My name is Jon, and I spend much of my time in the kitchen, planning and preparing (almost always) delicious local meals. That time in the kitchen make me feel that I am a kitchener, but not a cook. My family and I buy local (100-miles) as much as we can. This means all produce and meat, as many grains as we can find locally, and anything else possible too! Not everything is grown here and I’m not a purist like the inspiring authors of the 100-Mile Diet, but I feel like most of what my family and I eat is produced in the 100-mile radius where we live. We live in Kitchener, Ontario, just over an hour from Toronto, about an hour-and-a-half from the Niagara area, and surrounded by beautiful farmland in almost every direction. It is a wonderful place to live!
I am 30 years old, but this will change. I am beginning to lose my hair, and I believe this will continue until it has run its course.
I have two young children, both boys, both full of energy, and this most likely will not change (although the number could).
I have a wonderful wife, and know that I am very lucky – that will not change.
I am a teacher by training (7+ years, does that make me a veteran yet?) but currently stay at home because I am an immigrant in this northern land and cannot (legally) work until I get residency. But even when/if I get residency I may not go back to work quite yet as there is plenty of work to be done here at home as The Kitchener and plenty of wonderful times to be had with these two boys of mine.
My favorite things to cook are bread and pizza. I may also add beer to that short list; it seems I have quite the interest in yeast and its potential to help create wonderful things in my kitchen. 100% local bread and pizza are possible in my kitchen, is beer? I hope to soon find out.
I like to be silly. I like to be serious too, but it seems most of the time I prefer to be silly. For some reason this quality in me does not always manifest itself in public. But sometimes it does. It just depends on my mood I guess. I haven’t felt too silly on the blog yet… but maybe in time….
The Local Kitchener 
Where are you from?
My husband wasn’t able to work for a period of time until he got his greencard in the US. 🙂
Hey, I’m from the US but my wife is from Canada and we moved here in January for a new job for her. I’m still waiting on my residency here…. but it’s given me an opportunity to spend time doing other great things so I’m pretty happy about how it’s all working out!
Awesome!
Interesting! 🙂
We live in Ohio, so we’re very close to Ontario. I hope everything works out for you guys. 🙂
Thank you for visiting my blog, liking my posts, promoting my soup and for being a neighbour. I really appreciate. I’m glad your favourites are bread and pizza, I shall be getting recipes from The Local Kitchener. Best wishes!
Hey thanks! It’s great finding neighbours out here in bloglandia! I’ll I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of each other 🙂
Love your blog Jon! Gorgeous wholesome recipes and heaps of inspiration! I really wish I had a proper garden. I have a few planter boxes out on my tiny balcony but I yearn for the day when I can enjoy a full veggie garden and some chickens… perhaps some fruit trees for good measure! Anyway, I’m loving your recipes and photos. Thanks!
Thanks, Laura! Having a garden is great, but sometimes it’s nice not to have one too, like a pet, you always have to get someone to take care of it when you go away! And yes to the chickens, I look forward to that day too! (Sadly we left ours when we moved here, at least they are in a good home with a friend in Atlanta). Anyways, thank you for stopping by and saying hello 🙂
Haha… yes, a very apt comment, as I’m looking after my mother’s garden for two months while she’s gallivanting around Europe! 🙂 Sorry you had to leave your chickens behind. Ah, maybe one day we’ll both have fresh eggs daily 🙂 Thanks for your kind reply.
Amazing blog!
Hello American in Kitchener! An American in Hamilton sends regards 🙂 I like your blog and I look forward to reading you more in the future.
I’ve nominated you for a Liebster award. Check it out: http://www.foodretro.com/?p=8611
Awesome, thank you, Food Retro! This is very flattering and I’m grateful for the recognition and shout out! I’ll enjoy responding to your questions 🙂 And it’s very great to meet another American in Canada!
Hi Jon, thanks for the visit and your kind comments! Great name for your blog. I already found some yummy things I plan to make in your gluten-free section 🙂
Hi Jill. Thank you and you’re welcome!
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You have been nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award! By me! Check it out here,
http://thenovicegardener.wordpress.com/2013/08/19/spreading-the-love-around/
Hi Jon,
We watched the 100 mile diet and realized while we do try to eat some things locally and in season, it would be very hard for us to do that all year round. There are also certain things that just don’t grow around here that we like (tea or pineapples for example).
Do you get up to the St. Jacobs market for some of your shopping? I haven’t been there in quite a few years, but we’re thinking about making a day trip out that way. My hubby’s not very familiar with that area, so I thought I’d also show him Fergus, Elora and maybe Guelph too. Are you liking the area? I read you just moved up there from the US earlier this year…
Anyway, take care… off to read your most recent meal plan.
Hi Tina,
Yes, we do go to St. Jacobs, but more often the Kitchener Market or Bailey’s Local Foods. In terms of eating local we still eat non-local products (my youngest son is obsessed with bananas) but we try to always stick to fair trade and organic (thus the bananas are more expensive…). Another example, we get our coffee from my father-in-law who imports it directly from a grower in Uganda who he visits as part of an intentional relationship in which he sees to it the farmer is making a fair living wage and then distributes the coffee to various churches and individuals in his community.
Ultimately eating local for us is about supporting our local economy and farmers and not contributing to a globalized supply chain that emphasizes price and convenience over what’s good for the Earth. We don’t eat much of anything from California anymore and in the winter we enjoy waiting for our favourite spring veggies to arrive! The flow of the seasons is part of our life and we love experiencing it all (although just tonight I got overwhelmed looking at the oodles of peaches and tomatoes that I have to finish canning…. So yes, it’s a challenge and a big commitment but we like doing it and it’s part of our life now.
And yes, we love it here. We miss our friends in Atlanta but have had such a good time living here now and are very happy. We haven’t checked out Fergus yet but the Elora Gorge was beautiful when we went there in the spring.
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Neighbour Pleased to ‘meet’ you! I am always happy to find another local food blogger.
Yay! It is great to know there are others nearby doing this too!
Hi Jon,
I have some great recipes I’d love to share with you. Do you have an email address I could send them to?
Cheers,
Ashley
Sure, it’s LocalKitchener@gmail.com. I’m looking forward to them, thanks!
Hi Jon! Thanks for visiting my site and liking my posting on melamine dinnerware. I’m looking forward to exploring your site further and hope we can share some great recipes and promote local and sustainable living. Forget about the hair–hair is overrated!