Dark Days Challenge … on Low Oxalate GAPS

I have decided to take on a challenge this winter. I’m participating in the Dark Days challenge to eat one 100% local meal a week from now through March 31, 2012. My family is giving it a twist because we also eat following the principles of the GAPS Diet And two of us follow a low oxalate diet With a few other food sensitivities thrown in for good measure. Thankfully, unlike last year, winter squash is back on the menu or this would be nearly impossible. One saving grace is that there is a store just a mile away called Local Harvest that stocks and sells local produce, eggs, cheese and other foods year round. Of course many foods are not in season in the winter and therefore are not available. Since the only veggies that I have personally frozen from local sources at this point are high oxalate veggies these local meals will be rather light on the veggies I expect, at least for 2 of us.

So my rules for myself for this challenge are that all of the main ingredients in a recipe will be from local sources. I have decided to define local sources as food grown in Missouri or any of the bordering states. Lucky me Missouri is bordered by 8 states!

I figure my diet restrictions allow me to be looser with distance restrictions. Spices, salt, and minor players can be sourced from further away if necessary. I will give myself half credit for anything that the ingredients were sources from far away but further prepared by me before going into the recipe. Like the fermented lemons that I intend to make for the first time with the lemons I just purchased. This is however at least the 3rd time I have purchased lemons intending to make preserved lemons with them.

I’ll also be trying to learn how to take nice looking photos of food for this challenge. We’ll see how I do. Thanks for reading.