Local food

While we haven't actually participated in the Eat Local Challenge, we took a step in that direction tonight. I found a "neighbor" about 7 miles away selling fresh eggs, so I went over to pick some up. She was very nice, and had quite a little hobby farm going. She had maybe a dozen cattle, a couple plump turkeys, two different kinds of geese, two different kinds of ducks, and I don't know how many types of chickens. We talked for a while, and I bought a couple dozen eggs from her for two bucks.

So flush with eggs, we decided to waste no time in eating them. Dinner consisted of the afforementioned eggs, toast made from homemade bread (ingredients from parts unknown, but we're getting there), and milk from our front yard. Nothing fancy, but quite good.

The eggs reminded me of my childhood for some reason. We didn't raise chickens, and didn't live near anyone who did, but best I can figure, the quality of store-bought eggs - even cage free, veg fed - has declined dramatically over the course of my life.

At any rate, I'm enjoying finding the occasional local food source. I've discovered you have to pay attention at certain farm markets, because in some cases, they have the exact same packaged stuff you find in the "Natural" section of the grocery store. And it's still slightly odd to me when the farm market sells food from several states away. But I've had great success with some of them. I'm addicted to one particular market's potato chips, and I've had unbelievably good strawberries and musk melons already this year.

Hopefully someday we can eat many meals produced in their entirety, right here on the property. In the meantime, tonight was a nice preview of what we hope is to come...