Eat Local Later

What's Been Set Aside

(updates below)

Editor's note: During the summer months, this list included items set aside in the larder such as beans and onions, but during the rest of the year, this list will only include reports on items canned, frozen or dried.

Eating local in a place like Chicago requires a certain amount of advanced planning. I'm a hoop house a-lovin' kinda guy, but they really cannot supply my family's produce needs in the winter. One must preserve the harvest. Some of that preserving is just putting stuff away, and I've been tracking that stuff since December. I have not, however, done a good job of keeping a running tally of food that we have canned or froze (we have one full size freezer and the freezer halves to two refrigerators). In fact when I mentioned to my wife that I've been recording the inventory, she said, "great I've needed to know what's in the freezers."

"Um", I sheepishly had to reply, "that's not what I've been inventorying." Until now. With the fact that my wife froze all the cranberries that she did not use in last week's dessert, I will now track what we are preserving. For the most part, I am not going to retroactively update this listing with what's in the freezers now, but I've listed some of the food that I know is there. As to canned goods, I'm only gonna add right now, what we have canned ourselves. We also have a variety of local jams, jellies, pickles, etc., even some local Amish canned chicken [ed., just in case?] also lying around. (So much jelly and related that we have a moratorium on buying new.)

Freezer Inventory

• Cranberries - 2/15/08
• Beef from our 1/2 cow - cuts left include ground meat, tongue - Update: have eaten some of the strip steaks, more burger, much shank and short ribs, although we have more of both; the entire brisket; sirloin steaks (6/27/08); rib steaks (7/08); 2 lbs burger (7/25/08) flank steak (8/13/08) 2 lbs burger (8/28/08); liver 9/08; 4 lbs burger (LTHForum picnic); strip steaks (9/08) 2 lbs burger 9/08; rib roast (10/1/08) -- A somewhat greater effort to eat the older meat; 2 lbs burger (10/08); rib eye steaks (10/31/08)
• Lamb from our 1/2 lamb - cuts left include leg, rack, shanks, all offal - Update: Used 1/2 of the leg
• Pork including chops and ground
• Poultry including capon, duck and chicken - Update: Current status: have two chickens from our Genesis Growers CSA
• Greens - Update - Some used some during winter 08
• Broccoli - Update: Much but not all was eaten during late winter, early Spring 08; froze several stalks of broccoli on 10/24/08
• Green beans
• Cauliflower - Update: Some eaten
• Peas - Update: Some eaten - Peas added 6/21/08 & 6/28/08 & 7/5/08; used a bag of peas on 10/28/08
• Corn - Update: 12 ears of corn frozen Aug 08
• Rhubarb
• Sour Cherries
• Apple Sauce
• Asparagus
• Strawberries -
• Blueberries - added 7/1/08
• 1/2 hog, see here for details, less 15 lb shoulder roast and 4 bone-in chops - 7/5/08
• Peaches - 7/28/08
• Blueberries - 8/8/08
• Peaches, peeled - 8/15/08 and 8/22/08
• Crowder peas - 8/17/08 - About half have been subsequently eaten
• Tomato concentrate - 8/25/08
• Peaches - 9/08
• Red peppers - 10/31/08
• Habenero peppers - 11/24/08

Canned Goods

• Peach jam
• Blueberry preserves
• Pickled green beans
• Pickled ramps - done ca. late May 2008
• Tomatoes - 8/21/08
• Spiced peaches - 8/23/08
• Tomatoes - 8/26/08
• Peach chutney - 8/27/08
• Tomato puree - 8/29/08
• Tomato sauce - 9/2/08
• Tomatoes - 9/08

Semi-Preserved (i.e., meant to last but not sealed)

• Caponata - 6 quarts - 8/18/08; Update: have eaten 2 quarts
• Red peppers in vinegar - 10/25/08
• Red pepper in oil - 10/25/08
• Marinated beets - 10/31/08
• Oven roasted delicata squash - 11/1/08 - Consumed
• Brussels sprouts, shredded - 11/1/08 - Consumed
• Tomatillo salsa

Dried

• Oven dried tomatoes - 9/5/08
• A second batch, oven dried tomatoes - 9/08
• Red chili peppers - 11/2/08

Pickled but not sealed

• Mixed middle eastern style - carrots, broccoli, cabbage, jalepenos, red bell pepepr - 10/29/08