It's That Time Again, Kids....

I am in heaven. Pure bliss. You know why? It's that time of year again, the time that all Chicagoans suffer 9 months of the year just to get to.

Yes, folks, it's summer.

DISCLAIMER: For all of you scientists out there, I realize that it is not yet officially meteorological summer. But I am sitting on my back deck, sun shining overhead, iced latte in hand, staring at my beautiful flowers, herbs, and veggie plants. To me, this is summer incarnate.

And of course the start of summer means the start of the outdoor Farmer's Market and Year 2 of our CSA from Iron Creek Farms. Unlike last year, when I obsessed over which CSA to sign with to the point where we missed  the first few weeks of the growing season, the BF and I were on the ball this year and signed up in time to get the full bounty. I am beyond ecstatic that my groceries will be organic and local for the next 6 months.

So what does that mean for you, loyal readers? For those who have been following my trials and travails since this time last year, you may remember my well-intentioned but ill-executed plan to keep you updated on what we received in the weekly box and how we used it. While pondering the blog post for this summery day I thought, what the hell, let's give it a go again. You know what they say: If at first you don't succeed, etc. etc.

As it is the start of the growing season, our box isn't super big as of yet, but still filled with quite an array of goodies. Oh, and as a quick side note: our experiment with a full share in the Fall/Winter box was still a bit stressful for us last year, so we decided to stick with the half-share this year. It should hopefully be just enough for us to use for the week, while still providing some extras to freeze and store for the winter months.

Week 1: (L to R): sweet potatoes, sungold tomatoes, basil, tomato, beets, radishes, leaf lettuce, spinach

How we used it isn't terribly exciting, but I'm not complaining. As much as I love trying out new recipes with exciting, fresh ingredients, sometimes its just nice to enjoy the raw veggies in their purest form.

From the above selection, we made a few salads with spinach, lettuce, radish, and tomato; sweet potato chips; and simple cooked sweet potatoes with just a little butter. The Sungold tomatoes were so sweet we ate them straight as a mid-day snack for work. And the basil, which is easy to keep alive and fresh in a glass of water, is being used in Aunt Florence's pesto recipe, which freezes beautifully in small containers for whenever the mood strikes us.

Today we picked up this week's box, and while there are some repeats, we've got big, exciting plans for some others... which I will save for next week's post. I'm such a tease! But one has to create intrigue, no? Stay tuned. Also, please let me know below on how you would have used the above box. You know what they say: Curious minds, etc. etc.

Oregon, Oregon, Oregon....

How I love thee... let me count the ways!

Or, to use a less generic way of describing my favorite trip of the year: should I ever freak out, or lose my grip on reality, or have a nervous breakdown and need to escape from life and the Big City... you get the idea.... Corvallis, OR is where you will find me.

The annual family vacation over a long summer weekend is my favorite of the year primarily because of the fabulous family I have there-- my cousins Jeff and Patty and my Great Aunt-- but also because Oregon is the epitome of everything Au Naturale. Basically, everything you've heard about the Pacific Northwest is true: the scenery is gorgeous, the people are friendly, and the pace there... well, that's hard to describe. It's slow, but it's not Midwestern slow, the kind of slow that makes you want to scream "Hurry up!".  It's not annoying-tourists-on Michigan-Avenue-blocking-my-path-home-from-work-slow.  It's good, I'm-going-to-enjoy-whatever-it-is-I'm-doing-right-now slow. See? Hard to describe. Just trust me on this one.

As I've been doing this annual trip for 11 years now, I've developed an appreciation for and understanding of it's Au Naturale-ness long before I committed to the lifestyle myself. Beyond everything else I've mentioned above, the food and wine there is spectacular. Corvallis is a college town, home to Oregon State University (go Beavers!), but also home to some amazing restaurants and options for local, natural, and organic food at every turn.

Take Saturday Market, for example, as one of the highlights of the trip. It's the greatest farmer's market ever, so much so that when my cousin Patty suggested we skip it this year in favor of other activities because hey, "it's just the market", we almost skinned her alive. It's a huge market, the biggest I've ever seen, with all local and organic farms and where even the most basic of vegetables looks like they're on steroids. None of the booths were lacking for anything. In fact, just check out this assortment of fruit we grabbed for the dessert portion of the homemade meal we were making later in the day, including my favorite, the succulent marionberries I've mentioned in an earlier post:



L to R: Marionberries; strawberries; raspberries; blueberries

 The fruit was so amazing that Patty had to yell at us to stop snacking on it or else there would be none left for dessert. Instead, we bought a huge bag of the sweetest cherries to tide us over.

Saturday dinner, as has become tradition, is cooked at home with only what we've grabbed from the Market and what we pick up from the local fishmonger, who gets his catch fresh from the coast just a few hours drive away. Even I, who generally does not like cooked fish, can appreciate a fresh Pacific salmon.

Beyond the homecooked meal, however, Corvallis and the Willamette Valley in general can be counted on for great food and wine. On Friday night, we drove to nearby Philomath to dine at Gathering Together Farm, which may be the most Au Naturale restaurant I have ever visited. The name is strange, but that's the actual name of the farm where the restaurant is located. On the front porch they have only about 10 tables and are only open for dinner two nights a week-- so make your reservations now, folks! The head chef came from Chez Panisse in San Francisco and makes incredible dishes from the bounty they grow right on the farm. Whatever they don't have there comes from other farms just down the road. Add a great wine list from the excellent vineyards surrounding the area and we've never been disappointed. As a bonus, they keep the inside market open during dinner so once you're done stuffing yourself, you can also pick up some market-fresh items to take home with you. One stop shop!

I could go on and on... and writing this makes me feel that I should dedicate a post on our vineyard visits and the virtues/pitfalls of organic wine vs. non-organic wine vs. wine made with organic grapes... but I don't want to keep you reading about the details of my trip forever. I've done that a lot recently. That being said, if you happen to catch yourself on a flight west and need some vineyards or restaurants or camping/biking/boating gear (here is where I shamelessly plug my cousin's store, Peak Sports), I will be more than happy to profer suggestions. Suffice it to say I'm already counting down the days until next year's trip.