Your foodie friend who cares about the environment

It's birthday time for that foodie friend of yours, or maybe it's your mother-in-law or spouse. In any case, this is the friend who is on a first name basis with all the organic farmers at the market and would be raising chickens if coops could be constructed on fire escapes. What is a good present to show that you support his/her convictions and to snag you a dinner invite in the near future? Here are a couple ideas:

SodaStream Penguin Water Carbonator at Williams Sonoma. I happened to be the lucky recipient of one of these babies last Christmas and let me just say that the carbonated fun never stops in our home. Just fill a bottle with filtered tap water and adjust the level of carbonation to your preferences (from lightly bubbled like Pellegrino to fizzy like soda water). It has a fairly small footprint on your countertop, and it uses glass bottles that look perfectly appropriate on even the most well set table. Let your friend enjoy bubbly water to her heart's content without all the wasteful bottles.

Photo: Roberto Falck Photography for Stone Barns Farm

How about giving the fun of a working farm, without all the, well, work? If your friend happens to live in the general vicinity of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture (it's just a quick train ride or drive from New York City), consider giving a membership. Members receive discounts on Farm Store purchases and on program registrations, as well as invitations to all sorts of special events and priority registration for the annual Harvest Fest. There are farms like this across the country. Even if you live elsewhere, with a little googling you should be able to find a fantastic farm that holds events and offers membership benefits.

Looking for a fun, but inexpensive option? Plan a date to check out your local Botanical Garden with your friend. The New York Botanical Garden happens to be featuring The Edible Garden: Growing and Preparing Good Food through October 17, which means there are loads of foodie events featuring phenomenal chefs and outstanding cooking demonstrations for bargain prices. Seek inspiration for the first part of the day and then hit up your green market for the goods you need to cook up a feast.

Comments

[Pretty Mommy]

OOOHH!! I want a water fizzy thing! Never knew it existed and now need one desperately!