Eat Local Challenge

Eat Local Challnege is a documentary series that follows Eastern Ontario families and individuals as they challenge themselves to 7 days of eating only foods grown and raised locally. Learn more about eating seasonally, supporting local farmers, and reducing your carbon footprint.

The television premiere of the documentary series Eat Local Challenge will be Thursday November 11th at 8:00 pm on TVCOGECO Kingston cable channel 13, Brockville cable channel 10, and Smith Falls cable channel 10. The program will also air on TVCOGECO Belleville plus TVCOGECO Video on Demand later in the month of November.

The Cameron-Shea family along with a number of our St. Mary students are in this documentary. It's an issue we're all passionate about and we can't wait to see it.

Oh, and don't forget to order your delicious, local food from Wendy's Mobile Market. It's one of our favourite ways to grocery shop.

Easter Weekend Goodness

I went on an adventure today to Wendy's Country Market. Having ordered through their mobile market for a few years now, I'd never had the chance to visit the shop. I've mentioned them several times on this blog and also have a link to their mobile market. They deliver local (and mostly organic) foods and other products directly to people's kitchens. This operation has changed the way our family eats by making local foods so accessible. Now, we know we can take a little road trip to this beautiful shop.

www.wendysmobilemarket.com

Wendy's Country Market can be found in a schoolhouse built in 1860. Several generations of Wendy's family attended school in this building. Her daughter is the seventh generation to live and work on this land.

Several local meat producers sell their products here. Beef, pork, fish, and poultry are available but more adventurous souls can find wild boar, elk, and bison.

preserves, honey, and maple syrup

home-baked treats (there are a number of gluten-free choices!)

I nearly wept when I saw the greens and hydroponic tomatoes. We had a great salad for dinner.

EASTER!

I love the person who, many years ago, filled my front garden with hundreds of bulbs.

This morning, we decorated our Easter eggs. We used all-natural dyes. Here are some of our experiments. We used white eggs to get this effect.

Red Onion: With string, wrap the eggs in the onion skin and boil for 5-10 minutes. Add a tablespoon of vinegar to the water before boiling. Results in a reddish-purple colour.

Beets: Chop 2-3 beets. Place beets along with desired number of eggs in a saucepan and cover with water. Add a tablespoon of vinegar and boil for 5-10 minutes. Results in purple (I only had one beet left since the rest were of the candy-cane variety).

Turmeric: Cover desired number of eggs with water. Add 1-2 tablespoons of turmeric to the water depending how dark you want the colour. Add a tablespoon of vinegar to the water before boiling for 5-10 minutes. When taken out early, eggs are light yellow. Leaving them longer results in orange.

Roots for Shoots

I'm just about done with root vegetables and apples...and all the food I preserved. Everything was lovely, even up to a month ago, but now, I just want some FRESH greens (not the ones shipped in from California). Oh, and asparagus. I so want asparagus from Clover Gardens. Soon.

I haven't ordered from Wendy's for a few weeks now because I wanted to work my way through our freezer, jars, and squash stock pile. There is one sorry-looking squash left and a few wizened potatoes. And, while I'm complaining, I'm not sure who I thought would eat the massses of PESTO I made. I love it, but I was a little overzealous.

So...now that things have settled down with our play (sigh)...I'm going to direct some energy towards cleaning out my pantry. Food is much less heart-wrenching than the arts. Feeling a bit like Eeyore.

Any ideas on what to do with all this pesto? Any non-traditional uses for it?

Thanksgiving

So thankful for...

the intense way my dad peels turnips and then chops it into tiny cubes (even though it's going to be mashed)

the fall harvest


playing in the leaves

fall colours

dinner with friends and family (and cars)

and...

my husband and all his mad scientist renovations

dewy spider webs

our cat napping in sunshine

faith

morning coffee

evening tea

garter snakes

writing the perfect paragraph

laughter

our jobs

thank you for days spent surrounded by childhood

Writers' Club

Once a week I meet with two wonderful friends to share and critique each other's writing. It is because of these two women that I was able to complete my novel.

Having their honest criticism (I hope!), companionship, and encouragement helped me plug along. I've also learned so much from both of them, both about writing and about life.


I'm amazed that this continues to happen week after week, despite the demands of teaching and parenting and all that other stuff.


We have a lot of laughs and we've also cried a bit. It's been a rough few years for me but I

always leave my writers' circle a little lighter
...but with warm wine cheeks.

Yesterday was not a good meal from the 100-Mile perspective. I had a busy evening so I had to prepare something quick. That's when I pulled out my frozen carrot soup made ahead of time and tried to make a fritatta--but it's hard to make a fritatta when there are only two eggs because one's husband has eaten a dozen in just five days in an attempt to replace carbs. So, the fritatta was flatatta but the soup was good...at least I liked it.


I made the Herbed Carrot soup from The Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. I used to make this when I was a university student. I remember buying organic carrots once at the farmer's market and marvelling at how knarled they were. This recipe can be made with no oil, which is helpful in the absence of olive groves (still hoping).

I used carrots from Clover Gardens in Soperton. Dave and Barb Alguire are dedicated to producing delicious food. These carrots are divine. I didn't think it was possible for me to prefer carrots over chocolate, but these orange vegetables are perfect.

In this recipe, I removed all non-local ingredients and it worked. Here's my locavore version. It's also vegan, a welcome relief for me after a fairly carnivorous week.

Herbed Carrot Soup

2 lbs carrots
1 medium potato
4 cups water or veg stock
1 tbls, butter (optional)
1 cup chopped onion
2 medium cloves of garlic
1/2 tsp thyme*
1/2 tsp oregano*
1 tsp basil*

*dried--although I made mine with fresh and just used a little more.

Peel and chop the carrots and potato and place them in a med-sized saucepan with the water. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are tender (10-15 min). Heat some water in a frying pan and "saute" the onions for 5 minutes. Add garlic, herbs and cook until onions are soft. Blend everything until smooth. Re-heat in a big pot until simmering.

Featherstone Bison Farm

One of the things that excited me most about the 100-Mile Diet was meeting local producers. This morning, our family set out to Gananoque to meet Harold and Nancy, owners of Featherstone Bison Farm. They have 60 head of bison.

The bison are pastured on a huge acerage throughout the spring, summer, and fall. In the winter, they are supplemented with hay (1-2 bales per day) but they require no shelter. Harold explained that they are accustomed to prairie winters. They are given no hormones or anti-biotics.

Pheobe, a fifteen-year old border collie, learned many years ago that bison don't like to be herded. She still tries to boss them around, but they don't listen. As fluffy and friendly as the bison appear, Harold and Nancy made it clear that they cannot be approached. They are quite dangerous--both males and females have horns. The alpha female stared me down. Yikes.

Harold prepared a bison roast in his adobe oven. It was wonderful. The meat was flavourful, tender and lean. Bison meat must be cooked only to rare or medium rare because it is so low in fat. We also enjoyed a glass of fresh apple and carrot juice.

As you can see, the herd was breathtaking.

Day Three wasn't our best day in terms of sticking to our challenge. Mike was extremely ill last night, presumably from caffeine-withdrawl. My headache also persisted. Mike researched the symptoms and found that they can persist for 3-9 days. Because we have to parent and work with kids at school, we decided that we would have one cup each morning. Hopefully, we can continue to drink less coffee after the challenge.

A Morning Cuppa

We'll, it's the morning of our second day. We enjoyed a delicious dinner last night. The baked beans were worth the effort. Tonight we're having a crock pot stew. It was strange having cameras focused on us while we ate dinner and of course, Kieran wouldn't eat. He just mashed up a muffin and dumped it on the table cloth. Maybe people will confuse the show with Supernanny.

However, the folks from COGECO were so nice that it made it fun. And Mike is a closet actor. I almost felt like I was sitting next to Brad Pitt when he spooned my helping of beans onto the plate and said, "Is there meat in this?" Very smooth.





Rick (from Wendy's Mobile Market) delivered our groceries and brought a pumpkin for Kieran. We ordered some things we hadn't tried before: goat milk from Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Co. and apple cider vinegar from Hall's Apple Orchard. The leeks from Patchwork Gardens look amazing and we're eager to try the blue potatoes from Wendy. We had a nice surprise from Corn Acre Farms. The dozen corn will be great for a get-together with friends on the weekend.

Kieran loved the watermelon. It's huge and I'll have to invite a bunch of people over to eat it because it will never fit in my fridge once I cut it. Kieran says it's a dinosaur egg. He's waiting for it to hatch.

I live in a house of morning people (and morning cats) so I'm always the last one downstairs. I was delighted to see that my husband had boiled some eggs (from Re-Think Family Farms) and sliced some apples for me. The kettle was whistling...for tea. Sigh.


So...about the tea...I'm drinking Funny Duck Farms "Everyday Tea."

Everyday tea is just that...an everyday tea for men, women, and children of all ages. Both flavourful and nourishing, this tea will leave you feeling balanced, even in the midst of chaos.

I just finished a cup. The tea is lovely and most certainly nourishing, but I'm waiting for something. Actually, I'm waiting for the caffeine buzz, the buzz that will never come...

100-Mile Diet Challenge, here I come!

As soon as I wake up.

Honey Baked Beans

Who knew that I would have to sift through rocks, twigs, and dirt for a half an hour just to get a bowl of pinto beans? Actually, I knew. I knew because I did it last year at this time and vowed I would never to it again. That's until I made the recipe for baked beans that came with them. Divine.

The beans are from Cherryvale Organic Farm. I never thought about how pinto beans were grown until I had the Zen experience of picking through them. They must be grown in a rock quarry.

So, in honour of our first 100-mile meal, I decided to make something special. I pulled out the recipe from last year, took out some sausage to thaw...and watched Mike's cold-hearted feeling towards my latest adventure thaw a little too. He really liked the beans last year. Then, I found the still-point in my mind as I stood over the sink, rummaging for beans. Again, too much time on my hands?

It's so worth it.

Here's the recipe.

HONEY BAKED BEANS

Soak 2 1/2 cups of pinto beans overnight, drain

1/2 to 1lb of sliced bacon or ham (I'm trying sausage because I must have thought an army of people who like sausage would descend on our home in the near future)

1 large onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 cup of honey (I'll be using honey from Logan Apiaries)

2 tsp of dry mustard

3 tbsp ground ginger

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Cover soaked beans with 3 quarts water ~ bring to a boil ~ lower heat and simmer until beans are tender (30-35 min) ~ drain beans in a colander placed over a saucepan to save cooking liquid ~ pre-heat oven to 300 F ~ Put the beans in a large baking pan with a lid and mix in pork, onion, and garlic ~ measure 2 cups of the cooking liquid, stirring in the honey and spices ~ pour liquid over the beans ~ stir and cover ~ bake for 2 1/2 hours ~ I put loads of cheese on top for the last 30 minutes.

mmmm...

And the recipe ended with this quotation:

"If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live."

Albert Einstein

I guess we won't be able to use the mustard, ginger, salt, or pepper...not so local.

I thought of making super slaw to go with the beans but hesitated. Cabbage and beans? Sounds like trouble.

Home-Made Cards

Since my son first expressed interest in art, I've rarely had to purchase a greeting card. Whenever I need a card I just tell him whose birthday it is and off he goes. Of course, I tend to "supervise" a little too much sometimes.

So, it was lots of fun to have a helper over the other day to make birthday cards for Jim and Krista.

I figure that he's making the art anyway, so we can save paper by transforming it into cards. Last year, he even made the wrapping paper for his cousins' gifts.





With our 100-mile diet just a few days away, I thought I'd get a head-start. I roasted a chicken so I can make stock tomorrow. Then, I'll make a batch of squash soup. I think this is going to be a lot of work!

I apologize for the unfortunate view of the chicken. Martha Stewart would have turned the bird the other way and her herb sachet would be wrapped in pink gossamer rather than hanging out like the dog's breakfast.

Prana Sauce

I found a great recipe for raw tomato sauce. It's from Kris Carr's Crazy, Sexy Cancer Tips book.

Put three pints (or so) of small, sweet yellow tomatoes in a blender.

Add a few cloves of chopped garlic, a handful of basil, and a pinch of sea salt.

Blend.

Pour unheated over cooked pasta.

Perfection in two minutes!

I froze three small jars and made a meal from this amount. This raw food approach saves a heck of a lot of time! However, I've read that tomatoes are the one vegetable (fruit!) that actually becomes more nutritious with heat.

Putting Up Corn

My friend, Jackie, and I decided to "put up" some corn today. We bought three dozen cobs at the farmers market and spent the morning shucking, blanching, slicing, and freezing. I really like my new food prep lingo.

First, we blanched the corn in boiling water for three minutes. Then, with great satisfaction, we plunged the cobs into cold water to stop the cooking process. We sliced the kernels off the cobs, let them cool, and loaded them into freezer bags. Just over an hour later, we had enough corn to make us some chowder on a cold November day.

This is the year that I want to learn more about food preservation. I spent the afternoon yesterday with another friend, Krista, making chili sauce and red pepper jelly. Last year I froze a lot of veggies: stewed tomatoes, beans, red peppers, leeks, and ragout. I plan to do more of that but I also want to can some salsa and tomato sauce this year.

Jackie and I discussed a short story we'd both read where a woman accidentally kills a dinner guest by feeding her preserves contaminated with botulism. We think it was Alice Munro. Regardless, we've both been skittish of the canning process as a result--perhaps a whole generation exposed to that story in the high school English curriculum turned their backs on the arts of food preservation. Thanks to some Canadian author, we now buy our produce from California during the winter. Anyway, I also read that tomatoes are so acidic that botulism can't survive. Phew. That's why I'm starting with tomatoes.

100 Mile Diet

Well, the Cameron-Shea family is officially participating in the 100-Mile-Diet for COGECO Kingston. We met with them yesterday and we'll film in September. While the majority of our food is already locally-grown, we're taking it a step futher to give up coffee (gasp!), beer (double gasp), and chocolate (faint...). Other things that will be a problem are salt, olive oil, and cinnamon. Kieran's gluten-free needs will also call for creativity. It's only seven days.


Thank goodness for Wendy's Mobile Market in Lyndhurst. We order on-line from them once a week and Rick (Wendy's husband) brings everything right into the kitchen. We are able to get local veggies, apples, ice cream, chicken, beef, wild boar, a variety of cheeses, and even bath bombs. It's a great thing. We would probably be more reluctant to participate in this challenge if it weren't for this service. I'll add the link for their fantastic site at the end of this post.


I was just working on a chapter in my novel where the protagonist attends the Charlottetown Famer's Market--here's another photo from my friend, Tina. It's a little dark but it's a favourite stop for me when we're on the island--so much good food! And I like to eat. It's another one of the things I greatly miss about not being on the island, which is why it had to appear in my book.

The book that inspired me to look into local eating more seriously was Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. And, after watching a few episodes of their show on the Food Network, I'm adding Alisa Smith and James MiKinnon's book, The 100 Mile Diet: A Year of Eating Locally to my reading list.



"Eating locally isn't just a fad like the various fad-diets advertised on late-night T.V.--it may be one of the most important ways we save ourselves and the planet." ~David Suzuki


http://www.wendysmobilemarket.com/