She knows...

So I have been reading a most fabulous book, Farm City, about a woman who starts a small farm in an abandoned lot near her apartment in the city of Oakland, CA. She starts off growing fruits and vegetables and raising bees and chickens. She then branches out to raise ducks, geese, turkeys, rabbits and pigs. She shares the bounty with her neighbors and even attempts for an entire month to live off of food from within 100 yards (she even gives up coffee!). While reading today,  I came across a most humorous passage that rang true to the spirit of our blog. Although not a recipe, I hope this will bring a chuckle and perhaps entice you to read this witty informative little story.


"I suppose I could come up with some lofty reasons for what had gotten me here, to a swine auction in Boonville. To discover the American tradition of pig raising. To test my farmerly resolve in the face of an intelligent, possibly adoring creature like Wilbur in Charlotte's Web. To walk in the footsteps of my hippie parents, who raised a few hogs in their day.

But I'm not going to lie:  this was all about pork.

From the moment I first saw the flyer for the swine auction I had thought about all the products of the pig. Smoked pork chops, which Bill and I loved to buy from the Mexi-mart. Pork ribs, slathered in spicy barbecue sauce. Bacon, that temptress, which we preferred cut thick and spiked with pepper. Ground pork, to be used in marinara sauce, or clustered on pizzas, or rolled in sage and fried for breakfast. Sausages, glorious food that feeds the masses, I imagined snuggled in buns, doused in mustard, and served to all our friends at a barbecue. Ham, of course, smeared in maple syrup and spiked with cloves, was part of my pork daydream. I would be able to make all of these things if I could find a way to raise some pigs. There were other more exotic items I fantasized about as well, like salami and prosciutto. But these were intimidating pork products; I wasn't sure what went into making these, but I knew they were expensive and I liked eating them. I knew that before I got too carried away with my pork-fest fantasies, I had to take the first step:  buy a piglet. "

-Novella Carpenter
Farm City- The Education of an Urban Farmer