to market, to market

I went through an almost euphoric moment of enlightenment when I realized that it's already April! And that means the Farmer's Market is officially opening! But then I thought, wait a tick. It's supposed to snow this weekend and that's just wrong, wrong, wrong. Then I remembered: Farmer's Market doesn't officially kick off their summer season until the first weekend in May. Sigh.

In the meantime, my market is open shorter hours each Saturday morning so it's not as if I'm totally left out in the cold (and snow). I haven't been visiting yet this season - please don't ask me why - but I think I'm going to run down there tomorrow. I'm excited to see what kinds of dairy, cheese (because I'm almost back on the cheese wagon - yay!), chicken, etc they have on hand. I got my April issue of Cooking Light magazine yesterday and was overly jazzed that their content is based in local, seasonal and artisanal wonders. I can't wait to try some of the recipes in the issue, particularly the ones that complimented the feature on a fabulous creamery in Alabana called Belle Chèvre...because this creamery produces my favorite cheese on the planet: goat cheese. I'm in heaven and going for these:

Berry Salad with Goat Cheese Dressing
Grilled Turkey Burgers with Goat Cheese Spread in fact, I'm sort of considering bathing in this herby, yogurt-based, goat cheesey goodness. What? Is that wrong?

My food frenzy is hitting a new high these days, which is in turn fueling the continuing work that I've been doing on my career. I haven't found quite the perfect niche to attack, but I'm beginning to think it's time to take my heartfelt love for food on the road. What does that look like? Well, of course it probably looks a lot like my own skills and experiences, only with a new twist. I'm also feeling a bit of puffy chestedness when I realize that some of the PR that's being done in this town (for restaurants that I know well, ahem) is weak. I may not yet have the network or the contacts, but I have a lot of passion for this area of the market and believe that the time is right for us Midwesterners to pay more attention to what's going onto our plates and into our mouths. It's a trend, as you all know, that's blossoming nationwide. Just ask the people at Cooking Light, Bon Appétit, Gourmet and other foodie magazines if you don't believe. Combined with this current green evolution, food is well-positioned to be the poster child for good living in the US.

As much or more than that, I also realize how the absence or availability of nutritious food affects many living creatures in our country, not the least of which are families. There are so many wonderful people out there doing so many incredible things to help put food in the hands of school children, hungry families and even rescued pets. That abundance sharing and pitching in to help others resonates with me to the core. And focusing on food is something that I can incredibly excited about. I want to see how I can help.

So right now I'm thinking about:

• dinner clubs
• farm-to-table food raves
• bake sales
• herbs, herbs and more herbs
• natural and organic dog food
• bringing restauranteurs together
• Cooking Light also has a REALLY COOL thing going on where people are signing up on their bulletin boards to do a bag swap. Essentially, you pick up a resuable shopping tote from a local store and swap with someone in another part of the country with whom you've been paired. Everyone gets a neat new bag and a great story to tell. How fun is that? How many other social food connectedness ideas are out there?

We'll see where this all goes.