What's for Dinner?

" You  are what you eat." 

I first heard that as a student at University of Guelph eons ago. And I clearly remember thinking, "Uh, no. I am not. I am much more than that horrible slop just served up in the cafeteria, 

or the Thursday night draft beer, or the limp green leaves that pass for salad around here.

 I am possibly that rich and creamy strawberry parfait however."

Several years later,  as I watch friend after friend battle cancer (self included), diabetes, heart disease, and other ailments too numerous to mention, I now absolutely agree. "You are what you eat."

While not able to do much about the vast amounts of microscopic particles of plastic that we eat, drink and breathe on a daily basis, I am able to control the food I put in my body. In the past few years, we have started growing our own food, as well as purchasing it from local farmers who believe that the closer the food is to the farm, the better it is for you. They also believe that there are healthier alternatives to pest control than pesticides and chemicals. 

Rainbow Heritage Garden is a local organic market garden that we have bought shares in...Community Shared Agriculture or CSA..so every other week for six months of the year, we receive  a huge basket of vegetables and fruit that is lovely to look at, delicious to eat and good for us! 

Win, win and win.

 This is Zack, the farmer who grows our food, and he takes  our food safety very seriously. You can trust a farmer who eats the same food he sells to you, and  who gives tours of his farm so you can see the techniques that are used to grow such amazing crops.

Its's much more than a pretty place. There's a ton of work to be done, and lists to abide by to make sure that  all the details of crop production are noted, and attended to.

 This year's crop of garlic is going to be a good one. And the peas, carrots, kale, and  potatoes are also growing beautifully. Our  garden crops are flourishing.

The suspension means the tomatoes will be filling me. :-)

The peppers and tomatoes are grown in greenhouses, which means far fewer pests, protection from adverse weather, in particular hail, and a delicious crop of fruit!

You will likely never see a suit at a Shareholder's Meeting and friendly smiles abound.

And when share's are split, they look like this:

Who's your Farmer, and what's  he growing in your garden?

Company's Coming. Now We're Cookin'

Well! My last post led me smack up against a brick wall- nary a thought shared nor a comment posted. So I have to now admit that sidewalk embellishments are more of a niche topic, and I shall send the post off to a bunch of urban planners. They may enjoy it.

In the mean time, I hope you all feel like eating. Food is a topic I love. Not only do I love eating, I love growing it, foraging for it, talking about preparation methods, and ultimately cooking it.
I am not one of those people who eat to live. No, I live to eat.  But I will never suffer from being too thin. (Or too rich sadly). However, I digress.

I achieve almost the same meditative state I get from taking a walk in the woods with my camera and binoculars when I'm in the kitchen, preparing something special. Not just anything though...the daily drudge does not induce peace. Just plain ol' boredom. As in ho hum, another supper, I wish they'd invent new food and I wish I could find the genie in the olive oil bottle, and he could do the dinner drive.
BUT! when company's coming, that's a whole other bag of groceries!

And so tonight, having first served frozen fish sticks and coleslaw (see what I mean? Pure drudgery), I am now cooking up a storm for guests who are coming for dinner tomorrow night.

On the menu:

Warm olives with orange slices, cheese and seeded crackers
Roasted Eggplant and Tomato Soup
Mushroom Lasagne

Spinach, Pear and Pancetta Salad

Strawberry Rhubarb Vanilla Yogurt

The soup is first up, and is  pretty easy peasy...roast the veg to bring out the flavours, simmer in stock, puree, done.

I have never made this before, but it sounds delicious, I love eggplant, garlic , onion and tomato, so it should be tasty. Should may be the operative word here. We'll see.
It's not that I like to experiment on my guests, it's that  having guests ignites the creative cook within. And I have difficulty following specific directions and cooking within the pot so to speak.  Sometimes the results are disastrous...but not always.

Bathed with olive oil, it's into the oven  the veggies go for some flavour intensification. The kitchen  smells incredible as they mingle in the heat.

Once they've softened up somewhat, and browned a little, then it's time to make formal introductions and let them dance together in a slow simmering pot filled with a tangy broth with accents of cumin, pepper, and thyme...I'm making myself hungry here!

The flavour is rich, full bodied, earthy with a tangy lemon accent and back notes of pepper. It tastes wonderful as it's simmering away, but truthfully, doesn't look all that swell. The eggplant is quite stringy, a gelatinous mass.  I suspect once it's all pureed it will be a caramel colour..a bit odd for soup..but the taste! That will overide the visual, and I'll be sure to serve it by candle light.

or maybe in full light. Bon appetit!

                                                                                         ...to be continued.