Market: Canada-style

-


So I guess I made the false assumption about a week ago that buying food from a French farmers' market was cheaper than doing the same thing in Canada. Like most people who falsely claim that organic is more expensive than conventional, I got it in my head that food in Canada is more expensive than in the US or in Europe. Apparently, it is all in my head.

I was gladly proven wrong this morning, when Andrew and I headed for our weekly trip to the Main Farmers' Market. For only $10 more than my parents paid in France, we picked up 100% organic and local produce for a comparable amount of food. While we did get slightly more produce in France, but everything we bought here was certified organic, so to me, that definitely makes up the cost difference!

Cost aside, the awesome find of our day was this bad boy:
Yes that is a mushroom bigger than Andrew's face!

It's a Wine-Cap Stropharia grown from wood chips by Colin Samuels over at Jambican Studio Gardens. It's going to make a series of mean marinated mushroom steaks once I muster the nerve to chop it up. I got so much attention carrying it around the market today I felt like I one of those women with a really cute baby or walking my puppy or something... I don't feel like I can eat it just yet, I've grown attached to it...

Also on the menu, I'll be attempting my first use of irish moss by making Cafe Gratitude's I Am Apple Pie with some bargain organic apples I picked up the other day. That should be up tomorrow, so wish me luck! I hear irish moss can be pretty finicky, and well, gooey.

Comments

  1. Hernes_craftsAugust 28, 2010 at 11:26 PM

    Mushrooms are a great source of food!

    Especially when one takes the timne to go and gather them in the forest or grow them at home! =)

    ReplyDelete
  2. WaiikeaAugust 29, 2010 at 8:41 AM

    Hahaha c'est trop drôle comme champignon, il est mimi comme tout tu ne pourras pas le manger ce serait un crime ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. highonhealthyAugust 29, 2010 at 2:25 PM

    That mushroom is crazy! I would probably have a hard time eating something like that too, just because of how quirky it is.

    Good luck with the pie! I'm sure it will be delicious. :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. ChantalAugust 29, 2010 at 5:04 PM

    Very true, now the next step is to live close enough to a forest so I can do that :) It's all part of the plan... Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  5. ChantalAugust 29, 2010 at 5:10 PM

    That's why it's still sitting happily on my counter at the moment :)

    I'm certainly hoping my pie will turn out! The Irish Moss I soaked last night appears to have done nothing... yay for experimentation!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why Cooking is like Piracy

-
WARNING : Recipes are like the Pirate Code, they’re just guidelines I find exact proportions in cooking totally overrated. I love the way old medieval recipes were written: they just listed ingredients and then gave you a rough idea of how to assemble them. I admire the confidence that old recipes required that you have in the kitchen, the ‘just wing it’ attitude that compels you to trust your ability as a cook. Consider this awesome fourteenth century recipe for apple pie from The Forme of Cury compiled in 1390 by the master cooks of King Richard III: XXVII For to make Tartys in Applis “Tak gode Applys and gode Spycis and Figys and resons and Perys and wan they are wel ybrayed colourd with Safron wel and do yt in a cofyn and yt forth to bake wel.” In other words, mix together apples, pears, raisins, figs and spices—probably cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and saffron—mix and put it in a pieshell, the ‘cofyn’, and bake. That’s it! Seems very low maintenance, doesn’t it? It
Read more

Dehydrator Giveaway

-
Image
As promised, come one, come all, for my first giveaway! The winner will be selected one week from now, at 10am on Monday, June 21, 2010 . At this point and for shipping reasons, only US and Canadian readers can put in their bids this time. For your pleasure, I'm offering what every raw foodists needs: YOUR VERY OWN DEHYDRATOR! Sure a raw foodist can eat fresh fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds, but a dehydrator is just so much fun! Owning one has completely satisfied the needs of my inner baker, and has made both Andrew's and my tummy very very happy since I got into raw foods. After one absolutely flawless year of service, I'm giving away my 4 tray Nesco Dehydrator because I'm "upgrading" to a 9 tray Excalibur once we move up to Canada. My lovely dehydrator comes with 3 fruit roll sheets , and 2 Clean-a-Screen trays . The Nesco has served my every dehydrating need: raw cookies, raw burgers, tartlet crusts, calzones, pizzas, crackers, breads, kale chips, panca
Read more

Eat: Turmeric Milk, the perfect night time relaxant

-
Image
Oh, turmeric, you and your majestic golden hues, how you warm my nights and allow me to fall peacefully asleep, dreaming of warm humid summer nights, candles, and sequinned baldaquins... too much detail? I discovered turmeric milk thanks to my friend Kristen, who has been using it as a pre-bedtime sedative for quite some time. As someone who often has trouble sleeping, I was skeptical. As much as I love chamomile, lavender, and all the usual tricks, they haven't always worked for me. I've heard of the whole "drink a glass of warm milk before bed" idea but never tried it myself, thinking such a thing would be too heavy before bed. Yet, this new concoction won its way to my heart. Clever, turmeric, you. Turmeric, the beautiful orange spice from India, is from the ginger family. (Go figure, I love  ginger.) Ayuverda and TCM boast that turmeric is anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and helps deal with internal and external infections. Doctors have more recently fo
Read more