Locavore (Senior badge)

The Locavore badge is part of the Legacy badge set introduced in 2011.

For the badges released in 2011, scouts must complete all of the activities listed to earn the badge.

Step 1: Explore the benefits and challenges of going local
In this badge, your challenge is to cook with local foods. In the industrial food chain, the typical food travels 1,500 miles before being eaten. In a local food chain, the number of miles between where food is grown and where it’s eaten (“food miles”) is much lower. But, how far can a food travel and still be “local?”

In this step, find out how others define local – and why going local might be important to them. After your interview, trade informed ideas with your Senior friends about the benefits and challenges of being a locavore. End the step by expressing your opinion about what’s local and why it matters – perhaps in an article, collage, or short presentation.

CHOOSE ONE:

Interview someone who cooks.  This might be an amateur or professional chef, a restaurant worker, or a neighbor who loves to cook. How do they address the local question in their kitchens?

OR

Interview someone in the food delivery chain.  It could be a farmer, transportation worker, or grocery store manager. How far does the farmer’s food travel to reach a table? Where does the grocery store source it’s produce?

OR

 Canvas your friends and family.  Make a survey of at least five question to give in person or online (There are many free and simple survey websites). You might ask:  “Where have you heard the word locavore, and what does it mean to you?” “Do you get any produce or meat from a local farm?”  “Have you ever tried to buy local – how easy or hard was it?”

Step 2: Find your local food sources
You may be able to find local foods at your grocery store, health food store, or farmers’ market. Or, you might be close to a farm or live in a community with the option to invest in a box of seasonal farm foods every month. Explore what the local options are in your area.

CHOOSE ONE:

Create a food calendar showing when 10 foods are in season.  It could be as simple as a list of months and food that grows in your area at that time, or you could decorate a monthly calendar with drawings. Find local sources for the foods you choose and include them on your calendar.

OR

Draw your food-radius map.  Get a map of your area, and draw a circle that will encompass the radius you consider local, be it 5 or 100 miles. Now, find 10 sources (farms, orchards, dairies, ranches) in your radius, and label them on your map.

OR

Choose 10 foods in your house and find local equivalents.  Select 10 foods you buy regularly – maybe eggs, cheese, lettuce, or fruit. Does your family purchase them from local sources? If not, make a list to get these foods or alternatives from local sources.

Page from the Past
Local Badges, 1913

Here are some “local” activities girls did to earn two of the first Girl Scout badges:

Dairy Maid:

Know how to do general dairy work: such as cleaning pans, etc., sterilizing utensils, know how to feed, kill, and dress poultry.

Farmer:

Incubating chickens, feeding and rearing chickens under hens. Storing eggs. Knowledge of bees. Swarming, hiving, and use of artificial combs. Care of pigs. How to cure hams.

It is a wise cook who knows when to buy manufactured goods and when to prepare at home.

-Girl Scout Handbook,1940

Green Bean Salad                     serves 4
INGREDIENTS:

¾ pound fresh green beans, tips trimmed                          1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

3 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped                                ½ cup basil leaves, sliced thin

Juice and zest of 1 lemon                                                    ¼ cup olive oil

Black pepper                                                                          Salt

DIRECTIONS:
 * 1) In a steamer, steam the green beans until al dente or just about done. (Probably about 3 minutes.)


 * 1) While the beans are cooking, combine all other ingredients except salt in a large bowl and mix well.


 * 1) When the beans are finished cooking, place the hot green beans in a large bowl on top of the mixture.  Do not stir.  Cover and let sit for 5 minutes.  This will cook or warm the other items and the green beans will finish cooking at the same time.

More to EXPLORE
 * 1) After 5 minutes, add salt and gently stir the mixture.  Serve warm or let stand and serve room temperature.

Locavore Badge Challenge:  There’s nothing more local than growing food yourself. Talk to a community gardener, knowledgeable friend, or neighbor about what you might grow and how to grow it. Then, use your bounty in one or all of the dishes you cook to earn this badge. Here are a few ideas:

·      Herbs, such as chives, mint, or oregano. All can be grown indoors or out, in gardens or in small pots.

·      Tomatoes, which can be grown outdoors – or indoors with enough sunlight.

·      Strawberries in a pot placed on a patio, balcony, or window ledge.

Step 3: Cook a simple dish showcasing local ingredients
Locavores often praise the fresh flavors of local ingredients – when a tomato sauce really tastes like tomatoes should, or an apple tart radiates the essence of apple. Try a recipe in one of these categories to showcase local ingredients.

CHOOSE ONE:

Make two different dishes that showcase the same ingredient.  For example, you could make a carrot coleslaw and carrot juice, strawberry soup and a strawberry smoothie, a raspberry coulis (a French word for sauce!) and a raspberry tart, or tomato sauce and tomato salsa.

OR

Create two salads with at least three ingredients each.What about a kale, carrot, and beet coleslaw (with a vinaigrette from local grapes) and a mixed-lettuce salad? Or, a colorful fruit salad and a panzanella (Italian bread salad) with local bread, tomatoes, and basil could be fun. Herbs count as ingredients!

OR

Create a simple, local ingredients meal.  This could be a pasta primavera with different local veggies, a chicken stew with local chicken and herbs, or a simple meat loaf with local ground meat and mashed potatoes.

'''Tip:  During this step, notice the look, smells, and flavors of our ingredients. What do you like about them? How does your dish taste?'''

Careers to EXPLORE

 * Farmer
 * Kids’ cooking teacher
 * Livestock nutritionist
 * Chef
 * Food scientist
 * Horticultural scientist
 * Ecologist
 * Food writer
 * Farmers’-market operator
 * Botanist
 * Nutritionist
 * Food stylist
 * Environmental chemist
 * Produce buyer
 * Food-service director
 * Cooking-show producer
 * Scientific illustrator
 * Organic-food-certification specialist

Step 4: Make a recipe with local ingredients
Make something that’s local in two ways: it’s both a personal, community, or family recipe, and it’s sourced with local ingredients. (Use as many local ingredients as you can; it’s possible you won’t be able to find every single ingredient where you live.) Find your recipe in one of these ways. See the recipes at the back of this badge.

CHOOSE ONE:

Talk to a chef who specializes in locally grown foods.  Check out restaurants, cafes, or delis in your area that serve locally grown dishes. Ask one of the chefs to share a recipe. (Learning where they source it would be useful, as well.  Some chefs include this information on their menu or website.)

OR

Make a recipe local.  Pick your favorite recipe from a friend or family member. If you love pepperoni pizza, maybe you can find local cheese, pepperoni, and tomatoes. If your grandmother has a fantastic recipe for moussaka, use local eggplants, tomatoes, and ground meat.

OR

Talk to someone who knows local foods.  You might ask a community gardener, farmer, or staff at a store that stocks local foods. The people who know the ingredients best often have great recipes to recommend.

Step 5: Try a local cooking challenge
Put your growing knowledge of local foods to the test in one of the following ways. Whichever choice you do, invite Girl Scout friends, family, and maybe even your growing network of local food producers to enjoy your delicious creations with you – and give you tips for what to try next.

CHOOSE ONE:

Prepare a three-course meal.  Make an appetizer or salad, entrée, and dessert using locally grown food.

FOR MORE FUN:  Have an “eat local” three-course potluck, where Senior friends each bring their locally sourced dishes to share.

OR

'''Cook a dish starring something from scratch. Try making pasta or bread with local eggs and flour, or yogurt, cheese, or ice cream with local dairy.  '''Then, create a dish around that ingredient; for instance, pasta from scratch with local tomato sauce, or homemade bread with local jam.

OR

'''Pretend you’re a Girl Scout from 1920. '''Find out what foods can be canned, dehydrated, or repurposed. This way, you can keep it local all year, even in the dead of winter. Then, try pickling, making jams or jellies, drying fruit, or making applesauce and apple butter. To learn about safe preserving techniques, go to the National Center for Home Food Preservation. (Girls canned to earn their Canner badge in 1920 and their Food Raiser badge in 1963.)

Strawberry Basil Tart                serves 10
INGREDIENTS:

For crust (or use a pre-made pie crust):              For filling:

1½ cups all-purpose flour                                                      2 lbs, strawberries, de-stemmed

2 tablespoons sugar                                                                          and cut in half

1 teaspoon salt                                                                       ½ cup sugar (can use alternate)

1 ¼ sticks unsalted butter, chilled and cubed                    1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 egg yolk                                                                               ¼ cup fresh-squeezed orange juice

3 – 6 tablespoons ice water                                                             and zest of 1 orange

¼ cup fresh basil leaves, sliced

thin, for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until well combined.

2. Using your hands, add butter and crumble into the flour (you could, also, use a food processor) until

the crust mixture resembles a course meal. Add the egg yolk and the ice water, and mix together

gently until dough is moist.

3. Form dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least 1 hour.

4. Mix together strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, orange juice, and zest. Let soak for at least 1 hour.

5. Roll out dough on a piece of floured parchment paper until it forms a large circle, about 16 inches in

diameter.

6. Place rolled dough (still on parchment paper) on a large, thick cookie sheet with sides. Strain berries

and place them in a big pile in the center of the dough.

7. Fold dough up all around the pile of berries, leaving a big hole at the top like a shallow volcano.

8. Bake (on parchment paper) in a preheated 375°F oven for about 40 minutes, or until crust is golden

brown and crispy.

9. Sprinkle tart with the basil garnish, if desired.

More to Explore

Close the local loop!

Learn how to make your own home compost from your local food, and use it in your own garden or donate it to a farm or community garden.

Vegetable Marinara        Makes approximately 5 cups
INGREDIENTS:

9 medium tomatoes, chopped                                  2 tablespoons salt

4 cloves garlic, minced                                             1 tablespoon black pepper

1 small yellow onion, chopped fine                           ¼ cup broccoli, chopped

1 carrot, chopped fine                                              ¼ cup zucchini, chopped

1 red pepper, de-seeded, de-stemmed,                  ¼ cup mushrooms, chopped

and chopped fine                                           1 cup fresh oregano, chopped

1 green pepper, de-seeded, de-stemmed,              ½ cup fresh basil, chopped

and chopped fine                                           ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon chili flakes                                              ½ cup fresh oregano, chopped

1 teaspoon dried oregano                                                     (extra for garnish)

DIRECTIONS:
 * 1) Place all ingredients except ½ cup oregano in a large pot and bring to a boil. Then, turn down to a low simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring regularly until all tomatoes are broken down.
 * 2) With a handheld food processor, blend all ingredients in the pot until totally smooth and all ingredients and well blended.  If you don’t have a handheld processor or mixer, put cups of sauce into a blender and blend in batches.
 * 3) Cook blended sauce on low for another 10 minutes, adding more salt to taste.
 * 4) Add fresh oregano.  Boil sauce on a low boil uncovered for another 10 – 20 minutes, or until desired thickness.  Add remaining chopped oregano for garnish.
 * 5) Serve over hot cooked pasta.

Colorful Middle Eastern Salad        Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:

4 cucumbers, peeled, halved, and chopped, with seeds scooped out       juice of 1 lemon

1 red pepper, de-seeded, de-stemmed, and chopped                                2 teaspoons salt

1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped fine                                                           1 red onion, chopped             '''This is a lovely, fresh, and light salad that’s great with falafel and pita, chicken, beef, or veggie kabobs – even with a hamburger. (You could add some Middle Eastern spices to the hamburger meat mixture – like cumin, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, anise, or cardamom – for a perfect pairing.)'''

DIRECTIONS:
 * 1) Mix all ingredients together gently.
 * 2) Serve!

Pumpkin Walnut Bread              Makes 1 loaf
INGREDIENTS:

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour                       ¼ teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon baking soda                                            2 eggs, at room temperature

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon                                    1/3cup water

¼ teaspoon ground allspice                                       1½ cups sugar

¼ teaspoon ground cloves                                         1 cup canned pumpkin puree

¼ teaspoon ground ginger                                         ½ cup vegetable oil

OR 1 ¼ teaspoons pumpkin-pie spice                       1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS:
 * 1) Position an oven rack in the center of the oven, and preheat oven to 350°F.
 * 2) Butter a loaf pan.  If using a muffin tin, butter or spray cups with nonstick cooking spray, or use paper muffin liners.
 * 3) In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, spices, and salt.
 * 4) In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and water.
 * 5) Add the sugar and blend well.
 * 6) Add the pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, and vanilla.  Blend well.
 * 7) Add pumpkin mixture to dry ingredients and fold until smooth. Add walnuts and fold until well mixed.
 * 8) Scrape into a loaf pan or muffin tins and smooth out the top.
 * 9) Bake for 95 minutes, until bread is firm to the touch and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before cutting.

Local Salad withFruit & Nuts          Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:

4 cups spinach                                   1 cup fresh strawberries, de-stemmed and sliced thin

¼ cup red onions, sliced thin            ¼ cup white wine, rice, or champagne vinegar

¼ cup olive oil                                     ½ cup almonds, sliced or chopped

¼ cup orange juice                             1 teaspoon orange zest

1 teaspoon salt                                   1 teaspoon black pepper

DIRECTIONS: * This recipe can be altered however you’d like! You could substitute a local lettuce for
 * 1) Toss together spinach, strawberries, onions, and nuts.
 * 2) In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, juice, zest, salt, and pepper
 * 3) Pour over the spinach mixture, toss, and serve.

spinach, use a different nut, or swap your favorite apple for strawberries.