Why buy food that comes from all over the world, when you can enjoy the delicious bounty of the Fraser Valley?

That’s a question Peninsula resident Jennifer Reed is asking a lot these days.

As a member of the South Surrey/White Rock Food Action Coalition (FAC), Reed is working hard to promote the group’s three pillars: improving nutritional health, decreasing hunger and promoting local food sustainability.

“It’s really about taking care of your own communities,” Reed said. “There’s a lot of emphasis on international efforts when it comes to food security and hunger, but economically these things are also important for the local community.”

Reed’s involvement with food security and nutrition began when she worked at Capers in Vancouver and became interested in learning more about healthy eating. She enrolled in a one-year program at the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition and earned the designation of registered holistic nutritionist.

She said the process of learning about nutrition, where food actually comes from and the importance of eating local food opened her eyes to how much of an impact our food choices can have – locally and on a larger scale.

“I never really thought about it before, how it all plays back into the environmental side of things,” she said.

She’s now more aware of where her foods come from and tries to only buy produce grown within the Fraser Valley. In addition to cooking with whole foods and using nutrient-rich ingredients, she’s also adjusted what she prepares based on what’s in season.

“I find that I’m modifying what I’m cooking to suit what’s in season,” she said. “Right now, we’re having blueberries on everything.”

The FAC is a part of the Fraser Valley Food Network, and consists of a variety of organizations, agencies, groups and individuals from the White Rock/South Surrey community. For more information, visit their website at www.fraservalleyfoodnetwork.com

Chocolate sweet potato cookies

Ingredients:  

2-3 cups of peeled & boiled sweet potatoes or yams

½ cup softened butter

¼ cup 100% pure maple syrup

1 egg

½ tsp sea salt

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1 ½ cups of whole wheat or kamut flour

¼ cup raisins or dried cranberries (unsulfered)

¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

¼ cup chopped pecans or almonds

Instructions:  

Place all ingredients except nuts, raisins, cranberries and chocolate chips in a food processor or mixer and mix well until smooth.

Transfer into a bowl and fold in nuts and raisins/cranberries. Once potato mix has slightly cooled, add chocolate chips.

Form into walnut-sized balls and place onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 minutes. After five minutes in the oven, press down on cookies lightly with a fork. Let cool, store in refrigerator.

Makes approximately 18 cookies.