Food. What do you think of when you read that word? For my two children, food means very different things: for one it means a chance to get involved in cooking, and for the other it’s a love for food, whatever is being served. For me the connotation of the word food has evolved substantially over the years.
For most of my early life, I was largely unconscious when it came to food, eating or not eating whatever was in front of me based purely on taste. Then, over the years, I became more immersed in the nutrition of food. Growing up we always ate well, but we likely just ate too much. I guess with age you begin to have a closer relationship with food and become more present with your choices and how they affects your health.
Being connected to your food – celebrating it, knowing it and choosing it deliberately – is surely the first and essential step to being connected to your life. But “food” offers more than just sustenance. Eating and having a relationship with food is the one thing we all have in common, and the food we enjoy and share with others creates connection between people.
It’s in this spirit that Seaside Magazine is so excited to showcase our first Al Fresco Dinner (pg. 12). It was a beautiful evening in August hosted at Snowdon House Gourmet & Gifts and as you’ll read, the menu Laura dished up was absolutely exquisite.
In this issue of Seaside we celebrate food, from discussions with Haliburton EcoFarm School on sustainable certified organic farming (pg 44) to shining a light on our local chefs in our Inside The Kitchen profiles. Those that make food their career tend to understand the importance of creating lasting food memories – most chefs hope the meals they craft stay with their clients for years to come.
Food nourishes us physically, but it also has a magic about it; sharing food creates a bubble in the hectic stream of life that helps us to pause and connect. Food is about connection on so many levels: it allows you the opportunity to connect to the people that grow your food; to connect to your community by shaping our ideas about food philosophy; and most importantly, it allows you to connect with others as you share it. I am sure everyone can remember a moment where time almost stood still because you got so wrapped up in the company of friends and loved ones in the act of sharing homemade food. That was our Al Fresco evening!
