The Local Table

This blog comes on the heels of the most amazing meal I may have ever been a part of.  As I write, my belly and my mind are full and content with amazing food, friendship and goodness from the earth.  We are at Dale Hollow Lake this weekend.  In my garden I have an abundance of ripe zucchini and squash, potatoes, green tomatoes, cucumbers and an herb garden with basil, oregano, dill, rosemary and sage.  We have been enjoying squash and zucchini for a while now, but I have not had the time to really enjoy the fruits of my garden.  We spent the day working, a nap and then some time in the hammock, tucked in the shade of the wood's edge, with my new book, Tender, a Cook and his Vegetable Patch.  I have always considered myself a good cook, and, well, you know about my vegetable patch... This book was my favorite birthday present.  It is beautiful, the kind of book you might just sit out for looking pretty.  It is illustrated with amazing pictures of vegetables and recipes for vegetables throughout the garden.  I found my inspiration.

                                                

Our longest, dear friends, the Sanders, have a home across the road at the lake.  Julie and I set out to the garden to harvest what would soon become our dinner.  Who knew the potential these veggies held?  We picked cucumbers, squash, zucchini, potatoes, lettuce, dill and basil.  In addition to our harvest,  Julie had an avocado, I had baby portabella mushrooms and wild salmon.  Our gather was complete, and so we began. 

Cary and Julie chopped 3 medium cucumbers, julienne style while I covered medium Yukon potatoes with olive oil and minced garlic for roasting.  We chopped lettuce and mushrooms, squashes and avocado.  I marinated the salmon in olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime juice, and salt.  The julienned cucumbers were tossed with diced avocado, honey, red wine vinegar, dill and a pinch of cumin.  The squashes were cut lengthwise, salted and cooked in olive oil on high heat on a griddle until they were golden brown along the edges.  The mushrooms were sauteed with olive oil and garlic and then the salmon in the same pan. 

When the potatoes were golden, slightly crisp and fork tender, they were placed on a platter, firmly pressed with the back of a spoon and covered with more olive oil, sea salt, dill, asiago and a light drizzle of dijon mustard.  Read that again, this was definitely a favorite!!  By now, the squashes were browning and the salmon's edges crisping.  The squashes were topped with rough chopped basil, the cucumber and avocado salad served over Julie's fresh lettuce and the salmon sprinkled with fresh dill. 

My favorite way to serve a great meal is with all dishes beautifully arranged on one large platter.  The platter read, left to right: cucumber and avocado salad over fresh lettuce, wild salmon with dill, sauteed mushrooms, roasted pressed potatoes with olive oil ,sea salt, garlic, dijon, dill and asiago, and golden browned squash and zucchini served with fresh chopped basil.  We lit a candle, gathered around the table and served the meal with Cary's dark, smooth porter brewed (in our garage) with organic barley and hops. 

This meal was perfect on every single level.  The only room for improvement could have been fresh caught fish from Dale Hollow Lake or had we been brave enough to cook the wild mushrooms growing in the woods.  I love good food.  I especially love good, guilt-free food.  This meal was amazing and healthy from start to finish.  It was good for my body and good for my spirit.  I wish I had time to consider and prepare my food this way everyday.  Tonight was tender.  We ate well.  We ate with friends.  We ate local.  And...we ate with intention.  It was about a cook and her vegetable patch.