One Local Summer #3

I wanted to join a CSA this summer, but by the time I looked into it all the ones that were close to me were at capacity. I will need to wait until next summer for that, I guess. But luckily for me, one of the families that I nanny for joins a CSA every summer and each week they send veggies home with me. Yum!

This week, they gave me some lettuce greens and some turnips. I can't really remember ever having eaten turnips, and I was not sure if they were something I would like. I had read the newsletter from their CSA, which said that you could cook the turnips if you wanted to, but that they recommended eating them raw. So I tried a raw one and...it was delicious! It was a challenge to try to save the rest for dinner. :)

And dinner was: Minnesota wild rice with parsley from our garden, and a salad made with the lettuce and turnips from the CSA. The salad dressing was not local, I'm afraid. But it was homemade, and for the next batch that I make up I think I could get a number of the ingredients locally. I'll have to try that.

One Local Summer #2

Ok, so I got everything done on Sunday that was on my to do list, except for writing about my second week participating in the One Local Summer challenge. The part I'm finding challenging is not making a meal with local ingredients, but posting about it! So anyway, this is late.

Late, but delicious! We got a pork steak, new potatoes, and sugar snaps from the St. Paul Farmer's Market. I grilled the pork steak and the potatoes, and they were so good. I added salt, pepper, and oregano to the potatoes before putting them on the grill (none of those three things were local, but that still fits in with the guidelines for the challenge). The wine is actually from Iowa, but it was bought locally - a friend who lives there gave the wine to us.

M really wanted me to share the pork steak with her, but no such luck!

Bad Blogger

I was tagged ages ago by Julia, and then again a few days ago by Julie for the same thing. I'm sorry it has taken me so long, you two! I actually feel very special to be chosen by both of you, despite how long it has taken me to get around to doing this...

I have to answer 6 questions about myself. At the end of the post, I then tag 6 people and post their names, then go to their blogs and leave them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read my blog. Then, I must let the person who tagged me know when I’ve posted my answers.

What was I doing ten years ago

Hmm, I was still in high school then. So I had probably just started summer break and was doing my summer job, which was working as a nanny. There is plenty that has changed in the last ten years, but looking back on that sentence you wouldn't know it, since my grad school recently ended and I am, uh, working as a nanny. Great.

5 things on my to do list for today

Today is almost over. The only things on my to do list are finish this blog and go to bed. So maybe I'll cheat and let you know 5 things for tomorrow. :)

* Make a Father's Day card (yeah, I know, I'm behind!)

* Wrap my dad's present.

* Have brunch with my dad (so the two things above need to be accomplished early!)

* Laundry.

* Write my second One Local Summer post.

Snacks I enjoy

Now this is a tough one. No limit? Not three snacks I enjoy? Or five snacks I enjoy? Ok, well my taste is all over the place. If I am feeling refined there is nothing I like better than Comte cheese with a baguette and a glass of white wine. But I also love Samoas (the Girl Scout cookie). I could eat a whole box in one sitting. In fact, I have. Recently. I love apple slices with peanut butter (creamy) spread on them. Oh, and graham crackers dipped in apple or grape juice (but maybe that's just because I spend too much time with kids). And really, I should be given a limit when I get questions like this. I'll just stop now.

Things I would do if I were a billionaire

This is another tough one. I think, for the most part, my life wouldn't change drastically. I would probably do all the same things that I do now, minus the stress of worrying about making the money for it all. I would stop working and I would write children's books. I'm going to try writing children's books without being a billionaire, but it would nice to not have to worry about whether you could make a living off it or not. I would volunteer my time at different places. I would put some of the money in savings, and I would use some of it to travel, and I'm sure I'd do some shopping. ;) I would also like to donate some of it to organizations that I feel strongly about. I would not move to a bigger house or buy a fancy car - none of that flashy stuff for me. But I wouldn't mind an apartment in London or Paris or somewhere equally as lovely...

Places I have lived

St. Paul, Minnesota

London, England

Caen, France

Besançon, France

Paris, France

Florence, Italy

6 people I want to know more about

It was hard to find six of you who hadn't done this already! I think I managed, but I may not have looked far enough back in your blogs. Sorry if you've already been tagged for this.

Emily of Inside a Black Apple

G of doe-c-doe

Kajsa of Syko

Laura of Cupcakes for Clara

Melody of biglittlesister

Westy of Westy Art

If any of you ladies don't want to do this, I won't be offended!

Mosaic

I got this from Domesticali - I didn't do it at first, because I thought you might have to have a Flickr account. But hooray! You can do it without one.

1. Katherine 2, 2. Black Apple, 3. Blake, 4. Let's Get Green! Please take a moment to read..., 5. Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, 6. Rose champagne - infinite bubbles - If you like it fav it or leave a comment please, 7. Europe, Greece, Santorini, Greek Islands, Oia, 8. mmm, cupcakes, 9. Veterinarian's Office, 10. Family Portrait, 11. Thank God for Dogs, 12. kitten and mitten

Here's what you do:

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.

b. Using only the first page, pick an image.

c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd's mosaic maker.

The questions:

1. What is your first name?

2. What is your favorite food?

3. What high school did you go to?

4. What is your favorite color?

5. Who is your celebrity crush?

6. Favorite drink?

7. Dream vacation?

8. Favorite dessert?

9. What you want to be when you grow up?

10. What do you love most in life?

11. One word to describe you.

12. Your flickr name.

Here's what I typed in:

1. Katherine

2. apples [It was hard to pick just one! But that's what I wanted at the time, so...]

3. Blake

4. green

5. Jonathan Rhys Meyers

6. champagne

7. Greek Islands [I've been to Athens, and I wouldn't object to going again, but really I just long for those beautiful white buildings with the blue doors and cats wandering around, with all that sparkling water as the backdrop. Ahhh...]

8. cupcakes

9. veterinarian [That was the first thing I ever wanted to be. It is not what I am doing now, and I'm ok with that! Did you really think I wanted to be a duck?]

10. Softies! No, really I put 'family.'

11. empathetic

12. kittens mittens [Ok, so I don't actually have an account, but if I did it would certainly be something like that.]

One Local Summer

I discovered a blog online that was doing a challenge called 'One Local Summer,' and I just love the idea. Each week, you cook at least one meal using only local ingredients. Then you post about it in your blog. I thought this was great, and am very excited about participating! I didn't make it to the Farmer's Market last weekend, so I may have to stock up this weekend. But I found some local food at our co-op, and made a delicious brunch on Wednesday. Bacon, scrambled eggs, and toast with raspberry jam, all from right around here. Yum!

What I really enjoy is how much this gets me thinking about where my food is coming from. I'm paying a lot more attention to how far something has traveled before it comes to rest in my shopping basket...