But this year we’ve gone a step further in eating local. Instead of just winging it, buying a few vegetable plants from the garden center, throwing them in pots and hoping for the best, we built three Square Foot Garden boxes. Square Foot Gardening is supposed to be easier and less wasteful than regular gardening. By using a special mix of soil in raised beds sectioned off into square foot plots SFGs are supposed to eliminate weeds, and increase garden productivity.

Our three boxes add up to 48 boxes, half of which have been planted with early spring vegetables. We planted strawberries, peas, spinach, lettuce, and broccolini and started some other seeds indoors. I have a few green bean plants waiting to be transferred outside, basil seeds that have sprouted, and I threw caution to the wind and planted some carrot and onion seeds outdoors, despite the warning to wait until after the last frost, which could be as late as May.

I haven’t figured out what else I want to plant when the summer planting season starts. I know we’ll have some tomatoes, green beans and spaghetti squash but that’s as far as I’ve gotten. I don’t want to plant anything I know we’ll get a ton of through the CSA so chard and kale are out. If all goes well it looks like we’ll have plenty to eat and freeze for next winter.

Sam, our three year old, is having a great time digging holes, planting seeds and watching them sprouts. Even if the garden doesn’t work out as well as I hope, I know he’ll have learned about where food comes from and how plants grow.

Episodes will be available online the day after they air in Canada (which is good for me because 1. we don’t have cable and 2. even if we did, I don’t think Food TV Canada airs in Philadelphia). I’m curious to see how the show plays out and if the network shows that eating locally is not only possible, but pleasurable. Because it is reality television, not reality, the six families that sign on for the challenge are forbidden from eating household staples like beer, coffee, tea, chocolate, olive oil, pepper and most spices. (Notice where my priorities are- no beer!)

While that makes for great television, I hope that at some point it’s made clear that eating locally isn’t an all or nothing proposition. Supporting the local economy and local farmers is ideal, but it is not necessary to deprive your family of coffee or bananas simply because they don’t grow in a 100-mile radius of your home. We eat locally as often as possible. Aside from the occasional tropical fruit, just about all of our produce is local from May through November. The majority of our milk, yogurt and eggs (and beer!) are local and I only buy locally pastured meat.

But the rest? I buy locally when it makes sense. Olive oil is a pantry staple and while the shore is definitely within 100 miles I have no intention of harvesting my own sea salt. It would be a fun challenge, but with two small children and very little patience when it comes to shopping with them, I’m not ready to fully participate any time soon. We still do more to support the environment and local economy than most families and I’m proud of our level of participation even if we’re not 100% locavores.

In addition to bits about the 100 Mile Challenge show, the show’s blog features recipes and tips as well as information about different vegetables.

This year I knew I’d be baking the Thomas cake again since Sam’s obsession with the blue engine has only gotten worse. But I also saw a cake pan at a friends house that made a little steam engine with train car cupcakes. I borrowed the pan with the bright idea to send the little cakes home with the kids as party favors.

The cake pan looked terrifyingly intricate. The directions called for using a brush to grease the pan and specified Wondra flour to flour it for easy release. I decided to give it a trial run well before the party. Despite the fact that I followed the directions exactly, the first batch of train cupcakes was a total disaster. The batter overflowed and spilled all over my oven and the cakes were essentially glued to the pan. I scraped out as much as I could with a spatula and used my fingers to get out the rest. Washing the pans required bottle brushes and toothbrushes, both wet and dry. It was a trainwreck.

But I couldn’t let it go. I bought a can of Pam for baking, a formula that combines grease with flour. It smelled disgusting and made me gag, but I sprayed the pans until they were dripping. It worked. The cakes fell right out of the pan.

Sadly I saved the second batch for the night before the party. I was tired and handed over the majority of the decorating duties to my husband. He’s not much of an artist but he did a reasonable job, especially considering it was 11pm and we were both a little bit buzzed.

This week probably won’t be much better. With all of the food we still have from the birthday party this week is going to be leftover heavy. It looks like I won’t have to go grocery shopping or actually cook anything completely from scratch until Saturday.

Monday: Chicken and white bean stew, mashed potatoes (yes, again.)
Tuesday: tomato pie, green salad
Wednesday: asparagus risotto, pepperoni bread
Thursday: chicken quesadillas, broccoli, leftover risotto
Friday: appetizers- cheese and crackers, hummus and pita, crudites, chips and buffalo chicken dip
Saturday: crockpot brisket, mashed potatoes, broccoli
Sunday: brisket sandwiches, oven fries

And of course we still have plenty of birthday cake in both chocolate and vanilla. For your entertainment, please enjoy a video of me preparing the Thomas the Tank Engine cake. I am not a professional.

You may have noticed that posting around here has been even lighter than usual. It’s not because I’m not cooking, it’s because I am cooking badly. I stand around and stare and pull out cookbooks and rummage through the pantry and dither and dather and come up with nothing except for meals that I am not proud of.

I’ve done several things I’m not proud of recently, including a meal of leftover pasta (two kinds!) heated on the stove top with a can of tomatoes, a bunch of leftover chopped green beans and a handful of mozzarella cheese. It was the most disgusting thing I think I’ve ever cooked, not because of the ingredients, but because of how last minute it was. I couldn’t bring myself to actually eat any of it.

So I’m done. From here on out I’m planning meals to avoid being completely disgusted with myself.

Monday: Homemade cheese pizza
Tuesday: Bean, cheese, and sweet potato burritos
Wednesday: Leek and potato soup, sourdough baguettes
Thursday: Chicken and white bean stew, baguettes
Friday: Garlic chicken( the other half of Thursday’s whole chicken), asparagus, mashed potatoes
Saturday: Pepperoni bread (making one for Sunday), leftovers
Sunday: birthday party food (I’m making macaroni and cheese, lots of cold appetizers and everyone else is bringing the rest)

It’s a start. Now I just need to stick to the plan.

Pepperoni bread is like a stromboli, only not quite as heavy. I took the basic ingredients of a pepperoni and cheese stromboli and scaled them down so it wouldn’t be quite as greasy. You can start the dough the night before to cut down on the total time for the recipe.

1 recipe pizza dough
2/3 cup mozzarella cheese
1/4 lb thin sliced sandwich pepperoni
2 tsp coarse ground mustard
olive oil

Make one recipe of pizza dough, adding a tablespoon of Italian seasoning or a combination of dried herbs before mixing. Let rise for an hour or overnight.

Stretch the dough into a thin rectangle, about 14×10″ on a half sheet of parchment paper. The parchment will keep it from sticking and help you transfer the bread in and out of the oven. Brush coarse mustard evenly over the dough. Sprinkle about a third of a cup of shredded mozzarella over the dough. Add a thin layer of sandwich pepperoni. Sprinkle with another third of a cup of cheese. Roll it the long way, jelly roll style, using the parchment to help. Turn the bread seam side down and cover the bread with lightly greased plastic wrap.

Preheat the oven and the baking stone to 425 degrees. If you don’t have a baking stone turn a large baking sheet upside down. Spray the top of the bread with a mist of olive oil. Using another baking sheet, slide the parchment onto the preheated stone and let the bread bake for about 25 minutes, until lightly browned and a little bubbly. Let cool on a rack. Slice into rounds and serve warm or at room temperature.

This recipe makes two loaves. Freeze one or give it to a friend. The bread toasts well and is great for sandwiches, especially peanut butter and jelly. It’s a kid favorite. You’ll need two loaf pans.

Oatmeal Wheat Bread
adapted from Gourmet
* 2 cups milk- whole milk is best but 2% or skim are fine too
* 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats plus additional for topping
* 1/2 cup warm water
* 2 tablespoons active dry yeast (3 packages)
* 1/2 cup mild honey
* 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus additional for buttering pans
* 3 cups whole-wheat flour
* About 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (you can use white whole wheat flour instead if you want an all whole wheat loaf)
* 1 tablespoon salt
* Vegetable oil for oiling bowl
* 1 large egg, lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon water (to brush the tops of the loaves- you can omit this and brush with milk or melted butter instead)

Heat milk in a 1 1/2- to 2-quart saucepan over low heat until hot but not boiling, then remove pan from heat and stir in oats. Let stand, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until cooled to warm.

Stir together water, yeast, and 1 teaspoon honey in a small bowl; let stand until foamy, 5 minutes. (If mixture doesn’t foam, discard and start over with new yeast.) Stir yeast mixture, melted butter, and remaining honey into cooled oatmeal.

Stir together whole-wheat flour, 1 1/2 cups unbleached (or white whole wheat) flour, and salt in a large bowl. Add oat mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon until a soft dough forms.

Turn out onto a well-floured surface and knead with floured hands, adding just enough of remaining unbleached flour to keep from sticking, until dough is smooth, soft, and elastic, about 10 minutes. Dough will be slightly sticky.

(If you want to use a stand mixer, stir all the ingredients together in the mixer bowl on low, then knead with a dough hook on medium for 5-10 minutes. Don’t add too much of the additional flour.)

Form dough into a ball and transfer to an oiled large bowl, turning to coat. I just use the bowl I mixed the dough in. Cover bowl loosely with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel; let rise at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Lightly butter loaf pans. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead several times to remove air. Divide dough in half and shape each half into a loaf, then place 1 loaf in each buttered pan, seam side down, tucking ends gently to fit. Cover loaf pans loosely with a kitchen towel and let dough rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly brush tops of loaves with some of egg wash (or milk or butter)and sprinkle with oats, then bake until bread is golden and loaves sound hollow when tapped on bottom, 35 to 40 minutes. (Remove 1 loaf from pan to test for doneness. Run a knife around edge of pan to loosen.)

Remove bread from pans and transfer to a rack to cool completely, about 1 1/2 hours.

Study Finds High-Fructose Corn Syrup Contains Mercury

And in the second study, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), a non-profit watchdog group, found that nearly one in three of 55 brand-name foods contained mercury. The chemical was found most commonly in HFCS-containing dairy products, dressings and condiments.

You can read the rest of the article at the Washington Post.

Spaghetti Carbonara

When the pasta is still slightly firm (al dente) drain in a colander, first reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water. Leaving the pasta slightly wet, add it to the pan and toss it with the bacon and reduced wine. Add in the egg and toss with tongs until well combined. If you didn’t add the olive oil earlier you can add some now. Transfer to warm serving bowl, add fresh parsley if using and salt and fresh ground pepper to taste and serve hot.

I get my eggs from a farm so not cooking them doesn’t phase me, but if you’re sketched out by the barely cooked eggs, this recipe from Emeril calls for cooking them slightly.

One more trick. I made some kale as a side dish. Personally I like kale best when it’s been boiled then sauteed. I boiled it for a few minutes in the pasta water then removed it with a slotted spoon. I added the pasta to the kale water. While I don’t really know that it makes a huge difference, I like the idea that the nutrients that leach out from the kale while boiling make their into the pasta.

1 Beets: Think of beets as red spinach, Dr. Bowden said, because they are a rich source of folate as well as natural red pigments that may be cancer fighters.

How to eat: Fresh, raw and grated to make a salad. Heating decreases the antioxidant power. I’ve never tried them raw, but cooked they are delicious. Try beet and beet greens risotto to ease your way in, or bake a chocolate cake with beets to please the kids.

2 Cabbage: Loaded with nutrients like sulforaphane, a chemical said to boost cancer-fighting enzymes.

How to eat: Asian-style slaw or as a crunchy topping on burgers and sandwiches. I throw it in soup.

3 Swiss chard: A leafy green vegetable packed with carotenoids that protect aging eyes.

How to eat it: Chop and saute in olive oil. We are chard lovers in this house, thanks to my CSA. Use it as you would spinach. I like this recipe for a leek and swiss chard tart

4 Cinnamon: May help control blood sugar and cholesterol.
How to eat it: Sprinkle on coffee or oatmeal. Toast with butter and cinnamon sugar is always a winner if you don’t have it in you to bake fresh cinnamon muffins.

5 Pomegranate juice: Appears to lower blood pressure and loaded with antioxidants.

How to eat: Just drink it. Delicious with vodka. Give it to the kids straight.

6 Dried plums: Okay, so they are really prunes, but they are packed with antioxidants.

How to eat: Wrapped in prosciutto and baked. If you’re thrown by the idea of prunes chop them and add them to your granola or bake them in muffins along with some chopped raisins and other dried fruit.

7 Pumpkin seeds: The most nutritious part of the pumpkin and packed with magnesium; high levels of the mineral are associated with lower risk for early death.

How to eat: Roasted as a snack, or sprinkled on salad. They’re great as a crunchy topping on soups too.

8 Sardines: Dr. Bowden calls them “health food in a can.” They are high in omega-3’s, contain virtually no mercury and are loaded with calcium. They also contain iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, copper and manganese as well as a full complement of B vitamins.

How to eat: Choose sardines packed in olive or sardine oil. Eat plain, mixed with salad, on toast, or mashed with dijon mustard and onions as a spread. Sorry. I’ve got nothing on this one. We don’t eat sardines.

9 Turmeric: The “superstar of spices,” it may have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties.

How to eat: Mix with scrambled eggs or in any vegetable dish. I use it most often in curries

10 Frozen blueberries: Even though freezing can degrade some of the nutrients in fruits and vegetables, frozen blueberries are available year-round and don’t spoil; associated with better memory in animal studies.

How to eat: Blended with yogurt or chocolate soy milk and sprinkled with crushed almonds. Sam just eats them frozen. I thaw them and add them to granola.

11 Canned pumpkin: A low-calorie vegetable that is high in fiber and immune-stimulating vitamin A; fills you up on very few calories.
How to eat: Mix with a little butter, cinnamon and nutmeg. A great base for cakes, cookies, muffins, and soups.