In This Issue
• No Ads, For You
• Avrom Farm’s Pasture-to-Plate Pork, Two Ways
• Take a Quiz
No Ads, For You
Nobody has asked, but I wanted to take a sec to make sure you know that Local Food Forum receives no advertising revenue.
I bring this up because I frequently mention particular farms and markets and vendors, which could make some people think, “Hmmm, I wonder if these people are paying for product placement.” So I want to make absolutely clear that they are not.
The businesses referenced on Local Food Forum are businesses that I trust to share our values of a healthier and more sustainable food system, with animal welfare and fairness to both farmers and farm workers (and restaurant owners and workers) taken into account. Some are friends I have known for years, some are new friends, but they are all working to make the world a better place to eat.
The Substack platform on which I publish is predicated on the concept that readers want ideas, not advertising. So it is not set up to publish advertising.
What this means, though, is that paid subscribing is not the best way to support Local Food Forum. It is the only way to support Local Food Forum. I’m not comfortable with the hard sell and you doubtless don’t want to hear it, but if you enjoy the content of Local Food Forum and believes it adds value to our community and your life, please consider a paid subscription.
— Bob
Avrom Farm’s Pasture-to-Plate Pork, Two Ways
Since we’re being transparent, I am an omnivore. I have eaten meat for virtually all of my pretty long life. I also love animals and have great concern for their welfare, which makes eating meat a conscience issue. This is why, increasingly over the past few years, I have sought out meat produced by local small farms with the animals raised in humane and safe conditions and fed on pasture.
The folks at Avrom Farm in Ripon, Wisconsin raise livestock the right way, and their pork is amazingly delicious. They also have emerged as innovative supporters of their local food peers by opening their e-commerce site — with home delivery in Chicago and Milwaukee — to the products of other producers.
I met owner Hayden Holbert and his team in 2019 during their first year at Chicago’s Green City Market and have been a frequent customer since. Along with pork, Avrom produces chicken and a curated variety of produce with a heavy emphasis on tomatoes.
This past week, I put a couple of Avrom Farm products to use to make multiple meals for the week.
Roast Pork
This boneless 4-pound pork roast was very easy to make. Give it a light coating of oil then season with salt, pepper and whatever spices and herbs you like. Cook in a 300-degree oven for an hour, turn and continue to cook until done (around 165 using a meat thermometer, though a little lower if you like it more rare or higher if you like it more well done, though not too much). Put it under the broiler for a few minutes at the end to give it a bit of a crust.
I often make roast pork as pernil, a Puerto Rican standard that uses a spice blend or flavor paste (but isn’t too spicy). But as I was preparing to make this one, a neighbor in our highrise stopped by with herbs — basil, oregano, sage and rosemary — that she had just trimmed from her indoor garden. So I went Mediterranean instead.
And that, folks, is what we mean by hyperlocal.
Here it is plated with pasta made with a sauce that included bulk Italian sausage from Gunthorp Farms in Indiana, a regional pioneer in sustainable livestock production, and roasted carrots.
Upgraded Pasta Sauce
OK, here’s a true confession. Although I usually make pasta sauce from scratch, I sometimes — brace yourself — use jarred sauce. But I’m not one to leave well enough alone, and it is very easy to make jarred sauce at least somewhat your own with a few quick additions.
For this one, I took a pound of Avrom Farm Italian sausages, quartered them and seared them on the cast-iron grill pan.
In a separate pot, I sautéed onion, garlic and River Valley Ranch cremini mushrooms in olive oil. I cut the sausage into small chunks, added them to the veggies and topped with a bottle of Whole Foods Market’s 365 brand Marinara Sauce. Heat and add to the pasta.
Boom! Got your half-scratch sauce. Better than no scratch. Here it is plated with more of the pork roast and more carrots.
Take a Quiz
Many people anxiously await rhubarb as one of the season’s early-arriving crops. Rhubarb is related to which of the following plants:
a) Buckwheat
b) Celery
c) Asparagus
d) Strawberry
Answer: a) Surprised? I was. Based on its appearance, I was thinking celery. But when I researched it, I learned that rhubarb is a member of the Polygonaceae family, which among a number of plants includes buckwheat and sorrel. Rhubarb is not related to the strawberry, but they are often married in pies, crumbles and other desserts. Although rhubarb is a vegetable, it is so tart that most people add sugar to make it palatable; this makes it a delicious pairing with naturally sweet fruit such as strawberries.
Pairing the rhubarb next to strawberries makes an attractive farmers market display.