Easter is upon us

We didn’t really know what we were going to do this Easter. Maybe we would stay home, go to the cabin, go to the city... We were waiting to hear back from my husband’s kids. So we didn’t really know what we were doing, but hey, we’re on vacation right now so no big deal. We’re flexible. We can go with the flow. Easter is not a huge event in our house but we do enjoy the opportunity to get together with family and share a meal. What is that meal? Well, typically a turkey or a ham or if there’s a lot of people, both. This year, it turns out we are staying home and people are coming to us and we are cooking a turkey.

Our family, like many families, are strong purveyors of tradition. At Easter, you eat turkey or ham. A lentil and spelt berry salad is probably not going to go over very well in this situation. And I’m not trying to change the world by being an ethical omnivore, I’m trying to change myself. So I wouldn’t dream of trying to serve up “hippie” food when mashed potatoes and gravy are the required side dishes.

This brings me to somewhat of a dilemma:
-Is it okay for me to consume unethical food that was purchased before I began being an ethical omnivore?
-Is it still okay for me to prepare food that is not ethical, even if I don’t plan to eat it?

I don’t have access to an ethically raised turkey for this celebration. Although, I’m working on it for future events. However, I do have 2 turkeys in the freezer that were acquired long before I ever decided to be an ethical omnivore. One I won in a draw at our local grocery store back at Thanksgiving. The other was a freebie that I got for spending over $250 at Superstore down in Whitehorse. 

As I mentioned in a previous post, I live in a pretty isolated place so I tend to stock up on food when I’m in the city. That extends to meat as well. Currently in my freezer in addition to the turkeys I have pork chops, ribs, chicken breast, bacon, shrimp, veal stock, moose lasagne (homemade but with commercially produced cheese). Also, in my pantry I have canned tuna, salmon, crab, beef and chicken broth, soups. What am I going to do with this stuff? Letting food go to waste seems like an even bigger insult to the poor animals that suffered to make this food.

I thought about donating the canned goods to the local food bank until my husband reminded me that he would be happy to use them up for me. I can’t donate perishable goods. I don’t really want to cook or consume these things if I can help it but if I don’t they will just get freezer burnt and thrown out. I am the principal cook in my house.

So, I have to suck it up and realize that I’m in a period of transition and that the transition time is going to last until I can rid my house of unethical products. I must not let this food go to waste. Whether I choose to eat the products or not, I can at least ensure that they do not go to waste. 

Easter dinner is starting to look like the last supper. Wasn’t the last supper when Jesus said good bye before going on to a different place, a better place? Easter is a celebration of his resurrection? Isn’t resurrection coming back from the dead or coming back to life? I hope I’m not being blasphemous but I can’t help but make the comparison of the story of Easter to my own life. In a sense, this Easter dinner will be like having a last dinner-that perhaps will include food that I will no longer eat in the future, saying good bye to my life as I know it, and embracing a better life. Kind of inspiring actually. 

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So... Easter dinner, which kind of sprang out of nowhere this year, ended up being a marvelous meal. What made it stand out in my mind was that the unethical food at the table were items that we already had in our possession.

Here was our menu:
Roast Turkey- As mentioned before, it was acquired prior to decision to become an ethical omnivore.
Gravy- Contained turkey drippings and veal stock (already in the freezer).
Mashed Potatoes- I had considered using vegetable stock and vegan butter to whip these up but I had a container of whipping cream in the fridge that was about to expire. I didn’t want to waste.  So in it went.
Stuffing- Contained butter-our last cup. It went to excellent use.
Steamed Broccoli and Carrots- Tossed in vegan butter.
Power Salad with Tahini Lemon Dressing- All vegan, all ethical! Maybe you can serve “hippie” food... It was quite popular.
Apple Blueberry Crisp with Ice Cream- The crisp was vegan. The ice cream was already in the freezer.

I took a moment to thank these animals and enjoyed the meal. This time next year Easter dinner will hopefully be 100% ethical. I am well on my way to cleansing my house from products that represent cruelty. I’ll post recipes for the Power Salad and Crisp at a later date. Happy Easter!