The Plan:
Day 1: Kale, roasted sweet potato, and apple salad with mustard dressing served with quinoa
Day 2: Taco Chili
Day 3: Homemade pizza
Day 4: Pork chops with apples (skip the pears), Mashed potatoes, Roasted brussels sprouts
Day 5: Ribollita
Day 6: Egg salad sandwiches with parsley and radish, Carrot sticks, Apple slices
Day 7: Out to eat! (birthday celebration)
This meal plan was curated using local foods that are in season now or preserved during the peak growing season in the U.S. Midwest. The plan is an exact replica of what our family is eating this week unless we are out of town. Meal plans are developed using whole foods and my meal planning system (click here!) and are meant to be healthy and easy to prepare. Most recipes will take no more than 30 minutes of active cooking time. Occasionally meals may require all day slow cooking, advanced prep, or some oven time. Recipes are provided when available. I sincerely hope this will help with your own meal planning!
Pantry Shuffle:
Out of Storage: (preserved when in season and coming out of my root cellar, freezer, canned, or dehydrated stash)
- Apples
- Diced tomatoes
- Canneloni beans
- Pork chops, ground beef, and bacon from Mastodon Valley Farm meat share
Into Storage:
- Carrots (store in refrigerator in produce bag)
- Potatoes (root cellar at 55-60 degrees F)
Notes: Eat local for the holidays
One more week until Turkey day! Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday. Most of the other holidays have been taken over by consumerism, but the focus of this one remains on food and family. Two of my favorite things!
After Thanksgiving comes the many holidays that are celebrated by people with various backgrounds and religions. But no matter what you celebrate, I guarantee there will be some food involved. Start thinking about this now so that you can plan to incorporate locally grown foods into the festivities.
Do you know what foods are available in your area at this time of year? It is time to find out! In the majority of the Northern hemisphere, the main growing season has ended, however you can still find cool weather crops and storage vegetables (harvested in warmer weather and stored for months) along with anything you have preserved from the summer. Here is a sample of what is likely to be available to you if you live in growing zones 3-7 (most of the United States). It is a lot!!
November: Apples, arugula, beets, brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, celeriac, clementine (zones 8-10), cranberries, grapefruit (zones 8-10), kale, kholrabi (storage), leeks, lemon (zones 8-10), lime (zones 8-10), Napa cabbage, onions (storage), oranges (zones 8-10), parsnips (storage), pears, peppers (fryer type), potatoes (storage), quince, beauty heart radish (storage), daikon radish (storage), rutabaga (storage), sweet potatoes (storage), turnips, winter squash (butternut, delicata, festival, acorn, pumpkin, spaghetti – all storage)
December: Apples (storage), beets, brussels sprouts, cabbage (storage), carrots (storage), celeriac (storage), clementine (zones 8-10), cranberries, grapefruit (zones 8-10), kale, kohlrabi (storage), leeks, lemon (zones 8-10), lime (zones 8-10), onions (storage), oranges (zones 8-10), parsnips (storage), potatoes (storage), beauty heart radish (storage), daikon radish (storage), rutabaga (storage), sweet potatoes (storage), turnips, winter squash (butternut, delicata, festival, acorn, pumpkin, spaghetti – all storage)
For more information on local foods, visit my Seasonal Food Guide: What Fruits and Vegetables are in Season?
Now onto the fun part – what to do with that local produce! Here is a sampling of recipes that are great for bringing to your holiday table: (Note I’ve included a couple recipes that feature corn from my frozen stash that I saved in summer)
- Apple Beet Slaw
- Roasted Root Vegetables with Garlic Thyme Dressing
- Basic Baked Squash
- Roasted Delicata Squash
- Basic Whole Roasted Chicken
- Braised Chicken with Leeks and Parsnips
- Cranberry Orange Turkey Thighs
- Cranberry and Cherry Compote
- Kale and Brussels Sprout Salad
- Slow Cooker Applesauce
- Parmesan and Sage Biscuits
- Savory Corn Pudding
- Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
- Lemony Brussels Sprouts
- Corn Muffins
- Kale, roasted sweet potato, and apple salad with mustard dressing
CSA Breakdown:
For those of you also using Crossroads Community Farm, here is a breakdown of how I will use each piece of produce this week. See the first CSA post from this season for details of how I structure the plans.
