Weekend: Local and leftovers

Well, more planning will be needed to eat local, at least in the beginning. I didn’t do enough planning, so I scrambled all weekend for locally grown. I ate mostly leftovers, rice pudding for breakfast with a sprinkling of Washington State blueberries and half-and-half.

Delicious. Lunch was goat cheese, of unknown origin, and my favorite rice crackers. Sadly, I learned they are imported, so I’ll be looking for an alternative for the rest of the challenge.

Stocking up on locally grown at Fred Meyer takes longer, since they don’t flag the local foods. But I did find an Oregon pinot noir, organic even, by Cooper Mountain Winery. That was enjoyed at the last of the Britt concerts along with a salad combining rice, local veggies from the Grower’s Market with backyard tomatoes, yellow zucchini and a few green beans. I bought Stella brand asiago cheese (Wisconsin) because the alternative was imported.

On a brighter note, I learned that my favorite chips: Krinkle Cut Salt & Pepper, are made by an Oregon company: Kettle, in Salem. Yay! I can pair them with an Oregon beer: Black Butte Porter, by Deschutes Brewery in Bend.

Saturday included a visit to Southern Oregon Brewery in Medford for a tour of this brand-new company. I’ve had their beer on tap at a couple local spots and am a real fan, especially of the porter. It’s not in bottles yet, but they do sell a “growler” at the brewery, open Wednesday through Saturday, and they have 30-plus pubs that sell the beer.

Sunday included an omelet with Naturally Nested eggs (the carton lists Washington, Idaho and Oregon addresses along with a South Dakota address, which makes them likely local). I don’t have friends with chickens, so that will have to do right now. I combined the eggs with mushrooms, a growers market onion, eggs and Romiano-brand Monterey Jack cheese, organic and local, from Willows and Crescent City, Calif., purchased at Grocery Outlet. I felt I had to use the mushrooms, of unknown origin, since they are drying up.

By now, all the leftovers are gone or need to go bye-bye. I took some local meat from the market out of the freezer, so food will get more interesting in the next couple days. Otherwise I will be too ashamed to blog about it.