I’ve been trying to catch up on everyone’s Dark Days posts so that I can do the recap this weekend (great posts so far!). And I was starting to feel guilty because it seems like the only local things we eat anymore are eggs and herbs. But that’s not really true when I think about the last week and what we’ve eaten. So this post of mine is devoted to what we are really eating here in Seattle in early February.
On Saturday I made it down to the U District farmer’s market for the first time in quite a while. It was nice to see the familiar faces and make some new discoveries. Lest you think that there’s not much seasonal to eat around here right now except onions and apples, let me set you straight. There were plenty of winter veggies including spring greens, spinach, leeks, very late broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, mustard greens, onions, garlic and carrots. There were also apples and the very last of the pears. There were oysters, mussels and clams. Salmon, halibut and ling cod. Breads and pastries. Jams, honey and wine. There was even fresh made pasta and a booth with nothing but pickles. Quite the bounty for February 2.
Instead of posting about meals, I think I’m going to lead with ingredients this time around. Here’s what we’ve been eating, with a little glimpse of how.
Eggs (backyard)
Since I got home from Orlando last week we’ve had them scrambled, fried and quiched. We’ve had them in cake (more in a sec on that) and we’ve given them away.
Bacon (freezer, local non-CAFO)
Best bacon ever continues to deliver by itself and in the eggs. Need I say more?
Strawberries, Raspberries & Blueberries (freezer, local organic)
I realized the other day that I put all these berries by but we haven’t eaten any of them. So Sunday night when we were invited to some friends’ house for dinner I made a triple berry upside down cake. The eggs, flour and milk were all also local.
Carrots, Green and Red Cabbage (fresh, local)
The carrots and green cabbage were eaten as wedge salads over a couple of nights. The red was sauteed with butter and served with some delicious brats from the freezer - they were leftover from our Oktoberfest feast.
Spinach (fresh, local organic)
The big bag of spinach I got at the farmer’s market went into a breakfast scramble on Sunday and a Joe’s scramble for dinner on Tuesday. Then the hens got the rest 
Ground Beef (freezer, local non-CAFO)
The ground beef joined the spinach, some eggs, local milk and some Italian parmesan in the Joes’ scramble.
Tortellini and Alfredo Sauce (fresh, local organic)
Cucina Fresca has the best fresh pasta around. Not only is it all organic, most of the ingredients are local. And while I know I could make my own alfredo, I tend to burn it. So why not use their’s instead?
We’ve also been working our way through our homemade jams, pickles, applesauce and turkey stock. All in all, having a stash of summer foods in the freezer and access to the farmer’s markets means that even when we’re not cooking fancy at least we’re cooking sustainably.
Look for the next recap to go up Sunday night.
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In reading your summary, I just realized I haven’t added anything about our local eating since last weekend. I’ll do an update tomorrow. If that’s too late, it can carry over to the next summary.
Since we frequently have lots of raspberries and loganberries in our yard and then freezer, I am always on the lookout for ways to use them. I was wondering if your berry upside down cake is basically made the same as pineapple upside down cake with just the fruit substitution. It sounds like a nice use for the berries.
I am green with envy over your market! Especially the leeks (I’m down to my last frozen handful) and all that seafood!
Joan, I caught you up on the recap. I was running behind anyway…
Anne, the seafood is the best part of the winter market. I know that it’s from local waters and caught on lines not nets because I can stand there and ask the fisherman!