Last weekend I found myself feeling romantic, but for once it wasn’t my wife who stirred these feelings. I guess I should just come out and say it: I have another great love in my life. I see this love every day, and while our meetings aren’t always memorable, every so often an occasion comes along where I am swept off my feet.

For whom do I have this great love? Lets just say the answer involves my stomach….

The 100-Mile Diet

On Saturday we went to a local farmer’s market here in Vancouver. I first heard about this market last year from a great book called The 100-Mile Diet. Written by a young couple from Vancouver, this book chronicles a year of eating food originating within a 100-mile radius of this city.

The main reason for this local diet was to raise awareness about the often insane distances food will travel before landing on our dinner plate (which obviously has a negative environmental impact). But it also has another theme that stuck with me: eating locally can be exciting, fun and, yes, even a little romantic….

Kitchen Disasters

I don’t watch much television, but the other week I stumbled upon an episode of Gordon Ramsay’s “Kitchen Disasters”. I found myself compelled to watch it. If you are unfamiliar with the show, Gordon Ramsay is a brilliant (he is one of only three chefs in the UK whose restaurant is rated at three Michelin stars) but hot-tempered chef who possesses no qualms in telling people what he really thinks.

In this episode, Gordon made a point to take the management to a local farmer’s market to buy fresh produce to be cooked later that night in the restaurant. Rather than simply buying their produce from a supermarket (which they had been doing), Gordon encouraged them to make an effort to not only buy fresh quality produce, but also to appreciate where the food has come from and build relationships with local farmers and butchers. As Gordon told the restaurateurs, this was a way they could add a dash of romance to their meals.

Having worked as a server for 10 months in Banff (in the Canadian Rockies), I can easily recall the good feeling of setting down a fantastic looking meal in front of someone. Also, in this restaurant we served a number of unique local dishes - venison, buffalo, etc - that people were always curious to learn more about, even if they didn’t always want to try them…. In this sense, food became a topic of conversation and a way that I could connect with my customers. This idea, of course, is not limited to eating out in a restaurant. Anytime we prepare a meal for others we have the opportunity to impress not simply with our cooking ability, but with our passion for the food and knowledge of where it has come from.

Eating Fresh

I’m certainly no genius in the kitchen, but I have come to appreciate an obvious, but often overlooked point: it is relatively easy to prepare healthy and delicious meals when we use fresh quality produce. If you are looking for inspiration, I suggest buying a couple of good cook books. I don’t know about you, but recipes on their own tend to mean very little to me - I like to see lots of photos so I can better visualize a meal. Jamie Oliver is one of my heroes, so if you are looking to pick up a book I would highly recommend Jamie at Home.

My Saturday

So back to my Saturday. Kathryn, Xavier and I walked around the farmer’s market, enjoying the sight and smells of fresh food - cinnamon buns, locally made jams containing no sugar, freshly brewed organic coffee, apple rhubarb pies…. Mmmm…. I’m getting hungry thinking about it. Perhaps the best find, for me at least, was a lady from a cattle ranch in British Columbia selling organic, hormone-free beef. I’m becoming more and more wary of the “medicine” animals are given, but that’s a topic for another article. What I will say, though, is that as I stood out on our deck later, the barbecue fired up, sun shining, a beer in hand and an assortment of delicious foods to eat for dinner, life felt pretty damn good. And yes, even a touch romantic….

Summary

To summarize, here are some ways you can bring a dash of romance into your meals:

• Splash out on buying a few good cook books (eg Jamie at Home)
• Take an interest in where your food comes from
• Make food a topic of conversation, whether it is with your significant other or guests
• Use fresh, quality products
• Try growing your own fruit, vegetables and herbs
• Develop a relationship with your local butcher
• Visit a farmer’s market

Friday Links

• The Winds of Change Will Sometimes Ruffle Your Sails - Today is That Day. My friend Aaron Potts has some big changes planned - read this article to find out what exactly he is up to.
• Illuminated Mind. Speaking of change, Jonathan Mead has a brand spanking new name and domain for his blog.
• Attention Introverts: How to Become More Extroverted - Pick The Brain. An excellent article by Scott Young posted today at Pick The Brain.
• 50 Ways to Celebrate Life Every Day - Abundance Blog at Marelisa-Online. If you enjoyed Marelisa’s article last week about creativity, be sure to visit her blog.
• Twitter. So after meeting some fellow bloggers Tuesday night and being shunned for not being on Twitter, I came succumbed to the pressure and joined. My name is “pclemens” for those who want to start following me
• Watch for Change. Also on Tuesday night I had the pleasure to meet Jess and Leila who have created an exciting and very unique way to support social change. Check it out.

Image by Clairity.

Tags: Green Living, Life //