New Market Sign, Poultry Shots and Eating All Things Green (in photos)

From the country...

One of the two new sandwich boards we are rocking at market- made by yours truly

New quail- love the dirty knob knees wearing rubbers in the background

Almost three weeks old- they were the size of a bumblebee when first hatched

New chicken shots

green beard from pasta with a spinach,ramp,dandelion, and green onion pesto

Sunday Deliciousness

From the City:

Simon loves pancakes, like loves pancakes. Whenever we go out for breakfast, he always orders a standard breakfast (eggs, bacon, toast) with a side of pancakes. For him, this is the perfect combination of sweet, salt and fat.

So in order for our relationship to be long lasting (7 years this September) certain things had to be mastered:

• I had to learn the art of tickies. This is a family term for tickling the head, arms or back and occurs mainly in the evenings
• Learn the art of multi- tasking by watching a movie while also working on a laptop and carrying on conversation
• Make a mean stack of blueberry pancakes

Here are some tips to making perfect pancakes:

1. Before you ladle on the pancake batter, wipe access butter off the griddle with a folded paper towel. This will make sure you have perfectly browned pancakes.

2. Use all purpose flour in the batter. Cake flour can turn soggy when you top it with syrup. Experiment with different flours like buckwheat or whole wheat just substitute half of the all purpose for any of these.

3. Never whisk batter until it's smooth. Lumps are a good thing and will result in fluffier pancakes.

4. Flip pancakes just as the surface bubbles begin to burst. Flipping them after makes for flatter pancakes.

5. When adding blueberries, bananas or chocolate chips (only some of the many additions you can make) sprinkle them over the batter right after they have been poured on the griddle. This will make sure they are distributed evenly and it also makes them look prettier on the plate, which can sometimes be just as important as how they taste.

6. Warm pure maple syrup before serving. It makes for a certain extra little bit of specialness to the morning (or evening, whatever, no judgement here)

Here's a good (basic) recipe that should keep 'em coming for more:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, or vegetable oil
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• Assorted toppings, such as butter, maple syrup, confectioners' sugar, honey, jams, preserves, sweetened whipped cream, or chocolate syrup
• Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees; have a baking sheet or heatproof platter ready to keep cooked pancakes warm in the oven. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, butter (or oil), and egg. Add dry ingredients to milk mixture; whisk until just moistened (do not overmix; a few small lumps are fine).
3. Heat a large skillet (nonstick or cast-iron) or griddle over medium. Fold a sheet of paper towel in half, and moisten with oil; carefully rub skillet with oiled paper towel.
4. For each pancake, spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter onto skillet, using the back of the spoon to spread batter into a round (you should be able to fit 2 to 3 in a large skillet).
5. Cook until surface of pancakes have some bubbles and a few have burst, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip carefully with a thin spatula, and cook until browned on the underside, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a baking sheet or platter; cover loosely with aluminum foil, and keep warm in oven. Continue with more oil and remaining batter. (You'll have 12 to 15 pancakes.) Serve warm, with desired toppings.

Side note:

These are some pics from the summer when Laura and I took the kids and went blueberry picking. It's a great, really economical way to stock your freezer with juicy berries for the long winter months.

Have a nice Sunday everyone!

The local food truth...

From the country…

Just today I am implementing a new rule for myself. To do something in the house every day that needs to be done (cleaning and/ or organizing). It is a horrible job but equally satisfying when all said and done. Today was the front hall closet and the fish tank (I did 2 things today and will take tomorrow off.. heh heh).

As I was turfing out random clothes, odd mitts and broken hangers, I came across a bushel basket of garlic from last years harvest. I picked through the basket, tossing the dehydrated, rotting garlic (which by the way, really smells) and keeping the rest. This is the truth of local eating. As you can see by the picture, this ain’t no pretty garlic. It has a purpose though and considering we eat a head of garlic a day here, we love our garlic. We cherish our garlic. No matter what it looks like.

The funny thing is we polished all the primo garlic to sell and we eat the scrappy seconds. This is the truth of being a market gardener. All the pretty, picturesque veggies go out the door and the knobbly stuff stays right here.

We eat about 85% local foods. All the veggies we eat this time of year comes from cold storage, the freezer, or jars preserved from the harvest. We barter/trade with other vendors at market (Mark does this because I am the worst at bartering…) for other supplies such as coffee, mushrooms and the odd loaf of bread.

I do break down though. I buy the odd thing from the discount rack at the grocery store (like the eggplant that made a very nice curry) and purchase some bananas for the kids. How can you live without lemons or limes? The problem for me is during the prime months of spring/summer/fall when our province is bursting with fresh produce why are people buying apples from New Zealand? There is no comparison to a fresh Ontario Strawberry to that of its weak tasteless cousin imported from California.

Just this week though, I had a weak moment at the grocery store and returned home with a head of broccoli. It is during these winter months when your mouth starts salivating for produce to come. It won’t be long now before I am eating a spring salad fresh cut from the greenhouse or a hot skillet of buttery fiddleheads. I can almost taste it.