Dark Days Challenge Week 3

Sundays seem to be the best day to plan the dark days meal.  My heritage hog from my CSA farmer is due to arrive between now and Christmas and there is absolutely no room in the extra freezer for 1/2 a pig.  Some of it may have to go to my honey's freezer (gasp!).  Today's SOLE (sustainable, organic, local, ethical) meal needed to come out of the freezer.

Menu

Pork chops - CSA heritage hog from last year (Large Black hog)
Mushroom sauce - farmer's market - mushrooms grown in PA
Roasted Green beans - my garden
Garlic - my garden
Sweet potato baked fries - my garden
Celeriac salad - farmer's market
Pickled Dilly beans - my garden

Pork Chops

The pork chops were brined in a solution of 4 cups water to 1/4 cup salt.  Boil salt and water, let cool, then add chops. I let them sit overnight in the fridge.  Dredge in flour, pepper and thyme (dried thyme from my garden).  Saute in olive oil, remove when cooked and tent under foil.  Add sliced  mushrooms to the pan, saute until cooked.  Sprinkle with flour, then add some veg or chicken stock (I added mushroom stock, made from a mushroom base from Minor's soup base. )  The soup base and flour are not local.  Cooked mushroom mix until thickened, add chops on top to heat through.

 

 

Sweet potato baked fries

Peel the sweet potatoes, slice into equal sizes.  Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Roast for 15 min at 475, then take out, turn potatoes and roast for 10 min more.

Green beans

Toss with olive oil and whole peeled garlic cloves, salt and pepper.  Put in oven with sweet potatoes at 475.  Roast for 25 min.

 

 

 

 

Dilly Beans

I opened these because I wanted them and knew the kids wouldn't like them, hence the roasted beans for them.  I pickled these last summer - made with dill and garlic. They are TART but delicious.

 

Celeriac salad - I bought a celeriac at the farmers market on campus last week.  When I lived in Geneva, Switzerland, oh so many years ago, celeriac salad was a mainstay on any menu.  It's julienned vegetable in a remoulade sauce.  I ran out of eggs, so I just made a vinaigrette.

The meals!

For kids: chops, roasted beans, fries and a couple of mushrooms

For me:

Dilly beans, celeriac salad, sweet potato fries, chops with mushroom sauce