Passion Archives

I think about food… A lot.

I talk about food… A lot.

I read about food… A lot.

Yes, I do work in the food service industry and surround myself with food and thoughts about food throughout the working hours.

But, I also thumb through Bon Appetit and Food and Wine when laying at the pool while my friends catch up on the latest US Weekly. I do this because I want to learn about the cool, new trends, restaurants and ingredients… and because The Bachelor really doesn’t interest me.

I listen to Ted Talks about our food system, childhood obesity, and nutrition when driving instead of pop radio because I want to listen to the leaders in the industry and to learn as much as possible about what is really going on.

I read and reread books like Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and The Omnivore’s Dilemma over and over again because I want to continue to be inspired about home cooking and fresh, homegrown food.

I check my favorite food blogs or the “Living” sections of major news publications each morning because I want to know what other people find important and what people are talking about.

I bring cookbooks to the gym to read on the treadmill because… well, sometimes I think it must be because I like to torture myself… But, really, I love reading about the ingredients and flavors other people are putting together. I love learning more about the process of braising or searing. And, I love the stories that the authors share about their beloved dishes.

I think it’s pretty safe to say that I have food on my mind between eighteen to twenty hours a day. (Come on. With all these other thoughts of food, of course I dream about food too!)

Because of this, I am starting something new on Bloom. On Friday’s I will share five food things that I read, saw, heard, throughout the week that inspired me, made me think or taught me something.

So, grab some tea this weekend and take a moment to read. My hope is that it will get you thinking more about food too.

Five Culinary School Secrets Every Home Cook Needs To Know
theeverygirl.com

The Everygirl is one of my favorite websites. I check it nearly everyday. It’s a great resource for any girl in her twenties and thirties. And, these cooking tips would be exactly what I would share with any new home cook.

30 Unhealthy Foods You Mistake as Healthy and Their Surprising Swaps
healthyholisticliving.com

This was shared this week on a few different platforms that I follow including Edible Indy. Some of the swaps are obvious and the whole article is a little lengthy, but what I really loved were the great info-graphics. There is a lot to learn in this one.

DIY Magical Color Changing Food Coloring
thethingswellmake.com

I think this is so fun. And, in the day and age where so many kids are allergic to dyes, it’s great to have natural alternatives for birthday and holiday treats. It also looks like it would be a great rainy day activity for kids with a little bit of a science lesson, but still plenty of magic.

One-Pot Creamy Spinach Lentils
pinchofyum.com

Adam and I made this for dinner this week and it was excellent. I had the opportunity to meet Lindsey of Pinch of Yum last summer at a photography workshop. She is so sweet and so smart. I love how she explains how great lentils are in this post. They are becoming a favorite at our house and this recipe helped seal the deal. It’s super easy with minimal clean up. Plus, we had lunch for the rest of the week!

PS- It sounds weird, but do add the red wine vinegar at the end. Major flavor boost!

How America’s Most Famous Farmer Can Appeal to the Left, Right and Center
thewashingtonpost.com

Fun Fact: Joel Salatin is Adam’s #mancrush. He loves him.

I do too. We both look up to his approach to farming as well as to the principles his farm, Polyface, was founded on. We hope to someday emulate the same practices on our land.

This week, this article struck a cord with me. (… Perhaps it’s because I live in Indiana.) Food politics are interesting because it has such a wide appeal and a unifying power. Everyone eats. Because of this, food politics tend to “run purple.” Joel appeals to the masses because he takes the stance that he is a “Christian-conservative-libertarian-environmentalist-lunatic.”

I like that for a lot of reasons but mainly because throughout my early twenties I have struggled with thoughts like, “Am I a conservative? But, I am not like that conservative. Okay so, does that mean I am a democrat? But, I know that’s not right either.” Which in turn has honestly lead me to be really apathetic towards politics.

Joel encourages people to think through issues instead of following the “blind alignment.”

Just because you believe one thing doesn’t mean you have to agree 100% with everyone else who thinks that way. It also doesn’t give someone the right to make assumptions about everything else that you believe because of that one thing. Inform yourself and be your own party of one.

Autumn became a little aggressive last couple weeks bringing blustery wind, biting cold, and even flurries. Yuck.

This made me very glad that Adam and I had taken advantage of the sunshine the weekend before last and cleaned up the garden for the end of the season.

We tore out the remaining plants and tilled up the garden beds. All the herbs were pulled from their pots and composted; after trimming pieces we could still use.

Cleaning up a garden at the end of the season helps to make planting easier in the spring. You want to wait until the first frost, so that plants don’t grow back after removing them and trimming them back.

After a day of putting the garden to bed, I looked out at the empty piece of land.

It was hard to imagine that just a couple months ago that same spot was booming with life and vibrancy.

This brought on a little reflection.

The garden has given Adam and I so much more than produce. It has helped us grow. Learn. Expand who we are as individuals and together.

I read something somewhere that you should take time each day for your mind, body and soul.

And that is exactly what we did- without even knowing it- through this summer’s garden.

Mind

Outside of a pathetic attempt at green beans and a couple cherry tomato plants, Adam and I had never gardened before this summer. We learned so much.

We learned how things grow. How to take care of plants. The benefits of eating food from a backyard garden.

This learning made us want to know more.

We were open to new concepts. Tried new things. Created new recipes with our veggies.

We read. We researched. We attended conferences. We listened to old pros. We Googled and Youtubed.

As a strong, yet apathic student in my younger years, I don’t know if I have been so interested, engaged and excited about learning ever.

Body

First? The injuries.

Two bee stings. A sliced thumb when making cucumbers. One very, very bad sunburn when I thought it would be a good idea to pull weeds in a bikini top. And an unfortunate canning incident where boiling water poured down my right hand, branding the outline of my claddagh ring to my finger.

Don’t worry… Adam happened to make it out unscathed.

Second: A lot of people ask if we were doing it for the health benefits.

And I would be lying if I said, “No.” And we did see them.

We weren’t doing 4,000 calorie burning Cross Fit workouts, but we were outside and moving.

We didn’t feel like we were on a diet, but we were eating more vegetables than we had in the past.

I didn’t lose any noticeable weight, but I also didn’t gain any.

However, one thing that is fatter is our wallets. Grocery lists were shorter than ever. We also used to eat out at least once a week, but since June, we have maybe been out to eat just a handful of times.

Soul

Tonight, I told Adam I was writing this post and asked him what he would say the garden gave us. Without hesitation, he said, “It has changed who we are.”

I smiled, because I couldn’t agree more.

As an individual, I felt like I gained a stronger definition of myself.

Ten months ago I was a young woman who worked hard trying to develop her career and liked to be with her friends. You might have gotten “shopping” out of me if you asked about my hobbies.

Kind of superficial. Very on the surface. Pretty boring.

Now, not only do I love working hard, being with my friends, and shopping, but I can go so much deeper than that.

There is so much more that makes me… me.

I love to spend time in the garden, getting dirt under my nails. I giggle with I have a gaggle of hens following me around the yard. I get so excited create something delicious with the fresh food from the backyard and share it with my friends and family. I like to learn more about local food growers, sustainable and self-sufficient living. I seek out hyper local restaurants and opportunities to share this new found passion.

I looked at Adam, who clearly was thinking of nearly the same things I was, and said, “But you know what was so great about all of this? What was at the core of everything? We did it together.”

Adam lit up and nodded.

Hours were spent working alongside each other outside in the garden with no other distractions. We laughed remembering the chicks when they were clumsy, little fluff balls that could entertain us more than any episode of Big Bang Theory. And the evenings in early June spent in the garden together catching up and checking out the changes in the growing plants with a glass of wine are memories that we both will carry with us for the rest of our lives.

I don’t think we needed it, but the garden did make us closer. It made us stronger. It made us better.

And we both cannot wait to see what next year will bring.

Five Friday Foodie Favorites

End of the Season and So Much More