What does a midwest locavore "look like".

Looking back on this year of attempting to eat and live differently, I have discovered that being a locavore in the Midwest is much much different than in more temperate climates. No season is this more obvious than in winter. I know that locavore brings images of healthier eating and healthier eating brings images of fresh green vegetables strewn across salads or pasta, all keeping their whole form. But this is part of the American dietary lie we have told ourselves for generations. I've started to call this California food, because that's what it is. What did our grandparents pantries look like? Shelves and shelves of canned foods. Root cellars of potatoes and root vegetables. My assertion is that our region should think of frozen and canned vegetables as the fruits of their labors from the past year. Preserved veggies are not less nutritious unless their loaded with sodium. If you've preserved them yourself, you know what's in them.

I had a beautiful photo of a meal (Rosemary-Garlic Chicken and Veggies) I wanted to share with you for a great example, but it was unfortunately deleted. I hope you get the word-picture at least. I was able to stop at the Farmer's Market on Rt 9 that has lots of frozen meats this time of year and got a locally grown chicken... I was even happier that it was cut up for me. After roasting 4-5 of my biggest heads of garlic, I blended that up with a couple tablespoons of my own rosemary which over-winters nicely on my sunny and enclosed back porch. My own shallots, red potatoes and store bought mushrooms were all cleaned cut and thrown in a large roasting pan and smeared generously with the garlic and rosemary paste. I salted and peppered the whole thing and bake it all at 400 for about an hour. I also deglaze the pan with a bit of white wine or broth... it is heaven!

Okay, the mushrooms weren't local, but they could have been... They can be grown indoors and don't require light! Weight loss plans or not, this is how I plan to survive this winter.