animal, vegetable, miracle

i've just finished reading
animal, vegetable, miracle,
by one of my favorite authors, barbara kingsolver.
it's a beautifully-told memoir of kingsolver's family's quest
to eat local, seasonal foods
for an entire year.
such a lovely, fun, eye-opening and nourishing book!
here are some tasty, thought-provoking morsels:

"When we traded homemaking for careers, we were implicitly promised economic independence and worldly influence. But a devil of a bargain it has turned out to be in terms of daily life. We gave up the aroma of warm bread rising, the measured pace of nurturing routines, the creative task of molding our families' tastes and zest for life; we received in exchange the minivan and the Lunchable."

“If every U.S. citizen ate just one meal a week (any meal) composed of locally and organically raised meats and produce, we would reduce our country’s oil consumption by over 1.1 million barrels of oil every week. That’s not gallons, but barrels. Small changes in buying habits can make big differences. Becoming a less energy-dependent nation may just need to start with a good breakfast.”

"April is the cruelest month, T.S. Eliot wrote, by which I think he meant (among other things) that springtime makes people crazy. We expect too much, the world burgeons with promises it can't keep, all passion is really a setup, and we're doomed to get our hearts broken yet again. I agree, and would further add: Who cares? Every spring I go out there anyway, around the bend, unconditionally. ... Come the end of the dark days, I am more than joyful. I'm nuts. "

i highly recommend reading the entire thing.
you can also check out the website,
which has oodles of simple and yummy recipes
as well as great resources for finding local food in your community.

bon appetite!