nature strip novelty

on my way to work, i walk past this vegie patch. the resident has used the nature strip to build this incredible garden! what a great use of earth. i wonder how melbourne would look if all residents in high density areas adopted this type of growing. the building next door to my apartment block is abandoned. i can see into the yard from my landing and it seems to be a space for rubbish and junk. i often imagine the luscious vegie patch that might grow in this area - especially considering the amount of sunlight flodding in...

this onion won't make you cry

local onions are happy onions!



(this onion smiled all on it's own...i did not arrange the onion in any way.)

community gatherer

it's day 18 of my (mostly) local life. so far, my discoveries have been eye popping, interesting, worrying and profound. i know there are many more to come and this inspires me to maintain the experiment.

yesterday i visited Ceres in brunswick. i've heard all about Ceres from many friends - about the famous eggs, the fresh fruit and vegies, the environmental projects happening - yet never been there myself. wow. what a wonderful, wonderful place. i stocked up for the week and found spelt pasta and flour from powlett hill! my lunch yesterday was gourmet. ceres wild mushrooms have 0 food miles and the tastiest little morsels of fungi i've eaten in a long time. the atmosphere at ceres is tranquil and happy with live acoustic music and barefooted children eating apples. once again, i spent quality time with a friend and avoided the supermarket chains. everything i needed was available. i'm set for another week of fresh food.

all fresh produce at the Ceres market is signed with information about where the fruit or vegetable was grown and how far it has travelled! amazing. it's plastic bag free and to purchase bulk goods like flour and nuts, you need to take your own container into which you scoop the desired amounts. genius. this all seems so simple and logical. why is it that a place like ceres is so rare in comparison with a coles, woolworths or even a market?

zac's inspirational courtyard

after visiting zac's house in abbotsford, i was really inspired to attempt to grow some food myself. zac has a really great courtyard with a big old lemon tree - which he kindly gave me a bunch of lemons from - and a nice little garden with lots growing. he is also running a worm farm to recycle food scraps from the kitchen.

i really loved the way zac is growing plants in these recycled polystyrene boxes. he tells me they keep the soil warm! good growing conditions. i'm really interested in trying it. although my abode does not have a courtyard, there's a landing at the top of the stairs - perhaps i could place some plants there?

back tracking...abbotsford convent August 22

last saturday i decided on an expedition to the abbotsford convent. on the fourth saturday of every month, the convent hosts a slow food melbourne farmer's market. before setting out, i read some information and was quite certain stall holders produce would fit into my radius. armed with green bags and my weekly budget of $50 i boarded the 112 tram and my journey begun.

my friend zac


zac lives in abbotsford, a short stroll along the yarra from the convent so we arranged to meet up and shop together. this is zac in the garden. we had coffee and a really great conversation here after shopping. i realised, this time with zac would not have existed if i'd rushed my weekly shopping in a supermarket. instead, we meandered through the market, spoke with storeholders, caught up with each other and made some delicious purchases. i suppose it's so easy to access our food, we can forget the value of slowing down and thinking about what's good for us. and the social side of enjoying food. it's actually something i've been struggling with - in that, i haven't been eating with my housemate, or out with friends and family - i had a very nice time with zac at the market. so i guess that is a 'social side' of food i have not acknowledged previously.

the market itself was quite good. i got less for my money in comparison with the mornington peninsula, however i made a few indulgent investments like olive oil. i found delicious apples, pears and eggs from a farmer from wandin. carrots, broccoli, mushrooms, olives and who could forget the dried apple rings with rain water!

i was quite frustrated with many stalls in that i was unsure if their produce was in the 100 mile radius. next time i will take a copy of the map so i can check for sure. a lot of dairy goods, like cheese and yoghurt were just outside!

confessions of an unethical eater

due to circumstances not beyond my control, which i let get beyond my control...i have neglected to blog the past week of thrills and spills in locavore liz's quest. BUT...be not deterred, for i am not, even in these challenging times.

friday, last week i woke to day 12 of locavorism. it was an interesting day and lunch was full of happiness thanks to a cauliflower grown by my friends dad...until the evening when i collapsed and faltered. was this hunger? was it laziness? was it emotional distress? was it realisation of a bar set too high...a finish line too far in the distance? whatever it was, i broke my stream of locavorism and scoffed a plate of imported , affectionately cooked by my housemate, vegetables!
shock!
horror!
despair!
i don't know where these specimens have come from. they very well may have unloaded off the back of any old truck from miles and i-don't-even-want-to-imagaine-how-many-miles away...

and the rain fell saturday morning. i checked the farmers market calender and had faltered once again, misreading the date for this saturday's market. i was down to one egg, one (soft) potato and a few florets of cauliflower. so i made a decision. i crumbled under the pastry of a south melbourne market spinach & cheese surprise and lapsed into a five day hiatus.

yes, i have dearly disappointed myself, yet sense the impending renaissance. i will visit Ceres in brunswick this wednesday. i will! i will embark on this expedition with green bags blazing...it's a new dawn and i will triumph in this resurgance, i will not let five days of wayward feasting destroy my endevours to be the best locavore i can be...that is until i celebrate my 27th year on september 8 and eat a whole cake.

beautiful simple

two things made me smile today. i explored the farmers market at abbotsford convent. i found a packet of dried apples and loved the ingredient listing:

granny smith apples
lemon juice
honey
rain water

this is like an accidental poem! i love the ingredient 'rain water'. it conjures rain flavours and scents. i love how cleansing and natural it sounds.

i also love the dozen eggs i bought from a farmer from Wandin. they're all shapes and sizes! some are speckled, round, oval, big, small.




simple pleasures.