The buttons

This was one way that we thought we could introduce the idea (or at least the word) of HOMEGROWN to people in New York City. Serendipitously, I got hooked up with Mia at The Green Apple Festival (look it up – good stuff). Mia is a punk rock girl from back in the day. She dropped the name of my favorite band within the first few minutes of meeting (The Melvins), we like the same heavy metal bands, too, so I think she’s aces.
Anyway, Mia had a list of volunteers in the New York area who could help us spread the word, so we put together a plan for folks to go to the Green Markets in Union Square, Park Slope, and Montclair, NJ. “Ask them a few questions,” I told them. “Like ‘why do you come to the market’? And ‘What does HOMEGROWN mean to you?’ ”.
As a reward, we wanted to give these wonderful people something fun to take with them. Something to express that they are HOMEGROWN and proud.

How are you HOMEGROWN and proud?

"I wrote a song about my girlfriend's pancakes"

I want to hang out with this guy. I can just picture him…Eyes that crinkle like soft leather when he laughs…a row of white, yet slightly crooked teeth...a guy who writes songs about his woman’s pancakes. He might play the guitar while sitting on his porch in – Chapel Hill? Bend, OR?, Brooklyn, maybe…
He didn’t just write a song about pancakes, he wrote a song about the blissful warmth that comes from a labor of love. He knows that it’s not just the fresh brown eggs and organic stone-ground flour that makes those pancakes so good. It’s the love and care of his girlfriend that makes them song-worthy.
I express my love through cooking – do you? My pilgrimage to the farmers market every week is my way of connecting to the earth and cooking connects me to those I love. At the market, I thoughtfully walk from tent to tent, composing a symphony of dishes. One thing I learned from my preacher mother (the best cook I know): Sometimes I don’t know how it will all come together, but I have faith that I’ll be guided by some divine culinary communique.