Food Favorite

Not long ago I was in North Carolina visiting a beautiful garden at the Biltmore estate. I asked the gardener if it was organic and he got very agitated. "Let me get on my soap box" he said. He then proceeded to explain that most pesticides in the US were organic and that just because something is organic doesn't mean it is free of pesticides and that some organic pesticides are not very effective. He said that sometimes he would have to use an organic pesticide 6 or 7 times instead of using a non-organic pesticide once. The gardener then told me about an integrated insect approach that he used, attracting beneficial insects to do the work to help keep his garden as healthy as possible. But when he must resort to pesticides he chooses whatever he thinks is best, organic or not. Is organic always best? Clearly, it's not that simple.

Because a few years back I was critical of a campaign to "eat only local food", I left some people under the impression that I disagree with the principles of eating local. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, some of the reasons I felt it wasn't sustainable then are now changing. Here are the main reasons why I like "eating local" and why I have subscribed to a local CSA for over 5 years.
* Local food is likely to be fresher and fresher food generally tastes better and is healthier
* Buying local helps support local farmers and producers

But as with eating organic, it's not that simple. Here are the reasons I doubt I will ever limit myself to eating ONLY local food.
* Many products I love (such as mangoes!) can't be grown in my region
* The quality of local products is not always acceptable to me
* Some local products are just too expensive for my budget
* There are too many non-local ingredients that increase the diversity in my diet such as spices, imported cheeses, grains, wines, etc.
* Buying local doesn't necessarily mean saving resources--a recent story in the Boston Globe called The Localvore's Dilemma explored the issue of energy costs associated with local produce and found sometimes more energy is used than when food is imported.

A few weeks ago I did a taste test with Sonoma lamb versus New Zealand lamb and not only was the New Zealand lamb cheaper, but it tasted better to me. As far as I'm concerned, taste trumps everything. I hope one day the local lamb will be tastier not to mention cheaper than the imported lamb. But until then, I'm sticking with whatever tastes best to me and fits my budget. Diversity in my diet is too important to me to forgo eating foods that aren't produced locally. But will I seek out local fruits, vegetables, meat? Yes. I will and I do!

FOOD

What did you do during Summer vacation? I went to a supermarket. Actually, I seek out all kinds of markets every time I travel. I try to visit farmers markets, covered indoor markets, tailgate markets, you name it. I like seeing what's on offer, what people are buying and I usually find some great souvenirs. In France I bought rhubarb and prune jam, in Mexico dulce de leche, in Vietnam lotus-scented and flowering teas, in Spain bitter orange marmalade, in Asheville sourwood honey.

The last supermarket I visited was nothing like any supermarket I'd ever seen before. While I didn't actually purchase anything, I did check out every department. What sets this supermarket apart from the rest was that it's an interesting reflection of where many supermarkets might just be heading.

So what does the supermarket of the future look like? It looks a lot more like a high-end specialty market. It features many distinctive departments such as a bakery that continually bakes fresh breads, a wood-fired pizza oven, 300 cheeses, a wine section with over 2,000 wines and a tasting bar with noted guest winemakers stopping by such as Mike Grgich and Suzanne Groth, a gelato bar, sushi made to order, coffee blended and roasted to order, a nut bar with fresh roasted nuts, a Callebaut chocolate dipping bar, Riedel glassware, Williams-Sonoma cookbooks, a beautiful fresh seafood display and a particular emphasis on local products. Store executives explained that in every region there are some specific local products that shoppers seek. At the Livermore store there was an impressive section of Livermore wines, olives and olive oils, not found in any other supermarket. There was local honey too. Not your typical supermarket experience! But maybe someday it will be.

For more about local produce showing up at traditional supermarkets, check out this podcast on NPR

FOOD + SUPERMARKET

Today is National Salad Day. Would I make that up? Actually I got several emails reminding me about it. I was going to post a vegetable salad when I realized, it was also an all local dish which fits nicely with the One Local Summer event where participants make one meal a week with local ingredients. It's an early version of a recipe I made for my recipe development client. The vegetables--zucchini, corn, peppers and eggplant all came from Capay Organic, the lemon from Los Gatos and the olive oil from Napa. Voila! One local Summer Vegetable Salad. I served it with Sonoma lamb chops.

While the idea is to eat at least one local meal a week, I actually had another meal that was primarily local this week. Ok, the rice and spices weren't but the Spicy Eggplant and Tomatoes dish had Capay Organic eggplant and Greenbrae backyard-grown tomatoes. Delicious stuff and so fresh tasting. I got the recipe from 5 Spices, 50 Dishes, a terrific book written by local food writer and cooking instructor Ruta Kahate. Last week I posted an interview with Ruta over at Bay Area Bites. This week you can read my review of her book and see a recipe for a scrumptious beef curry.

The recipe for my One Local Summer Vegetable Salad is as easy as it is versatile. Serve it as a salad or a side dish. I could see adding some crumbled cheese to it and calling it a main dish, and any of the vegetables could be swapped out for something you prefer--tomatoes, patty pan squash, red onions, whatever you like. Change up the dressing too if you prefer something different.

Grilled Vegetable Salad
serves 4

2 Japanese eggplants
2 ears of corn
2 zucchini
2 bell peppers
2 Tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Dressing
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

Cut and core the bell peppers into 1 - 2 inch pieces. Cut the zucchini and eggplants lengthwise into three strips then cut each strip into 1 -2 inch chunks. Toss the vegetables with olive oil, salt and pepper and grill for 8 minutes over a charcoal grill or in a cast iron grill pan, turning once. Cook the corn on the grill for 20 minutes (husks will burn) then husk and slice kernels off the cob (or husk the cobs, wrap in foil and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes) Toss all vegetables with the dressing and warm or at room temperature.

Enjoy!

READ MORE Over at Bay Area Bites is my review of Ruta Kahate's book 5 Spices, 50 Dishes

FOOD