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*** Mark Sunday, August 15th on you calendar for Bailey's Picnic Pot Luck in Waterloo Park! We have reserved the Servery by the Bandshell for our group! More details to come!
From Nina:
It feels so much like summer it seems like we should be eating watermelon every day already. I'm always impatient for the first local fruit and the heat wave was not helping. I heard that someone saw strawberries at the St. Jacobs farmers market. Wow! That's early! We'll get some as soon as we can get our hands on them. Paul Bowman thinks he'll have a limited quantity ripe for June 11!
Grilling Season
Why is it so satisfying to sizzle meat over a fire? It must be something primal. Our family has resisted a gas grill so far and so we enjoy our wood-grilled local meats over the fire pit in the backyard. It means we don't grill every other day like we would if we had a gas grill. It also means that when we do grill, it is a ritual that fills the backyard with savoury smoke and it takes about two hours from building the fire to grilling and then sitting around the fire as it ebbs. Some might call it slow food. We've learned to grill twice as much meat as we'll need so that we can use it in the next day's menu or put it in the freezer for a pizza topping the next week. Grilled hamburger on pizza is heavenly.
We had extra grilled sausages this week (Berkshire garlic and honey garlic) from Traditional Foods. I sliced them and stirred them into Small Red Mexican Beans I had soaked and boiled the day before. Added green garlic and onions, couple cans of diced tomatoes, chili powder... and simmered it in the crock pot a few hours. It thickened to a lovely "baked beans" kind of dish that the kids snarfed up. It's the sausage. Anything with sausage and the two year old will ask for seconds. It was a good opportunity to teach them the beans song about musical fruit. That song should be a part of every kid's childhood. If you don't know it, I'll teach it to you. I've not met a kid who does not appreciate that song.
Membership Fee
Many of you will notice that your membership fee is added to this or last week's order. It is automatically added to your order 12 months from when you first registered. If you're wondering what that fee pays for, we use it to help cover the costs of rent to the churches ($225 a day at First United), fees to the Cities of Kitchener and Waterloo, Insurance, printing costs, and occasional dark fair-trade chocolate to fuel late night behind the scenes computer work.
New Ordering Schedule
I've heard from a few of you that you missed the last two ordering windows. Don't despair! You'll get into the swing of things. WRITE DOWN REMINDERS ON YOUR CALENDAR. I'm not yelling. Just writing in caps in case you're skimming :) One member said that she gave her 12 year old the responsibility of placing the order each week and the kid loved it! As long as your 12 year old is not gaga over the sparkling cider and ordering it by the case, it might be a win-win situation. She learns about the costs of food, source of foods, budgeting, and the big "R" (responsibility) while the parent always has an order of local food waiting to be picked up on Friday (or Tuesday). It's like a CSA box where your kid decides what goes in it. Maybe she'll even eat the vegetables eagerly if she orders them.
Inspire a Friend
I know that many of you are doing this already and we thank you. Your concrete stories of what you order, how and what you are cooking are the most powerful ways to make a new way of local shopping and eating feel FUN and easy. You are mentors in the local food field. Now we are ready to grow (Tuesday pick up opening in less than two weeks!) and our farmers and suppliers are eager to grow with us. We are ready for an influx of new members (and old members!) who decide to make Bailey's a part of their weekly schedule. Perhaps you've gotten out of the routine of ordering through the winter, welcome back! Now is a great time to see how local food fits into your life. One member told me that she lost weight and saved money by joining Bailey's and eating almost 100% local food. I did not get a before and after photo of her so I can't share that, unfortunately :) I certainly am not losing weight eating local food but I guess it all depends on what you are used to eating.
If you inspire a friend to join Bailey's, TELL US. We want to hear the good news of your powers of persuasion :)
Inspiring Backyards
Do you ever wish you could collect fresh eggs from your backyard? Did you know that there are people raising chickens inside the City of Waterloo who collect fresh eggs every day? It’s true!
Want to see how we do it? The Waterloo Hen Association is hosting a Chicken Coop Tour to raise awareness about the reality of backyard chickens. This is your chance to visit with actual urban chicken keepers and learn about coops, chicken varieties, and the joys of garden fresh eggs. This is a free, self-guided, mapped tour through Waterloo neighbourhoods that will take you to several different styles of coop: from a simple “Chicken Tractor†to elaborate Multi-room designs. You can visit one coop, or you can visit them all. Our family is one of the coops on the tour. Come visit us at 72A William St. W. Waterloo (down a long lane behind 70).
The tour runs on Saturday, June 19th from 10am to 2pm. On the day of the tour, pick up your map at the Waterloo Public Square, at the corner of King St. and Willis Way. Details are available at http://www.waterloocooptour.com. See the poster at http://www.waterloocooptour.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Waterloo-Chicken-Coop-Tour-2010.jpg
Foods to look for this week:
- Limited strawberries are available (if they ripen!) Even hard-to-find organic strawberries!
- Oak Manor grains and flours are on the order form again. Check out the sale on oat flakes.
- Feta for those tomato salads
- New flavours of tortilla chips
- Buns for your grilled hot dogs and sausages (tofu too!)
- Vinegars for salads (raspberry infused red wine vinegar is my favourite)
In celebration of this intoxicating season of local goodness,
Nina
Bailey's Local Foods
www.baileyslocalfoods.ca
P.S. We can use your fruit baskets and jars from preserves again if you return them.
Is this your first email from us? Read more at baileyslocalfoods.blogspot.com.
You are receiving Nina's messages because you are a member of Bailey's Local Food Buying Club.
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