20.7.10

Farmers


There is a farmer's market up the street from me every Monday. I just love it. It may not be the cheapest place to shop but it is the freshest and pretty darn tasty too. If bacon says no, I may ask the farmer's market to marry me. No it's official, I will ask him to marry me. I'll make him a ring out of bacon which will not only make bacon feel like a fool for rejecting me, but also make my offer irresistible.

There is a very cool program called FarmStart that helps farmers start small scale farms. A few of them at our market participate in this program. They are urban farmers. They live in Toronto and commute less than a hour to Brampton to farm their land. Through FarmStart they are able to rent land for very little, which enables them to actually make a living by farming. One of the biggest pitfalls for farmers is the debt they incur due to the land they need to buy. This way they can learn their trade and do what most of them love to do.

It certainly got us thinking. I've already contacted them to see if we can rent land simply to grow food for our family. We were denied, but I have a feeling that FarmStart or a similar program lies somewhere in our future. We will have to wait and see.

This is a recipe that one of the Brampton farmers gave me when I bought fenugreek from him. If you can find fresh fenugreek, make this dish. It is divine.

Methi Aloo

2 large bunches of Fenugreek
3 potatoes, diced
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1 medium white onion, diced
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp crushed red peppers
2 tsp oil
1/4 to 1/2 cups of water

Remove fenugreek leaves from stem and discard the stems. Heat oil in pan, add onions and cook until soft. Add potatoes and water and cover pan for 5-7 minutes or until potatoes are cooked. Add tomatoes, fenugreek, salt and red peppers and cook until all water has evaporated. Serve hot with pita or naan bread.

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