Foraging in Maryland: Two Families Eat Local

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Catie and Louis Catacalos enjoy peanut butter cookies made from scratch with local ingredients.
Catie and Louis Catacalos enjoy peanut butter cookies made from scratch with local ingredients.
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Before she and her family could eat local food, Catie Catacalos had to learn how to find it. Her sojourns foraging in Maryland took her to the Riverdale Farmers Market(pictured here with Peggy Harris of Harris Orchard).
Before she and her family could eat local food, Catie Catacalos had to learn how to find it. Her sojourns foraging in Maryland took her to the Riverdale Farmers Market(pictured here with Peggy Harris of Harris Orchard).
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A fresh meal made from all local ingredients: Renee’s sausage ragout and polenta and Kristi’s homegrown edamame.
A fresh meal made from all local ingredients: Renee’s sausage ragout and polenta and Kristi’s homegrown edamame.
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The end-of-experiment feast. From left to right: Renee Brooks Catacalos, Bernd Janzen, David Navari, Alex Navari, Kim Schmidt, Damon Catacalos and Catie Catacalos.
The end-of-experiment feast. From left to right: Renee Brooks Catacalos, Bernd Janzen, David Navari, Alex Navari, Kim Schmidt, Damon Catacalos and Catie Catacalos.
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Kristi’s home-baked, 100% whole rye bread, made with sourdough rye starter.
Kristi’s home-baked, 100% whole rye bread, made with sourdough rye starter.
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Michael and Allegra Foley of Green Uprising Farm at the Riverdale Farmers Market in Maryland.
Michael and Allegra Foley of Green Uprising Farm at the Riverdale Farmers Market in Maryland.
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Kristi and Renee’s end-of-experiment local food feast included fresh crudite; stew of pastured chicken; dragon tongue beans; shitake mushrooms and red peppers; and roasted blue potatoes and courge longue de Nice squash. Even the wine and flowers were from Maryland!
Kristi and Renee’s end-of-experiment local food feast included fresh crudite; stew of pastured chicken; dragon tongue beans; shitake mushrooms and red peppers; and roasted blue potatoes and courge longue de Nice squash. Even the wine and flowers were from Maryland!
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One week’s share of produce and eggs from Even’ Star Farm in Lexington Park, MD.
One week’s share of produce and eggs from Even’ Star Farm in Lexington Park, MD.
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Local breakfast: spelt pancakes, fresh melons and bacon from Cibola Farms.
Local breakfast: spelt pancakes, fresh melons and bacon from Cibola Farms.
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Clara Janzen uses local farm-fresh ingredients for a breakfast of
Clara Janzen uses local farm-fresh ingredients for a breakfast of "Eggs in Tomatoes."

Amid increasing media buzz about the virtues of local food, we set out to discover how feasible it is to eat only local food all the time. As two suburban moms, we wanted to know if “eat local” was just a hollow marketing slogan or a real alternative for families who hope to enjoy the best seasonal foods, invest in the local economy and help the environment. How much would it cost? Would the kids go for it? Would our guests appreciate it?

Pledging to search locally for a month, we defined “local” as grown and produced within a 150-mile radius of our suburban Maryland homes near Washington, DC. We knew there were agricultural riches in our region. Yet much of what we discovered — or failed to discover — foraging in Maryland and the surrounding environs surprised us.

Enjoying Local Produce

Our own small gardens, and those of friends and family, were our start. They yielded zesty nasturtium blossoms for salads, hot chile peppers, edamame, sweet cucumbers, herbs and other special produce. Renee’s father had enough collards in his backyard to supply her all year. But, to feed our families of four, we needed a lot more.

We quickly became regulars at four producer-only farmers markets near our homes, where we picked up traditional favorites like corn on the cob, carrots bursting with flavor, mesclun greens, and various melons and berries. Kristi, eight months pregnant with her third child at the time, enjoyed the added convenience of weekly home delivery from two community supported agriculture farms (CSAs).

  • Published on Aug 1, 2006
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