Images & Wis Public Television
Yesterday I added several images to the Gallery page of this site. Most of the images are shots of various wild edibles gathered while foraging, although in the coming days and weeks I intend to add more shots of food and other related subjects. We also changed the viewing format from a slide-show to one where the page displays a grid of thumbnail images that you can enlarge by clicking on a specific image. The enlarged image will appear in a lightbox, from where you then can scroll through more images by clicking the arrows on either side or by simply clicking the image to move you forward. Mousing over the enlarged image will also activate a description at the bottom of the image.
Also, last week we mailed our Creative Sustenance program proposal to Wisconsin Public Television. The WPT Program Proposal forms asked several questions, including asking for a show description, how it complies with WPT's mission, what viewers might get out of it, and so on. I thought I'd share with you a portion of the answers we gave, condensed, below:
Creative Sustenance is a video and multimedia project that takes viewers into the fields and forests, rivers and lakes, backyards and alleyways of Wisconsin and the Midwest to discover our region's abundant and diverse wild edibles. Our main focus will be on foraging and preparing wild vegetables and fruits (nettles, ramps, mustards, milkweed, docks, nuts, berries, etc.). Our state is blessed with a plethora of delicious wild plants, although we will also pursue the occasional under-appreciated protein source with episodes featuring animals such as turtles, frogs, possum, beaver, and even insects.
We will follow up the "in the field" portion of the program with an "in the kitchen" section, where we'll show some ways to prepare for the table what we've harvested from the field. The kitchen segment will feature either myself as chef or, in some cases, other restaurant chefs who make use of wild edibles in their menus.
Creative Sustenance is both an educational and entertaining program. Viewers will learn that there is a cornucopia of wonderful and nutritious food not too far from and oftentimes right outside their own back doors. The program will certainly enhance and enrich viewers' understanding of and appreciation for many of our region's hidden food treasures. It will also educate them on how they may take good and ethical advantage of these wild food resources in their own homes by creating delicious meals that use wild edibles, thereby further enhancing their personal connection with our region's flora and fauna.
We're in the midst of a food revolution in this country, from urban poultry and beekeeping to a significant increase in people growing gardens again and more and more restaurants using wild edibles in their menus. Creative Sustenance speaks directly to that growing interest.
Wish us luck!