100-Mile Diet

Have you heard about the 100-mile diet? You only purchase and eat food that’s grown within a 100 mile radius of where you live. The idea intrigued me. A book worth reading is The 100-Mile Diet: A Year of Local Eating by Alisa Smith & J.B. MacKinnon.

I’m all for buying locally produced foods and small farm sustainability. I buy all my produce at the fruit & veggie stand just down the road, and only what’s available, meaning whatever’s in season at that time. Everything is fresh and grown right there or at least in the area.

So what’s the drawback? I don’t live in California; I live in Ontario, Canada and we have winter! The only “fresh” items available are root vegetables and apples, and these come out of cold storage. I’m pretty creative in the kitchen but when you only have a few items to work with meals can get a little boring. I’ve been using a cookbook entitled Simply in Season. It’s divided into 4 seasons with easy to follow, simple recipes and lots of other useful information. Jamie Oliver's newest cookbook, Jamie at Home, is another good source of inspiration as well as a good read.

Come spring, when the veggie stand opens, I’ll buy whatever’s available and continue doing so until they close in late fall. During the winter months I’ll rely on imported produce. I’m just not willing to give up a variety of fruit (especially citrus fruits) and green salads for 4 to 5 months. It’s a compromise I’m willing to make and still feel good about.