Ooh, fresh mozzarella. I wonder if I can make it in my kitchen?
And chicken stock made from the carcass of a home grown chicken.
Well, I can’t keep chickens on my balcony but maybe I can grow potatoes.
Or tomatoes. Definitely tomatoes.
Mmm, basil. Mmm, pesto.
But we don’t get enough sun out there. I’m going to have to move to somewhere with a yard that gets sun all day.
I wonder when the next Farmers’ Market is?
I wonder if I convince D to take me?
Hmmm, come to think of it, I wonder if I can convince D to eat less meat. Or at least eat organically grown.
Damn, that passage about the ethics of growing animals for food reminds me of the essay I had to write for my final English exam.
I’ve been reading — devouring, really — Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: Our Year of Seasonal Eating and those thoughts, and variations thereof, have been caught in my mind. I’ve thought about what I eat (too much junk food and processed crap) and why (it’s easy and convenient and I don’t feel like I have enough time to do real food justice). I’ve thought about how I treat the food I eat and felt ashamed at the lack of respect I’ve shown it — and myself — by taking the easy option at the supermarket rather than searching for and buying foods that are sourced locally from farmers who have respected that food and the process of growing it. I’ve contemplated making changes to the way I cook and eat.
I’m seriously thinking about making my own mozzarella.
You could start by making you own Indian paneer cheese. Can’t really remember how, but I know it was dead easy. And yes, growing your own stuff is great. We now have rosemary and thyme (both will grow absolutely anywhere), bay, some slightly sad sage, and of course our cherry trees and raspberries. But the herbs are really my favoutire, because they’re always there. Although I fear for the sage.
The book sounds really good. I’m going to add it to my Xmas list, I think.
That book was great — I devoured it!
I’d feel a lot better about eating the amount of meat we do if we were raising our own animals.
The thing that that book showed me is that while setting up a farm is a lot of work, it’s not necessarily a complete daily grind. The work ebbs and flows depending on the season and what you raise.
I also appreciated Kingsolver’s way of compromising on some things, like coffee, that could be considered luxuries. I always have to remind myself that even when most people lived on farms, they didn’t necessarily raise all of their own food. There’s a sharing of resources and talents that is an important social component…so we could still buy Fair Trade coffee beans and call it ethical.
Edwin: I love sage! And rosemary and thyme and so on. I do have one corner of the balcony that receives a bit of sun that might become to some herbs.
Ms Make Tea: It’s an awesome book and so much more than what I’ve mentioned. Lots of interesting facts and recipes and just full of joy, despite the hard work involved. I’m not even waiting for Christmas. I’m going to buy my own copy this week.
Kristine: Growing up on a farm and eating the produce of the land, I could fully appreciate what Kingsolver was doing, especially the growing of meat. One of the first thoughts I had while reading was that I wanted to buy some land and do exactly what she and her family did — live with it and from it and get in touch with my roots. Don’t know that D would go for it, though.
Here’s the solution: D. discovers that his heart’s desire of a job is something that he can do from a home office! Although…it’s sad to think that farming is getting practically impossible where you are. Move here, and we’ll all set up a farm raising alpacas (for all the knitting, of course) and cows!
And angora goats! I’m currently having a love affair with mohair. Of course, I’d have to learn how to shear and spin. But that’s do-able.