July and Foodie Penpals Reveal Day!

The heat wave has really taken it's toll on the garden this month. My patty pan squash plants are all but dead. I think I have had about 10 squash all in all.  The winter squash plants are still flowering, even while they are dying. No signs of any fruit forming at all. It's very sad. The tomatoes are all ripening, while the leaves turn brown and we're only half way through the summer. You'd think I didn't stand out there every evening, watering, but I do. I guess there's only so much you can do in this type of weather.

In good news, the beets, chard, cos lettuce, leeks, sage, chile peppers, thai basil and other herbs are mostly thriving. I picked myself a mess of beets and greens last night for dinner. It was about time I got back to eating something nutritious, after spending a weekend in Collingwood at the Elvis festival. Mom made egg salad, potato salad, and....well, more potato salad. LOL. Staples of an Ontario summer. I did manage to mix a bit of fresh corn and sweet potato in there, amongst all the mayonaise. ;)

So, that brings us to today! Look what I received in the mail recently from Kristy at Gastronomical Sovereignty:

It was like Christmas in July! Such a beautiful parcel, all cushioned in red tissue paper, and numbered so I could refer to the list in her note. So nice to communicate with a fellow Jamie Oliver supporter! :)

Present #1

This beautiful package of rice with curry spices and raisins excited me beyond belief! I love it! Why didn't I think of it? I wish my farmer's market sold it!  What a novel idea.  Kristy described it as her farmers market's version of fast food.  LOL.  I like that.

 

Presents #2 & #3

An exotic chocolate frog!  And some local sea salts flavoured with rosemary.  I can't wait to try both of these!

Present #4

These cool sauces and dips are locally made as well.  I plan to dig into them this week.  They are right up my alley and will make a wonderful accompaniment to many meals to come!

Thanks so much to Kristy for all the wonderful things she sent me.  If you haven't checked out her blog yet, you should.  She runs a great little project called the Wednesday Fresh Foods Blog Hop that I have participated in on occasion.  ;)

 If you want to see what I sent to Taryn, check out her blog, The Arts Tea!  If you want to know more about how to become a Foodie Penpal, read on.....

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.

-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!

-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)

-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.

-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for August, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

You must submit your information by August 4th as pairings will be emailed on August 5th! You will receive a confirmation email within 24 hours if you sign up. IF YOU DON’T GET ONE, send Lindsay an email!