sSimple, Local Gifts

With the likelihood of a recall election approaching and the 2012 presidential election not far behind, voting is on the forefront of many minds. No matter what your political persuasion, I want to convince you of an alternative candidate that deserves careful consideration, something that you vote for on a monthly, weekly and daily basis: your food and how it is produced.

I’m an advocate of buying locally and organic whenever possible. That said, my family is on a tight budget, and sometimes it is challenging. Putting chemical-free, super-fresh, whole foods on my family’s table is a priority, but we have had to make changes that allow us to do this more often.

Basically, my approach is to grow and preserve as much of my own food as possible, eat meat less often, and purchase fewer processed foods.

Hormone-free, chemical-free, and antibiotic-free fare is my choice and my vote, and the more votes these foods and conscientious producers get, the more affordable and available they will become.

But now I turn to what I consider an indulgence, but a worthwhile one: locally-sourced and -produced value-added products. The official definition of this may sound contradictory to my previous statements, but stay with me: a value-added product is an agricultural product that has increased in value due to processing.

I’m not talking about items with indecipherable ingredients. I’m talking about products that are produced by local artisans who care about the quality of their products. Think specialty cheeses, preserves and pickles.

While my budget doesn’t always allow me to make these amazing goods a part of my daily habit, I like to support these hard-working entrepreneurs. Over the holidays, a friend showed me a great way to do this.

Instead of giving away cookies or bottles of wine for holiday gifts, she and her husband put together a goodie basket of their very favorite local products. They included information about each producer, and why they enjoyed them so much.

Here’s what was included:

Stella’s Bakery, bakery white bread

Hook’s 5 year cheddar

Gentle Breeze spun honey

Murphy’s Farm fresh salsa

Gail Ambrosius chocolates

Brilliant! They supported local artisans and introduced their friends to some delicious foods, using dollars they would have otherwise used to purchase gifts. If you are not able to make these wonderful foods a part of your life every day, you can still spoil your friends, and perhaps they will return the favor.

Here are some additional ideas, but there are many, many wonderful small companies that I’m not mentioning here. Check out your local farmers market and local natural foods store for more.

New mom gift:
Hidden Springs Creamery Lavendar and Honey Driftless soft cheese

Yumbutter’s Dark Chocolate Delishe

Potter’s Crackers Hazelnut Grahams

Get well gift:
Powerkraut’s Kim Chi

Tomato Moutain’s Roasted Tomato Soup with Shallots

Madison Sourdough’s Rustic Baguette

Host/Hostess gift
Old Sugar Distillery’s Honey Liqueur

Friend’s birthday:
Quince and Apple’s Pear with Honey and Ginger preserves

Uplands Cheese Pleasant Ridge Reserve

DB Infusion Chocolate’s Infusion Bar #6

What are some of your favorite local producers that are gift-worthy? Please share in the comments!( Note: These are products I’ve tried and enjoyed. No one requested or paid to be mentioned here.)