Farmer's Markets: Why you should eat local

The environmental reasons for eating local are pretty good ones, but I'm not really here to talk about that. Instead I'm going to make my arguments based on the two things: taste, and price.

Taste
A lot of eggs claim to be farm fresh, and they might be. It's just that they're coming from farms that mass produce eggs using chickens in cages, and are probably a couple of states away from you. While mass produced eggs are cheap, they lack flavour. I'm all for omelets and spiced eggs, but adding things to eggs shouldn't be necessary to make them taste really good. When you get eggs from a farmers market, you get eggs that taste delicious all on their own. It almost seems a shame to even consider adding something to them.

Fresh vegetables are also great. If you walk down the produce aisle at Wal-Mart, the vegetables look alright. They look edible most of the time, but they don't look like something to be excited about. They usually look old and over handled, and that isn't mentioning the fact that they may have traveled a long way before they make it to your plate. While the produce found at a farmer's markets doesn't necessarily look as uniform as that found in the grocery store, the fruits and vegetables are usually in better condition. This, along with the fact that they have only traveled a relatively short distance, makes for much tastier meals.

Cost

All this was 4 dollars

The prices at your local farmer's market is usually comparable to the prices found at the grocer's, if not cheaper. The only exception that I have found are eggs, which usually run about 2 dollars for a dozen, as opposed to a dollar and change. Going near the end of the market can end up with a steep decrease in price too, or with vendors who will add things to your order at no extra charge. Sometimes the vendors will also be lazy with their math. I had one guy charge seven dollars for 3 lbs of beef tips that he was selling at 3 dollars a pound.

Finding A Market Local to You
Finding a farmer's market can sometimes be the hardest part of buying things from them. This is made especially difficult because of their transient nature. They're usually only open one day a week, for a few hours of the day. There are a few tell-tale signs of their existence, however. Firstly, there are usually signs that stay up all week, with the day and time of the farmer's market. These could be little signs by the roadside, or they could be large signs with the replaceable letters like old movie marquees. You can also ask people who live in your area about if there is a market in your area.

You can also Google it, and end up on this site, called Local Harvest. I've not had much experience on the site, but it seems to work pretty well. Just type in your zip code, and it'll list the markets in your area.

I hope this has been informative, and as always, happy gaming!

Quick and Dirty Fried Rice

Fried rice is a delicious, and makes for a pretty good meal. Sometimes you don't want to go out for Chinese food, or you are looking for a cheaper alternative. The good news is that you can make some at home pretty easily!

Ingredients:
1 cup Rice (White)
2 cups water
1/2 onion, diced
1 carrot
1 stick celery
1 Green Pepper, diced
3 handfuls frozen peas
1-2 eggs, scrambled
Soy Sauce
Garlic
Oil (for frying)

Equipment:
Stir Fry Pan/Wok
Chef Knife
Cutting Board
Spatula

Directions:
1. Cook the cup of rice with the two cups of water, and chill in the fridge.
2. Heat the oil up in the pan. Once hot, add onion, carrot, celery, green pepper, and peas. Keep the vegetables moving.
3. Once the veggies are mostly cooked and the onions are translucent, add the rice.
4. When the rice has started frying, push it to one side of the pan. In the free space, scramble the egg.
5. Once the egg is scrambled, mix it into the rice.
6. When the rice is almost mostly fried, add soy sauce.

Should serve 3~4 plates as a main dish, and 6 plates as a side dish.


Possible alterations:
There are lots of things you can add to fried rice to make it really tasty. Of course, you can add meat, such as chicken or shrimp. Baby corn would also probably be a good addition, and I've heard rumours that adding some fish sauce is a definite must.

If you were unaware, fish sauce is a flavour enhancer, like soy sauce, that is made from fermented fish juice. It may smell terrible, but when mixed with other flavours, apparently makes for a savoury delicious taste that is hard to replicate. As always, comments are always appreciated!

Good Eats and Happy Gaming!

Whatever's in the Kitchen Pasta Salad

I've been moving these past few weeks, and I've been shorter on time than usual. Couple this with entertaining people, and you've got a need to make some food that's quick and stores nicely. I whipped this up from scratch the other day, and it turned out pretty well.

Ingredients:
1 lb pasta (penne and rotini are both good choices. Tortellini would also work.)
1 15 oz can of Garbanzo Beans
1 15 oz can corn
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, sliced
1/2 cup onion (Note that, as my mom says, you can't have too much onion)
1/2 cup roasted peanuts, crushed

dressing:
3/4 cup oil
1/4 cup Vinegar (Balsamic is tasty)
2 T Mayo (add more if it tastes too vinegary)
Salt
Pepper

Equipment:
Bowls x2
Chef Knife
Cutting Board
Fork

Directions:
1. Cook the pasta according to package directions
2. Once done, strain and dry the pasta
3. Mix pasta, bell pepper, celery, beans, corn, onion, and peanuts together.
4. Mix ingredients for dressing together. The dressing should be very well mixed before coating the salad.
5. Drizzle the dressing over the salad, stirring to coat the salad.

The pasta salad can be served immediately, and should serve a party of six.

Possible alterations:
There are many different variations on pasta salad. This article on All Recipes was very valuable to making this salad as good as it was. While this recipe could use some more work, it did turn out very well for being a spur of the moment thing. Any improvements, as always, are welcomed in the comments section.

Happy Gaming!

Ice Cream, Liquid Nitrogen Style

Ice cream is delicious, and it's best when you make it yourself.  Sadly, whipping up a batch of ice cream can be hard work when you do it the old fashion way.  However it's positively easy when you do it with SCIENCE!

As I mentioned last time, you should wear the appropriate safety equipment, such as goggles and gloves, and work with this stuff outside or with the windows open.  Also, avoid

Ingredients:
1 cp milk
1 cp heavy cream
~1 cp Liquid Nitrogen
2~3 spoonfuls of sugar
Fruits
1 shot raspberry schnapps
1 shot peach schnapps


Directions:
1. Mix all the ingredients (except for the liquid nitrogen) in a bowl
2. Slowly stir in the liquid nitrogen.

When the ice cream is done, feel free to dig in!

Possible Alterations:
The only real things that need to stay constant is the milk, cream, and liquid nitrogen.  Sugar is also probably pretty good to keep in there, but you may want to add to it.  Changing what you're using to add flavours is where all the action is going to happen.  Feel free to cut up some of your favourite fruits or candies and mix them in.  If you find anything particularly delicious, let me know in the comments!

Happy Gaming!