Oregon, your personal 'Kitchen Stadium'

Have you ever watched the TV show "Iron Chef?". It's a cult classic. The original show was filmed in Japan but there is an American version currently running on the Food Network. In a nutshell, a challenger goes head-to-head with a renowned chef in a one hour cook-off. The objective being to make the best dishes with the themed ingredient. The winner gets , well, nothing. Except, I suppose, bragging rights on national television.

What really used to capture my attention about this show was the availability of the very best ingredients all in one location. When the starting bell goes off, the contestants get to grab anything and everything they desire to cook with. That just made me a bitter woman. I'd think "Yeah , I could make amazing meals too if I just happened to have filet Mignon and foi gras laying about the house every day!"

Back then I lived in the state of Virginia in a really big city. Now I live on the Oregon coast and I have to say, it is kinda like having my own kitchen stadium year 'round.

Salmon are in season, Deer season just ended and Elk are now up for grabs. At this time of year Crabs are filling in their shells nicely so its the best time to catch them. Black huckleberries are still fairly abundant and mushrooms are just everywhere.

Since coastal weather is mild, we are still pulling lettuces and beets from our garden. Some people are still harvesting squash, broccoli and cabbages. There are so many apple trees around here , we drive through neighborhoods and see apples just lying in the gutters. stores are bursting with inexpensive local produce. What's not to love? You can pretty much get what you want within reason and guarantee it didn't have to get shipped in from , say, Argentina.

So I'm not so bitter after all. Iron Chef can keep it's kitchen stadium.