Crowd Funding for Quilter's Comfort Markets Launched

On March 14th, 2013, after many starts and stops due to computer and data related issues, Quilter's Comfort launched its first crowd funding campaign on Indiegogo. The Morning Comfort Market and the Thursday Evening Farmers Markets are a collaboration of Patricia's Wellness Arts Cafe & Quilter's Comfort Teas and Local Food Bloomington.

The most commonly asked question about this project is "Why"? The answer is really very simple. As a start up business, Patricia's Wellness Arts Cafe & Quilter's Comfort Teas wants to attract more customers. More customers mean potentially more sales. More sales means that the shop will keep there doors open.

In a time of so much flux, we think it important to have many small, locally owned businesses open, and flourishing; because the owners of these businesses live in this community, and spend the bulk of their resources in this community. If larger stores are not making their bottom lines, they tend to leave the community, whereas smaller businesses look for means to stay local keeping their homes and businesses in tact.


Click Here to see the Video


Thanks for reading and check out the Market Crowd Funding Campaign. It will only happen at this time through a successful campaign! Help increase opportunities for more local food!

Whole Foods Market Announces It Will Label All GMO Foods

Great Hot News!

Whole Foods Market, the nation’s leading supermarket chain focused on organic and natural foods, has announced that it will begin labeling all products containing genetically modified ingredients throughout its U.S. and Canadian locations by 2018.

This moves makes Whole Foods the first national grocery chain to set such a deadline and commit to total transparency on the prevalence of genetically modified ingredients.

“We are putting a stake in the ground on GMO labeling to support the consumer’s right to know,” said Walter Robb, co-CEO of Whole Foods Market, in a press release. “The prevalence of GMOs in the U.S. paired with nonexistent mandatory labeling makes it very difficult for retailers to source non-GMO options and for consumers to choose non-GMO products. Accordingly, we are stepping up our support of certified organic agriculture, where GMOs are not allowed, and we are working together with our supplier partners to grow our non-GMO supply chain to ensure we can continue to provide these choices in the future.”

Whole Foods came under scrutiny last year for its slow commitment to support California’s Proposition 37, which would have made it the first state to require labeling of genetically modified foods had it not lost by a narrow margin last November. The retailer came under attack in 2011 when an investigation found genetically modified ingredients in its private-label cereal brands. And it was also targeted last year by the faceless organization, Organic Spies, in undercover video encounters that showed an overwhelming number of Whole Foods employees (in California) who were misinformed about genetically modified ingredients, particularly when it came to whether or not Whole Foods Market actually carried foods containing GMOs.

Click Here to continue article on the Organic Authority website.

March 8th, 2013 - Jill Ettinger - Organic Authority

Image from Whole Food Market

This has been a beautiful cold and slightly frustrating day. Even as I am displeased that the server crashed for my largest website, Green Dove, the one that offers Local Food Bloomington, I know that it will be resolved. Still I am having to work at not feeling uncomfortable about what is on line at the moment. Visitors will see text, maybe some images and some pages are simply blank! If you visit any of the pages,you will see what I mean.

That said, the following images is an example of one of the Savory-Vegi Scones


March is the month we celebrate WOMEN'S HISTORY and Abilities; at the First Friday opening table in the Wellness Arts Gallery, 725 West Kirkwood Avenue of my café in Bloomington, we shared a taste of some of my favorite heritage foods, sweet potatoes, kale, onions and garlic in soup and scones.

Stop by first Friday in April and join the herbal food fun.


We enjoyed

Sweet Potato Kale soup - I love it for the different textures and taste. It is packed full of nutrients and great taste. Most likely I will include garlic, as I rarely cook without it. A variety of homegrown herbs, dried in the autumn and having great fragrance and taste, I am enjoying the new taste imparted to my foods when bringing turmeric and cumin into the mix. Any veggies or mushrooms I have on hand will be considered for how well they support sweet potato and kale. With every soup I make begins with a clear idea of its foundation, once that is established, things develop based on what I find in the cabinets and the mood I am in at that particular time.

Eclairs always remind me of my mother. Only she would purchase hers from a bakery. There were a lot more bakeries when I was growing up. There were a lot more, small neighborhood shops and the mobile Ice Cream Man. My éclairs are made from an altered puff pastry recipe, of certified organic grains of whole wheat, whole wheat pastry and brown rice flour. The filling may be a jelly, rice cream or any favorite cream recipe. For sweetner I mostly use honey, and for milk, it is either Almond or Coconut.

Vegi-Scones are savory vegetable and bean pastry made using a variety of certified organic grains including whole wheat, brown rice flour, bean flours, other traditional grains, non-alliuminum baking, local eggs Lacinato Kale (some call it Dinosaur Kale because of its appearance), onions, garlic, herbs, celery and carrot.

Chocolate Fondu made with fine chocolate to dip fresh fruits and cheeses.

Assorted Quilter's Comfort Gourmet Jellies as usual were available for sampling. Jellies were Player's Pub's Bluesy Green with Cranberry, Carob Chamomile Mint SRTONG Coffee with ground cacao nibs, Chocolate Chamomile Mint SRTONG Coffee with ground cacao nibs, Ruby Bloom Amber Herbal Beer Jelly, Rose Petal Rose Wine Jelly and Strong Coffee Jelly.

Cucumber Sandwiches of whole wheat bread spread with cream cheese, topped with a slice of cucumber and a dollop of Everything Dip.

Everything Dip a combination of plain yogurt with our L.A.O. Everything Seasoning available to spread on savory scones, top our Cucumber Sandwiches, and for dipping veggies, etc.

Hot Tea was Assam Morning, Quilter’s Comfort’s first black tea herbal blend, a mixture of Assam, Red Raspberry Leaves, Elderberries, Red Clover, Elderberries, Sage, Basil, and Nettles and our much appreciated I LOVE Me Tea, a blend of Red Raspberry Leaf, Lemon Balm, Rose Petals, Strawberry Leaf, Hyssop and Thyme.

I have been doing some parallel work with Local Food and learned that links to my sight from search engines are generating a 404 Code. I've contacted my host and hope the problem is resolved very soon. I apologize to any of you who have been trying to access resources on Local Food.




The picture above is of Eclairs prepared for First Friday in Patricia's Wellness Arts Cafe. They were filled with Rose Petal, Rose Petal Wine Jam and Chocolate Chamomile Ginger Mint STRONG Coffee Jam. If in the area, stop in some first Friday to enjoy some herbal tasting. If interested in the menue, check out the cafe page.

Thanks for reading!