"If people could see how their food is produced, they would change how they eat."
--Michael Pollan
Seasonal Recipes
Corn Bread Stuffing with Dried Fruit and Pecans
For years Thanksgiving has been my ultimate goal for eating local. If the bulk of the big feast could come from the garden, I would feel like I had really succeeded with growing my own food. So every November as I plan my grocery list, I think about what I could have grown for the meal, and make an effort to plant it next year. For almost a year now the bulk of our vegetables have come from the garden, however this was not the case for Thanksgiving.
Why, in a year when I have been so successful growing our own foods, did so few of the ingredients for this big meal come from the garden? I have come to the conclusion that Thanksgiving is a hard meal to plan because of all the traditions and expectations. Generally I plan meals, even special events, around what I have in the garden, but Thanksgiving is different. There are so many foods that we expect to have on the table, and a lot of those are are not in season in November, like corn or green beans. Over the years my family has come to expect chocolate nut pie for dessert. But this year, I still have a plenty of pears in the fridge, so a pear pie would fit more into my goal of eating seasonally and locally. However, when I suggested this to my kids, there was a lot of moaning and complaining.
So while I continue to struggle with this dilemma of how to have a totally local Thanksgiving AND keep my family and guest happy, I will be thankful for the ingredients that were from my garden or local farmers.
For this stuffing, I made the cornbread from local eggs. Usually when I serve corn bread during the year we have a piece or two left over. I crumble this up, let it dry out and then toss it in the freezer. If I am lucky I can accumulate enough over the course of a year for this recipe.
Last Thanksgiving the onions were from my garden, this year I was not so fortunate. An unexpected single digit low wiped out most of my newly planted onions. I attempted celery for the first time this year, but was less than successful. Hopefully with a little more research I will have fresh celery for next year. However the thyme and sage did come from my garden. A few years ago I planted a pecan tree, maybe in eight more years the pecans will be from my garden.
1 batch corn bread
3-4 tablespoons olive oil
1.5 cups onions, chopped
1.5 cups celery, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
3/4 cup pecans, chopped
3/8 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup dried apples
1-4 cup broth, depending on how dry the bread is
salt & pepper
Instructions: crumble cornbread and let dry for a day or so, or bake at 350 till dry and brown, about 20 minutes.
Saute celery and onions in oil. Then mix everything else. Spoon into greased baking dish, cover with foil. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes remove foil and bake for 20 minutes more.
Posted on November 28, 2008
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