One Local Supper: Potatolicious

Tim and I figured out the dinner menu while leaving the farm stand: let's see, potatoes... scallions... there's bacon in the freezer... SOUP! And when we got home, Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking For Everyone was sitting at the door with its Potato Soup (page 212). We used the recipe as a jumping-off point for something a little more complex, but I really have to credit Deborah: adding bay leaves really whomps the aroma up, and I never would have thought of it. Here's what we ate:

Potato Soup

Chop raw bacon into small (inch or smaller) pieces and cook until crispy in soup pot. Spoon out bacon bits to drain on paper towel, and pour off grease. There should be enough left in the bottom of the pan for the veggies, but you can reserve a little just in case.

Sautee in pot:

• Two onions, chopped fine
• Two garlic cloves, minced
• Three small bay leaves
• Two carrots, sliced (if you like carrots, use at least 4; I wish I had)

When the onions have started to soften, add 4 potatoes, cubed and peeled. Yukon Gold work well. Cook, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Stuff should be glazing the bottom of the pot. Add 1 cup chicken broth and deglaze the pot by loosening the tasty stuff with a wooden spoon; then add more broth or water to just reach the top of the potatoes. Simmered, partially covered, until the potatoes are soft (30 minutes, keep those potatoes wet). Mash the potatoes up coarsely. Add 2 cups milk and heat through; add about 2 cups grated sharp cheddar and melt. Serve with sliced scallions and bacon to garnish.

The bacon, chicken broth, and bay leaves were not local, but everything else was! Potatoes, onions, garlic, purple carrots, scallions from Verrill Farm; milk from Shaw Farm, and raw milk cheddar from -- get this -- Neighborly Farms of Vermont. Isn't that a great name? I'd shied away from the hard cheeses all summer because of the price, but when we tried a little last week, the taste knocked me over. This is a cheese to linger over. It's going to go splendidly with a crisp Macoun in a few weeks.

Speaking of bay leaves, that was one of the best things about Italy. Bay trees grew in people's yards as commonly as maples and oaks do in New England. We'd be walking along a dusty sidewalk, crushing dried leaves underfoot, and wondering what that wonderful smell was. All the food was terrific, but the bay leaves really capped the olfactory experience.

Tim's finishing HP7; I'm off to curl up with my new cookbook.

Comments

[Liz]

That looks seriously delicious! (Although, I can never say no to bacon. ;)

You're going to love that cookbook... I reach for mine all the time.

[Gwen in Bowmanville]

That's one yummy looking pot of soup! I've been following your blog all summer and thinking how very clever you have been to come up with all those local (or at least near local) meals. Bit by bit, I've realized that maybe it's not so difficult and I can do it too. I started cataloging the soup ingredients in my head --potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic -- that's easy, I have 3 local farms where I can buy those. I think the "Aha!" moment came as I was looking at the bacon on your soup. I immediately thought about my local butcher, here in southern Ontario. They raise beef and pork on their own farm-- and they are about 10 minutes from my front door. There's even a cheese factory that is just within that one hour drive limit -- and they sell in my area all the time. Bay leaves (very cool idea!) I can get from my mom, the green thumb. She has a potted bay tree on her window sill.
I envy you the purple carrots. I won't be able to get coloured ones until October.

Anyway, this is a very long-winded way of saying, "Thanks for the inspiration."

Keep blogging, hon. You're challenging me to stretch. And that's good.

[Korinthe]

Liz -- yeah, I kind of got the impression it's a well-loved cookbook :) Not just at your blog, either.

Gwen -- Thanks for your kind words! I haven't felt terribly clever, especially since I haven't used up our non-local meats yet (been eating so many meatless meals). The leap to veggies and dairy was relatively easy, but I've still felt like I'm underperforming when I look at everyone else's local suppers. It's not a competition after all...

Thanks also for the mention of a potted bay tree -- I didn't know they grew that way too! Will have to pursue.

[Liz]

Ahhh.... the magic of OLS... YOU are inspiring OTHERS!! How lovely to see. :) (I feel like a proud parent. ;)