The Rocky Mountains Ark of Taste Project: A Food Journey Across the American Frontier

It’s been said that home is where the heart is. It’s also been said that the best way to a person’s heart is through their stomach. These are both true statements. Growing up in New Mexico, food was a way of life for me. Cooking defines New Mexican families. Some of my best memories are of shared meals with friends and relatives. Therefore, home is a place with strong food traditions. Home has my favorite restaurants. Home is where my heart and stomach are. So one can imagine my trepidation as I packed up my things and moved to start a new life in Denver. Only 560 miles apart, I was worried that they would be worlds away as far as food is concerned.

However, I now have the chance to get involved with the Ark of Taste Project. The good folks at Slow Food Denver have given me the opportunity to explore my new home, find incredible food in Colorado and connect with this beautiful state.

With an open mind, I forge ahead, looking for foodways and ingredients that call the Rocky Mountains home. I have grand visions of road trips to the western slopes and eastern plains. I will explore farmers markets and local corner stores. I will talk to butchers, ranchers, farmers, gardeners, herbalists, and natives. I will eat in small town diners, roadside cafes and urban hangouts. Hopefully, I will partake in picnics, backyard barbeques and Sunday dinners. Maybe, I will even be invited into someone’s home for a meal.

I hope you will come along with me. I don’t know what I’ll find or what I’ll learn along the way. But I do know one thing…my belly will be full of delicious Rocky Mountain food. I hope my bicycle didn’t get lost in the move. I will need it to stay in shape.

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Recent Posts

Announcing the Snail Trail!

Slow Food Denver is excited to announce the launch of the Snail Trail. It is a dining passport that will take you on an eating adventure with coupons from a dozen of Denver’s restaurants & food organizations that are aligned with our Chapter’s efforts for good,...

Learning with Lil’ Sprouts: Pasta Salad

Learning with Lil' Sprouts: Pasta Salad    How best to keep a dozen kids grades K-4 engaged in a cooking class? I ask myself this as I start my first semester teaching two classes with Lil’ Sprouts. The answer, it turns out, is not to plan a class around all the...

At Home Soil Conservation

At Home Soil Conservation  The use of fertile land for crops is essential for our society. However, a report on agriculture notes that US soil is seeing high soil degradation and a drop in soil fertility. To make up for this loss, farmers use fertilizers containing...

Learning with Lil’ Sprouts: Homemade Dressing and Salad

Learning with Lil' Sprouts: Homemade Dressing and Salad   I don’t like salad! is the first response of most students when I tell them we are making a dressing and salad for cooking class.  You don’t have to like it, but you may have fun making one I tell them....

Fall Recipe: Swedish Apple Cake

Fall Recipe: Swedish Apple Cake One of my favorite things about fall, without a doubt, is the food. The scents, tastes, and memories that surround autumn dishes always make me look forward to the cooler weather and falling leaves. One recipe that has been a staple...

Combatting College Food Waste

Combatting College Food Waste Since moving away for college, and having to buy ingredients and cook food on my own, I’ve become very aware of how fast my food sours, spoils or even sprouts. I’ve found that when purchasing produce to make meals for one person, I have a...