Radish, Carrot and Apple Salad ...in a bite

You're looking at a slice of watermelon radish (Heron Pond Farm) topped with herbed fromage frais (Brookford farm), carrot ribbons (HPF), diced apple (Cider Works), slivers of red onion (Meadow's Mirth), and sprigs of baby greens (HPF), garnished with chopped hickory-smoked almonds and a very light touch of cracked peppercorn.  I finished the whole bite with a drizzle of honey-dijon vinaigrette.

These make for very user-friendly appetizers, as the radish slice folds nicely when picked up.  Not only are they easy to eat, they're easy to make.  They're also naturally gluten-free, loaded with local goodness, low in calories, crunchy, creamy, tangy and tasty!  And, well, quite easy to look at, I'd say.  Sring IS in the air.   :).

Either a mandoline or a sharp knife will make easy work of thin slices....

Grilled Grass-fed Bone-in Rib Eye, Roasted Fingerlings with Garlic, Greens with Roasted Golden Beets and Fromage Frais

The "before's"...

Riverside Farm's 'Golden Beets' ... Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with sea salt & cracked pepper, wrap in foil and bake for an hour at 400...

Heron Pond Farm fingerlings and Maine Herb Farm garlic ... Cast iron is my choice: dress in olive oil, s&p and fresh berbs and roast right alongside the beets (these were hefty fingerlings; smaller ones would need 35-40 min)

New Roots Farm's grass-fed bone-in rib eyes ... while the beets and potatoes are roasting, rub these with oil and sprinkle with sea salt and cracked pepper and set aside to warm to room temp before grilling for ~7 or 8 minutes each side (these were thick cut steaks) for medium rare.  Be sure to let them rest to reabsorb their juices.

A glimpse of the very last bag of greens from Heron Pond on Saturday.  I'm already in withdrawal....

The "after's"...

Coconut Cupcakes...Those Non-local Ingredients...

There are just some things in life that we cannot go without.  These vegan coconut cupcakes, for example, adapted from a 'Chef Chloe's' recipe, which have virtually no ingredient that comes from local sources (apple cider vinegar, that's it), are just too scrumptious and fun not to make.  And, chocolate, don't get me going....

Salad for Mexican Night

Roasted meets Raw in this baby.

Okay, first, there's not a whole lot in this dish that's local.  There's enough, but I fully admit this isn't a locavore's dish.  But isn't it pretty?  And, it was indeed really tasty, and met the needs of 8 hungry adults swooning over a sit-down chili luncheon yesterday.  Sweet, crunchy, buttery, earthy and salty (I finished it with smoked hickory sea salt), it's a keeper for our next chicken chili poker party....

Caldo Verde (Kale Soup!) with Baer's Best 'Calypso' Beans

Baer's Best 'calypso' beans and New Root Farm's chorizo meet local potatoes, cabbage and kale.  Homemade chicken jus is, of course, what makes this whole thing worth it.  And the bread, we can't forget the bread (Beach Pea's, naturally).  Try saying "Beach Pea and Baer's Beans" five times fast. 

This recipe was adapted from The Book of New England Cookery.  I used a rich, dark, flavorful chicken stock ("jus") instead of beef stock, and added cabbage as well as kale.  I also changed up my quantities on a couple of other ingredients, namely the potatoes.  We love potatoes.  I also topped our bowls with shaved parmesan.  We love parmesan.

Schmierkäse on a Snow Day

Brookford Farm quark.  Made plain and flavored (herbed, etc.)

My mother, who adapted her recipe from a great aunt's, turned out a bowl of this spreadable, curdy cheese concoction years back while I was up visiting.  She lives in the mountains, I'm of German descent.  It was a match made in heaven.