Not all locavores live in the cities. There are plenty of suburbanites, like me, who appreciate the benefits of buying and eating locally grown, sustainably harvested food. That’s why so many of us suburba-locavores (New word! Are you reading, Merriam-Webster editors?) shop at Lakewinds.
Grass-fed, humanely raised, antibiotic-free... oh yeah, it's what's for dinner.Lakewinds, with three suburban locations --- Minnetonka, Chanhassen and Anoka -- is a great source for all things local: produce, meats, breads, dairy, even body-care products. (One of my daughters uses a therapeutic skin-cream made in central Wisconsin.) I’m at the Minnetonka store so often that I’m on a first-name basis with many of the employees, who seem to really love what they do. They know their products and they know their customers -- a great combination that makes shopping there a satisfying experience.
Today, I’ll be buying some locally grown, grass-fed beef to feed myself, my husband and our two eight-year-old daughters. Please note that we don’t eat a lot of meat, especially beef, because (1) it is expensive, (2) we are mindful that meat consumption, with respect to our environment, our health, and our belief system, should be a rare treat, and (3) our daughters don’t really like it much, unless it is ground up, stuffed in a casing, and renamed “hot dog.” But Lakewinds has Hidden Stream Farm steaks – porterhouse and T-bone -- on sale this week. (Hidden Stream Farm, in Elgin, Minnesota, produces grass-fed, “happy, healthy” beef with no chemicals, antibiotics or MSG.) So, tonight, beef is what’s for dinner at the Danielson household. (Please forgive me for using the slogan created by the Cattleman’s Beef Board, certainly not an organization that would ever again be mentioned on SimpleGoodandTasty.com.)
As for the steak preparation, that’s my husband’s domain. (Please allow me, now, a few words about my better half, Scott, the best chef I've ever known. If Scott had chosen food as his profession, you would already have heard of him from his TV show, books, and column in the Dining and Wine section of the New York Times. But, alas, with his choice of a non-food related career, his cooking skills are experienced only by his family – yay! – and the occasional lucky guests.)
Here is Scott’s recipe for grilled T-bone steak:
Buy only grass-fed steaks from a local producer, like Hidden Stream Farm.
Let the steaks come to room temperature.
Pre-heat grill on high heat.
Season meat with freshly ground sea salt and pepper.
Grill -- with lid open – for 4 to 5 minutes on one side until browned, turn, then grill the other side for 4 or 5 minutes for medium-rare.
Important: do not tear meat from grill surface when turning. The steak should lift away rather easily when it is properly cooked; you could even say it is carmelized.
Remove from the grill.
Let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes.
Serve and take small bites, chew thoroughly, and savor the rare pleasure.
Simple, huh? Most of the great pleasures in life are. Enjoy!
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Lakewinds Natural Foods
- 17501 Minnetonka Blvd., Minnetonka
- 435 Pond Promenade, Chanhassen
- 1917 2nd. Avenue South, Anoka
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Shari Danielson is a writer, editor, information designer, yoga teacher, gardener, wife and mama. She lives in the outer hinterlands, otherwise known as Orono, MN. For more of her writing, check out her blog: WritingBlindly.com.
