Adding Some Spice to Life

This article is a little different than most of my posts.  I want to share with you a recent experience.  Four adventurers, Debbie, myself and another couple, set out for an excursion this past weekend.  We had heard about a Garlic Festival, it was a nice day to be out and we like cooking with a little garlic powder, roasting garlic for bread or sprinkling some granulated garlic on pizza.  We figured a chance to get some fresh air and hang out, eat a little, sounds simple.  OK, expectations were not set to high.

I guess this falls under the do not judge a book by its cover.  We do this when we meet people.  Sometimes, we have preconceived notions before we step into a situation.  How often do we take the time to learn before we do something?  The festival could have been a handful of booths, a tiny stage for speakers and music and a couple of food trucks.  Boy, were we WAY OFF!  This was a huge event with LOTS of vendors. By stopping and paying attention, we learned that there are over 350+ named garlics, categorized into 10 varieties that were determined via a Federal grant of $65K.  In case of a garlic disaster, the government has four locations where they store seeds to replenish the garlic population.  And there are endless ways to use garlic (think usages like the peanut).

There was no need to look for food trucks (plenty of food vendors).  The best part was all of the samples.  Who would have known?  Some of the things we tasted:

• Garlic Powder
• Garlic Jelly
• Garlic Honey
• Garlic Sauces
• Garlic Knots
• Garlic Fudge
• Garlic Dips
• Garlic Ice Cream
• Garlic Popcorn
• Garlic Drinks
• Raw Garlic on a Cracker
• Garlic on a Stick
• Garlic Pickle
• Pickled Garlic
• Garlic Vinegar
• Garlic Pesto
• Garlic Cookies
• Garlic and Herb Bread
• Garlic Shots

Four and a half hours later, we were well educated, quite full and surrounded by the aura (OK, probably more like aroma) of garlic.  It was great to be doing something different, having a fun afternoon and an opportunity to learn more about the Allium Sativum.  Here’s to garlic!