I read about Soup Swaps here on EcoSalon and I fell in love with the idea. Then I realized, I’d already been involved in one: a D.I.Y. Food Swap. A friend of mine is a nutritionist and with the arrival of a new baby, she is particularly interested in eating healthy food. She suggested that we swap some items from our D.I.Y. pantries. I received homemade organic chicken stock that she had made from Prather Ranch chicken in exchange for organic farmers’ market tomatoes I’d canned. We’ve also discussed exchanging homemade granola and fig jam.

This type of trading is perfect – and perfect for the holidays and their abundance. Because I’d spent so much time canning tomatoes, I hadn’t had time to make any stock. But now my pantry was looking better, and we were both feeling healthy and resting easy knowing that our kitchen food supplies came from local, organic sources. Plus, it tastes so much better. I cooked up some dried cannellini beans using the chicken stock that were out of this world. I’m sure in large part my pleasure eating those beans was knowing my friend was a part of the process.

As suggested in the soup swapping guide, it’s not so much about the soup – it’s about forming a community through homemade food. I highly recommend a D.I.Y. Food Swap, as a natural extension of the soup swap idea.

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