DDC, Week One: Beef Stew

I think that I've been planning to make this version of this stew for longer than I've been signed up for the Dark Days Challenge.

It's essentially the same as the stew posted here, only made with locally-sourced ingredients. My main exception, overall, is pepper-- I've managed to find local salt and olive oil, so I'm pretty set other than that, and a few things (like parmesan cheese) that just aren't produced anywhere around here, as far as I know.

Doing this on the central coast of California almost feels like cheating-- we can get a lot of fresh fruits and veggies year-round at the farmer's market, and there are a few stores that continually stock local produce. On the other hand, it is a bit more of a challenge than I had expected, as there are some things I thought would be available that I really can't find (like peas!).

Onions, Carrots- Happy Boy Farms
Bacon- home-cured, pork belly from Fatted Calf
Flour- Massa Organics
Thyme- home-grown
Salt- Farmhouse Culture
Pepper- conventional
Beef, bones for broth- TLC Ranch
Celery- don’t remember, from New Leaf/farm in Hollister
Beer- Devout Stout, from the Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing Company

This one stayed in the oven for a full two hours while I was at practice with the pipe corps, and it was om nom nomfully delicious when I came back-- I had no joy finding local potatoes or barley, which are the two starches I usually use, so I ate this with my favorite bread (whole wheat millet!) from Kelly's French Bakery in Santa Cruz. The onions had almost completely disintegrated, which was fun, and the flavors really came together well. I am sad that I likely won't be able to make this exact thing again, as TLC Ranch (from which I bought the stew beef and the bones for the stock) is no more.

Note: this was actually prepared and cooked on Wednesday, December 1, but I am awful about posting on time (and my camera doesn't like to talk to my Mac, so I had to wait for a different computer to get the photos!). Yes, I am utilizing the magic of back-dating for this entry.