Local sausage-makers= good

As of late, I have discovered that there are some really good local
sausages to be found here in Edmonton. I really enjoyed the Mennonite
"farmer's" sausage I purchased at the Old Strathcona farmers market on
a week and a half ago. I served that with local free-range eggs (also
from the farmers market) and a batch of Marlon's pancakes.
The second sausage I got was at Good Earth grocery on 99 street. It
was called Ukrainian sausage we threw that, along with some
chicken, fresh tomatoes, peppers and mushrooms into a big ol' pot of
jumbalaya. Just enough warmth and spice to chase away the winter chill.

Marlon Scrawndo's wheat-free dairy-free pancakes

I tried this recipe this afternoon when I rolled out of bed.

1 cup Gluten free flour (I used Red Mill but I'm sure others would work)
A sprinkle of xanthum gum powder
2 1/4 tsp. Baking powder
1 tsp. Salt
1 tbsp. Sweetener (honey, maple syrup, molasses, whatever)
1 cup Soy milk (or similar substance)
1 tsp. Vanilla extract

Heat the griddle medium heat on the stove. You may have to adjust
depending on your stove and the pan or griddle you use. Mix all the
dry ingredients together. Make a volcano to pour the milk in. Add the
vanilla and sweetener (if liquid) and stir that sucka up! It should be
runny but not soup. Pour some 3 inch flap-jacks on a freshly oiled pan.
Serves about four steamin' hot cakes.

Rocky Mountain Gourmet

I finally got to test out my cookware and new white gas stove! It made
delicious spaghetti in minutes. The view was amazing as we sat and
munched our pasta. The location is secret of course.

Mozza Time

I suppose I never posted the pictures of me brother and I making mozzarella cheese. It was quite simple actually. Four litres of milk made those six tiny cheese balls. Perhaps it isn't too efficient. I couldn't even tell you how good it tasted because if I eat milk I will spew.

Abstinence makes the stomach grow fonder

I have been thinking about food as of late. I think it's kind of rubbed off on my room mates as well because I see we now have "free run Omega-3" eggs in the fridge. Supposedly this is better than normal caged chickens but "free run" doesn't sound a whole lot better. "Free run" means that the chickens are in a barn, in a controlled environment, being fed a controlled diet. In the case of the Omega-3 birds, this diet is usually in the form of flax (I have tasted "fishy" eggs before though). There is no regulatory body over the use of the phrase "free run" unless the farm is also certified organic. Free range chickens are free to roam in the outdoors, and they are the pricey ones because they use up the most real estate. (citing: http://www.humanefood.ca/pdf%20links/cage-free-eggs-new-logo-v4.pdf)

Enough about eggs. The other food I was thinking about was fruits and vegetables. I will agree with Barbara Kingsolver in her book "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" when she states "The main barrier between ourselves and a local-food culture is not price, but attitude." She describes the North American consumer as impatient. We want strawberries in January, etc. "Waiting for the quality experience seems to be the constitutional article that has slipped from American food custom" Waiting for each vegetable to come to season is analogous to Christmas morn. When attitudes can be changed from a consumerist "want" to a manageable "wait", only then can a local-food movement become sustainable.

Another challenge to the local-food movement is that the sheer volume of food required to feed large populations is just too great for the local supply. I envision many small backyard plots used for vegetable growing. The backyard farms could either be farmed by the owner of the property or rented out to "urban farmers" who would harvest the vegetables and sell them at local farmers markets. May I suggest a tax-free incentive both to the farmers and the land-owners?

There are many more challenges to essentially undo the mistakes we have made in food production, but hopefully attitudes can change.