Mercy

Farewell October.  Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.  Slammmmmm.

So, yeah.  The Eat Local Challenge is hard in Massachusetts in October.  Don’t let me tell you otherwise two months from now, for I would be a liar.  It surprised me because, in a normal month, about 70% of the stuff we eat originates locally, but it's the last 30% that's a real challenge to convert (hence the name, I guess).  Plus, I’m a big baby.  So I’m out of garlic.  Boo hoo.  I swear to god, though, it felt like the end of the world at the time.

High Points
Riding my bike to the markets (fun!)
Raspberries
Locally grown ginger
Finding wine I consistently like
Pancakes and bacon
Indian food
Shepherd’s pie made with local beer
Maple ice cream
Finding stuff I made ahead of time in the freezer

Low Points
Our breakfast repertoire
Our lunch repertoire
Waaaaaay too many apples
My whining
My mental health
My blog stats

Anyway, I learned a lot.  Remember, the important thing to take away from this is NOT that the Eat Local Challenge is crazy and impossible.  It’s that incorporating local products into your lives is actually much easier than you think.  When you’re not doing it all the time.  Every second of the day.  Hold me.

***

Eat Local Challenge Recap: 10/28-10/31

Tuesday, October 28
Breakfast: Yogurt, toast with jam, cranberry juice

Lunch: Chicken sandwich with melted cheese and homemade pickles.  Kids had hard-boiled eggs, bread and butter, cheese, apples, and carrot sticks.

Snack: Toasted pumpkin seeds

Dinner: Eggplant rolatini with tomato sauce (basically eggplant parm with a ricotta filling), garlicky turnip greens, apples.  Maple ice cream.

Wednesday, October 29
Breakfast: Yogurt, granola, cranberry juice

Lunch: Leftover bluefish and green beans.  Kids had peanut butter and jelly, apples, turnips, and cheese.

Snack: Pears

Dinner: Bacon, mashed sweet potatoes, and jalapeño cornbread.  Maple ice cream.

Thursday, October 30
Breakfast: Yogurt, toast with jam, cranberry juice

Snack: Pears

Lunch: Radish sandwiches and apple.  Kids had hard-boiled eggs, cheese, bread, radishes, and apples.

Dinner: Shepherd’s pie with beef, carrots, green beans, and mashed potatoes.  Pumpkin pie.

Friday, October 31
Breakfast: Yogurt, toast with honey, apple cider

Lunch: Leftover eggplant rolatini, apple.  Kids had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cheese, apples, and radishes.

Dinner: Kids had leftover shepherd’s pie.  Adults had wine, baguette, and a local cheese plate.  And Halloween candy.

Sources:
Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, MA: Cucumbers, pumpkins, tarragon, eggplant, tomatoes, turnips, sweet potatoes, hot peppers, radishes, green beans, potatoes

Milk: Stonyfield Farm, Londonderry, NH
Butter, sour cream: Cabot, Cabot, VT
Eggs: Chip-In Farm, Bedford, MA (Russo’s)
Yogurt: Stonyfield Farm, Londonderry, NH
Cheese: Cabot, Cabot, VT; Westfield Farm, Hubbardston, MA; Great Hill Blue, Marion, MA; Blythedale Farm, Corinth, VT
Ricotta: Purity Cheese, Quincy, MA (Russo's)
Flour: Wood Prairie Farm, Bridgewater, ME (mail order); King Arthur Flour, Norwich, VT
Cornmeal: Gray’s Grist Mill, Westport, MA
Honey: Golden Meadow, Reseska Apiaries, Holliston, MA (Russo's)
Jam: Trappist, Saint Joseph’s Abbey, Spencer, MA
Hot pepper jelly: Olde Nourse Farm, Westborough, MA
Peanut butter: Teddie, Everett, MA
Maple syrup, maple sugar: The Warren Farm & Sugarhouse, North Brookfield, MA (Waltham Farmer’s Market)
Apples: Autumn Hills Orchard, Groton, MA
Apple cider: Box Mill Farms, Carver Hill Orchard, Stow, MA (Russo's)
Cranberry juice: Ocean Spray, Lakeville-Middleboro, MA
Apple cider vinegar: Carlson Orchards, Harvard, MA (Russo's)
Mustard: Raye’s, Eastport, ME (mail order)
Garlic, chicken: Butter Brook Farm, Acton, MA (In Season)
Onions, turnips, carrots: Dick’s Market Garden, Lunenburg, MA (Waltham Farmer’s Market)
Pears, baguettes: Russo’s, Watertown, MA
Bluefish: Steamers, Newton, MA
Bacon, stew beef: Codman Farm, Lincoln, MA
Beer: Berkshire Brewing Co. "Shabadoo" Black and Tan Ale, South Deerfield, MA; Smuttynose Brewing Co. Pumpkin Ale, Portsmouth, NH
Wine: Westport Rivers Chardonnay, Westport, MA

Comments

[adele]

Congratulations!

[Lily VS]

First of all I got my hands on some Mayflower beer which was delicious and brewed down in Plymouth MA. The Golden Ale - I highly recommend it.

And secondly I raise my glass of said beer to you for making it through without throwing in the towel. Especially when the garlic ran low. That would have done me in utterly.

Maybe I will raise two glasses. We get an extra hour of sleep tomorrow right?

Cheers friend.

[The OTHER Tammy]

Just out of curiosity... I didn't read all your menus, so I was wondering if you took advantage of having an EXCUSE to eat Fluffernutters??? I would have lived on them... :)

[Tammy]

The OTHER Tammy: Fluff! That's right! Where were you last week?

Lily VS: Yes, raise as many glasses as you'd like. We don't get that extra hour of sleep. Kids wake up at the same time regardless of what the clock says.

Adele: Many thanks!

[Veg Year]

Your sources list looks a lot like mine, but longer! I had to claim a lot of exceptions to make it through the month (grains, legums, and condiments). It was still good to ratchet up my awareness level. It's entirely possible that my only change was switching from orange juice (Florida or Brazil) to apple cider (Carlson Orchards, Harvard, MA).

Kudos to you for being so dedicated, and doing so with kids to feed!