A Locally Sourced Valentine’s Day Meal
by Susan Vorwerk
When we think of Valentine’s Day, we think of showing our appreciation for those we love. This year, multiply that appreciation abundantly by buying locally. One way to appreciate family and friends while benefiting our neighbors is to cook a meal using locally grown foods. By keeping our dollars in Bucks County, we can help provide a living wage to our farmers, artisan producers and their families, while feeding healthy, great-tasting foods to our own.
Invite friends for a dinner made with grass-fed beef grown on a Riegelsville farm, or a chicken dish made from birds that have been allowed to graze openly on verdant pastures of Schnecksville. Begin the meal with fresh salad greens from Doylestown and Buckingham, followed by a soufflé prepared with eggs and goat cheese from farmers in Kintnersville and Perkasie. Fresh croissants or baguettes from a local bakery make a perfect accompaniment.
Since they do not travel far from farm to table, locally grown and produced foods don’t need preservatives and additives to keep them fresh and tasty because they are packed with their fresh-picked flavor and nutrients. The loving act of introducing family and friends to locally grown and produced foods radiates kindness far beyond one dinner table.
Susan Vorwerk is a board member and part of the Doylestown Food Co-op. The Doylestown Food Co-op’s local foods store is open to the public at 29 W. State St., Doylestown. For more information, call 215-348-4548 or visit Doylestown.coop. February 2014.
