Talking About Food

Food is a pretty huge thing, really, isn't it? When I think about how much goes into growing food in the garden, how much I can actually produce for us, how much I can rely on that as opposed to buying food... I'm a long way from where I'd like to be, that much I know. I get a good summer season of tomatoes, but I'm not even close to growing enough (and processing enough) to see us through the winter. Same goes with potatoes, although I'm closer with potatoes than with tomatoes. I think last year we were eating homegrown well into late Autumn. And as much as I would like it to be otherwise, my winter vegie gardening has been inconsistent at best. I would like to change that.

But the fact for me is, the vast majority of the food we eat in this house still comes from a supermarket, or from a store somewhere. I am tending now to shop more in smaller, independent stores rather than the big supermarkets whenever I can, mostly for dried pulses, fruits and vegetables and some household items where I can get them. But I still find myself back at the big supermarkets often enough. I suppose the driving factors for me are the freshness of the food, and whether or not it is organic. And how much it costs, that factor is still pretty important, especially when comparing the organic to the non-organic.

I flat out refuse to buy fruits and vegetables that are imported (ok, with the odd exception being garlic from Mexico when I'm desperate for garlic). It's not that I don't think the produce is good enough; of course it is, for what it is. It's just that I want to buy food that has had less time in storage, that has travelled less distance, that is fresher and healthier. I want to eat food that is in season, in our seasons. The early appearance of grapes and watermelons from the US is a big one - explaining to my kiddo why we can't buy it yet when we pass them at the supermarket. And I want my food to be free of pesticides, or genetic modifications. I want to eat food that was grown naturally in healthy soils, as close to home as possible. Obviously some things have to come from far away - coconuts and bananas don't grow so well around here. So I suppose the choice then is, to eat those things or not to eat those things. I'm still eating those things.

The reality is that everything is energy, you know? And the best energy, the highest vibrating energy with the most life force, comes from fresh, organic produce. And what we eat, what we take into our body, has a huge impact on our own energy! Our own vibration, our own life force. So when we consume foods that are on the lower end of the scale (manufactured anything), we are lowering our own energy, we are reducing our own life force energy (Chi, or Qi). Think about pesticides, they are designed to destroy life. That's a pretty low energy to be taking into our bodies. And that has a pretty big impact on our life. It impacts on how well we function, how positive or negative we are, our physical health, our ability to make positive change in our lives, our ability to operate at our highest potential, our energy levels, our overall wellbeing.

It is costly to shift to organic produce, I'm walking that tricky line between balancing the food budget and giving us the best food, and I would love to say we eat all organic but it's just not true. Still, making small changes here and there, they all add up. I do believe the small changes are the important ones, day in and day out. Little things, like organic tea (or coffee). Cutting out processed drinks. My last stand, my last guilty pleasure, is the hot chocolate that I like to have. Since I stopped drinking coffee it's become a little more prominent, but still I notice every single time that I get a little stomach pain when I drink it. My body speaks to me, tells me what it needs and what it doesn't, and the more I cut out the things that are no good, the louder I can hear it. Sensitivity increases, when you take away the things that dull it.

It's something I'm focusing on more this year, even more than usual. Starting with buying a local organic vegie box from a local farm, and I'll just see how we go with it. Little changes, big changes, all positive changes; always has a positive effect on your life.

Shopping Local: Farmers' Market Love

We've been making a big effort to shop at the farmers' markets for as much of our supplies as we can lately. I can honestly say we are totally fed up with supermarket retailers in this country. I feel like, as a customer, we are taken so much for granted and I'm pretty sure these retail giants think their customers are stupid. But we are not.

Fresh from the farmers' market, beautifully coloured rhubarb.

Anyway, I dream of not setting foot into the behemoth that is Coles/Woolworths and to a lesser degree Aldi. Perhaps I will challenge myself to a month of no-go to any of the above. Although we do still need to buy essentials of life that they supply. And therein lies their capacity to treat customers with contempt, and know that they will come back anyway. I'm not talking about the people on the shop floor either, I'm talking about the corporate level stuff. Squeezing suppliers and customers alike. Raising prices for no apparent reason. Changing the product mix, but leaving the packaging the same, and assuming no-one will notice. We notice.

One of the things I love about buying our fruit and veg at the market is stepping out of my 'normal' routine. And you know, something I've been thinking about and sort-of living by for a while now is shopping and eating seasonally. I haven't had a fresh tomato since last summer and we're still waiting on ours to ripen in the vegie garden. I am becoming less and less inclined to buy a product that I know has been grown artificially, out of season, and with goodness knows what chemicals or treatments to enhance it's shelf life and make it look visually perfect. And yet I buy bananas every week, and I'm pretty sure they tick all those boxes and more [think food miles from warmer climates..].

The flavour of foods we grow ourselves or buy at the markets is so unbelievably good, so full of life and goodness. The garlic, onions and leeks are so pungent. The potatoes so creamy and flavoursome. The zucchini from our garden tastes amazing, unlike the packaged up version from the supermarket that tastes a bit like, well, nothing. And the packaging, don't even get me started on the packaging. We know how much excess packaging ends up in landfill, and yet retailers still stock their shelves with so much unnecessary packaging, particularly in the fruit and veg department. Don't get me wrong, I am very guilty of buying stuff like this anyway, because hey, we all need to eat. I'm just doing what I can to limit my contribution.

I guess we are all responsible for this problem. The retailers only stock what will sell. But I think it is a bit of a vicious cycle. We the customers buy what is there, even when we would rather not. So there is no incentive for the retailers to change their ways. 

The farmers' market is more expensive for us. Our food bill has gone up. It's a tricky one to manage, as we're watching our budget and wondering if this is the best way to shop. But at the same time, I would rather see my food money go to a farmer within a 100km radius, rather than into the retail giants. I would rather buy food that has been grown locally, and that has a life and an energy contained within, than buy food that has been grown under artificial conditions. Or that has travelled many kilometres. We recently spent $20 on garlic at the farmers' market - for a beautifully plaited bunch of garlics grown locally. On the one hand, it's a lot of money for garlic. But the alternative - buying a cheaper product, shipped in from Spain or Mexico, that has half the flavour, well... I'm glad we gave our $20 to the local guy. It's nothing against the product from Spain or Mexico, I'm sure it's wonderful too - but probably tastes better if you eat it in say, Spain or Mexico. Not down here on the other side of the planet.

I've been buying rhubarb at the markets lately. I've never bought it in my life before now. I love the colours, and I love that I then get home and think 'now what on earth do I do with it?' - it forces me to try something new. Apple and rhubarb mini-pies, apple and rhubarb crumble. I probably need to branch out and try it with something other than apple. Next time.

Do you shop mainly at supermarkets or farmers' markets? How do you balance shopping ethical with meeting your family's needs?

Slow and Steady Progress

I had a most inspiring thing happen this week. I got to spend a short amount of time working in my beloved vegetable garden. I spent so many hours last year building the garden, digging in beds, adding manure, planting and nurturing. And we had a wonderfully abundant garden over summer. But between having a new baby and those chickens, well, it's kind of gone to ruin.

The bed in question. Complete with chunks of clay like rocks. And [some of] those chickens.

As it stands, there are some beds nicely laid out still, and some that have almost entirely been reclaimed by weeds. In a lot of ways, I will be starting all over again. Except for one very important difference - the soil! Our soils are clay. Plain and simple, just clay. Last year, when planting, my philosophy was that if anything actually grows in these soils, it will be a bonus. If nothing else, the plantings, and manure and fertiliser and pea straw, would ultimately condition the soil, thereby making for a better garden in the future.

This week was the first time in six months [probably longer if I think about it] that I've taken a pitch fork to the soil. The bed that I grew all my potatoes in last summer. The bed that was solid chunks of clay - reddish, fist-sized chunks of clay that were more like rocks and took a lot of breaking up, only to form into new chunks with watering. And not a worm to be seen. But not anymore. To my delight, the soil is a deep, dark brown colour. It is significantly finer than it was last year, with barely any red rock-like chunks. And it is full of worms!

I am just amazed at how quickly the soil has improved. I mean it's still pretty heavy, don't get me wrong, it's not exactly loam yet. But the difference between last year and this year is much more than I would have ever imagined. It was a real boost to my stamina on the long road to a simpler life. Even though I've not been able to do much gardening this year, we are still making excellent progress, as a result of the work put in last year and over summer. Oh and those chickens scratching around in there, no doubt that helped too. 

So naturally I was very, very happy [just getting my gloved hands in the dirt felt wonderful], and put out a bunch of seeds to celebrate. Spinach and broad beens, in only half of the bed. Next week I'm hoping to plant out the rest of the bed. I'm not looking at how much of a mess the rest of the garden still is. Right now I'm just grateful that I'm getting to spend some time out in the garden and get some new things growing. And that our longer term plans for awesome soil are very much on track. Slow and steady progress my friends, slow and steady progress. 

Homemade: Potato, Leek & Cannellini Bean Soup

I grew lots of different vegetables in my garden this summer, including potatoes and leeks, so this soup was always going to happen. What I've really enjoyed about growing a wide range of my own produce, is getting a feel for what foods are best in which season. You know, when we shop at the supermarket all the time, and fresh produce is always available [I use the word 'fresh' lightly], you can tend to lose touch with the seasonality of food and the rhythms of nature that go with eating seasonally. Anyway it wasn't planned, I just realised early on that I had leeks growing, and I had potatoes growing, and they would probably be ready for harvest around the same time. I guess that's why we have potato and leek soup!

Being a non-meat eater, I'm always keen to round out my meals with a bit of extra protein, so my version of this soup is modified to include cannellini beans. That, and because there was a tin of them in the cupboard at the time. And they're white. And it's always nice to take an idea for a recipe and modify it to suit yourself. Unless that recipe is for a Donna Hay cake or other sweet treat, in which case, don't mess with it. Anyway, here's what I did.

Potato, Leek & Cannellini Bean Soup

Ingredients:

1-2 tablespoons butter

2 leeks, thinly sliced

4 large potatoes, cut into small cubes

1 to 1.5 litre/s vegetable stock [more if you like your soup a bit thinner]

dash of nutmeg [optional]

1 tin cannellini beans, rinsed

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated

splash of milk

salt and pepper to season

Method:

1. Heat the butter in a large pan over a low-medium heat. Add the leeks and cook gently for about 20 minutes. You want them to be soft, not browned.

2. Add the potato, stock and nutmeg and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until your potatoes are almost cooked. 

3. Add the cannellini beans, and cook for another few minutes until they're heated through.

4. Remove the soup from heat, then blend, either in batches in a blender or food processor or with one of those hand held blender things [which I dream of owning].

5. Return the blended soup to the pan, and reheat over low heat. Stir in parmesan cheese and milk and season to taste with salt and pepper. And you're good to go.

Notes:
I'm not convinced on adding the parmesan. It did make it quite rich. But then I kinda liked that too. You could also add pouring cream at the end instead of the parmesan and milk. Or you could not blend it up and leave it chunky.

This makes a pretty thick soup. It's strange because I tend to think of this as more of a winter soup, yet I'm making it in late summer. I guess it's really an autumn/fall soup. It feels like autumn here already so it fits. I love seasonal eating!

Homemade: My First Preserve

Something I'm very passionate about is making food from scratch, at home, preferably with produce grown in the garden. It's just better, you know? It looks better, it tastes better, it's better for you, all that stuff [I've a confession to make here though - I prefer tinned beetroot to fresh... there, I said it]. One thing I've not tried until now, is using up the excess produce by making preserves. It always just seemed too hard, what with sterilising jars and all. A few months ago I gifted myself with a book on making preserves [similar here]. I gave it a go this past weekend, with a Caramelised Onion and Beetroot Relish. And I only broke one jar in the sterilising process.

I started out by harvesting beetroot from the garden [I still grow the stuff, even though I prefer to eat it out of a tin]. I'll be honest here - the hard work is in the scrubbing off of dirt, and peeling and grating of beetroot, and the slicing of onion. I was up to my elbows in the stuff. Beetroot stains. Wear gloves. The actual process of cooking up the preserve was really easy. I sterilised my jars by standing them in low oven for 30 minutes while the preserve was cooking, I'm hoping that was enough to kill off any nasties. 

And the finished product? Well it looks good! But now it has to sit for 3 weeks before opening, so I can't tell you yet how it tastes. I'm quietly confident that it will a] taste amazing and b] have a total lack of mould because my sterilising process was perfect. We shall see. 

I'm slightly concerned about the condensation on the tops of those jars. My recipe did say to seal immediately [while still warm] so I can't see how you wouldn't get condensation. I guess the testing will be in the eating. Have you ever made a preserve or relish? I'd love to get some tips!