It’s been quite a busy weekend. I hosted my first dinner party in quite some time. Being NY Locavore Challenge Month, I wanted to do something special serving a meal showcasing the season’s harvest and cooking with nearly all local ingredients. Even the butter was homemade from local cream.

Non-local ingredients were minimal and included olive oil, candied walnuts (sorry, it got to the point I was too lazy to candy them myself), tortilla chips (to go with the homemade salsa), some spirits and wine graciously brought by the guests. I found recipe inspiration online, sometimes basing it off a specific recipe, but more often deciding what I wanted to make and researching how others make it, then making my own version. This is generally how I cook. I’ve never made potato gratin before, but I was serving a group of Irish folk, so potato involvement was pretty necessary. I must have read over a dozen recipes to come up with my own take. The results? Perhaps a little extra salt and maybe 10 minutes longer in the oven, but otherwise pretty divine.

After writing, editing and revising the menu, plus schlepping around the city to find my ingredients (draining, but probably one of my favorite parts about cooking–sourcing from a variety of markets and stores), then finally cooking the meal, I’m a bit tired. Hence my blog silence for the last day or so. I have lots of yummy food and recipes to share with you, but I know I would never read a blog post several pages long, so I figured you wouldn’t either. Instead, let’s make a fabulous 5 hour evening a 5 day event. Today, you get a taste. I’ll be generous enough to share my menu with you. But tomorrow, and the next day and for the rest of the week, it’s on you to come back and learn the details. I’ll share a bit of my menu each day this week. I’m looking forward to sharing and hope you’re looking forward to reading!

A Locavore Dinner

Appetizers

Marinated Mozzarella

Corn Salsa with Blue Corn Tortilla Chips

Homemade Bruschetta with Fresh Sliced Baguette

♦ ♦ ♦

First Course

Bread with Homemade Butter

Mixed Greens with Roasted Apples & Butternut Squash

♦ ♦ ♦

Main Course

Cider Braised Pork Shoulder with Apples & Fennel

Sinful Potato Gratin

Sauteed Green Beans with Bacon & Shallots

♦ ♦ ♦

Dessert

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

Mint Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

Each day, a new recipe will be shared. Tomorrow: Appetizers.