Entries in News (6)

From Wild Booch back to Wild Shrooms

My new baby – ‘Wild Booch’  -  Kombucha Sauvage

 

My sexy labels are thanks to Yves (Menu&Cie)

More than a year into this adventure now!

A curiosity turned hobby turned little side business..

It all started with ‘the sodas’ (Soda Sauvage) which I had been working on bringing to market for a couple of years since we began carbonating our maple sap in spring 2016 for fun. François liked it plain, but I wanted flavour!  I got to playing around and finally called on Ryk, a soda enthusiast, who coached and lent me equipment for my first bottling. With some further research, trials and a few explosions later, I invested in the basics and got it down. Once my sumac maple sparkling water was set and adopted, it spawned a line of ‘sodas’ featuring clean and subtle flavours from the forest.

Then I caught the fermentation bug after taking a class for professionals with Sebastien Bureau (Mannanova), and began fermenting everything in sight.  Scary looking (and smelling?!) experiments were bubbling all over the place between the restaurant and our house kitchen counter and cupboards, François found it frightful - until he was sold. Kombucha became a daily libation for both of us, as well as an amusing project for me – an open template for exploration..  As I have been cooking with all these local wild plants and mushrooms for so many years, it was only natural that François’ foraged treasures would end up in our glass as well! The Kombucha came to overshadow the sodas only because it happened to be trendy and more punchy, more market friendly in the moment.

(In case you’re not familiar with Kombucha, it is a naturally sparkling beverage made from fermented sweet tea that is refreshingly sour, and supposedly super good for you and your gut.) Look it up!

I just think it’s delicious, when well made..  Besides the composition of your mother (SCOBY), and kind of tea, ingredients, herbs and spices you use that go into it, not to mention the brewing temperature and method, there are many different styles. At Montreal’s Boochfest  recently at Jarry Park, I tasted everything from sweet, commercial, ultra filtered carbonated ‘phony’ Kombucha to super pure, bland tonic, as well as super dry, overly aromatic concoctions and everything in between.  Every aroma under the sun and a wide range of effervescence, on offer from big international companies to hyper-local artisans, all with a unique booch.  And from observing customers, it became obvious that everyone seems to appreciate something different too.  

Personally I favour a fermented product (so acidic) with minimum but some residual sugar to balance, with a real tasting flavour that is not overpowering.  I find that almost every beverage on the market tastes artificial even if they claim to use ‘natural’ flavour; my pet peeve! Although there might be slightly more authenticity in the Kombucha world than with soft drinks or ‘waters’, marketing remains omnipresent and just as misleading as it goes mainstream, the bigger brands already in supermarkets..

I love my bubbles, but I stop them short a bit to have stability in the fridge since I don’t extreme filter out all the good stuff. At home, I often allow for a longer 2nd fermentation and even leave the fruit/herbs in, but not a good idea for business.

My four flavours offer up each a different personality: The Chaga-Maple is Soft and Easy, intriguing for the medicinal mushroom factor;  Labrador Tea-Sumac is sharp, astringent and refreshing, my favourite but apparently the least so with customers beyond Booch old timers.

 

The crowd favourite seemed to alternate by the week at the market, but now has settled on the Balsam Fir, Wild Mint and Mountain Ash. It is the most complex, like a walk through the forest. ‘The chicks’ seem to like the Elderberry-Sweet Clover Flower with its pretty colour and wild vanilla-like grassy notes. We also have many seasonal flavours that we serve by the glass (Kombucha du Jour) at the market like Strawberry-Sweetgrass, Black Raspberry-Anise, Wild Mint-Wild Blueberry, Cloudberry-Apple-Ginger, etc..  http://jardinssauvages.com/index2.php?nom=Kombucha_Soda

Good stuff.

It is not hard to make at home for your personal consumption, if you’ve got some SCOBY *(Mother) and are on top of it. (*A symbiosis of good bacteria and yeasts that turn the sugar /alcohol into acetic acid, among other organic acids)

Of course, as I soon discovered, brewing booch at home is one thing, doing it on a larger scale and commercially is whole different game. Achieving a regular, consistent and stable product while remaining artisanal, favouring a top-quality and healthy alive product is a challenge. I learnt a lot in the past year growing slowly, organically, tinkering with all the parameters, doing everything on my own from the recipes to the heavy lifting, methodology, logistical troubleshooting, adjusting variables, tweaking... Alongside my reliable refractometer, I have two Ph-o-meters, but my tongue is the best.  All to say, I’m humbly quite pleased with my progress and my line.

As I’m rolling in hundreds of liters and not thousands or hundreds of thousands, my operation is still way small relative to the commercial booch, and we are not distributed - only sold at our store (Jean Talon Market, Mtl), our country table in St-Roch de l’Achigan and on order, for a select few restaurants with a local menu/beverage program, like the Monkland Tavern in NDG ..

At a crossroads, I’m unsure what the next step should be, as I’m maxed out with my current set-up. I could take on a couple of clients, that's it. My plan. We’ll see what the future holds for my Kombucha Sauvage.. I am taking a commercial class on big-scale brewing to enlighten me before further investment.

Who’s kidding who, I am a chef first and quite like it that way. I kind of want to keep up this beat, with my brewing as a sideline, but I can’t help but be excited about the possibilities. But it’s not like I can go BIG anyhow;  it must remain artisanal as it is made with REAL, WILD, SUSTAINABLY hand harvested plants and berries, ie. Can not be mass produced. Which is what makes it so special – delicious and therapeutic!  Not to mention expensive.. That's why I think it's meant to be just for this scale and a handful of clients with the right clientele - who are ready to pay for something special, like a glass of wine.. A suivre!

One thing for sure, for now, I need to focus on the wild mushrooms and the rest of our business as it is fall, our busiest season. Already!

It’s been a beautiful, yet very dry summer, and so a slow start to the mushroom season; we’re like a month behind, yikes!

Normally by now, I’m several hundreds of pounds into my putting up, not twenty (out of an average of 2 tons/year on average!). Besides some chanterelles and Lobster, a smattering of this and that: a few boletes and milkcaps, not much going on. No puffballs, porcini or hen of the woods to speak of, the stars of late summer/fall.

However, with the recent rainfall, nice days and cool nights, it just might explode. Fingers crossed!  A few inspiring photos from last year on our facebook page and this year's menu

https://www.facebook.com/JardinsSauvages17/  

The reservations are coming in for our annual mushroom fest, so it will be a mad dash as usual, weehoo..  http://soupnancy.squarespace.com/wild-mushroom-event-october/

Always a tad stressful, yes, but I do love this dance with nature. And everything about the seasons.. How delicious is life now? Not just talking wild things here - the peaches, the corn etc!  Yum.  It's hard to not want to celebrate these gorgeous days, the glorious harvest season, and all that we are so lucky to have..

Foremost, here’s to Mother Nature, our dance partner throughout the seasons, and the marvelous bounty she offers up for our food and drink, not to mention in sights and sounds; the moon, the cricket/birdsong and the whole shebang.

Cheers!

Happy Mushroom season to us! Let the season of the dirty fingernails begin..

 

Posted on Tuesday, September 3, 2019 at 12:46AM by Registered CommenterNancy Hinton in , , , , , , , , , , , | CommentsPost a Comment | References2 References

Montreal Highlights Festival

Montréal Highlights Festival

For the last two weeks of February, Montreal lights up with culinary activity with an array of events, visiting chefs and etc. The themes this year are: visiting country Switzerland; city Washington DC, Que region -Lanaudiere, hurrah..  

A few dates featuring Les Jardins Sauvages

February 21, 22 :  A taste and meet with the producers of our region at Jean Talon Market on the second floor as of 9 :30am

February 22,  2pm : A workshop/recipe with chef Nancy Hinton at Jean Talon Market, 2nd floor

February 24 : Special event dinner at Restaurant Le 400 coups where Nancy&François will be collaborating with Chef Guillaume Cantin’s team for a 4 course wild menu featuring our products http://www.les400coups.ca/a

Festival Programming http://www.montrealenlumiere.com/gastronomy/activities-series.aspx?categorie=marche_jt

 

Food day Canada

At les Jardins Sauvages, we are celebrating Food Day Canada Saturday, August 3rd!.

This is a national ‘holiday’ celebrating local food and good eating.  On the same day, across the country, both chefs and home cooks (whole villages even) will be simultaneously feasting on menus composed of fresh and local products while raising a glass to our rich and diverse culinary landscape.  Organized by Anita Stewart, acclaimed food writer and long time proponent of Canadian food, she has lots of great people and restaurants on board, check it out.. www.fooddaycanada.ca.

Of course, my menu is always focused on local, artisanal and wild foods, but I love this initiative.  We should be eating like this year round both for our health and happiness, as well as for the land.  I like the idea of fostering national and regional culinary pride, and I am all for another reason to get together over good food and wine, one day at a time.  At the height of the growing season, every meal is so easily a celebration, so why not join in!  

Our food day menu can be viewed below or at http://jardinssauvages.com/?nom=menu&res=m&m=canada13en

To reserve, please call 450-588-5125

Other news:

We were honoured to be selected among Canada’s top 20 artisans to participate in the ACE Bakery Artisan Incubator, then as winner of the top award, a year mentorship to help our business grow..  http://soupnancy.squarespace.com/blog-journalessays/2013/6/25/ace-artisan-incubator.html

Summer’s bounty is upon us with a wide variety of wild edibles available: the marine greens are peaking, the mushroom season starting.. Come visit us at Jean Talon Market, open seven days year round.

We also have several new products, like our wild steak spice, perfect for summer grilling.. And have you tasted our wild chimichurri, wild mushroom vinaigrette, wild mushroom oil and line of wild spices? All useful in summer cooking like marinades, salads, iced tea.. To see the whole list (retail/wholesale/vrac for chefs): http://jardinssauvages.com/?nom=produits Available at Marché Jean Talon, A la Table or on order, shipping extra.

Our annual mushroom event (11th edition) is coming up soon enough too! The official announcement and menu will be out in August, but the dates are set and reservation book open. Oct.18 to Nov. 3rd.

Hope to see you soon, and have a great summer!

Nancy and François, Les Jardins Sauvages

 

Nous célébrons ‘La Journée des Terroirs (Food Day Canada) A la table des Jardins Sauvages Samedi le 3 Août, 2013.

Ce jour, à travers le Canada, comme à toutes les années depuis 2003, c’est la fête de la cuisine canadienne, régionale et locale - les produits du terroir. L'idée c'est de créer un menu mettant en valeur de beaux produits de chez nous, bien manger et célébrer notre propre richesse culinaire - ensemble les chefs dans les restaurants avec leurs clients, et les gens au BBQ à la maison.  Cet événement est organisé par Anita Stewart, une grande doyenne de cuisine Canadienne. www.fooddaycanada.ca

C'est certain que mon menu est toujours basé sur les produits locaux, artisanales et sauvages, mais je trouve cela une belle initiative.  A la hauteur de la saison, c’est si facile de manger frais, d’embarquer les gens et les sensibiliser à la façon la plus saine et joyeuse de se nourrir..  En plus, une fête de plus au tour des plaisirs de la table - pourquoi pas?

Vous pouvez visionner mon menu ici en bas ou ici : http://jardinssauvages.com/?nom=menus&m=mcanada13

Pour réserver, SVP appelez 450-588-5125

Autres nouvelles Les Jardins Sauvages :

Nous avons été honoré d’être choisis parmi les meilleurs 20 artisans à travers le Canada invité au programme ‘Artisans en Croissance’ de la Boulangerie ACE, et gagnant d’un an de mentorat pour nous aider coté ‘affaires’. http://www.boulangerieace.com/artisans-encroissance/artisans/16/nancy-hinton-et-francois-brouillard/

C’est le temps d’abondance de plantes sauvages – le mesclun, les pousses marines et la saison de champignons sauvages du Québec commence tranquillement – venez nous voir au Marché Jean Talon ouvert sept jours à l’année maintenant.

Nous avons aussi quelques nouveautés comme nos épices à steak sauvages. Avez-vous goûté à notre huile de champignons, notre ligne d’aromates sauvages et Vinaigrettes Chimichurri sauvage, Champignons Sauvages? Tous utiles pour les marinades pour le grill et salades d’été, thé glacés..  Voir la liste complète ici (détail/en gros pour commerçants/en vrac pour chefs) : http://jardinssauvages.com/?nom=produits Disponible au Marché Jean Talon, A la Table ou sur commande; frais de livraison supplémentaire.

A la table des Jardins Sauvages, notre événement champignons approche.. L’annonce officielle et menu sera pour le mois d’Août, mais les dates sont fixes et le livre de réservations ouvert : 18 Octobre au 3 Novembre!

Passez un bel été. Au plaisir,

François et Nancy

 

Les Jardins Sauvages Menu

*Canada Food day*

August 3rd, 2013

,

Escabeche of turbot with sea asparagus and Canadian sandspurry,

smoked tomato and Nordic shrimp, wild salt herbs with lovage,

crinkleroot leaf and bee balm, Ontario Kernal peanuts

 

Corn and wild mushroom chowder

with cattail broth and sea spinach, sea lettuce 

 

Roast organic Muscovy duck from Morgan farm

and choucroute salad with kohlrabi, juniper and sea rocket,

daisy and wild berry mustard

 

Venison from the farm, wild steak spice,

eggplant and Moulin Bleu buckwheat crepe gratin

with wild lamb’s quarters and garlic,

caponata with pickled day lily buds

 

Option : Quebec Cheese plate – a selection

from the region, chutney and homemade bread

(100g for two; 20$ supplement,10$ per person)

 

Wild blackberry, blueberry and elderberry chausson

with sweet clover flower, sweetgrass milk jam,

elderflower jelly,

wintergreen chocolate pudding

 

Tea, coffee

Wild leaf & flower tisane, Fair-trade espresso

 (4$ supplement)

 

85.00$ tax included, service extra

(73.92 + 3.70 GST + 7.38 PST)

 

Bring your own wine

 

Your chef : Nancy Hinton

 

Your host and forager : François Brouillard

28 years the pioneer of Quebec wild edibles

 

 

 

Menu du 3 Août

 *Canada Food day; Journée des Terroirs*

3 au 25 Août, 2013

 

Escabèche de turbot avec salicorne et spergulaire,

tomate fumé et crevettes nordiques, herbes salées sauvages avec livèche,

feuille de carcajou et monarde, arachides Kernal (Ont)

 

Chaudrée de maïs et champignons sauvages au bouillon de quenouille,

arroche de mer et laitue de mer

 

Salade de canard Barbarie bio de la ferme Morgan,

choucroute et chourave avec genièvre et caquiller,

moutarde de petits fruits sauvages

 

Cerf du domaine aux ‘épices à steak’ sauvage,

gratin d’aubergine et crêpe de sarrasin (Moulin Bleu),

chou gras et ail, caponata aux boutons d’hémérocalle

 

Option : Assiette de fromages de la région,

chutney et pain maison (100g pour deux;

supplément de 20$; 10$ par personne)

 

Chausson de mures, bleuets et sureau sauvages aux fleurs de mélilot,

confiture de lait au foin d’odeur, gelée de fleurs de sureau,

pot de crème au chocolat et thé des bois

 

Thé, café  

Tisane maison, Espresso équitable

 (supplément de 4$)

 

Apportez votre vin

 

 85.00$ taxes incluses, service en sus

(73.92 + 3.70TPS + 7.38TVQ)

 

Votre chef : Nancy Hinton

 

Votre hôte et spécialiste de plantes sauvages: François Brouillard,

Les Jardins Sauvages, un pionnier depuis 28 ans

Posted on Wednesday, July 24, 2013 at 08:46PM by Registered CommenterNancy Hinton in , | CommentsPost a Comment

Food day on July 30th!  

The last workshop-dinner of the season at Les Jardins Sauvages Sunday July 24th

http://jardinssauvages.com/index.php?nom=menu&res=men1&m=mccr11

 

Celebrate Food Day/La Journée des Terroirs with chefs and food lovers across Canada on July 30th

What is Canada food day?  A celebration of Canadian food and cooks, and eating local www.foodday.ca

 

Our menu at Les Jardins Sauvages, where it's food day year round in that we are 99%local (yes, even in winter).. But what a perfect time to make the most of the season's bounty, share a feast and raise a glass to our rich terroir!

http://jardinssauvages.com/index.php?nom=menu&res=m&m=23canada11en

 

More from the Food day Newsletter FYI:

It's pan-Canadian - It begins with sunrise on Signal Hill at 5:37 a.m. then proceeds to the Sheraton Newfoundland for a breakfast in aid of the Food Bank in St John's. Following the sun and the imaginations of Canada's chefs it will end on Chesterman Beach in Tofino where the culinary team of the Wickaninnish Inn are prepping a crab boil.   
  • The goal is to ensure that NO Canadian can ignore the fact that we have some of the finest food and talent (at all levels) on the planet. 
  • That there is NO PLANET B and helping one another is helping us all. 
  • That we know how to throw a heckava great party
  • That all Canadians can participate by posting their menus (and pics too) if they cannot get to a restaurant.
Send your menus, comments, pics tAnna@fooddaycanada.ca.
  
They will be then posted on your restaurant's profile then the menus will be held for the Awards.  The Judges will receive them in mid August (we have a fantastic team!) and we hope to announce them by mid-September.   

There are Awards for: 
  • The Best Heritage Menu (Parks Canada); 
  • The University of Guelph Good Food Innovation Award
  • The Best Brunch Award; 
  • The Healthy People/Healthy Planet Award
  • The Taste of Nova Scotia Lobster Award.  

 

 

Posted on Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at 03:08PM by Registered CommenterNancy Hinton in | CommentsPost a Comment

Canada Food day

At les Jardins Sauvages, we are celebrating Canada Food Day next Saturday, July 31st. 

(Un message en français suit)

This is a national ‘holiday’ celebrating local food and good eating.  On the same day, across the country, both chefs and home cooks (whole villages even) will be simultaneously feasting on menus composed of fresh and local products while raising a glass to our rich and diverse culinary landscape.  Organized by Anita Stewart, acclaimed food writer and long time proponent of Canadian food.  Read all about what's going on from coast to coast here..

www.foodday.ca.

http://cuisinecanadascene.com/2010/07/22/food-day-canada-2010/

Of course, my menu is always focused on local, artisanal and wild foods, but I love this initiative.  We should be eating like this year round both for our health and happiness, as well as for the land.  I like the idea of fostering national and regional culinary pride, and I am all for another reason to get together over good food and wine.  At the height of the growing season, every meal is so easily a celebration!  

Our food day menu can be viewed on the website http://jardinssauvages.com/index.php?nom=menu&res=m&m=31canada10en, or below.

Just so you know, juicy Saskatoon berries have shown up since I posted this menu, as well as a number of other surprises, mushrooms of all kinds too..  So my menu will be overloaded with seasonal bounty!

To reserve, please call 450-588-5125

 

Menu

July 31st, 2010 

*Canada food day*

 

Nordic shrimp with wild ginger,

sea asparagus and sea rocket, fava beans,

bell pepper, oxalis and mint

 

Cauliflower soup with La Moutonnière cheese, sea parsley pesto and bee balm

 

Salad of wild greens with egg & duck ham (purselane, daisy, sea spinach, day lily), cherry tomatoes, pickled hen of the woods, 

crinkleroot-chia seed dressing

 

Venison from the farm, hops-sarsaparilla pan sauce, wild mushrooms,

cattail flour polenta, cattail spear

 

Optional : Quebec cheese plate,

home made bread and chutney

(100g for two, 7.50$ supplement per person)

 

Wintergreen ice cream sandwich in a sweet clover meringue cookie,

 wild blueberries and Labrador tea syrup

 

Tea, coffee or house tisane

Fair trade espresso, 4$ supplement

 

Bring your own wine

75.00$ including taxes, service extra

 

Your host and forager:

François Brouillard

Your chef: Nancy Hinton

 

*A Canada wide celebration of local food * www.foodday.ca 

 

 

Salut!

Nous célébrons ‘Canada Food Day’ A la table des Jardins Sauvages Samedi prochain,  le 31 Juillet, 2010.

Ce jour, à travers le Canada, comme à toutes les années depuis 2003, c’est la fête des produits du terroir. L'idée c'est de créer un menu mettant en valeur de beaux produits de chez nous, bien manger et célébrer la richesse culinaire Canadienne (et Québécoise) - ensemble les chefs dans les restaurants avec leurs clients, et les gens au BBQ à la maison.  Cet événement est organisé par Anita Stewart, une grande doyenne de cuisine Canadienne. www.foodday.ca

C'est certain que mon menu est toujours basé sur les produits locaux, artisanales et sauvages, mais je trouve cela une belle initiative.  A la hauteur de la saison, c’est si facile de manger frais, d’embarquer les gens et les sensibiliser à la façon la plus saine et joyeuse de se nourrir..  En plus, une fête de plus au tour des plaisirs de la table - pourquoi pas?

Vous pouvez visionner mon menu ici sur le site http://jardinssauvages.com/index.php?nom=menu&res=m&m=31canada10, ou en bas de la page.

Pour réserver, SVP appelez 450-588-5125

Cheers, Santé

 

Menu

31Juillet, 2010

*‘Canada Food Day’ *

 

Crevettes nordiques au gingembre sauvage, salicorne et caquillier de mer, gourganes, oxalis et menthe

 

Soupe au choufleur et fromage ‘La Moutonnière’, pesto de persil de mer, pétales de monarde

 

Salade de pousses sauvages, oeuf et jambon de canard (pourpier, marguerite, arroche, hémérocalle), tomates cerises et polypore fumé, vinaigrette carcajou-chia

 

Cerf du domaine, sauce houblon à la salsepareille, champignons sauvages, polenta à la farine de quenouille

 

Option : Assiette de fromages Québécois,

chutney et pain maison (100g pour deux personnes, supplément de 7.50$ par personne)

 

Sandwich de crème glacée au thé des bois, biscuits de meringue aux fleurs de mélilot,

bleuets sauvages, sirop de thé du Labrador

 

Thé, café ou tisane maison

 

Apportez votre vin

75.00$ taxes incluses, service en sus

 

Votre hôte et spécialiste de plantes sauvages: François Brouillard

Votre chef : Nancy Hinton

 

* Une fête nationale de produits du terroir www.foodday.com

 

 

Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 12:09AM by Registered CommenterNancy Hinton in , , , , , | CommentsPost a Comment

A New Year's toast for 2009

May all your joys be pure joys,

And all your pain champagne.

A New Year’s toast, from a card Ange gave me years ago.. I love it. Then again, I am partial to champagne. And joy. Joy and Champagne, Champagne and Joy, they go together.

 

On a more serious note is the following quote, a long lost one that I had been meaning to dig up since Thanksgiving.. still appropriate months later - timeless in fact. I figure that before we get to looking ahead, hoping and wishing, and making new year’s resolutions, or soon enough caught up in the business of life in 2009, we might as well hold on to a minute of holiday cheer to be thankful.

 

‘If the only prayer you ever say is Thank you, that will be enough’.

1260-1328 (Meister Johann Eckhart)*

 

It’s a good thing to remember all year don’t you think? A noble new year’s resolution of sorts on its own.

 

So yes, I start this year off feeling thankful. Even as the abundance of fresh and local ingredients has dwindled to nothing, I am thankful I still have so much to work with. Even as business slows, and the phone isn’t ringing off the wall, the reservation book so easy to navigate for a change, I feel thankful. Not only for days off like a normal person, but for all the food we put up, for the staff we’ve held on to, for all my friends and family, for the small, flexible nature of our business, for our simple life in the country, for nature’s beauty and bounty. Each season brings a different backdrop, a new playground and a breathtaking view; now with the river iced up and the trees snow laden, another spectrum of sights and smells is there to envelope and inspire us.

 

Even in the dead of winter, it seems easy here to keep plugging along, there's time to catch up and test out some tricks.  Customers seem more joyous than ever. Cooking feels especially good in the winter somehow, so much more about hearth and restoration than ingredients, more primal, urgent and gratifying in the cold, with the hefty appetites, only the die-hards showing up - who knows, can't put my finger on it exactly..  I guess there are the slow braises, the welcome warmth of the stove and the steaming pots. I relish the alone time in the kitchen, the brainstorming, the puttsing -such luxury, and on the flipside, how clean my hands get doing my own dishes..

 

I just feel thankful for what we have, and that I can still do what I do. And I am optimistic that people will forever be looking for something fine to eat, for an occasional walk on the wild side.. If not, I’ve got a list of rainy day projects to attack, François has a lot of cross country skiing to do. No, I’m not worried about us, but I do worry, mainly about all the worrying knats polluting the atmosphere.

 

I despise all the naysayers, the rampant predictions I keep hearing about how many restaurants will bite the dust in 2009 - Shut up already. No doubt, some will fall, there are already too many restaurants in Montreal for the market, but these are hard-working people losing their shirts, shirts that are already worn thin. And there will be no bail out packages here. It makes me sad. But at the same time, I have faith in cooks and restaurant people in the long haul; we are a resilient type, we can deal with some rough times. And we generally don’t have a ton of stocks and bonds and savings to lose, just another job to find at worst. There is always honest work to be found, some niche to carve out for the determined ones that want it.

 

Nonetheless, I do hope that this economic doom and gloom doesn’t get the best of us as a whole. My tour of the annual ‘best of 2008’ and ‘top trends & predictions for 2009’ type foodie lists turned out to be less amusing and more depressing than usual, likely because the word ‘frugal’ came up far too often. Although I am hardly extravagant, I embrace ‘smart’ and ‘sensible’ and many ‘frugal’ type activities like home cooking, recycling and sustainable agriculture, I hate ‘frugal’. There is no fun in ‘frugal’. Certainly many of us, no matter how fortunate we are, will have to buckle down to some degree, at best less champagne or prime rib or shoes, at worst, real stress in providing basic needs .. Still, I wish the media would stop screaming wolf, telling us we should freeze and be frugal, that we should stop going out and eating good food and doing anything remotely frivolous or fun.

 

Pull out the crock pot and buy vegetables instead of TV dinners - yes, stop hanging out at the mall –yes.. But worry-worry, fret-fret, hibernate and forget about the lamb chop or the artisanal cheese, don’t dare smile in face of the monster around the corner –no way! Give me 100g of Tomme des Demoiselles – yes , a kg of Kraft Cheddar - no. Take me out to a fine restaurant once please, instead of 5 dinners at Cockadoodledoo Mega Chicken Chain, you know the one on every other corner. We can figure out what fat we can trim all by ourselves, and I know there is plenty there, but it’s largely not on the plate anyway. We spend a smaller percentage of our income on food than any country in the world. There are lots of ways to survive and even have a little fun, no need to panic.

 

We can buy less crap for one. Maybe we’ll even be forced to work less or for less, and consume less all around. I see that as a good thing, a chance to slow down, to reassess, to gain perspective, to value what we do have and can purchase, to appreciate a treat for a treat, to find joy in the simple things. We can always spend our money better, no matter how little we have. As the economy slows and businesses collapse, I am cheering for the good guys to survive - the small, unique, ingenious, authentic and earnest entrepreneurs, over the big, soulless, corporate purveyors of marketing imposed disposable junk. Quality over quantity. Less can be more. In times like this, when there is less than ever to go around, it seems even more important to vote with your dollar.

 

I’ve never been one to live in fear. I will always be a Babette, willing to spend my life’s savings on people, a good meal and a good time, for better or for worse. I might lose sleep over a lot of things in 2009, but I vow that the economy will not be one of them.

 

Whatever lies ahead for you, if and when you’re trimming the fat, don’t forget that fat makes us smile, fat keeps us warm in winter, that there is such a thing as good fat. A little fat goes along way, carries a lot of flavour and makes other fancy flourishes secondary.

 

Here’s to fat and champagne (Cava will do) and refusing to be afraid of the future,

Here’s to 2009!

*I need to double check this source; for some reason, I always thought it was Voltaire..  Regardless of the source, the message is a universal good one.  I seem to remember it being tied to God and religion (or the lack thereof in the debate), which makes it even more meaningful and powerful, transcending all beliefs, a human crux. 

Posted on Tuesday, January 6, 2009 at 01:14AM by Registered CommenterNancy Hinton in , , , , | Comments1 Comment