Food For Fork 12 - Autumn
Autumn - a time for letting go of things that don’t serve us anymore to make room for what does 🙏🏼🍁 🍂
The above is not a quote from some famous poet or philosopher but instead extracted from a Whatsapp conversation between me and a friend.
I love Autumn. The bounty and the beauty of Summer gives way to a time of closing down and cosying in, and moves us into early Winter where our Gregorian calendar provides a definite end to the year, a moment to really look back and reflect. I have a lot to reflect on this year - some real highs and some soul shattering lows - and there are some big question marks for me about which things don't serve me any more and whether I can, should or even want to let go.
My pathetic attempts at cooking with a slow cooker are one good example. Do I just accept its not for me, or do I try, try and try again, as I was brought up to do?
Being back in full time work has meant many of the good habits we have had at home with regards to cooking, have fallen by the wayside. We rarely make our own bread anymore which means the ultra-processed supermarket varieties have slipped back in. We keep buying local meat... in fact the freezer is full of Black Sheep Meat and Meadowsweet Beef but its not often making it to our plates because I don't have the time to cook it with the love and attention it deserves. The same goes for my local veg box subscription, with things going bad before I find the time to cook or ferment them.
But if the strides that I've taken over the last few years to better feed my family, to better support local producers and to better learn about the flaws in our current food systems, are no longer serving me... what does the alternative look like? Un-do it all? Focus only on convenience? Nah, I can't.
When you know something is good, surely it has to be worth fighting for? However I'm learning that sometimes that doesn't mean pushing ahead in exactly the same way, especially if that's not possible anymore, but instead finding new ways forward.
One such way came about a few weeks ago with the launch of Canteen a new pay-what-you-can community food initiative started in Frome. My family ate good local produce, at reasonable cost and without any effort on my part what-so-ever. We dined side by side with people of all ages and by the time we left there was a queue out the door.
The next Canteen is tonight. I'm sorry not to have got this newsletter out sooner so you had more notice, but I'm rushing it out now just in case you see it in time. Maybe see you there :)
Sides
Events, Instagram & Things I'm Reading
🍷 Canteen, Trinity Hall, 15 Nov
🌶️ Soil to Gut: Fermentation Festival, Higher Farm, 16 Nov
🐄 Land Alive, Bath and West, 22 & 23 Nov
🍯 Burnt Sugar Supper Club, Vallis Farm, 13 Dec,
🌡️ Herbal Hacks for Wracking Coughs, Vallis Farm, 25 Jan
🍾 Limeburn Hill Vineyard Tour and Tasting, Westfield Farm,Chew Valley, multiple dates
Over on Instagram I'm loving... Tyler Butt, especially his series on soups at the moment. He's giving me all the autumnal feels.
If you have enjoyed this please forward to your foodie friends and family.
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