Powering up for Jean Crowder talk tonight

Just a reminder that Jean Crowder, MP for Nananimo-Cowichan , will be speaking on the issues surrounding our Canadian food supply system tonight at 7:30pm at St Phillips Cedar Anglican Church (1797 Cedar Road). I'll be there with a table for the Nanaimo 100 Mile Diet. Come out and support local farmers.

Yesterday, after wrestling with the website for a few hours, I was in need of some baking therapy. I made up a batch of my power cookies. These were originally concocted for our multiday paddling trips. They pack and travel well. What does end up crumbling works well as granola fodder. I needed a snack that would deliver energy without much fuss but wouldn't lead to a sugar crash. These are fairly low in added sugar, instead they depend on dried fruit for sweetness. The seeds, whole wheat flour and coconut also provide a more sustained energy source. They also can double as a breakfast cookie. They freeze well and are easy to make. I made this batch withl local eggs, local wildflower honey and local fruits that I dehydrated over the summer. I used Red Fife flour from True Grains bakery.















Here's the recipe for my Fast & Dirty Power Cookies:
Wet ingredients:
1 cup shortening
2 eggs
1/3 cup honey or brown or cane sugar

Dry ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup whole rolled oats or any othey rolled grain
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup coconut
1 1/2 cup of seeds - flax, sesame, poppy, pumpkin, sunflower seeds
1 1/2 cups of any dried fruits - chopped if needed.
1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

1- Preheat oven to 350F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silpat sheet.
2- Beat wet ingredients together until smooth
3- Measure and dump dry ingredients in the wet mixture.
4- Mix until just incorporated.
5- Scoop out about 2 tablespoons of dough and roll until fairly round. Arrange onto lined pan with at 2 inches between cookies. Press dough ball with fingers or palms. You don't want them too smooshed. More like pucks.
6- Bake for 10-12 mins or until edges are golden.
7- Let cool on rack.
8- Enjoy!

Since this week is pretty busy, I figured I'd make a big batch of stew last night to see us through these next few days. I excavated a package of local beef stew meat, beef stock and tomatoes from the freezer. With some local mushrooms, carrots, onions, parsnips and the last of our local garlic, I made a beef stew. After quickly browning the meat and veggies on the stove, I let the stew finish cooking up nice and slow in the oven, along with some roasted local Russet potatoes.

Viola!















I even found some parsley in the veggie garden that miraculously survived this last spell of epic weather. I love it when potatoes roast up all brown and crusty like that. I also excavated a loaf of multigrain seed bread from the freezer that I served with some roasted garlic that I threw in with the roasted potatoes. So yummy!















I gotta go back to fixing the 100 Mile Diet Nanaimo website. Can someone please pass me the sledgehammer?

Happy Eating!
Jen