Taking Stock

If you really want to save money and eat healthier foods, make your own stock! Most bouillon cubes or even organic pre-packaged stocks contain a lot of salt, as a preservative. If you use the rule-of-thumb that a packaged food shouldn’t have more milligrams of sodium than it does calories, you might be disappointed when you read the label of your favourite prepared stock.

Stock-making is simple. One trick I learned from Ken Kostick. He suggested that as you peel carrots, onions, take the stems off aromatic herbs, and so on, that you should put them in a zipper bag in the freezer. (Give them a rinse first!) When the bag is full, it’s time to make stock. Sometimes I roast this mixture, other times I just use it “as is”. I like to use one of those pasta pots with the strainer-type liner, just to make it extra easy.

Put the vegetables in the bottom of the pot. Cover with cold water. If you haven’t used too many herbs during the week (really?) add some dried herbs – tarragon is nice, or savory, bay leaves…or some minced ginger is good, too. Bring this mixture to the boil on top of the stove and then turn down to a simmer, so it’s just slowly bubbling along. Let it simmer while you watch a favourite television show, or do a load of laundry, whatever. Check now and then so it doesn’t boil over.

Let it cool, and strain or if you use a pot like I do, lift out the liner. Package it up in convenient sized containers and store in the freezer. If you make some up in ice-cube trays, you can use those for times when you just need a tiny amount.

More on meat and fish stocks, another day. If you don’t feel like using this stock today…save it til tomorrow, throw in some cooked beans or chickpeas, onions, and whatever vegetables take your fancy. Simmer for half an hour or so, add a handful of whole-wheat pasta and simmer til tender and voila…delicious vegetable soup!

Delicious Artichoke Pizza

So we had good intentions of posting last night’s dinner, Black-eyed Peas with Pasta, but we got wrapped up in Earth Hour, playing SCRABBLE by candlelight, and other goings-on, and we forgot. Usually we spend the Hour on a walk around our neighbourhood, with candle lanterns. When we get home, we sit on the porch and make some (acoustic!) music. But this year it was unseasonably cold…not good for the guitars or the people. Hence the SCRABBLE!

So in lieu of that, today we’ll share the recipe for Megann’s Artichoke Pizza, featured on our first post. It’s a classic “Weekend Special” around our house.

A Different Kind of Local Food Movement

If you live in Southern California, or Italy, or even British Columbia, fresh, local ingredients are all around you. Not so much in January in Southern Ontario. Even foods that should be in season can be hard to find – turnips imported from Texas, anyone? As we began working toward better health – mind, body, and spirit – we had difficulty grasping the logic of eating organic food that had travelled halfway around the world to arrive at our local supermarket. There had to be a better way. At the same time, we were also learning that to stay at a healthy weight, more fruits, vegetables, and fibre, and less meat, less sodium , and fewer meals prepared by others made a significant difference to our results.

Two years after starting our journey, we’ve continued to exercise, eat well, and enjoy the many delights our urban neighbourhood has to offer.  We’re making great local food– that is, from ingredients that have travelled the shortest distance possible from field to fork, and are definitely available from stores within walking distance of our house. We hope you’ll join us for our walkable feast.