Rain and Ice

Last weekend finally felt like winter. We had rain, light snow, and a little ice.

Is winter going strong where you live, or is it on its way out?

A Local Valentine's Day Meal

{local ingredients: broccoli, wine, milk, bison steak, potatoes and butter}

I came out of my Eat Local Challenge slump this week. On Sunday I went to the Dupont Circle farmers' market looking for ingredients for our Valentine's Day dinner at home. Bless those dedicated farmers who were out in bitter cold winter winds selling their goods. I felt so bad that I bought more food than necessary! 

I decided on steak and mashed potatoes for dinner. I picked up some grass-fed bison ribeye steaks from Cibola Farms in Culpeper, VA. I also bought a 5-pound bag of potatoes at the market (thank goodness for winter storage). 

When you put the steaks together, they make a heart!

I had local broccoli from a previous trip to the farmers' market stored in the freezer to round off this nutritious meal. 

I have never bought anything from Cibola Farms and was pleased with the steaks. Bison steak is supposed to be healthier than cow in terms of higher protein and lower cholesterol. As you can see, I like my steak well-done (practically burnt) and my husband is a talented grill master who can cook a steak so that there is no pink but is still tender and moist. It was delicious!

Except for the salt, pepper, and seasonings, everything about this meal was locally sourced. We made the mashed potatoes with local butter from the Blue Ridge Dairy in VA and organic milk from a local dairy in PA (still fell within the 150 mile rules!)  I've mentioned before that the local butter has a sort of peppery taste (maybe grassy?) and the potatoes didn't need much more than salt. The wine came from the Narmada Winery in Rappahannock, VA.  The meal was good, but my dinner partner was the best part of the meal. :)

Hawaiian Good Luck Plant

{photo credit}

A little red/pink for your Valentine's Day:

Cordyline terminalis, also known as Hawaiian Ti Plant or Hawaiian Good Luck plant, is a beautiful tropical plant with dark red to bright pink leaves. The plant's tropical nature and red leaves are what attracted me to it when I saw it at the nursery last year.

{Ti plant september 2011}

Not long after we brought the Ti plant home last summer it exploded in spider mites (which has been an unfortunate trend with this particular nursery. I want to support small, local businesses, but every.single.plant I have bought there seems to be infested). After all its leaves withered away, it looked like a couple of dead sticks, but little by little it started to heal.

{Ti plant February 2012}

Here's my Ti plant now. We brought it inside last fall and it seems to be recovering. There is new leaf growth and although some of the leaves are shriveled, it looks much better and is spider mite free (knock wood).

I would love to see the dark red color return to the leaves. These plants need indirect bright light, and I have it in a room where it gets good morning light.  I hope it lives up to its name and brings itself some good luck. Maybe by next Valentine's Day I'll have a little red or pink in the house.

Happy Valentine's Day!