raised bed / everything else planted right into the ground)

ROOFTOP GARDEN

(2) ASPARAGUS PLANTS ^ 

(2) SPICY BASIL / SWEET BASIL Ω 

(8) BEETS *

BUNCHING ONIONS Ω

(4) WHITE ONIONS ° 

(2) PEPPERONCINI PLANTS *

(2) SALSA HYBRID PEPPER PLANTS *

(2) ROSEMARY * 

(2) CELEBRITY TOMATO PLANTS ***

CHERRY GRANDE TOMATO PLANT ***

(2) ROMA TOMATO PLANTS ***

SPRITE TOMATO PLANT ***

(2) "VOLUNTEER" TOMATO PLANTS ▲

(containers only)

KEY: 

 ° from bulb

* from seed

** indeterminate / from seed

*** determinate / from seed

² transplanted from last apartment

^ continuing to grow from last summer

Ω started as seedling from nursery / farmer's market

▲aka "the others" / unknown plants that sprouted in other pots

Beets soon to be harvested.

President Obama's Local Garden

This story has been out for a little while, but it is still no less inspiring.  If you have not heard already Michelle Obama has begun the process of setting up a vegetable garden at the White House.  The space and weather conditions are pretty ideal, not to mention the greatest impact will be what it says to the rest of the country.  More and more I am hearing friends tell me about their own small herb or vegetable gardens.  People seem to be really excited at not only eating the "fruits" of their labor, but also having a project they can watch grow.

Spring Seedlings

Tomato seedlings: Fog, Sprite, Royesta, Celebrity 

Tomato seedlings: Fog, Royesta, Celebrity 

Pepper seedlings: Salsa, Pepperocini

Tomato seedlings: Roma

Beet seedlings (large pot)

Onion seedling

(all 2 weeks old)

What is Local?

I probably should have done this post awhile ago, but it is a difficult question to answer. Plus I also think the answer is different for everyone. We were talking about this subject a few nights ago - what do we consider local?

To the Eat Local Challenge - they consider local within 150 miles, but they also allow you a short list of things you can't get local, i.e. coffee or spices.

To the couple of the 100 mile diet - they consider 100 miles of where ever you are to be local.

And my personal favorite, Sunset Magazine has been working hard at a one block feast. All the growing, raising, and making happens in the magazine's backyard.

I found this chocolate in the Whole Foods. It had a Local sign on it. The company that makes and distributes this chocolate, called Chuao, is in San Diego. They sell exclusively to WFM. Based on their packaging alone - they appear to be a small company. The cacao beans, however, are obviously not local. They come from Venezuela. This is an interesting dillemma. For some localvores, the fact that the ingredients are not local to this area means they won't eat it. However, if you dig deeper you will find that this company not only purchases their ingredients from "locals" in Venezuela, but also contributes to their communities. And considering that the rest of the company is based in SoCal, this is still a pretty local product.

I personally think eating locally means partaking from vendors and local products in your neighborhood and local area. I am aware of the different levels of local, but I like to support them all - wine from northern California to green peppers from my own roof to my local paper store.

I know some of you subscribe to the Living Locally postings or read the blog via email, which is awesome. Please pop on to the site and check out the poll I have going. I would love to know what you already do or are willing to do to live more locally. Or leave a comment here and let me know other things that you think qualify as living locally. If it is something so outrageous that you couldn't dare try yourself, maybe it is something Donny and I would be willing to start doing. We're definitely up for the challenge!