Hello, I'm still here!

I've had sort of mini-hiatus from blogging over the past 2 weeks- sorry for my absence! I've recently started an intense exercise program (of my own development) and that's taken up a lot of the time that used to be "sit on the couch and blog" time- funny how that works.

I've had lots of thoughts swirling about in my head for the past several weeks: eating "healthy" and what that really means, physical activity and its importance in our pretty sedentary American society, and how to make "healthy", "local", "organic", and "seasonal" all jive together in your life and your diet.

I also recently watch the documentary Bag It and that (in the best way possible) has added a whole additional layer of critical thought about how I can function better in a society built on plastic. Also, when will our society get to a place where we realize all of this (shipping food across the country and the world just for "customer choice", using single use disposable plastic for SO many things, making food product containers laced with chemicals like BPAs and phalates) might be more "convenient" but is certainly contributing to health problems, pollution, global warming, etc.

Heavy thoughts for a Saturday morning huh? On that note, I'm off to teach a canning class. I'll be back to a regular blogging schedule here, too, so keep an eye out for more posts!

Thanks for reading,

-Arika

Celebrating our Farmers this Labor Day

I'm in Columbus this weekend visiting my family! Some of my aunts & cousins, granddad and extended family are coming to my parents house and we'll be playing games and hanging outside, hopefully. It'll be a lot of fun!

My parents are nice and they've humored my desire for a mostly-local Labor Day meal. Really- I can't think of a much better way to celebrate local Farmers- some of the hardest working laborers in our country with the most important jobs; feeding our families & our country!

We're starting to gather the ingredients for the big Sunday cookout. I brought some freshly-harvested produce down from my garden to share. 

The Labor Day menu so far includes:

• Caprese Salad w/ tomatoes from my parents garden 
• My fav Potato Salad w/ pink potatoes & garlic from my garden, & onions from my CSA 
• Sweet Corn
• Mango Bean Salad w/ peppers from my CSA & garlic from my garden
• Hamburgers 
• a fruit plate, with my one prize cantaloupe :)

We're heading to the Clintonville Farmers' Market tomorrow morning and hopefully grabbing some of the 'missing pieces' - sweet corn, hamburger meat, and maybe some peaches for a special dessert. I've already got some good input from Columbus buddies on what vendors I should hit up first at the market before I go. I'm looking forward to seeing a new farmers' market here in my hometown!

Here's hoping that your Labor Day is relaxing and maybe even invigorating. If you can, find a way to appreciate and support your local farmers this labor day!

What's Up Wednesday!

Lots in bloom in the garden this week! All of my plantings for the Fall are really starting to grow- carrots, onions, broccoli, swiss chard, prize choy, lettuce, and sugar snaps. The tomatoes are starting to produce a bit less, so I thinned out the dried and dead stalks to try to make some space for new growth. Here are some pictures of what's up this week:

My one lone sunflower is blooming!

The fall broccoli is looking healthy and getting taller every day

I think it's about time to pick this cantaloupe!

I transplanted some of the "walkers" from the Egyptian walking onions I got this spring.

They are now popping up everywhere in the designated "fall section" of the garden

that will later be covered with a quick hoop. 

 Made and canned some cucumber pickles this past weekend!

Used the Dill Pickle recipe in the Freshly Packed Pickled Foods section of the

Blue Book of Preserving. It's a new recipe for me- we'll see how they turn out!

What's up in your Garden this week?

The importance of supporting U-pick Farms this year (& every year!)

Fresh picked raspberries from Makielski's!

I finally got around to doing some U-pick this weekend!  I've been getting great local fruit from my Farmers' Market, but it seems like each summer-fruit has passed me by before I could catch it U-pick style; strawberries, tart cherries, blueberries... since raspberries are my favorite summer fruit, I wanted to make sure I got some before the season ends!

While it's unfortunate that there aren't any organic fruit farms in this region (that I know of), I think it's important to support the local fruit crops we do have- strawberries, blackberries & raspberries, blueberries, cherries and apples just to name some of the local availability.

I've made a decision that for me, locally grown produce is what I'd rather purchase, vs organic produce from California. At least I know my money is staying in the region, and many times even farms that aren't certified organic are "no spray" or at least a less-toxic pesticide plan that big conventional farms.




My little sis Sam picking at Wasem Farm


U-pick is one kind of farm I'm used to supporting: growing up, my family didn't really do farmers' markets or farm stands, but we picked some type of berry almost every year, and apple and pumpkin picking with family friends signified fall for us. I've continued the tradition now that I'm settled here in Ypsi: Raspberries in the summer, Apples and Pumpkins in the fall. Over the years, my husband and my sister have joined in the tradition of picking apples, and carving pumpkins. My first "date" with Sam after being newly matched as Big Sister and Little Sister in October of 2004 was pumpkin carving in my residence hall's kitchen at EMU :)  As an adult, I've also added new traditions of my own, including canning, freezing, and growing some of my own fruits!

It's so important to continue to patronize our local farms, especially in years like this, where in Michigan most of our tree fruit crops were destroyed by a late spring frost. Just one example of the devastation that occured is at Wasem Fruit Farm, the farm that Mike and I have gone to for the past 4 or 5 years. The owners sent out this email to their customers just a few weeks ago, essentially stating that their apples and other tree crops were lost this season. While they do grow other non-tree fruit as well as pumpkins, apples are a big part of their farm, and the delicious apple cider they make will be also un-available this season.

 

In the email, the owners reached out to their customers, to ask how they could continue to retain our patronage in this tough year- would we come out to the farm to buy doughnuts still? What other kinds of features could get us to come out to the farm? I truly believe that each person's support can make a difference. Having farms like these is a big asset to our communities, and I plan to go out of my way to support Wasem and other local farms in whatever way I can. 

As you're grocery shopping this season, think about the alternative ways you could get your fruit fix! U-Pick operations are a bit of work for you, but they're usually cheaper than retail fruit prices. They also give you a direct connection to your food- the only more direct thing you could do is grow it yourself! If you're looking to try out a U-Pick, there is a nice state-by-state directory here and an Ann Arbor area directory here.
 

Happy Picking!