A look back: Summer and Fall 2011 cooking

I'm a little behind in posting to my cooking blog because I've been too busy cooking! Fortunately, I was still snapping photos, so following are some of my favorite meals from the past summer and fall. In most cases, I didn't use a recipe, so I'm not quite sure what's even in some of them, but using the photos I'm hoping they can be reverse engineered.

Growing Lots Urban Farm

In most of these dishes, practically everything is a local ingredient from Minnesota or Wisconsin. This summer and fall Jennie and I were members of Growing Lots, an urban farm CSA (community supported agriculture). Each week we walked only a few blocks from home to get a bag of vegetables from our farmers - how cool is that to walk to your food, all the while being within sight of the Minneapolis skyline?! 

We are also lucky to live a short jaunt from Coastal Seafoods and the Seward Co-op, where we have access to grass-fed, free-range, and locally-raised meat and fish. In particular, we are addicted to Seward Co-op sausages, which they make in-store and which come in over a dozen varieties including our favorites: Vietnamese pork, buffalo chicken, and bulk Italian, which is likely the best sausage in the U.S.A. Just watch out for their "Hot Sausage." It is aptly named. You'll also see appearances below by chickens raised by our cousins Rachael and George Walker.

Seward Co-op Grocery

Looking over this collection of our recent cooking escapades, there are definitely a few themes. These include slaws of many types, lots of cooked greens with balsamic, mixed green salads, summer squash, pastas, sausages, and roasted chickens. The slaws and greens in particular are a function of the abundance of cabbage and greens in Minnesota in the summer. We've found that slaws can be very exciting by experimenting with fruit, bacon, vinegar, and blue cheese in different combinations. Also, by simply caramelizing some onions (or, again, adding bacon) and adding a little balsamic vinegar to any greens - kale, collards, or chard - we've been finding them to be very tasty instead of just choking them down.

Without further ado, a sampling of culinary creations from Franklin Avenue, circa May - December 2011...

Apple, chive, and Manchego cheese slaw

 Curried carrot soup with yogurt and cilantro
Mixed greens salad with clementine oranges and creamy citrus dressing

Grilled gruyere and raw cheddar cheese sandwich

 Spaghetti with gorgonzola mushroom cream sauce

Spinach salad with navel orange pieces

 Rainbow trout and herring filets with red onion and balsamic relish

Wilted spinach with bacon and lemon

Whipped cauliflower

 Roasted free-range Thanksgiving turkey

 Potato and turnip chowder
Romaine hearts salad with blue cheese, bacon, and tarragon vinaigrette

 Minnesota wild rice-stuffed acorn squash halves

 White bean, tomato, and Italian sausage stew
Romaine lettuce, blue cheese, almond and pear salad

 Potato leek chowder with Minnesota-grown corn chips

 Steve canning tomatoes

 Broiled grass-fed porterhouse steak
Turnip and onion soup
Romaine heart salad with blue cheese and tarragon vinaigrette

 Steve's homemade apple pie with apples from mom and dad's tree

 Oven-browned pork chop
Sauerkraut with apples

 Beef with purple and orange carrots, potatoes and onions

 Pork chop braised in tomato sauce

Polenta with parmesan cheese

Homemade pickled cucumbers

 Tempura green beans with spicy dipping sauce

 Linguini with eggplant tomato sauce

 Summer squash soup with homemade basil-mint pesto garnish

Dining lakeside at Horseshoe Lake

BBQ grilled chicken, garlic mashed potatoes and brussels sprouts

Tofu triangles in sesame peanut sauce with green onions

Spinach and beet salad with blue cheese and almonds

 BBQ chicken melt with green beans and potatoes

Seward Co-op's housemade Vietnamese pork sausage and buffalo chicken sausage

Red cabbage slaw with ground cherries

Mediterranean lunch: caprese salad, roast chicken, homemade bread, egg with bacon, olives

Herb roasted chicken, sour cream cucumbers, tomatoes, and watermelon

Grass-fed beef hamburger with pepperoncinis

Sauteed patapan summer squash, tomatoes

Shore dinner in Quetico Park, Canada: curried cashew chicken rice with currants and coconut

Warm collard greens with carrots, onion, bacon and balsamic vinegar; tomato slices

Paprika roasted chicken

Eggplant sauteed with balsmic and basil

Cole slaw and tomato slices

Dessert: Mascarpone with peaches, dates, almonds and honey

Cole slaw with blue cheese and bacon

Seward Co-op sausage

Beets and potatoes

Linguine with sauteed summer vegetables

Heirloom tomato wedges

Dessert: Mascarpone with raspberries, peaches and mint leaves

Herb roasted chicken

Orzo pasta with parmesan cheese, basil, and cherry tomatoes

Linguine with Romanesco broccoli and cheese

Mixed greens and tomato salad with balsamic vinaigrette, grapes

Baked Seward Co-op Vietnamese pork sausage with onions

Baked potato with butter, herbs from our deck, and sea salt

Radish, fennel, and cabbage creamy slaw

Collard greens sauteed with bacon, onions and balsamic 

 Herb roasted red potatoes

Grilled garlic hamburger topped with basil on grilled whole grain bread

Asparagus and muskmelon

 Herb roasted chicken with warm red cabbage , bacon and balsamic slaw

 ...also with a baked sweet potato

 Freshly baked boule from the Bread in 5 Minutes a Day cookbook

Seward Co-op buffalo chicken sausage

Sauteed greens with balsamic

Wheat bulgur with chicken broth and green onions

Steamed pink and purple radishes with butter and fresh dill

Mystery slaw - maybe fennel or jicama? 

I really wish I could remember what went into this...I do remember it tasted great!

 Homemade pizza with thinly-sliced red potatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan, and herbs

 Bruschetta with homemade bread and pesto, mozzarella and tomatoes

More Seward Co-op sausage and onions

Steamed beets, delicata squash and kale chips

Pannekoeken topped with sour cream, brown sugar and berries

Thick-cut bacon

Jennie's tomato soup