Friday night my husband and I co-conspired and created a delicious dinner made with local ingredients. Every single thing on our plate was local. And most of it was grown in the backyard (or John’s backyard)!

I feel like this is a milestone for me, because I grew some of the food we ate.  Walked outside and picked it. This milestone seems even bigger, given the fact that it wasn’t hard to make this meal. Everything was on hand. No long lists of local items were bought ahead of time. Instead, I opened my larders and there everything was, waiting to be put together for a delicious start- to-the-weekend meal.

Here’s a list of the local items that went into my all local, all delicious dinner:

1. Ground turkey with rolls. Both purchased at the Dutch Country Farmer’s Market. The rolls are made on the premises and the turkey is brought in from Lancaster County, PA–hormone and antibiotic free.

Turkey burger topped with fresh arugula

2.  Arugula. Who knew arugula grown in my backyard would have way more flavor that the organic stuff I buy at the grocery store? It’s so aromatic and spicy.

Tasty, tasty arugula

3. Raw Mozzerella Cheese. Locally crafted, and purchased at Harvest Market. So good!

4. Salad greens, consisting of romaine and a bit of spinach, courtesy of John.

Romaine and Radishes. Quite the duo.

5. Yogurt dressing. Local yogurt from Pequea Valley Farms. (Find the dressing recipe here.)

6. Radishes. Direct from my garden to my plate. (I’m very proud of these radishes!)

The best radishes I’ve ever had, grown by me

7. Pickled Beets. The husband commented, “I think the star of this dinner is the beets.” He couldn’t have been more right. The beets, canned by Kathy, were the best!

Yogurt dressing with pickled beets. Very yummy.

I’m looking forward to more meals like this–easy to prepare with what I have on hand. When local looks and tastes this good, why go elsewhere?