Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Farm Tours This Weekend!

This weekend, Lou and I have decided to take our uber-cool 11-year-old daughter, "The Bevinator" (known to the rest of the world as Bev, or Beverlee), on a tour of some of our local farms.  On Saturday, when we were at Opening Weekend of the Broadway Farmers' Market (on Seattle Central ampus at Broadway and Pine), I picked up a copy of the 2011 Puget Sound Farm Guide, put together by Puget Sound Fresh and Cascade Harvest Coalition.  Hopefully, the weather will cooperate, so we can put the top down on my VW and see the sun shine for a few hours.

I'm not sure yet if we'll head south to check out some of the farms around Enumclaw and Puyallup, or head north to Skagit County, the heart of Washington's farming industry.  Skagit sounds better, actually.  Maybe the tulips will be blooming, and a stop in for lunch in LaConner at LaConner Brewing Company (for Lou) and hitting a few antique shops would make a great mid-day break.

I want to get a few dozen eggs from pastured chickens, milk and cream, a beef chuck roast, and whatever vegetables are in season.  I definitely need carrots, potatoes, and squash, and I'll be on the lookout for some fresh fava beans (broad beans), so I can make crostini and a fava bean spread.  They should be in season now.  I haven't made fava bean spread in about five years, and I've been thinking about it for weeks now!  It's a lot like hummus, but I prefer the fava beans, and they are extremely nutritious.  Great on crostini and a nice, white goat cheese.  Azusa Farm and Gardens in Mount Vernon looks like they have them, but their website is down, so I've sent an e-mail inquiry.  They even have a "U-pick" option.  Bevvie and I will totally get into that.

Bev will want to pick berries, and Lou just wants to pet goats.  No, really.  He and his dad have a goat fetish that I will never understand, so we'll have to find some farm with a goat-petting area for the oldest child in the house (written with love, Lou).

I want to see how things work on a farm.  I haven't been on one for any length of time since I was 20.  I think we all should know where our food comes from.  I know Bev will get as much out of it as I will, and helping her to develop a healthy relationship with food right now, as she's coming up on her teenage years, is the reason that I started this blog, and began getting so picky about ingredients and growing our own food.  As a dancer, I saw so many girls with eating disorders and self-image issues.  I don't want her to go through that.  This may be why she's in tae kwon do instead of ballet...

Anyway, if my mom comes, she will, no doubt, bring home some strange, gamey-smelling sheep or alpaca fur to card, spin, ply, and crochet into something fabulous, but it's still riding in the trunk.  I can't see my uncle joining us for a road trip to buy organic carrots.  Not his thing.  Hell, he'll probably just enjoy having the house to himself.  He's really nice, and very quiet, and I'm a chatterbox all day.  I know I annoy the hell out of him sometimes.

Well, that's our plan so far.  We'll see how the weather forecasts look over the next few days.  Long-term forecasts in Seattle are never accurate.

I hope everyone enjoys your week.  Do something nice for yourself that's kind to the planet.  It's all we have.

-Zanne

Ess, bench, sei a mensch.





1 comment:

  1. When my Dad lived in Forney, Texas, he took care of a goat. For him it's nostalgia.

    For me...they're cute, they make milk (which can become CHEESE), they make wool (which keeps Ma spinning), and they are a play on the "'gote" joke Zanne and I have about those darned kids.

    ReplyDelete


Scram, bitch, I'm on a break.

Recent Meals

  • Grilled (in the rain) marinated top sirloin w/my Steak Frite and London Pub Sauce
  • Fried chayote
  • Roasted aubergine, zucchini, and yellow squash
  • Soft garlic sandwich rolls, and we made meatball sandwiches
  • Sirloin rubbed with cardamom-laced Turkish coffee
  • Chocolate truffles w/rum and bourbon
  • Petit fours
  • Florentine cookies drizzled with chocolate
  • 13-Bean soup w/parmesan rind and leftover ham
  • Apple spice cardamom muffins
  • Guinnes-injected pot roast
  • Cran-blueberry corn muffins
  • Spaghetti and meatballs - basic, but always a hit in this house
  • Hummus w/roasted garlic, olive, red pepper, and smoked paprika
  • Veggie stirfry w/julienned baby carrots, green peppers, garlic, chickpeas, and balsamic, served over Chinese Black Forbidden Rice
  • Ginger-carrot cake
  • Ginger cranberry mojito
  • Lime-cranberry-mint-strawberry seltzer
  • Lavender-mint iced tea
  • Trip to Beirut: Shish taouk, shish kebab, halvah, garlic naan, rice pilaf w/figs, raisins, and pecans, w/my famous lemon-mint-garlic Lebanese potatoes
  • London Broil w/a wilted spinach and mustard green salad with a bacon, balsamic, and mustard dressing
  • Sweet and red potato pancakes w/zucchini and peppers w/chicken apple sausage
  • Italian wedding soup w/homemade croutons and meatballs
  • "Rock the Casbah" Cardamom, Ginger, Apple Pork Roast w/Armadillo Rice (for you fans of The Clash who remember the cover of Combat Rock)
  • Individual Quiche Lorraine
  • Prosciutto-wrapped beef cubes w/mustard pan sauce
  • Chicken Sausage w/garlic naan and dijon mustard - Lou and I were really drunk.
  • Salt potatoes, mixed fingerlings, lightly mashed, with lot of butter
  • Focaccia w/garlic, onions, mozarella and cherry tomatoes
  • Rosemary and lavender bread
  • Spicy greens and spinach salad w/fresh mozzarella pearls, strawberries, and a strawberry vinegarette
  • Polenta casserole w/cheese and squash baked IN acorn squash halves