Try Handmade

Shopping blog featuring products made by people not factories.

On Productive Ignorance

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[hDiana]
Hereford 2 by ChatterBoxArt
Hereford 2 by ChatterBoxArt

It probably comes as no surprise that I tend to follow the work of Michael Pollan. One of his most recent articles in the New York Times, Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch, is no exception. I ran across it shortly after it was published and can admit it took me a few days to get through its eight rather comprehensive pages.

However, while I pride myself on being a feminist and do believe gender roles should be banished forevermore, while other people were responding with concern of it’s more sexist undertones (those I see, but think have been taken out of context — another story, for another day) I was busy fixating on another point made in the article.

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Just Add Sauce

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Sauces, dressings, salsas, chutneys, spices, rubs; depending on how you look at it they’re either my guilty little pleasures or my best kept secret weapons.

The fact of the matter is local, fresh, artisan eating can be boring. I think it’s what turns so many people away. Especially today when quick and convenience, for many, are not self-indulgent luxuries but rather must-haves just to get by.

Sure, it can be both convenient and exciting, but few of us have the pocket book to back such a diet in its entirety, myself included. And void those funds one can only eat so much cabbage before wishing that cabbage itself was extinct, after all. That is, unless of course, one has a pantry so chock-full of sauces, dressings and spices that cabbage is never really cabbage; potatoes are never just potatoes and even brussel sprouts become beautiful and awe-inspiring.

I believe this so whole heartedly, in fact, that many of my friends have stopped asking me for recipes. And not just because they know everything will be measured in handfuls, dashes and ‘just drizzle a little in’s either. They’ve simply started asking me what sauce I put on it this time instead, because that, when it comes right down to it is the recipe.

Toss it, drizzle it, brush it on. Want an exciting socially and environmentally sound meal in less than thirty? Get creative. Toss chopped cabbage with an Asian inspired dressing and serve it beside grilled, pastured poultry that was basted in the same or similar; Brush halved brussel sprouts with a spicy mustard and drizzle with olive oil before roasting in the oven; baste some grass-fed pork with your favorite jam and grill or oven bake until just done and still juicy.

Three of the most exciting sauces on Foodzie right now — all on my list to try next — are Terra Verde Farm’s Peach-Pear-Apple Hot Sauce, Uncle Berch’s Jimmie’s Mixed Berries and Chipotle Jam (destined for the pork as outlined above, if you’re interested), and Anija’s Finnish Style Mom’s Mustard.

However you apply it, as they say, the proof is in the pudding — or in this case, the flavor is in the sauce. What are your favorite quick and easy flavor enhancers?

New in the Gallery

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Pink Gradient Ring

This unique, original ring design is hand embroidered in a gradient pattern featuring four shades of pink silk ribbon ranging in color from magenta to light pink.
The pattern consists of all French knots carefully stitched onto white felt fabric.
The design is set into a round metal… details »

My village – a collection of 10 soft houses

There is just something about these little houses that makes me smile, whimisical and quirky, how fun! I think these would make a great conversation piece, a refreshing and different twist from the type of pillows we’re used to seeing. I am a fan of anything unique and a… details »

Fused Argentium Bubbles Cuff Bracelet

A light and airy modern silhouette has been created by fusing argentium sterling silver wire circles into an elegant cuff bracelet.
Bold yet lightweight, the bubbles cuff bracelet has been completely hand fabricated from 100% reclaimed silver content argentium sterling silver. Due to the handmade nature of this item… details »

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Fashion + Eco Friendly = Handmade

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It’s been on the handmade radar for years now, organic fabrics. I remember  when finding them was like digging for gold and just as expensive. But with more and more market demand for eco friendly, organically made fabrics they are finally easier to source, come in nicer colors and patterns and  penetrating the high fashion markets.

New York Fashion Weeks Spring 2010 Trends by Stylelist actually had organic fabrication as one of the top trends. When I first opened my shop on etsy you could find organic tote bags and t-shirts pretty easily, that was in 2007. As etsy sellers have become more fashion forward the designs have become more sophisticated too. Pretty Birdie’s Stephanie Teague really wowed me with this great trench coat.

pretty birdie

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The How

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“Oh, Mom! What are those?”

I love it when my children get excited about things that can be grown so when my five year-old’s eyes lit up and the chatter started last week as I pulled a packet of Luffa Gourd seeds from the envelope Seven Acre Woods had lovingly tucked them in I couldn’t resist engaging her. The conversation that resulted was even more pleasing than what had spurred it because if there’s anything I love seeing my children excited about more than things that grow it’s how (and where) those things are grown. And that’s exactly where her interest turned.

“Can I grow one of those in my garden? Oh and Mom, don’t let Dad use that loud thing on mine okay? I just want a shovel and a rake.”

‘That Loud Thing’ is the rototiller and while her current interest is a bit misplaced — the decibel level of the machinery used to till land on which food is grown is of little environmental and social concern, after all — her interest in the production of food at all is encouraging; and timely.

For some the Farmer’s Markets either never ceased or have already made their grand re-opening for the 2010 growing season and even for those in colder geographies the season of local production is just around the corner — or so I keep telling myself as I stare out the window at a barren white expanse.

As we step foot back in the Farmer’s Markets this year we may know, at least for the most part, where the goods we find there were grown but do we really know how? USDA organic certification can be costly and for some small producers and those that are trying to keep consumer costs at a bare minimum in order to make healthy, local fare available to all income levels, certification can be downright out of reach — but that doesn’t mean their goods aren’t grown organically. It just means they can’t bare a USDA seal.

Without getting to know your growers; without asking how their products are grown you’ll never know if the goods you choose each Saturday and Sunday morning are meaningfully produced in the manner most important to you. As you venture back out to shop your local farmer’s market this season remember, knowing how is just as important as knowing where.