I topped it with sesame seeds and dried chili flakes. I sauteed them in olive oil, soy sauce, sage, honey, and garlic. The last savory plate featured collard greens, chopped green beans, and broccoli. I tossed it with goat cheese, nuts, and a lemon, thyme, and honey dressing. The second dish was a summer salad made of salad greens, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, green onions, and edible flowers. I then drizzled it with a balsamic reduction I made. I made a homemade crust and topped it with basil pesto, Roma tomatoes, red onions, green onions, mozzarella, prosciutto, and oregano. The table was set with four dishes laid out to be enjoyed. With three hours until my friends were going to come over, I began cooking. Once I knew the ingredients I’d be working with, my menu came together easily, almost seeming to form itself like some kind of magic. #Magic flowers plate fullLastly, I took out a jar full of oregano that my mom had given me from her garden. I also cut off a cayenne pepper that I had been growing inside my apartment, happy to put it to good use. A few hours out, I added to my already full stockpile and picked my Roma tomatoes that I had so lovingly watched ripen all summer. She was another who responded to my Nextdoor post and graciously let me pick some of her Thai basil.īy the day of my big dinner party, my fridge was brimming with the eclectic, brightly-colored vegetables there were infinite shades of green, warm orange and reds, and pops of color from the edible flowers. On Thursday, the day before the big night, I went to my neighbor Kate’s house. My quest to collect produce was not over. Before I left her garden, Linda cut me an assortment of flowers for a bouquet to display at the party. I was truly touched by the generosity of my neighbors, especially considering that I was basically a stranger to them. She also had blackberry bushes and encouraged me to help myself to thick, ripe blackberries. I picked cherry tomatoes, salad greens, green beans, thyme, rhubarb, and edible flowers. Her garden was full of all types of fruits, vegetables, and herbs. After stopping at Valerie’s house, I went to visit Linda. She led me to her backyard, where she had huge collard greens and sage plants she let me pick from. My first stop on Wednesday was to Valerie’s house. I asked my neighbors if anyone would be willing to contribute some of their garden produce and I got so many replies! I made plans to go to their gardens. I should explain– The week prior, I posted on the social media platform Nextdoor about my locally-sourced dinner idea. On Wednesday, I drove to the house of two strangers named Valerie and Linda. She gave me beefsteak tomatoes, red onions, basil, broccoli, yellow squash, and zucchini. She has a beautifully lush garden and shared her produce with me. On Tuesday, I drove to Niwot to my friend Joelle’s house. I scheduled my dinner party for a Friday night, invited six of my close friends to join, and spent the days leading up to the party harvesting the produce. I decided to make a meal featuring my Roma tomatoes and other ingredients that my neighbors shared from their own gardens. This awakening led me to begin to dream of a locally sourced, garden-to-plate dinner with friends. As a result of grocery stores and farmer’s markets making purchasing produce convenient and easy, we as consumers don’t consider the time it takes for a fruit or vegetable to grow from seed to fully ripened product. Growing and harvesting my tomatoes allowed me to appreciate how much love and dedication goes into produce. I spent more time and energy on my tomatoes than I expected, but it was a great experience that gave me a small glimpse into the world of gardening and farming. The process was more complicated than I thought: I had to go to McGuckin to buy soil, a garden trowel, tomato cages, and four baby tomato plants I had to find a plot to plant my tomatoes, which involved knocking on the door of neighbors I had never met before I had to water my plants every day and, when I discovered that the tomato leaves were being eaten by bugs, I had to make a homemade insect repellent to protect my precious plants. This summer I grew Roma tomatoes for the first time.
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