I find that whenever I’m doing something that requires extra efforts, it’s helpful to know the reasons behind it.  So on the days when I don’t really feel up to it, I can go back to my list of reasons and remember why it’s important to me in the first place.  So here they are - my reasons for eating local: 

• The food tastes better.  The berries, tomatoes, corn…they are a thousand times more flavourful when in season and freshly picked.
• I want to support the local farmers.  Instead of complaining that there’re no local produce in the stores and that farms are being turned into suburban houses, I can support the farmers by buying local - that’s the least I could do.
• It’s better for the environment.  There’s debate out there whether eating locally is always better for the environment, but I think that for the species that are native to where you live, it’s “greener” to eat local. 

From now on whenever I feel tempted to just get whatever is available at the supermarket, I can come back to this list and remind myself of the reasons I’m eating local.

Il Fornello’s annual WinterDelicious event is now on. They’re offering a three-course prix fixe menu created from Ontario ingredients. WinterDelicious ends February 13. Please check their website for details.  

If you’ve been to WinterDelicious, write a comment and tell us all about it!

Ok, so this might not be news to some people, but it’s news to me. Il Fornello has been offering a “Local Food Menu” for over six months now. Since the ingredients are sourced from local farms, the menu must change to reflect the seasonal offerings.

Currently on the menu are:

• Fresh herb goat cheese crusted roast peach on arugula + grilled red onion salad with mint Riesling vinegar dressing
• Fresh corn + cream blended with a puree of white wine sauteed cauliflower + onions with a garnish of sweet pea shoots
• Rigatoni with smoked chicken, sweet peas, caramalized onions, in a rose sauce, with fresh basil
• Thin crust pizza topped with wild mushroom bechamel, wild mushrooms, vienna style ham, broccoli + Toscana cheese
• Grilled “on the bone” pork rack served with roasted yukon gold potatoes, seasonal vegetables + a shallot, plum, baco noir compot

Mmm…delicious!

I learned of Fresh From the Farm when I attended the Mom2Mom Holiday Show back in November. The timing was perfect since I was introducing my daughter to solid foods and have been looking for healthier alternatives for her. To be honest, I used to be a bit skeptical of organic foods. There wasn’t any official organic certification process and it seems that people label the food “organic” and charge you twice the price. Now that there are regulations in place and more information available, I’m all for organic food – when it’s affordable. Which brings me back to Fresh From the Farm.

Fresh from the Farm is a small store that’s only open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The owners Jacqui and Tim Schmucker bring in fresh meat from small farms in Mennonite communities near Kitchener-Waterloo every two weeks. All the animals are raised in humane conditions, drug-free and hormone-free. The prices are very affordable. The only catch is that you have to order in advance.

Last week I put in my first order: 2 rib eye steaks, a whole chicken and some eggs. I picked up my order on Saturday and also bought a jar of Pinehedge yogurt. The steaks were at 1½ inched thick each and the chicken was huge. One steak was enough for both Josh and I for dinner. I just pan-fried the steak – flavourful, juicy and tender, even at “well done”. We had eggs for breakfast, roast chicken for supper, and yogurt for dessert. Everything was delicious. It felt good knowing that I was eating wholesome food.

Buying Local - Dufferin Grove Farmers’ Market

Since I’ve started my research in local food resources in Toronto two weeks ago, I still haven’t visited any of the new findings myself. So last Thursday, I went to check out Toronto’s only year-round farmers’ market at Dufferin Grove Park. A market where there are strict guidelines in place to ensure that the vendors are the producer of their goods and most goods are certified organic.

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that there’s a year-round farmers’ market in town. And even in mid-January, it’s still bustling with activities. I bought a pork tenderloin ($21) from Berreta Organics, arugula sprouts and basil ($9, I can’t remember the vendor’s name), home-made perogies (two bags of 6 large perogies for $10 total) from Sosnickis Organic Produce, and whole wheat sweet potato bread ($5) from Alli’s. I wanted to buy more but had to hold back, I had placed an order from Fresh From The Farm to be picked up on Friday (more about that later).

First meal

Inspired by my purchases at the market, I prepared my first (mostly) local dinner. I made pan-fried perogies with sausages (non-local), mixed green salad with vinaigrette (olive oil, white wine vinegar and honey from an apiary in Wiarton that I bought while on vacation), and sweet potato bread. It was nothing fancy but the perogies were the best I’ve ever tasted, the salad was so fresh and the bread was very hearty although it would go better with soup. A good meal all around.

Second meal

On Friday, we had our friend Andrew who is visiting from BC, was over for dinner. I roasted the pork tenderloin with roasted root vegetables (a recipe I found on the foodnetwork website), served it with a mixed green salad and sweet potato bread. I used local honey and Ontario red wine in the marinade for the tenderloin, although not all the root vegetables (carrot, rutabaga, turnip and parsley root) were local, they were at least seasonal. Had I planned better, I could’ve bought them from the farmers’ market, but I ended up going to the local supermarket. The tenderloin was succulent and tender, and the root vegetables complimented it quite nicely. I’ve never had rutabaga, turnip or parsley root before, I’d always thought they looked weird and didn’t know how to cook them; however, in my quest to eat more locally and seasonally, I decided to give them a try. As it turned out, they are quite tasty.