Homegrown Happy Valley

Week 10 brings the Central PA Local Foods Week & Farm Tour and National Farmers Market Week. So get out there and support local foods!

Ever paint with a garlic scape? In celebration of Local Foods Week, Homegrown Happy Valley is using the best of the summer harvest to help kids make some groovy artwork.  We had a blast at the Millheim market on Saturday, creating beautiful paintings and meeting some Homegrown fans. (I’m looking forward to a return visit with lunch at  Elk Creek Cafe afterwards.) Join us at the Boalsburg Market on Tuesday from 2-5 and see what you can create by painting with veggies!

~Homegrown Happy Valley will be featuring guest bloggers during our Eat Local Challenge to allow others to share their experiences. This week Kristin Leitzel shares her passion for local food and why this week is the perfect time to get out and eat local.  Kristin is the Conference Program Coordinator for PASA, Centre County Buy Fresh Buy Local guru, and supporter of all things local.

There are two things I love more than (almost) anything. I love a fresh basil and tomato sandwich on Gemelli’s french country bread. I also love peaches. Well, blueberries, too. And fresh green beans are hard to beat. A good head of broccoli is a fine spectacle, come to think of it.

Every time my son and I go to the grocery store, he asks me to buy peaches. My typical answer: “Sorry bud, let’s wait until we see them at the farmer’s market–they aren’t in season for us yet.” Now that he’s used to that response, he’ll ask whether other foods are in season, too. The wait makes the reward even sweeter. When he finally spotted his beloved peaches at the market this week, he looked like a kid who had just walked into a candy store.

What food do you look forward to all summer long? Tell us in the comments below.

Summer is the easiest and hardest time to cook. Our CSA boxes and farmer’s market bags are exploding with vegetables, yet countless diversions–the beach, the pool, sign-ups for fall activities–keep us from actually doing anything with them. In a nod to summer’s hectic schedule (and the always present goal of preparing good local food) most of our dishes this week are fast and easy.

How did you transform your local food into quick meals?

HOT ITEMS OF THE WEEK:

• corn
• tomatoes
• peas

ON THE MENU:

Day 1

Tortilla pie served with garlicky kale

~Homegrown Happy Valley will be featuring guest bloggers during our Eat Local Challenge to allow others to share their experiences. This week Celeste Olmstead shares the secret to getting a big harvest out of a small space.  Celeste is a mom, former writer for Penn State, and supporter of all things local.

Festival fun plus the arrival of more amazing local produce equals a great week to live in Happy Valley. With good tunes in my head and kettle corn in my belly, I see chocolate zucchini cake in my near future.

It’s hard to believe that it’s mid-July and that “Local Foods Week” (sponsored by PASA) is around the corner (August 1-8). More on that soon; in the meantime, tell us what you did with your bounty for the Eat Local Challenge.

HOT ITEMS OF THE WEEK:

• sun gold tomatoes
• blueberries
• zucchini

ON THE MENU:

Day 1

The arrival of tomatoes…the first sign of summer produce!

Tomatoes? The last of the asparagus and strawberries? What did you do with your local food for the Eat Local Challenge this week? Leave a reply and let us know!

HOT ITEMS OF THE WEEK:

• tomatoes!
• strawberries

ON THE MENU:

Day 1

Lasagna enchiladas and fresh greens, early tomatoes and radishes

• 10 lasagna noodles
• 15 oz. ricotta cheese
• 1 cup parmesan
• 2 cups mozzarella (Meyer Dairy)
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp olive oil
• fresh basil (Village Acres)

In a perfect green world, we’d all have the time, space, and skills to maintain a vegetable garden, a satisfying and sustainable way to get your produce. I always thought I didn’t have a big enough yard for a vegetable garden, but at least I have one. What about people living in urban areas or those in apartments or townhouses?  When there’s no dirt to dig in, where do you turn?

Many towns and cities across the country now have community gardens (Penn State’s Sustainable Agriculture Club started one this year on campus)–space set aside for individuals to sow and grow their own mini-bounty. But due to space constraints, getting a spot in a community garden can be difficult.  If you didn’t make the cut, what are your options?  Yardsharing!

Rain, rain, go away…

Even with all of the gray days, it’s easy to get excited about the local food scene as more and more vegetables are showing up in our CSA boxes and at the markets.

What did you do with your local food for the Eat Local Challenge this week? Leave a reply and let us know!

HOT ITEMS OF THE WEEK:

• asparagus (Sadly, I think the end is near for this star veggie. However, we are on the cusp of maximum bounty for so many other items!)
• strawberries

Some comfort food—soup, breakfast for dinner, and spaghetti and meatballs—as we yearn for the sun to come back on a regular basis. What did you do with your local food for the Eat Local Challenge this week? Leave a reply and let us know!

HOT ITEMS OF THE WEEK:

• asparagus
• strawberries
• zucchini makes its first appearance

ON THE MENU:

Day 1

Ten Minute Asparagus and Brown Rice Recipe