By Laleña Dolby
Summer comes on slowly here in the Pacific Northwest. Spring’s wet skies continue to haunt much of June. Familiar cool weather crops gradually ring in summer when most of us are ready for a juicy peach. But by mid-July, the harvest is in full swing, with an abundance of stone and cane fruits, as well as annual vegetables. Longer daylight hours make laying hens more productive and fresh cheeses are suggestive of the increasingly herbaceous grazing conditions under hoof. Summer is no time for an out-of-town vacation or a diet—stay close to home and eat all the local food you can get your hands on.
Bright mornings present an overwhelming number of gastronomic adventures. Kick off the day with a bowl of silky sheep’s milk yogurt topped with luscious Chester blackberries. Then, stroll through the mountains of produce on display at one of Portland’s many farmers’ markets, pick berries at a local “u-pick” farm, or buy sweet corn by the armful at a roadside farm stand. Slow and sloppy summer afternoons might best be spent in a hammock with a book and a bowl of Oregon’s renowned Bing cherries.
Tomatoes and cucumbers served raw are wonderful, but the backyard barbeque is the ring leader of summer eating. Nearly all cooking, from meat to vegetables to fruit, can be done on the grill: Grill pork and dress it with spoonfuls of juicy poached plums. Tuck a dollop of fresh goat cheese inside a fig picked fresh from your tree, wrap it in bacon and grill until the bacon is crispy and the fig begins to release its honey-like center. Corn, green beans, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes all benefit from some quality time with an open flame. Lightly marinate them in olive oil and balsamic vinegar, grill, sprinkle with salt, and top with freshly cut basil or tarragon.
Relax into the caress of a warm breezy night with a bottle of Mirabelle Plum or Framboise eau de vie from Portland’s own Clear Creek Distillery and take pleasure in the fleeting, delicious beauty of summer. But in the morning, dig out your canning supplies and get busy before it’s too late.
Laleña Dolby grew up on a farm in the Willamette Valley. She currently works at Ecotrust and serves on the Slow Food Portland steering committee.
[In preparation for this column, Laleña asked a group of farmers what they would have available this summer. It was clear that beans would be on the list, but she was not prepared for the specificity of their answers. Confounded, she asked a farmer to explain the difference between string, pole, runner, bush, wax and shell beans. Discover what she learned: Beans in Depth.]
